I already know I’m going to get some pushback from this post, but it’s not going to stop me from sharing my own experience. Because it’s MY experience. First and foremost, yes, I know there is a pandemic going on. And the last thing I would ever want is to contract Covid and spread it to others. But since life is still going on and we have no specific lockdowns in place here in Colorado, we made this personal decision to travel to Cabo to celebrate my husband’s big birthday. And it was a fantastic experience. We are a family that normally travels A LOT. I spent the last few years traveling with Brian, friends, or by myself; so it was pretty weird to not travel for a full year during 2020. Then once Brian’s birthday began creeping up and countries weren’t locking down like they were before, we decided to book our trip to Cabo and make it happen since Cabo is less than a 3 hour flight for us.
We had 8 people who confirmed this birthday trip and half flew Southwest and the other half flew United (we were on Southwest). Now before I get into what Cabo was like, let’s talk about Denver International Airport. If you are freaked out about flying right now or being close to other people, you will probably not like airports or airplanes. There are many signs around the airport about staying 6 feet apart, but it’s close to impossible. Whether you are checking your bags, sitting at your gate, waiting in line for a coffee, or lining up to board the plane – people are everywhere…just like before Covid. Southwest did a great job with only boarding 10 people at a time so not as many people line up at once, but all those people are still sitting near each other in the airport, so I’m not sure if it makes as much of a difference. And airplanes are at full capacity. We had a full flight on our way to Cabo and back, so there is no 6 feet apart. Airports and airplanes require masks at all times, unless you are eating or drinking, and Southwest only serves cups of water at this time. I wore 1 mask (many people wear multiple masks and face shields), I still drank water and ate some snacks on the plane, but I didn’t need to use the bathroom at any point while flying. For me personally, I wasn’t scared or nervous sitting next to someone on the plane. It just felt like another flight, but with a mask. And honestly, I like wearing a mask on planes. People are gross and this keeps some of their grossness contained.
Both DIA and the Cabo airport were just as busy as they have always been in my 5 previous trips. The only thing I noticed that was different was customs – it was MUCH faster than before, but that also could have been due to the timing of planes arriving. When you enter Cabo, you have to fill out a questionnaire, answering questions about signs and symptoms of Covid that you have or have not experienced. It seemed kind of pointless because it didn’t feel like TSA looked much at the piece of paper then you keep it with you. It just felt like a waste of materials, but I understand countries are trying to figure everything out right now. Cabo doesn’t require a negative Covid test, like some countries do, nor does Colorado when you come back home. Even though we weren’t required to get a test done, I did one before I left just to be safe. And now that I’m back home, I’m staying home to ensure that no signs or symptoms show up before I head back out into the Colorado world.
We stayed at a house in Cabo instead of a hotel, mostly because we wanted to all have a common space to hang out in (and we prefer houses over hotels) and so we could just be around the people in our small group vs all the people in a hotel. But when we did venture into downtown Cabo San Lucas and to San Jose, all the restaurants required masks and some restaurants even had disinfecting chambers that you walk through while entering the restaurant. Most people on the streets were wearing masks while wandering around, as well. All cab/taxi drivers were wearing masks, as well. We never went to any clubs so I have no idea what that looks like, but we felt safe whenever we went out to eat. Other than that, we mostly stayed at our house because it had everything we needed in one place!
Bikini Details
This is a house we’ve stayed at before on our first trip to Cabo back in 2017, and it’s one of my favorite places we’ve stayed! We had a different house booked, but it cancelled on us last minute, so I contacted the owner of this house directly to see if it was available, and luckily it was! This house sleeps 10 people and the property is HUGE! It has 2 rooms upstairs, 3 rooms downstairs, a huge kitchen, dining room, and living room, ping pong table, volleyball court, a balcony AND a rooftop balcony that both overlook the ocean, a pool and spa with a cabana that has a small kitchenette, a volleyball court, and there is a private beach for the neighborhood just a short walk away. Every morning I would work out near the pool and watch the whales in the ocean as they would jump and blow water out their blowholes. Magical. Or I would run down to the beach to work out and watch the sunrise. This property is so fantastic and the gated community is filled with kind people who always say hello on their morning walks.
