Geography
Baja California Sur is 73,909 km², the ninth-largest state, and has 798,447 inhabitants — the second-smallest population in the country and, at about 11 people per km², by far the emptiest. It occupies the peninsula south of the 28th parallel, some 750 km of land never more than 200 km wide, with the Pacific on one side and the Gulf of California on the other. The Tropic of Cancer crosses it just north of Todos Santos.
The mountains sit close to the gulf and the plains face the Pacific. The Sierra de la Giganta rises straight out of the sea behind Loreto; the Sierra de San Francisco in the middle of the state holds several hundred painted rock shelters, listed by UNESCO in 1993. In the far south the granite Sierra de la Laguna reaches about 2,080 m at Picacho de la Laguna and carries oak and pine woodland above the desert, protected as a biosphere reserve. Between them lies the Vizcaíno Desert, whose reserve of roughly 25,000 km² is one of the largest protected areas in Latin America.
Three shallow Pacific lagoons — Ojo de Liebre at Guerrero Negro, San Ignacio and Bahía Magdalena — are the breeding grounds of the eastern grey whale, and the salt works at Guerrero Negro are the largest solar salt operation in the world. On the gulf side the water is deep and clear: Espíritu Santo island off La Paz and the Loreto marine park are part of the UNESCO listing for the islands and protected areas of the Gulf of California. There are no permanent rivers; towns run on groundwater and, increasingly, on desalination.
Main cities
| Municipality or town | Population (2020) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Los Cabos | 351,111 | Municipality; fastest-growing in the state |
| La Paz (municipality) | 292,241 | State capital and ferry port |
| La Paz (city) | 250,141 | Capital city itself, on the bay |
| Cabo San Lucas | 202,694 | Town in Los Cabos; marina and the Arch |
| San José del Cabo | 136,285 | Town in Los Cabos; airport and old centre |
| Comondú | 72,000 | Municipality; Ciudad Constitución, irrigated farming |
| Mulegé | 60,000 | Municipality; Santa Rosalía and Guerrero Negro |
| Loreto | 23,000 | Municipality; first Spanish mission in the Californias, 1697 |
The last three figures are rounded. The state has only five municipalities, the fewest of any state in Mexico, and each one is larger than several whole states elsewhere in the country.
Neighbouring states
Baja California Sur borders exactly one other state: Baja California, along the ruler-straight 28th parallel, which is marked on Highway 1 by a steel eagle monument at the desert town of Guerrero Negro. The two also change hours there. Across the Gulf of California lie Sonora, Sinaloa and Nayarit, reached by ferry rather than by road. The state makes up the southern half of the Baja California Peninsula.
Getting there
Los Cabos International (SJD) is the busiest airport in the state and one of the busiest in Mexico for US traffic, with direct flights from more than 30 North American cities. La Paz (LAP) and Loreto (LTO) both take domestic flights and a smaller number of cross-border services; see the airports map. Ferries run from Pichilingue, the port 17 km north of La Paz, to Mazatlán and to Topolobampo near Los Mochis, taking roughly 12 and 7 hours respectively and carrying cars.
Federal Highway 1 is the only through road: 1,200 km from the Baja California state line to La Paz and another 220 km to Cabo San Lucas, two lanes almost the whole way. Highway 19 is the shorter west-coast route from La Paz to Cabo through Todos Santos, about 160 km. Driving from Mexico City means either 2,900 km overland by way of Tijuana, or about 1,050 km to Mazatlán and then the ferry; flying takes two and a half hours. The road map shows the federal network, and the beaches map the coast.
Questions about Baja California Sur
Where is Baja California Sur on the map of Mexico?
It is the southern half of the Baja California peninsula, between the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of California, running from the 28th parallel down to Cabo San Lucas. Its only land neighbour is Baja California to the north; Sinaloa lies across the gulf, two ferry crossings away.
Which airport do you fly into for Los Cabos?
Los Cabos International (SJD), 13 km north of San José del Cabo and about 45 minutes from Cabo San Lucas. La Paz (LAP) and Loreto (LTO) are the other two airports with scheduled service.
When can you see grey whales in Baja California Sur?
Roughly late December to mid-April, when grey whales finish the migration from the Bering Sea and calve in three Pacific lagoons: Ojo de Liebre near Guerrero Negro, Laguna San Ignacio and Bahía Magdalena. Whale sharks are in the Bay of La Paz from about October to April.
Is Baja California Sur safe to visit?
Los Cabos, La Paz, Loreto and Todos Santos take several million visitors a year and the state has one of the lower homicide rates in Mexico. The US State Department has generally placed Baja California Sur in its least restrictive tiers; check the current advisory before travelling.