You guys! We recently returned from THE BEST trip to San Jose Del Cabo. I had so many mixed emotions when we were planning this trip to Mexico. On one hand I was SO EXCITED to be taking our first real family vacation of three to a country that Mike and I LOVE so much! On the other hand I hate flying. For weeks leading up a to big trip I obsess over packing lists, plans, schedules, and little anxieties. That is how my fear of flying manifests itself and I feel like it’s gotten worse with Coston. So as much as I was looking forward to it all, I also felt like I couldn’t be excited about it until we got there. WELL! As always, my anxiety was much worse than the actual experience. The travel went seamlessly and we had so. much. fun. It is definitely DIFFERENT traveling with a baby - the vacation is no longer super relaxing - but a new element of excitement comes when you get to show your little ones new places and things.
I want to share a little bit about our trip, but I want to focus mainly on what we packed and how we handled Coston’s schedule, since I feel like that is what made the biggest difference between it being a beautiful memorable trip versus an overwhelming travel experience.
PREP
PASSPORT: First of all, Mike and I have TSA Pre Check and Global Entry. We got both last year when we went to Greece and it was AMAZING. You breeze through customs and it takes AT LEAST 30 minutes off of your airport time on your return. We were going to be flying in and out of LAX and knew it would be a hot mess so we decided to get Global Entry for Coston as well leading up to the trip. The whole process of getting a Passport for an infant is a little annoying, lots of paperwork, getting copies of his birth certificate, and both parents have to be present at the appointment. But once they have it it is good for five years so it was worth it and I don’t have to think it about it for awhile.
TRANSPORTATION: When it came to deciding what to bring for Coston’s transportation, I unnecessarily obsessed over this decision for days (definitely my anxiety taking over). We have the Nuna Pipa Lite carseat and the Mixx2 stroller. I LOVE both for so many reasons, BUT it is NOT a travel friendly carseat OR stroller. The carseat can’t be used on it’s own without the base and the stroller base is heavy. I went back and forth so. many. times. on what to do. We did not rent a car, we were going to be relying on cabs or Ubers if we wanted to go further than a mile from the resort. ANYWAY, to cut this short, we borrowed a carseat and a carseat caddy from a friend and used that for everything. It was awesome. We brought it to the airport, checked it at our gate, had it right when we landed, used the carseat in the cab in Mexico and threw the base in the back. We used it to get around the resort and then anytime we grabbed a cab to head into town. HIGHLY recommend purchasing or borrowing one of these if you have a trip with a baby coming up! I also packed his Colugo carrier for beach walks or to use anywhere that a stroller wouldn’t be ideal. We love that thing!
PACKING: I packed a separate bag for Coston this time. I normally fit both our stuff in one big suitcase but we decided to pack enough diapers, wipes, formula, food packets for the five days we would be there just because I didn’t know what would be easily accessible near our resort and I didn’t want to veer from anything he is used to at home. For sleep we packed everything we needed to basically recreate his sleep situation in our hotel room. That meant we brought his favorite sleep sack, sound machine (travel size), and Dockatot. The hotel provided a crib (just call and request one ahead of time) and they had it sent up in our room when we arrived. Last minute we packed a tiny bit of laundry detergent just in case we needed to wash anything and that was a GREAT IDEA because Cos had 2 blowouts while we were there so we just did a bit of laundry in the tub haha.
TRAVEL
FLIGHT: Luckily there are lots of flight options from LAX to Cabo, and it’s a short two hour flight (Cos has done longer flights to visit my parents in Dallas). We chose a flight time in the late morning that would coincide with his nap time and although he was a bit fussy we were able to get him to sleep a little bit on the flight there and back so I would say that’s a win. I breastfeed mostly, but in his diaper bag we packed a bottle with formula just in case he was SUPER fussy and hungry and for some reason breast feeding wouldn’t be ideal and I’m glad we had that. Also in his diaper bag was an extra change of clothes (he always has a blowout on flights for some reason haha), a little food packet and spoon, a couple teethers and burp cloths.
COSTON’S SCHEDULE: For the most part we stuck as closely as possible to his eating and sleep schedule at home. He takes two 2 hour naps a day and sometimes a catnap before dinner. At home he sleeps in total darkness, so we ended up putting his crib and sound machine in the bathroom! It actually worked out great! Everyday we had him nap in our room for his morning nap and then would attempt an afternoon nap by the pool in the shade. Somedays it would work and some days it wouldn’t so we would head back to the room and let him sleep there. His evening catnap was always in the stroller on the go so we could go out to dinner or explore the town. We lived by Taking Cara Babies 80/20 rule - 80% of the time you stick to your schedule, 20% of the time you live your life.
STAY / EAT / DO
STAY: We stayed at The Viceroy in San Jose Del Cabo, which is about 30 minutes east of Cabo proper and only a 20 minute cab ride from the airport. I had seen pictures of this place and heard it was great but it was EVEN BETTER IN PERSON. I cannot hype this place enough. Not only was it gorgeous, they were so accommodating of Coston. They set up a crib in our room, they were so sweet with him when we were out and about and happily worked around our nap schedule when cleaning our room. And even though Coston was too young for it this trip I loved that they had a really cool kids club, a beautiful game room, beach toys set up on the sand, and Sun Bum 50 SPF sunscreen at all the pools. We made the decision to book a small suite with an ocean view and small plunge pool on the balcony so that we could be in the room while Coston napped but still get the most out of our vacation. We wouldn’t normally need a room like this but I am so glad that’s what we did because we could still lay outside in the sun or sit in a small pool with the video monitor while Cos slept just feet away.
EAT: We ate SO MUCH good food! That’s one of our main reasons for traveling to Mexico as often as we do. Honestly, because of Coston, we didn’t leave the hotel as much as we would normally. But that was fine because the food at the Viceroy was delicious! They have three restaurants and tried all of them, as well as the food and drinks served at the pool. So creative and tasty. We did venture out for lunch one day over to another resort down the street to eat at Casa Calavera, and although the food was good and the decor was amazing, the vibe was weird so I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it haha. What I CAN recommend is grabbing street tacos at the locals favorite spot, Taqueria El Paísa. It was a little off the beaten path but beyond worth it. The tacos were insane, so cheap, and we were the only tourists in there - which means you KNOW it’s good.
DO: Once again, we didn’t do a ton with Coston other than enjoy the resort and shove food in our faces, BUT we did a couple things that were AWESOME. The little town of San Jose Del Cabo is adorable and so fun to explore. Highly recommend the Arts District. So many cute shops with beautiful pieces by local artists, street vendors, and colorful little buildings. We also spent one late afternoon at Flora Farms for dinner. It is a farm just outside of town with a farm-to-table outdoor restaurant that is beautiful and serves fresh and colorful foods. Definitely get the Butterscotch pudding. In the summer they do free outdoor family movie nights with a popcorn stand in a little field and it’s SO CUTE. Cos is too young for that, but if he were a little older we definitely would have stayed for the movie playing that night.
Obviously traveling with a baby is no walk the park, but it was still a magical trip that I know we’ll remember forever! And we will definitely be back to Cabo soon!
