Only soft sand and clear water can get together to make a beautiful beach like this one.
Medano Beach (Playa El Médano) is renowned as the main swimming beach in Cabo San Lucas, and its name can be translated to “The Dune Beach” in English… yes, this cannot be more accurate!
This famous Mexican Beach stretches about 3 kilometers along San Lucas Bay, and its touristic value comes mainly from the beautiful all-inclusive resorts built there.
Beautiful five-star resorts like the Casa Dorada Los Cabos Resort & Spa and Pueblo Bonito Golf & Spa offer something that most hotels in the area can’t offer: direct access to the best swimmable beach and, of course, fantastic sea view suites.
To find out what other great resorts are on Medano’s swimmable beach, you can check our full review here.
Medano Beach Location
Located just 10 to 20 minutes walking from Cabo San Lucas downtown (depending on where you are staying), this beach is close enough to the fun element of the city lights and the local atmosphere, giving you a perfect combo:
- Easy access to shopping malls and lovely walks around the marina dock
- Fantastic views of “El Arco” – the Top 1 Instagrammable spot in all Baja Sur – and the Lover’s Beach (Playa del Amor)
- All kinds of adventure tours (whale watching, snorkeling, scuba diving, parasailing, and many more)
- Easy access to food and drinks on the beach
- Relaxing spots to get your holiday tan
Things to do at Medano Beach
This easy-access swimmable beach is perfect for having fun with a frisbee, building sandcastles, or even going for some extra blast at the famous beach clubs and cantinas; Medano Beach truly has something special for all ages.
Whether you’re looking for a sunbathing spot, going for a swim, water skiing, kayaking, jet-skiing, beach volleyball, or simply hanging out at the Cabo San Lucas downtown area, this place has got it all covered.
Travel Tip: to get the best deals for activities rentals and tours, we strongly recommend you to show up in the earlier hours and approach the time selling guys on the beach (this is because the place gets packed in the later hours, yep… if you snooze, you lose!)
Best Places at Medano Beach
Once you get to the beach, you’ll understand where its popularity comes from: there is no doubt that Medano beach has become a prime travel destination in Cabo.
The Office on the Beach
Here you can find nothing but great local restaurants like The Office on the beach, where you can be delighted by an entire order of lobster tacos and drink the very first margaritas ever sold in this region.
Every Thursday between 7:30 to 9:30 pm, you can join the Fiesta Mexicana, hosted by this iconic palapa restaurant, where you can enjoy a tasty dinner while listening to original mariachi music and watching piñata dances and folkloric shows with fireworks.
This place is a hotspot for live music lovers!
Mango Deck Beach Club
If you are looking for a wild Cabo night, you might want to hit Mango Deck Beach Club during spring break. Even a typical weekend is fantastic. Besides its well-known delicious menu, this place is booze central.
Like The Office, here you can enjoy live music shows all week, but perhaps the main highlight for this place are the annual events: New Year’s Eve, Super Bowl, 4th of July, and Halloween parties (it’s simply a party paradise).
Traveler’s Advice About Medano Beach
The vendors
There is only one thing we can say about this beach that might not be ideal for some visitors, and that is you can occasionally expect to be approached by vendors.
But don’t worry, even though they might be “pushy” according to some tourists, the vendors are chilled and not aggressive. Just say the magical words: “no gracias,” which means – no thanks – once, maybe twice, and that will be enough.
After all, they are only trying to make a living, plus they are always ready to provide you with fabulous items and services such as tattoos, massages, sombreros, fresh fruit, blankets, hair braiding, and jewelry. Not bad at all, right?
The season
If you want to have a great time on this beach, you need to know this: as a prime travel destination, Medano Beach can get crowded, and for some people, this might not be ideal.
If you want to enjoy the beauty of this beach in a quiet and peaceful atmosphere, should you do your research and book your holidays during the low season (May to June or October to November).
Watch out for August and September, as this is the hurricane season (also, there is insanely hot weather some people prefer to skip).
The safety
A special warning here! Even though the beach is gorgeous and the sea is clear and see-through, local knowledge is that some spots along the seashore may not be as safe as we would like.
Depending on the season, the sea waves can sometimes be slightly rougher than average, and one needs to be careful before jumping in.
Just follow the safety flags and not swim too far from the shore.
Bear in mind there might be jellyfish during the summer season as the warm temperatures combined with the wave surges can bring these uninvited fellas to the seashore.
If you ever experience a jellyfish sting, we are here to tell you that this is rarely painful, keep calm and pour some vinegar to neutralize the skin reaction, and put some ice to fight inflammation.
Extra travel tip: White flags indicate jellyfish are present, and you should stay away from the water.
Let’s Go to Medano Beach!
We hope you enjoyed our Medano beach info guide! Feel free to leave your comment below. We love to hear from you!
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