Bikini Details
Something we decided to do this trip that we haven’t done in the past is hire a chef. Find a chef through your property is normally insanely easy. I would chat with the property manager over Whatsapp to tell him our arrival dates and times, and then I asked him one day if he had a chef recommendation. He immediately had one and connected us on Whatsapp. We were able to talk over the phone, go over how many people and what type of meals we wanted, then he put a menu together with the prices of everything beforehand. He was a great guy who always showed up on time and he created some delicious meals! My only complaint is that he put NINE slices of cheese on our burgers. Nine. That means he used 72 slices of cheese for our burgers. Let that set in for a second. We had to peel off the cheese to get to the burger below. So funny. Luckily the burger was worth digging for. We had him cook all of our meals on Brian’s birthday, then dinner on NYE, and breakfast on New Year’s Day! Best decision ever and we will absolutely hire a chef anytime we book a house from now on. He made us burgers, chilaquiles, tacos, salads, surf and turf, and a standard breakfast! And everything was delicious! For our other meals, we cooked for ourselves at home or we venture out to some of our favorite restaurants.
One of the restaurants we always go back to while in Cabo is Acre. Acre is a huge property located near the very popular Flora Farms. Everyone I talk to ALWAYS recommends Flora Farms and I’ve never been impressed. I also go food poisoning there once, so we haven’t gone back. But Acre is next door and it’s a similar property with lots of land, farm life, they have dogs you can visit and even adopt, a delicious restaurant, and amazing treehouses that you can stay in. We love this spot because it has great cocktails and it feels like you’re in a jungle, plus the food is delicious. This visit was a little different and we were a bit disappointed sadly. It’s a pretty expensive place, which I never mind because I love supporting restaurants who are doing some special and different, but many of us experienced cold meals and our server also chased us down at the end to say we didn’t pay for the bottle of wine we purchased. So we gave him a credit card and went on our way. But when we looked back at the receipt once we were home, they had already charged us for the wine, so we were charged twice. We’ve now called many times trying to get in contact with someone and no one answers. I even talked to someone on instagram who told me to call and they will get it fixed, but still no answer after days and days of calls. I would still recommend this spot to people, but we probably won’t eat dinner there again, just drinks from now on. It’s an amazing location and the treehouses look insanely cool to stay in! It’s worth checking out if you’re looking to stay in San Jose!
We stopped in at two other restaurants in Cabo San Lucas while we were there. A new spot we tried was Outpost. I found this restaurant by simply searching ‘gluten free brunch’ on yelp, and it was one of the few spots that looked really unique and trendy. And I’m always down for a trendy restaurant. Outpost takes your temperature before you come in the restaurant, but half the restaurant is outside so we sat on the rooftop patio, no where near anyone else, so it felt super safe while we had brunch! They had some really delicious looking cocktails, I grabbed a green smoothie, and had their Mexican breakfast. Overall, it was a great spot that I would definitely go back to! Cabo needs more restaurants like this one!
And our last restaurant we stopped in at was Nicksan. We LOVE this spot! We go back every single time because we love the sushi so much! They always have such creative rolls and dishes, including their lobster tempura curry. This dish is my absolutely, hands down favorite. We get it every time and I have dreams out it. Nicksan felt like one of the safest restaurants we went to. We walked through a disinfecting chamber before entering the restaurant which also takes your temperature as you walk in. They seemed like they were taking all the precautions they could to keep people safe inside. I already can’t wait to go back and have the lobster curry again!
‘After a week in Cabo, we are back home and everyone is feeling healthy. We felt very safe in Cabo and we are very happy we traveled. We also have more trips planned the next two months and we are excited to travel again! We will take the same precautions we did this last time, getting tested before we travel, and enjoy this beautiful world around us that we haven’t been able to see in a year. I believe everyone needs to do what is right for them and the community around them, and I do not feel like I’m putting my community in danger. I hope this post helps you figure out your own travel plans in the future, no matter when you plan to travel! And if you are interested in staying at the same house we stayed out, contact the owner of the house Mike at mdkoehler1@aol.com. We booked the house through him and paid him through paypal with absolutely no issues!
