This was great to see, and you can tell there is genuine care and commitment to keeping the reef pristine, after the years of hard work and conservation to restore it to the state it is in today. Tourists are able to snorkel and dive in the area, accompanied by authorised operators who are required to follow strict rules. The area is tightly regulated to protect the reef, and activities such as commercial fishing are prohibited.

Spanning an area of 71 square kilometres, the marine park is home to over 6,000 species of marine life, including turtles, whales, dolphins, Mobula rays, sharks and an array of reef fish like groupers, snappers and parrotfish. It was established in 1995, and in 2005 it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The reef in the park is one of just three living coral reefs on the west coast of North America.

The underwater world is what brings most visitors to Cabo Pulmo BCS, to the Cabo Pulmo National Marine Park. The best things to do in Cabo Pulmo BCS mostly involve getting in or under the water! But even if you’re not an ocean lover, there is plenty to discover with two feet on dry land. Check out our sustainable travel tips post for 19 other ways you can leave a more positive impact on the destinations you visit. The locals have retained control of the tourism industry in Cabo Pulmo BCS, and when you visit you know you are staying local, eating local and diving and snorkelling with locals who are committed to protecting the area and keeping it pristine.Ĭhoosing local is just one of the ways you can be a more sustainable traveller. The number of divers and snorkellers in the water at any one time is restricted, and each operator has a schedule on when they can access certain sites. Activities in the national park are tightly controlled to protect the thriving marine environment. Now, the area is still inhabited by the same families, who have turned to diving and snorkelling as their main source of income. In the past two decades since scientists started studying the area, there has been a 465% growth in life. With the help of some academics from a university, they lobbied to have the area declared as a marine park, which it was in 1995. They soon realised that they had over-fished the area, and this lifestyle was no longer going to be sustainable. Formerly the town lived off fishing, but around the 1980s, the fishermen were having to go further and further out to sea to find fish and were catching less and less. This little town is actually an amazing case study of sustainable tourism. The dusty streets of Cabo Pulmo are easy to navigate on foot Below are driving directions for Cabo Pulmo. This 4×4 day tour from Los Cabos takes you along the scenic Camino Cabo Este, with a chance to snorkel in Cabo Pulmo.īut we would have been so disappointed to only stay for a day, so we would definitely recommend renting a car and driving yourself to Cabo Pulmo, and spending a few days as part of a wider Baja California Sur road trip. There are day tours from Los Cabos to snorkel or dive, and they will transport you. Browse for rental cars from Los Cabos Airport here. Cabo Pulmo was just one of the stops on our road trip around Baja California Sur, and we are going to assume (and strongly urge!) that you organise your own car too. There is no public transport to Cabo Pulmo BCS, so you will need to have your own wheels to visit, or organise a transfer with your accommodation or a tour company. A bone-rattling washboard road that extends from San Jose del Cabo in the west, through the East Cape (Cabo Este) region, before reaching Cabo Pulmo and continuing on to La Ribera. This small town is located on the infamous Camino Cabo Este. Getting to Cabo Pulmo is half the fun, and no matter which way you come from you are going to endure at least a short trip on a very bumpy dirt road. We could have easily stayed for at least four nights, and included a few days of relaxing and hiking after diving in the area. We spent two nights here, but I wish we stayed longer. We absolutely adored Cabo Pulmo BCS and its laidback vibe. And the ‘supermarket’ was a little trailer selling chips and beer. There is just a handful of local restaurants (that open when they feel like it), no ATMs, no wifi, and no hot water. There are literally three streets, all sandy. It feels worlds away from the glitz and glam of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo, and we instantly fell in love with this town. Best known as a scuba diving town, divers come here from all over the world to dive in one of the only coral reefs on North America’s west coast. Cabo Pulmo National Marine Park regulationsĬabo Pulmo is a dusty little town hidden down the end of a long, bumpy road in the southeast corner of Baja California Sur.

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