Skip to main content
Top Cabo San Lucas activities
Top Cabo San Lucas landmarks
Beyond Cabo San Lucas
Cabo San Lucas trip ideas

Cultural & Ecology, Nature & History of the hidden towns of Southern Baja!

Badge of Excellence
Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
  • 6 hours (approx.)
  • Pickup offered
  • Mobile ticket
  • Offered in: English

Explore our promoted experiences

Overview

Southern Baja's nature and way of life is on full display on this illuminating tour of four local villages. In Miraflores Village we'll visit horse saddlers and rustic furniture makers as they hone their crafts. The next stop is Santiago, a picturesque town on a fresh water lagoon oasis. Finally, we'll visit Buena Vista to see thermal hot springs and a historic hacienda as well as the fishing village of Barriles, to enjoy a delicious lunch.
  • Visit four unique villages of Southern Baja to get a unique and well rounded understanding of the region's way of life
  • See a historic mission, a fishing village, thermal waters, a historic hacienda, artisans at work and a fresh water lagoon oasis
  • Learn about the region's flora, fauna, culture and history
  • Enjoy a tasty lunch in Barriles

What's Included

  • Beverages
  • Lunch
  • All activities
  • Professional guide
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
  • Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Pickup details

We pick up our travellers at their hotel lobby and pick up time varies from Cabo's hotel zones as follow: San Jose del Cabo: 8:15 AM. Tourist Corridor: 8:30 AM. Cabo San Lucas: 8:45 AM.

Operating hours
.9:00 am

Itinerary

Baja California Sur (Pass By)

Additional Info

  • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
  • Not wheelchair accessible
  • Children must be accompanied by an adult
  • Stroller accessible
  • Infants must sit on laps
  • Infant seats available
  • Most travelers can participate
  • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 40 travelers
Supplied by

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)
Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)
Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)
Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)
Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Reviews

4.3
based on 39 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
We perform checks on reviews

It’s a no for me….

Jennifer_M, Feb 2026
Our guide was awesome but the excursion itself l was truly a waste of a day. We didn’t even see half the things that were listed on the excursion description, driving through the towns the only stops we made were for the bathroom, and look at one mission. The leather maker wasn’t even there so there was no demonstration of leather making, we didn’t see a thermal spring and we drove by a fishing village doing 50mph. Lunch was delish. But I could not have been more disappointed in the entire excursion especially with this costing $135 a person. I would not recommend. I spent my whole day on this tour and got 2 pictures, one of a stray cat (made the whole day worth it) and one of a church building.

Cabo Culture

Jason_Y, Dec 2025
We like to learn about the history and the culture of an area we visit. This activity was perfect. We were picked up from our hotel and driven hither and yon looking at the scenery and learning all about Cabo and the Baja peninsula. Mario, our driver and guide, was fantastic. He was personable and knowledgeable. I really appreciated the fact that we got off the beaten tourist track and got to learn about some of the industries in the area and the talented families that work them. Lunch was delicious and overall we are glad we took the time to learn about the area and its culture.

A Good View of Village Life in Rural Cabo

Deborah_A, Feb 2025
An honest view of village life. Our guide was knowledgeable and fun. Small group made the experience more enjoyable. Provided lunch was good.

Response from Host, Feb 2025

Hi, Thank you for sharing your comments, we are happy you enjoyed the tour. We hope to see you soon! Best,

An excellent and memorable day trip.

ALAN_H, Oct 2024
Carlos, our guide, did an outstanding job. He was very well versed in the history, geography and culture of southern Baja California. He was funny, personable and enjoyable company. Our stops in Miraflores and Santiago were very memorable. Our visit to the library in Miraflores included a very touching "Day of the Dead" altar with the family of the recently deceased woman being honored present. They were very kind and told us about her life and some of the history of Miraflores. We also visited an artisinal furniture maker and leather maker. Both were fascinating. Lunch in Los Bariles was great as well. Thanks Carlos for a great day.

Response from Host, Oct 2024

Hi, Thank you for sharing your comments with us, we are happy you enjoyed the tour and that Carlos did an outstanding job. We hope to see you soon! Best,

Great way to get a break for the sunburn!

Jean_W, Jul 2024
Our guide Uriel, was fun, knowledgeable, entertaining, and respectful which leads to our excellent rating. Definitely went to places we did not know about and may return to some of the no longer "hidden gems" on future visits.

Response from Host, Aug 2024

Hi, Thank you for sharing your experience with us, we are happy to know you enjoyed the tour and that Uriel took good care of you! We hope to see you soon! Juan B.

Nice trip.

Lee_R, Feb 2024
Enjoyable trip. Off the beaten path. Guide Mario did excellent job. I resent being REQUIRED to write 100 characters minimum.

Response from Host, Feb 2024

Thank you again for your review we truly appreciate your feedback and review ! Hope to see you again with Rancho Tours !

I would not do this tour again.

Shelley_K, May 2023
The trip was a good idea. But, the saddle company was not in working order, we only saw dried hides. No actual working of the leather. It would have been good to walk around Santiago town square. The lunch in Los Barriles was good. It would have been good to see downtown and walk around. The tour guide was great.