Your trip looks like it was AMAZING! So sick of people judging others for choosing to continue to live their lives. If these judgemental folks (like the poster called ‘Brit’) are afraid to travel, then they can choose to stay home and I respect that. We flew Southwest for a trip to Florida at Thanksgiving and the safety protocols they had in place were incredible. I think flying is safer than going to Wal Mart these days! You and your friends look gorgeous and your food photos are to die for!
it’s brutal out there. definitely lots of hate for traveling and i’m sure i’ll get even more when i travel again next month, but that’s my choice and I’m making sure i don’t put anyone else in danger
Love the photos- Cabo looks beautiful! So glad you enjoyed your trip and are getting back to doing the things that bring you joy!
thanks Huma!
Was wondering what whale watching tour you took and if you were happy with it. Looks like an amazing vacation/birthday celebration.
i have no clue what we went through, our house manager just recommended it but the guy kind of sucked so i wouldn’t recommend him
I’ll admit I’m disappointed. I’ve been following you for yours and even recently purchased your workout programs, but I’m questioning my support now. You regularly posted about going to the gym, with some questionable mask compliance, and having people over (of a different group than the one you traveled with?) for Christmas, before hopping on a plane to an international destination. You were around others in the couple days leading into your departure, which means you were far too close in time to exposure for a test to mean anything (you should wait 4-5 days after exposure for the viral load to get high enough to be detected). And you don’t specify which tests you got—the antigen tests are pretty notoriously not good for diagnostic purposes, especially if you are asymptomatic. I think there are ways to travel more responsibly during the pandemic (though I do not think that just because a state does not have lockdown, that means traveling at all is responsible. See: Texas), but this isn’t it. And I think as an influencer, you have more responsibility than most to be transparent and do the right thing. You did not self quarantine leading up to your travel but did anyone else in your group? Did they all take tests? What tests did they take? How did you minimize your spread to others? You could and should be sharing that (and if indeed everyone else did everything they should have, then I apologize for the assumptions—but that’s why that should be shared if it’s the case). Of course people are “living their lives” right now, but you’re using that as a rationale when it’s really the problem.
thank you for your feed, Gwen! I really appreciate it and totally understand where you are coming from.
You are a bigger person than I, Juli….Good for you for not berating people who comment this type of nonsense on your own page…Keep scrolling people! It’s no ones business how many covid tests you took or precautions etc…I haven’t traveled and have barely seen anyone since this started (mostly is because I am pregnant, hah) But my initial thought seeing your trip was never “how dare she?!”… you’re comfortable going somewhere, good for you for living your life! It has nothing to do with me and does not ruin my day like all of these other people…The trip looked amazing! Glad you had fun!
I’m glad you had a good time. I love Cabo, but I will not be traveling because that is the right thing to do. The comments about “you have to live your life” or “you only live once” are ridiculous. I am living my life, but I am doing it in a way that is respectful to my fellow citizens. How nice it would be if others would do that to. You mentioned it was impossible to maintain six feet distance while at the airport and on the plane. How is that helping the pandemic that is gripping our nation? I live in California; our hospitals are now having to turn people away and select who they choose to give care to. If that isn’t enough reason to hang tight and wait a bit for that trip, I’m not sure what is. I realize you live in Colorado, but you get the point. If people would take a moment and think about the needs of our community and not their individual needs, we would be in such a different place with this pandemic.
totally understand and agree with you, Amy. but luckily i’ve tested negative since coming back to Colorado and I’ll test again next week just to be sure!
California is the most locked down state, yet we have the highest infection rate. So that’s totally working right?
Some of these comments are making my skin crawl. Everyone can do whatever they want – thats the best part of being an adult. If you want to stay home, so be it. If you want to travel, so be it. Leave Juli alone.
thanks Jamie, i feel the same way.
