5 Day Cabo San Lucas Mexico Itinerary (For The Adventurous)

Planning A 5 Day Trip To Cabo San Lucas, Mexico And Looking For An Adventurous Itinerary?

I’ve traveled to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico a couple of times and had some really exciting adventurous experiences here, so this is a 5 day itinerary I think any nature, wildlife, or ocean lover will enjoy!

🇲🇽 5 Day Cabo San Lucas, Mexico Itinerary

There is so much to do here, but a 5 day trip is a good amount to have some fun adventures.

When you visit during the peak wildlife months in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico (generally the best time to visit for marine life and weather anyways), you can have some really exciting adventurous experiences, so this itinerary will focus on visiting during these seasons (winter, spring, and early summer).

If you can’t go during these seasons, I think Cabo can still be worth visiting, but the weather may be a bit hot, rain can be more common, and not as much marine life will be around.

Day 1: Marine Life

During certain times of the year, the whale watching in Cabo, Mexico is fantastic.

Since the Cabo waters are so full of Marine Life during the winter and spring seasons (especially January, February, and March), spending a full day searching for these sea creatures is a must-add to any Cabo San Lucas, Mexico itinerary.

Unless you go far out away from Cabo, go on a deep sea fishing tour, or plan a scuba diving day, most whale watching tours will just be 2-3 hours so I recommend doing one in the early morning, and then another in the afternoon to get as many sighting chances as possible.

eat breakfast at your hotel or try The Outpost (one of Cabo’s many farm to table style restaurants)

go on a morning Whale Watching Tour with Whale Watch Cabo or Cabo Nature

walk around the Cabo marina, do a little shopping or just browsing

grab some Mexican style street tacos for lunch (my go to is Tacos Gardenias)

go back out on an afternoon Whale Watching Tour with Whale Watch Cabo or Cabo Nature

get some dinner in or near the Cabo San Lucas area (I love Talay for some delicious Thai food)

Day 2: Surfing

Adding a surf day to your Cabo San Lucas, Mexico itinerary is a must for adventurous people.

Cabo is typically a pretty good year round surf destination, but the waters can be a little dangerous here so I definitely recommend going on a guided tour, and I highly recommend going with Max’s company Good Trips Baja.

Some of the most popular and highly rated surf tours (not just 2 hour lessons) include:

Good Trips Baja – full day surf expedition with Max’s company

Surf In Cabo – half day surfari

Cabo Surf Tours – full day surf expedition

High Tide Los Cabos – full day surf lessons

➡️ Don’t forget that Mexico only allows reef-friendly sunscreen so it is safe for the ocean, safe for the animals, and safe for you

Day 3: Hiking

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico is a pretty mountainous/hilly area so there are some good hiking options you can add to your itinerary.

If you want to stay in town:

do the “Cabo Dog Hike” early in the morning
then check out the marina area more, grab some street tacos, or go on an Arch and Lovers Beach boat tour

or spend the full day on a hiking adventure:

Cabo San Lucas Waterfall Hike – find several hidden waterfalls out away from town

Sierra de la Laguna – hiking tour with stops to a local ranch and a natural spring

Hot Springs Hike – hiking tour in Los Cabos with both cold water river pools and natural hot springs

Fox Canyon – hiking tour with a waterfall

Natural Reserve & Farm – river hiking adventure in the Los Cabos area with lunch at a local family’s ranch

Todos Santos at Sunset – 7 hour day with transport from Cabo San Lucas to Todos Santos for this sunset hiking adventure

Day 4: Horseback Riding & San Jose del Cabo

Horseback riding is the more authentic thing to add to your Cabo San Lucas, Mexico itinerary.

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico has a lot of camel riding tours, but to me that just didn’t seem very authentically Mexican, so I preferred adding a horseback riding tour to my itinerary. Adding in a stop to San Jose del Cabo will feel even more like the real Mexico (compared to Cabo).

go on an early morning horseback riding tour (I highly recommend Cuadra San Francisco because they’re a family owned business that really cares about their animals and the quality of their tours)

get a reservation for a late lunch or early dinner over in San Jose del Cabo at Flora Farms or The Acre

if you’re visiting on a Thursday (during certain times of the year), spend the evening in San Jose at the weekly Art Walk to experience a little more of the real Mexico (compared to Cabo San Lucas)

Day 5: Sunrise Kayak, Snorkeling, & The Beach

Since the water isn't always safe here, there are better sports for kayaking in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

On your final day in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, I recommend adding in some beach time to your itinerary and possibly some water activities depending on the condition of the sea and the weather.

if you choose to stay at The Montage, go out on their complimentary sunrise kayak tour or try a kayaking/snorkeling combo tour

if you have your own snorkel gear or are staying at The Montage, get out in the water here at Santa Maria Bay and do some snorkeling

other than that, just spend the day relaxing at the beach here in Cabo

➡️ Because you’ll have all your luggage and taxis/Ubers might not be as safe, I recommend getting private airport transportation here in Cabo

🔁 Sum Up: 5 Day Cabo San Lucas, Mexico Itinerary

Although I could go to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico and spend weeks seeing and doing everything around this area, a 5 day trip is a good amount of time to experience some fun adventurous activities here and I think you’ll have plenty of options to add to your itinerary, especially if you visit during the peak marine life seasons.