Ensenada Offers Abundant Attractions for Cruise Ship Passengers

By Connie Ellig

Located on the Pacific coast 60 nautical miles south of San Diego, Ensenada has been one of Mexico’s top three most visited ports-of-call for major international cruise lines for more than 25 years. Each year approximately one half million cruise ship passengers experience this thriving seaport’s incomparable hospitality that is seeped in tradition and flavored with a cosmopolitan twist. Enhancing Ensenada’s warm and friendly ambience are its exceptional shopping, outstanding dining, diverse recreational activities, and rich array of natural, historical and cultural attractions.

A panoramic view of Ensenada’s Bahía de Todos Santos from Chapultepec Hill. (Photo by Connie Ellig)

Cruise ship passengers who wish to explore Ensenada on their own need only walk a few blocks or take a short taxi ride to discover an endless array of shops offering Mexican arts, jewelry, clothing, furniture and leather goods, as well as numerous restaurants serving seafood, Mexican and international fare.

Additional attractions in the downtown area include the new CEARTE Centro Estatal de las Artes (State Center of the Arts) as well as the Riviera Cultural Center, Santo Tomás Winery, the legendary Hussong’s Cantina, four museums, several fine art galleries, a civic plaza, a waterfront boardwalk and park, sportfishing docks, marinas, and the largest open-air seafood market in northern Baja California. Tourist information centers, pharmacies, ATM machines, liquor stores, mini-markets and Internet cafes also are conveniently located within a ten-minute walk from the cruise ship terminal.

Cruise ship passengers who wish to avail themselves of guided tours can choose from a variety of affordable three- to six-hour shore excursions including championship golf, horseback riding, kayaking and off-road adventure expeditions. Other excursions feature tours of the landmark Riviera Civic, Social and Cultural Center, a former hotel and gambling casino built in the 1930s; Bodegas de Santo Tomás, Baja California’s oldest winery founded in 1888; La Bufadora, a remarkable natural blowhole that spews seawater and foam high into the air; or Ensenada’s Wine Country, the region that produces nearly 90% of Mexico’s grapes and wines. For travelers who wish to experience as much as possible during their hours ashore, there are excursions that combine sightseeing with shopping, dining or Mexican fiestas featuring mariachis and colorful folkloric dancers.

The leading seaport in the state of Baja California, Ensenada is a regular port-of-call for Royal Caribbean’s 2,744-passenger “Monarch of the Seas,” based in Los Angeles, which arrives weekly on Thursday and Saturday, and Carnival’s 2,052-passenger “Paradise,” based in Long Beach, which arrives weekly on Wednesday and Saturday. Both offer three- and four-day Baja Mexico cruises. In June of 2007, Ensenada began receiving San Diego’s first year-round homeport cruise ship, Carnival’s “Elation,” which offers five-day cruises from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas and Ensenada. With a 2,052-passenger capacity, its regular arrival in Ensenada on Wednesdays or Fridays (depending on its itinerary) represents an important increase in tourism and a boost to the local economy. (The average cruise ship passenger spends an estimated $67 dollars during his or her average 6-8 hours ashore in Ensenada.)

More popular than ever, short cruises from three to five days are not only convenient and affordable, but also provide an enjoyable way for travelers to experience an unfamiliar city or country before investing in longer voyages or extended vacations involving travel by land or air.

Dolores G. from southern California is a world traveler who has taken ocean and river cruises throughout North and South America, Europe and Asia. She and her sister-in-law, Joyce R. from northern California, took a short cruise to Ensenada in early November during Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead), one of Mexico’s most traditional religious holidays. In town they met up with friends, local residents who took them on an impromptu whirlwind tour of the city and its environs.

“This was a trial run for Joyce, who had never been on a cruise nor had visited Ensenada. For her it was very exciting, new, and totally different than anything she had experienced,” Dolores later declared. “She has fond memories of the tasty Mexican food at Las Cazuelas Restaurant and fell in love with La Bufadora and its scenic surroundings. During our too-brief sojourn ashore, we both saw much more than we had expected to see: the museum at Estero Beach Resort, the Riviera Cultural Center with its Day of the Dead altar, the Día de Muertos candlelight procession in the local cemetery, the liquor store with 400 different brands of tequila, Hussong’s Cantina, and the panoramic view of the city, bay and our cruise ship from Chapultepec Hill.”

Dolores continued, “As for the rest of our new-found friends on the cruise, I believe they enjoyed Ensenada very much. They toured the Santo Tomás Winery and had a good experience there as well as excellent shopping in the silver stores, leather shops and pharmacy. They were all very pleased with themselves and their purchases. One man, who bought a hand-tooled scabbard for a friend in Scotland, said he would never have found such a work of art in the United States, and he lives in Arizona where leather is plentiful!

“Was the cruise worth my time and money? My answer is definitely yes,” concluded Dolores. “In the past I have driven to Ensenada and enjoyed the spectacular ocean views along the highway. But cruising to Ensenada was a totally different adventure and it was nonstop fun, fun, fun all the way! The atmosphere was casual, not stuffy; the passengers and crew were very friendly; and I even won $250 dollars in the ship’s casino!”