Juli, I have been a follower for a while and never comment but had to this time. We travelled to Cabo for Christmas and had a great time as well. Wish these so called health experts will tell people to strengthen their immune system by eating healthy and exercising and being in nature but instead they have brain washed most into believing the only solution is staying home and wearing a mask. All experts that are trying to get the right info out have been censored from youtube and twitter…not fishy at all! I cant believe so many people are buying into this. Liquor stores and fast food are essential but gyms should close down. If people just ate healthy and moved, we wont even have the less than 1% deaths that people are so concerned about.
YES!! that drives me insane! no where have any of the experts talked about the right diet, lifestyle, or even supplements you could be taking to help boost your immune system, it’s infuriating. i’ve heard the same thing about people being censored or banned when they try to share natural ways to keep the body healthy, it’s so insane. AND SERIOUSLY, the gyms part. COME ON!
This post makes me like you more! Thanks for sharing!!
Yay!! I am so happy that you got out and had some fun! It looks like an amazing trip! Happy B-day to the hubs too!
Thank you for sharing your experiences. It definitely helps to know others experiences traveling in order to be prepared. Hope you have an incredible day!
thanks Dannell!
Long time reader, first time commenter – but I just wanted to say thank you for normalising safe travel during the pandemic. Very best wishes from the UK!
thanks for the positivity Chiara!
I just feel so bad for some of these people that are living in so much fear from this virus with a 99.5% recovery rate. You would think this was the second Black Plague or smallpox or something. It breaks my heart to see people die alone because of this hyped up virus fear. I’m pregnant right now and my husband can’t come to the baby appts even though we both work from home, come from the same household (obviously), and neither one of us has covid. It’s such a shame to ruin our culture like this…especially when we know how to take care of our high risk populations.
I will link to the Wuhan study, like I did for Brit aka Mrs. Science above. 10 MILLION Wuhan residents and only 300 were asymptomatic and ALL 300 were not infectious. This is the place in China where the virus first broke out!!!
https://www.bmj.com/content/371/bmj.m4695
Also, did you see pictures of their New Years Eve celebrations over there? They must be fighting a different virus than we are. And, given how much people have gone back to normal here while wearing non-medical grade masks and no social distancing (the stores in my area aren’t enforcing it at all anymore and the airports) kinda proves this virus only spreads when symptomatic people aren’t staying at home or wearing a mask if they have to go out for some reason. Those people should be shamed, not the healthy people! Sports were played all summer and fall for my son and no infections among anyone. Omg! My son has been in school in-person every day of the week since August and no infections. Omg! My 92 year old asthmatic grandma straight up told me that she would rather die from covid than be alone so she still sees everyone like she normally does. Still hasn’t got covid. Omg! My 70 year old mother in law REFUSES to wear a mask anywhere…and she’s high risk due to her age! No covid yet. Omg! California has the worst covid numbers right now and they are the most locked down. Logic doesn’t work for people who don’t look at data the right way though. I’m a data scientist so I do this for a living.
For the fearful, take vitamin D and C, quecertin (a zinc ionophore), zinc (known virus killer that interrupts mRNA replication), and eat healthy with lots of fiber. Get outside and exercise where the sunlight kills the virus!
Honestly, Juli, your vacation sounds exactly like what the doctor ordered! Healthy vacation…physically, mentally, emotionally. So happy you had a great trip for your hubby’s bday! You work super hard and so deserve it!
it’s so interesting seeing the comments and seeing such differing opinions are this topic. it’s crazy how divided the nation is these days, about everything. what an interesting study, i wish this was talked about on the news! and even more so, i wish vitamins, diet, exercise, and sunlight were talked about by health professionals. none of those things are ever brought up then gyms are closed, forcing people to give up some of their healthy habits. it’s been so sad to see how all of this has been handled when it’s been handled so different in other countries and most of those countries are back to normal.
Clearly you’re not working in an over full hospital where the pediatric icu is overtaken by adults….
I realize this response is well after the fact, but I just want to let you know how much I appreciate and cheer your common sense attitude. You also possess critical thinking skills, which seem to be severely lacking these days. I pretty much saw from the get-go that this was being hyped all out of proportion. I wonder how these commenters who are getting down on Juli, feel now after nearly two yrs of this b.s. Are they still frightened? Are they still falling for it? Data, people, data! Read it.