Weekend Trip to Cabo – Part 1: Southwest Airlines Flight and Hilton Los Cabos Beach & Golf Resort

Buenos dias amigos!  After my short weekend trip to Cabo, I present my 2 part trip report.  In part 1, I discuss the Southwest Airlines flight from Orange County, CA (SNA) to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico (SJD) and my experience staying that the Hilton Los Cabos Beach & Golf Resort.  In Part 2, I discuss the activities and places we ate in Cabo as well as the different methods of transportation around Cabo.

Southwest Flight 624 SNA to SJD

I booked this flight as soon as Southwest Airlines announced the new international routes, so I got a pretty good deal, in my opinion.  The price at the time was 11,400 Southwest Airlines points plus $85.48 in taxes/fees (mostly Mexican international fees).

As far as I know, Southwest Airlines only flies to Cabo from Orange County and Denver.  However, if you live in another city, I saw several flights on different airlines:

• Alaska Airlines flies from San Diego, Los Angeles, San Jose, and San Francisco
• American Airlines flies from Los Angeles and Dallas
• Delta flies from Salt Lake City
• Frontier flies from Denver
• Spirit flies from San Diego and Dallas
• United Airlines flies from San Francisco and Houston
• US Airways flies from Phoenix
• Virgin America flies from San Francisco
• WestJet flies from Vancouver and Calgary

Our flight to Cabo was just like any other flight on Southwest Airlines.  You line up in the same boarding area lines and wait for your number to be called.  This flight had more families and college-aged kids than other Southwest flights I have been on.  You must present your boarding pass and passport prior to boarding.

During the flight, we were offered peanuts, crackers, and a drink.  You could purchase a movie ($5), mobile messaging ($2), or WiFi ($8).  I had a trouble playing the movie after I bought it, so I contacted Southwest afterwards and they said they would refund the purchase.  I also wanted to test the WiFi to see how it worked internationally and it worked well for the first half of the flight, then cut out half way to Cabo.

Toward the end of the flight, the crew passed out Mexican Custom Forms to be filled out.  With only a limited numbers of pens, the form being in Spanish, and lots of alcohol being served, it was a clusterf* trying to fill out the form.  The crew were making announcements translating the form, people were talking very loudly, and babies were crying.  It was not the most peaceful way to land at your destination.  I do think the Mexican Custom Forms look much better than the boring blue forms we use in the United States.

The views as we were landing were amazing.  We flew pretty close to the ground and you could see individual trees, bushes, and cacti.  I’m surprised Cabo is so green, I imagined it to look more like Phoenix.

After we landed and went through customs, we walked past the timeshare salesmen and walked outside.  In front of us, were probably 50 different companies that were offering rides.  To the right of the entrance, was a big bar selling Corona beer and other beverages.  After walking around for a while, we asked someone were the Super Shuttle drivers were.  They pointed us to guys in lime green shirts.  I was expecting to see them holding a sign that said Super Shuttle, but they were contractors for Super Shuttle and worked fro Grey Line Express.  The color of their uniform matched the picture below.

After a 10 minute wait, we were off in a shared van.  We drove by the MEGA supermarket as we headed to the Hilton Hotel.  A few minutes later, we arrived.

Hilton Los Cabos Beach & Golf Resort

After we were dropped off at the Hilton Los Cabos, we checked-in.  Beautiful view from the front.

Our room was 5038, located on the 5 floor in the middle of the hotel.  Here is the view from the backside:

Here is the view inside:

Here is the view from the front balcony:

Here is the view of the pool (my room is the one in the red box below):

View of the beach:

Complimentary breakfast for Hilton Gold members:

This hotel is awesome.  You can walk down to the beach (5 mins) or you can walk down to the pool (2 mins).  You can swim up to the bar and order food/drinks and charge it to your room.  The complimentary breakfast was great.  For $9 more, you can upgrade to the full breakfast which includes hot food like sausages, eggs, omelets, etc.  I was fine with the cold/free breakfast of fruit, bread, cereal, and yogurt.

Every room of the hotel technically has a balcony and an ocean front view, but the best rooms (and views) are located in the center of the hotel, roughly rooms XX34 – XX44.  We were in room 5038 and were almost directly in the center.

As a reminder, the Hilton HHonors Points price is amazing.  I would definitely recommend this hotel to friends, family members, and travel hackers alike.

I am still recovering from a minor sunburn, but I will have Part 2 up this evening or tomorrow at the latest.  If you have any questions, please leave a comment below.  Have a great day!