2022
For my partner's birthday this month I wanted to do something special. We met in 2019, which means that I've only celebrated 2 of his birthdays with him. Both were nice but not remarkable. This year I wanted to do something amazing. And best of all, I planned this trip completely using Google Maps.
Did I mention that he loves surprises? This meant that I couldn't tell anyone what I had planned for him either. No pressure, right?
Step 1 - Deciding on a Location
I had NO idea where to go for his birthday. All I knew is that I wanted it to be somewhere that he and I both had never been before.
The first thing that I did on my Google Maps app was zoom out from my current location in Hesperia, California and search for 'attractions.'
After a few hours I found myself virtually exploring a beach in Rosarito, Mexico. I saw that they had a well rated club there, called Papas & Beer.
Then, I had the bright idea of heading to Mexico a few days before his birthday so we could start the New Year off with a bang. I booked us 2 tickets for their NYE celebration (with an open bar).
Step 2- Booking Accommodation
Since I knew I wanted to be walking distance from the NYE club, I used Google Maps and searched for top rated hotels near Papas & Beer. It was obvious that I needed to book a room at the Rosarito Beach Hotel, it had nearly 9,000 reviews and a 4.5 star rating. I knew that I wanted to be doing the least amount of driving or using taxis as possible, so I double checked that it would be walking distance from the venue before booking.
I also knew that I didn't want to spend the entire trip in Rosarito. I once again used Google Maps to search for attractions further south along the coast. I saw that Ensenada, Mexico had many options for hotels and restaurants. So I decided to book two nights at the City Express Plus Ensenada, it had over 500 reviews and a 4 star rating. It's a brand new and modern hotel, a lot different than the historic Rosarito Beach Hotel.
Step 3- Plan Excursions & Activities
- My plans for Rosarito were straight forward. I knew which restaurants we would eat at and the main activity was to spend NYE at Papas and Beer.
- For Ensenada, which would be where we spend my partner's actual birthday I wanted to surprise him with something he has never done before- ride a horse.
- I also did not want to ride a horse unless I knew it was ethical and that the horses were cared for, not just from a random person on the beach.
- Once I found a place to ride, I used a feature on Google Maps for the first time, which was message a business to schedule our trail ride.
- I also did not want to ride a horse unless I knew it was ethical and that the horses were cared for, not just from a random person on the beach.
- I also knew that I wanted to visit La Bufadora, a marine geyser, about an hour drive south from the City Express Plus Ensenada.
Step 4: Final Preparations
- I purchased car insurance ahead of time, in Mexico you need to have special Mexican car insurance. It is illegal not to have it. I paid $94.73 to insure my car for 5 days.
- I made sure to pack our COVID vaccine records.
- Double checked our Passport Cards were valid.
Trip Report:
Day 1 - 30 December 2021:
I set an alarm for 7 am. I knew the drive would take about 3 hours and I did not want to get stuck in morning commute traffic and check in to the hotel wasn't till 4 pm so there was no stress to leave by a certain time. I just wanted to get there while there was plenty of day light left. I packed mine and my partner's bags the night before. He knew I had something planned for him but not what. The sneakiest part was grabbing our passport books and cards.
It was pouring rain nearly the entire drive. He had no idea we were heading to Mexico until we drove past San Diego. Border control was a breeze. We arrived to the hotel at 3 pm and they let us check in. After resting we went out to eat at a local restaurant, Carnes y Mariscos Los Molcajetes Restaurant.
The food was oily but delicious. We decided to walk along the beach from the restaurant back to the hotel and took our first photo on the beach together. My partner was so happy and excited to be there, it made all the stress with planning worth it.
Since I booked us a junior suite with a balcony facing the ocean we were able to catch our first sunset here from our room.
Day 2 - New Years Eve:
We woke up and walked to Pancake Republic, it was located in the same parking lot as Rosarito Beach Hotel. We both had nice large breakfasts that we couldn't finish.
After, we decided to get coffee from a café. My partner found this adorable coffee shop across the street from Pancake Republic called Café De La Fonda. You wouldn't know it unless you were looking for it, but there is a hidden staircase you can take to go upstairs that has a nice sitting area. (I'm sure the baristas would have told us if we spoke Spanish).
