By Christy Galzerano
Another Trip of a Lifetime experience checked off my bucket list. Cabo San Lucas and Sammy Hagar’s Birthday Bash at Cabo Wabo Cantina. This bucket list trip was 8 years in the making. My brother, and my business partner in Trips of a Lifetime Travel Corp, has become a regular in Cabo with his wife’s family every Thanksgiving. 8 years ago, he called to say we needed to plan a trip to Cabo one October and go see Sammy Hagar play his Birthday Bash at Cabo Wabo Cantina. Little did I know how difficult getting tickets would be. After waiting through the “Covid” years, and exhausting all chances of getting “lottery” tickets in advance, as well as all ticket broker contacts, my brother said the only way we will get to go is if we go to Cabo and take a chance! So, that’s what we did! 14 of us made the trip. Sammy does not use Ticketmaster or Live Nation for tickets so there are no resale opportunities. While not my usual to stand in line for anything, it was our last chance to see Sammy at Cabo Wabo Cantina, in 2022. Luckily we had a cooler and good company and made the 5 hour wait fun! As I always say…experiences are what you make them, and we choose to make things fun. So long story short, we get to the very front of the line as they are letting just a few people in at a time. We were literally standing on the line, up next. It would have been tragic to travel to Cabo, wait 5 hours in line, to miss the cut-off for tickets by a couple people. But the stars aligned and finally, our group got the last spots for the last dinner seating for the following day’s show. Success!! The concert did not disappoint. It’s impossible to convey how special a Sammy Hagar concert is at his very own Cabo Wabo Cantina. There’s nothing like a small venue and a great rocker to put on a good show. It was an intimate show, with all viewing spots close to the stage, and his family watching from the cat walk above, rocking with him. Although it was Sammy’s 75th birthday, you would never know it. He rocked like he did 30 years ago. Bonus was he brought in guest performer. The one and only Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains…truly awesome! Epic is a very over-used adjective but it was truly Epic. 100% worth the 8 year wait to check it off the bucket list…endless hours researching how to score tickets, hours “in line” online to score lottery tickets and 5 hours in line. This show was one for the books! If you are a Sammy Hagar fan, this is one to add to your bucket list for sure!
Enough about Sammy! Cabo has so much to offer and our 5 day trip was action packed. Here’s what made our trip epic:
Where you stay DOES matter! After a long search for hotels and vacation rentals, we decided upon a VRBO property in Santa Teresa, just 10 minutes south of Cabo San Lucas. It was perfect.
Beautiful ocean views
7 bedrooms, all with ensuite bathrooms
Great pool and deck space
Spa
Gameroom
Chef’s kitchen
Excellent service by Concierge
We even had a spa day at the house with massages, pedicures, and facials. Decadent really.
2. The Arch of Cabo San Lucas & The Sea of Cortez
Many options of boats to take you out in the Sea of Cortez. With our big group, we opted for a private charter. When possible, we always opt for private charters versus the large cattle boats. Much more personal service.
Highly recommend - crew was awesome and professional
Boated up close to the arch
Anchored and snorkeled along the coastline and hung out on the giant floating mat
Half day was perfect
**It wasn’t whale season when we were there, it runs December to April. But, this same private charter does a great job of finding whales breaching, a must see in Cabo.
3. Desert ATV
30 minutes north of Cabo
Best to drive yourself even though they offer transport.
We opted for a private guided tour and it was the way to go
Beware of the hard sell on upgrades…we did not upgrade and were perfectly happy with our vehicles. They were fast, agile, rugged and FUN!
Also beware of insurance sales / damage. We had one vehicle with a flat tire. We opted to not get their insurance and got charged $300 for repair. A little shady. But, insurance would have cost more than the damage fee.
Overall, a great time was had by all! My husband thought he was competing in the Baha 1000!
4. Fishing Charter is a must if you like fishing.
Marlin can be caught year round with peak season during the warmer months
Dorado (Mahi Mahi) season peaks July to November
Snapper & Grouper season peaks March to June
Tuna peaks July to January
Half day and full day charters are available
The 7 Dorado our group caught was dinner for 2 nights! Can’t get fresher than that.
5. Other Food Suggestions
Private Chef: We opted for a Chef’s Dinner in our Villa and it was decadent and awesome on our first day.
Flora Farms: Farm to table restaurant with tours available, need reservations far in advance.
Gardenias Cabo, best tacos in Cabo.
6. Swim with Whalesharks. **We were signed up but the whales were late this year, so still on my bucket list**
Season officially runs October to May, but in recent years, they haven’t made it into the La Paz bay until November. The government does a great job protecting them and regulating this activity.
This is a full day activity, and a 2 hour drive from Cabo.
These gentle giants are the largest in the shark family and travel long distances to find enough plankton to eat.
Highly recommend this if you like a little adventure and snorkeling.
7. Sea Turtles (my personal favorite)
Every year July to December, you have the chance to observe turtles nesting in Cabo and babies hatching 45 days later.
Cabo is home to Hawksbill, Loggerhead, Leatherback, Green and Olive Ridley sea turtles. Living on the east coast of Florida, we are lucky enough to have Loggerhead, Green and very rarely the giant Leatherbacks. I’m still on my quest to see a Momma Leatherback laying her eggs and babies going out to see. They are more common in Cabo.
There are organized turtle release tours late August to early December (depending on nature of course).
I recommend a Cabo trip to anyone…honeymooners, families, couples, friends. There is something for everyone!
That’s a wrap on Cabo…next up - Galapagos Islands! Thank you for reading Trips of a Lifetime Travel Blog!
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