Response from Host, May 2023

Hi Shelley we thank you for your time and expressing your review to us. Unfortunately, the saddle company was not working at this time but we are happy you tour was great overall and your lunch was good as well. We will take all of your suggestions in consideration, and we hope you can enjoy another one of our tours in the future as we have many options and hope to see you again.

A fun and informative tour.

Linda_G, Mar 2023
It was fun and interesting to see areas tourists don’t normally see. Our guide, Juan, was wonderful. I would recommend this tour to others.

Response from Host, Mar 2023

Thank you for your booking and we are so happy you had great fun and your tour was informative . Hope to see you again with rancho tours

Well worth it.

Mary_F, Jan 2023
This day trip was perfect to get to see local villages and meet the people who live and work there. Time to shop and explore on your own. Our tour guide was great. We got to sample tequila from a local vendor, had a great lunch, visited a local furniture maker and so much more. Very glad we did this. It took all day, but was a lot of fun.

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Thank you very much for your review and taking the time to share your experience . We are so happy to hear when our customers say it was “ Perfect!” That is what we strive for and appreciate you ! Thank you once again and hope to see you again with Rancho Tours.

The operator cancelled on us.

Richard_K, Aug 2022
The operator canceled on us. They offered us other tours on other dates but we were booked with other VIATOR tours. We'll request a refund. Not nice to cancel on us on short notice.

Response from Host, Aug 2022

Hi Richard We are very sorry for the cancellation due to unforeseen reasons . We would be happy to give you a 10% on another tour when you return to Cabo San Lucas . We did provide the refund to you and provided other options . Again we apologize . Thank you

Enjoyable and educational.

Rene_H, Jun 2022
Seeing history and life for locals versus tourist and resorts was nice. Our guide, Vincente, was able to answer questions and point out facts and sites that added additional color to each town.

Tour with Vincent

Anna_L, Apr 2022
We had a tour with Vincent, who was very attentive, accommodating and knowledgeable about the tour as well as history of the country. We had our children with us, 17 and 11 years old - it was a great opportunity to see lives in other countries, for them. Lunch was in a family restaurant and food was very fresh and very tasty. Thank you for this opportunity.

Response from Host, Apr 2022

Hi Thank you for your review we appreciate your feedback and excellent comments ! We look forward to seeing you once again with Rancho Tours!!! Safe travels!

A very informative and enjoyable tour!

Angela_M, Sep 2021
Mario, out tour guide, was so friendly and knowledgeable! He shared a lot of interesting history and facts about everything from culture, to plants and animals. You name it, he knew it! He cared that we got to see the things that were important to us and my husband and I had a fantastic time! Would highly recommend this tour.

Response from Host, Sep 2021

Thank you for your review and Mario has much knowledge and experience in Cabo we our so happy it was fantastic time !! We hope to see you again with Rancho Tours. Thank you

Local life

Carol_M, May 2021
Mario was very informative and knowledgable. A good variety of experiences not found in most tours. Stopped at good out of the way the businesses including at lunch time! Let us stop places and stay as long as we wanted. Doubled back to return to an earlier stop. Very friendly guide.

Response from Host, May 2021

Thank you for your review we appreciate you taking the time to write us a review we love to hear back from customers so thanks again and hope to see you again in Cabo and with Rancho Tours! Thank you! Mercedes

Very Enjoyable Day In Los Cabos

Lewis_M, Dec 2018
The villages were great. Our guide: Juan was great. I particularly like the Oasis he took us to see. From the lookout it was just like in the movies and was the first one I had seen from a viewpoint. The natural hot well in Buena Vista was a surprise. It was interesting to see how it is being used by the Buena Vista hotel for its pools and tropical plants.

Excellent knowledgeable guide...

Erla_G, Jan 2018
Excellent knowledgeable guide. Highly interesting and very rural visits to a two person tannery, a small furniture making factory. Hot springs and excellent narration and humor the entire trip. Great lunch at a small fishing village. I would have liked to have spent more time in the fishing village to walk around after lunch and see the docks. However we had to get back for two cruise passengers. It might be better if they had not been encouraged to come on the tour but picked a shorter one.

We were disappointed in this tour...

Keith_A, Jan 2018
We were disappointed in this tour. The van was nice, The driver spoke his native language Spanish and had a heavy English accent. His communication with the group was difficult. We had one Spanish speaker on board. He drove very fast between the stops, including the area where livestock were next

From $136.00

per person

up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

Book ahead!
On average, this is booked 34 days in advance.

Compare Similar Experiences

1 / 3
Current
Cultural & Ecology, Nature & History of the hidden towns of Southern Baja!
6 hours
Free Cancellation
From
$136.00
Todos Santos Tequila Tasting and Cultural Tour
6 hours
Free Cancellation
From
$110.00
Balandra Beach Bliss Your Baja Day Adventure from Cabo
12 hours
Free Cancellation
From
$235.00

Customers Who Bought This Tour Also Bought

Explore Similar Things to Do
Attractions in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
More attractions near Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
Nearby Destinations
More Tours in Cabo San Lucas