From here, we had a lot of time to kill before the NYE celebrations at Papas & Beer. We walked all around the town and took lots of photos.
New Years was a blast- can you believe that I took no photos 😉 ? Just trust that we had an excellent and safe time at Papas & Beer and definitely took advantage of the open bar. We made sure to tip the bartenders very well after each drink.
Day 3 - January 1 2022:
This day it was time to check out from the Rosarito Beach Hotel and move to the City Express Plus Ensenada.
The new hotel was modern and beautiful but I hadn't realized how far from the actual city of Ensenada it was. I should have done more research. It would take us 30 minutes to get to town to eat at the restaurants I picked. There goes my plan of not driving in Mexico after dark. Also, they did not have a parking garage, so I had to valet my car every time we went in and out of the property. But, they did have free filtered drinking water.
Day 4 - BIRTHDAY:
It was finally my partners birthday. The hotel provided free breakfast but it was just fruits, yogurts, cereal and small pastries. From there I told my partner to change into the cowboy clothes I packed for him. We drove 30 minutes to La Mision, where I had trail riding booked for us.
We had an amazing time. The only issue is the horse they put Tim on was not well suited for a first time rider and was constantly galloping and kicking unprovoked.
After riding, we stopped for a coffee at a nice café and also for tacos at a local restaurant.
We then drove to La Bufadora. I made yet another mistake, it wasn't high tide so we didn't get to see the magnificent waves crashing, so we'll have to do it another time...oops.
Unfortunately, we ended up driving back to the hotel once again in the dark, the roads were bad so it was a bit stressful. After we valeted our car we ended up walking 8 minutes in the pitch black to a hipster bar and restaurant called Agua Mala. We had excellent tacos and drinks, it was a great way to relax after a busy birthday.
Day 5 - 3 January 2022:
On this day we woke up and packed our items up. It was time for us to head home. We had breakfast at the hotel, tidied the room up before housekeeping arrived, left a tip for them, and checked out. We spent nearly 2 hours waiting in line at border control to reenter the USA. Many people banged on our car windows trying to sell us items or wash our windshield.
And that is my trip report for Rosarito and Ensenada, Mexico. I would love to hear your guys' thoughts on my post. This is my first time posting anything like this and would appreciate your feedback 🙂
Have you guys been to Rosarito or Ensenada? Any hidden gems you recommend? Please leave a comment. Would love to hear from you guys.
Que onda @jahzzy !!
El viaje que preparaste suena increíble y es muy bueno saber que lo disfrutaron. Me gustó mucho la forma en que planeaste tu viaje e investigaste los lugares que podrías visitar utilizando Google Maps. Obviamente ahora tienes mas experiencia sobre lo que debes preparar si deseas volver a esa región.
Yo solo he visitado un par de veces Ensenada pero es un lugar que disfruté muchísimo en ambas ocasiones.
Dado que en tu publicación pides algunas recomendaciones adicionales para la zona, tengo que decirte que te perdiste una de las joyas dela región y del país: ¡el Valle de Guadalupe!
El Valle de Guadalupe es la región vitivinícola más importante de México y es la zona donde se genera la mayor producción de vinos del país. En los últimos 15 años se ha desarrollado toda una industria turística ligada a la gastronomía y el vino que la coloca en los mejores niveles del mundo: restaurantes, viñedos y hoteles boutique (aunque encuentras hospedaje de todo tipo). Entonces si en el futuro te interesa regresar a Ensenada, reserva dos o tres días para explorar diferentes viñedos a lo largo de la carretera de Ensenada a Tecate, que cruza todo el Valle de Guadalupe de principio a fin. A lo largo de esa ruta encontrarás múltiples lugares para visitar donde tu vista se llenará del verde de los campos de vid y tu paladar disfrutará de las delicias de la comida local.
Mientras tanto te comparto una lista de Google Maps con algunos lugares que pienso recorrer la próxima vez que lo visite.
II Runner II Traveler II 
