Did you know you can get to the ocean from Phoenix in under 4 hours???
Welcome to Rocky Point, Mexico!
It’s not necessarily the Caribbean or Hawaii (keepin' it real here)… but it’s beautiful and super family-friendly! Here are some of our tips for visiting - and we'll keep adding to it as we go back again and again.
where to stay:
We’ve always stayed at Las Palomas on the "condo side" - easily booked through Airbnb. You can pick from all kinds of room layouts, and the units are spacious - all with beautiful views. Although it’s a condo, everyone gets a wristband (with a barcode) on arrival so you can charge everything to the room during your stay. The condo complex was completed in "phases" and each "phase" has it's own large set of buildings (organized in a semi-circle, looking out onto the water) with set of pools and beach access. It looks like you're sharing with a million people, but we've always been able to find chairs at the pool (that's the key, right?).
where to eat:
Las Palomas has a bar and restaurant at the pool area plus another sit-down restaurant with a breakfast buffet on weekends (and regular breakfast service during the week). Complete with fresh juices and a custom omelet bar - definitely gives that resort vibe. Also the condos have full kitchens, so you can bring (or grab in town) all your own food and cook at “home”!
Other than the restaurants on-site, there are also several restaurants around town. Our favorites (for dinners) are:
Wrecked at the Reef: Ok so this is everyone’s favorite. It's a less than 10 minutes (drive) from the condo. It gets a little wild as the night goes on (like after 6pm ). Plus it gets super crowded and doesn't take reservations... so I'd suggest getting there early (like 5). And then once you're there - you'll be eating on a small beach with your kids playing while you wait for you food. Awesome, right? And they have the BEST (and strong) “Cadillac” margaritas. I'd say it's a must visit.
Mare Blu: A little more upscale with good Italian and on the beach (right next door to Wrecked)!
Latitude 31: 10 minutes the other direction and through town. This place has good Mexican food plus a great kids menu. They even have a small play area for the kids! And local art filing the restaurant that’s also for sale… so you can shop while you eat (and we did!). Also all the reviews say the owner is the best, and they are right! We made a reservation by emailing the address on their site, but not sure that's needed if you're a smaller party.
top row: virgin pina colada at las palmos, panda overserved at wrecked at the reef, lunch at las palomas
bottom row: latitude 31 shop and playspace, family photo at wrecked at the reef
what to do:
There are some “exciting” things to do around town - like ATVs, zip lining, boats (from deep sea fishing to banana boats), golfing, and horse back riding… but honestly we just went from pool to beach to pool to beach at Las Palomas about 100x. There are a bunch of different pools plus even a lazy river (and sometimes spontaneous water aerobic dance classes), so the kids kept busy!
how to get there: A few tips for your drive from Phoenix -
Make sure you fill up before leaving Maricopa county. It’s a long way through the desert to the next town. And then make sure to fill up again in Ajo or Why (last towns just north of the Lukeville border). Also - go to the bathroom there too! The gas station bathrooms are .... not fancy… but it’s better than the alternative! I do know some moms with young kids put a mini potty in the back of their car for the drive just in case… we just bet on making it to the gas station.
Note that if you’re driving an electric vehicle, there are chargers on the way and at the Las Palomas condo parking garage… but I can’t speak to this any more than that!
We’ve been lucky, but we’ve heard that waits at the border (in and out) can be looong (hence the suggestion to stop for bathrooms and gas!). We’ve only had up to 30 minute waits (and you can check real-time online here). Plus on the Mexico side there are vendors lined up in the streets to sell you anything you may need (like fresh tortillas!) while you're waiting to get out.
Safety-wise we've never had a problem, but we've also driven during daylight (with one exception) and haven't made any stops after the border until we were in Rocky Point.
Random note - we have forgotten every time, but there is an animal shelter about halfway between the border and the resort that is always taking animal food donations if you have time to stop and can remember. It's been recommended by friends!
what to bring:
And finally, here is our beach packing list specific to Rocky Point (and Las Palomas):
Wine, Beer, and lots of water! At night we just hung out at the condo playing games
Cash for any emergencies (but also if you want to get henna or braids done at the beach!)
Playing cards and board games for evenings (we’ll link some of our favorites soon!)
Beach bag for all the basics
Water shoes (cheap but did the job - and came quickly in allll the sizes we needed!)
Beach toys (here are some of our favorites - we'll link them soon):
Shell bags (comes in pack or 4) - pictured below
Boogie boards (bought at Dicks)
Sand toys of course
Large beach blanket. Note that the condo provides beach and pool towels (1 per person!).
Umbrella (if you’re hanging at all day- we skipped this but saw plenty of others bringing shade with them!)
And clearly, we took the kiddos (and even the grandparents one time) and were just there to relax... but I will add a note here that a lot of my younger baristas used to head down for long weekends for a vacation with a ... different vibe... which seemed like (to throw in an old person term) a blast. so if you're also a blast, you'll have to Google further for those recommendations... but I know it's out there! :)
Here's a picture of us feeling young on the beach (but not that young... RIP, 4am dancing. RIP. But please peep the henna tattoo on my ankle though... living my best life, guys! Ok that is all. :)
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