Valle de Guadalupe, Mexico is quickly becoming one of the world's most renowned wine regions. It is the perfect place to explore and experience a unique fusion of Mexican culture and flavors. With Fantasy RV Tours Baja Wine & Dine Tour, you can enjoy the best that Valle de Guadalupe has to offer with ease.
There are now more than 150 wineries in the Guadalupe Valley, many of which can only be reached by long drives on dirt roads, and where on arrival you may be greeted by friendly winery dogs. On Fantasy RV Tours Baja Wine and Dine Tour, guests will have the opportunity to discover this unexplored beautiful area with sweeping views of vineyards dotting the valley, taste some delicious wines and enjoy some delectable locally sourced gourmet food.
The group will rendezvous and receive orientation in Portrero, California. The next morning, we will have an escorted border crossing into Tecate, Mexico and head for our base camp for the next six days – a beautiful new RV resort right on the beach just north of Ensenada. After a relaxing day, we enjoy our first of many delicious Mexican meals – our Welcome to Mexico dinner.
We get our first views of the Guadalupe Valley the next day when we head for wine country and the Vino L.A. Cetto Winery Tour, one of the oldest wineries in the valley. We can view the wine making process from growing the grapes in their vineyards to the barreling and bottling processes to getting to taste them ourselves. Lunch today is a special treat – we dine at La Casa de Dona Lupe, a serene corner in the heart of the valley offering delicious natural and organic foods and wine all created by a woman who has been serving the area for more than 40 years. And while we’re there, we learn more about this fascinating area from a local historian.
We spend the next day on a guided bus tour of Ensenada, visiting the fascinating Riviera del Pacifico, originally a grand hotel built during prohibition in the United States. Today, it’s a cultural center, but in its day, it attracted elegant and glamorous Americans, all in search of a glass of forbidden alcohol unavailable at home. It’s rumored that back in the 30s, Al Capone frequented the bars, the casino and the ballroom here. There’s also a museum representing the first people of the region and their way of life, depicted by symbolic paintings, baskets and icons.
Yes, it’s touristy, but what would a trip to Ensenada be without a stop at the local mercado, aka the street market? Here’s where we see the life of the town, with both tourists and locals shopping, bargaining, sharing a meal and catching up on the news of the day. Fantasy leaves us plenty of time to cruise the shops and booths, dust off our rusty Spanish and strike up some conversations with local vendors as we browse souvenir shops, never knowing what we may find.
Cheers! We’re back to the valley the next day and our first stop is at Casa Frida, built to fuse art, Mexican culture, architecture, music and wine together. Their tasting room is built on the site of the first chapel in the Guadalupe Valley, and offers art, architecture and colors unlike any other. The original adobe chapel and its stained glass is still a part of its tasting room. Casa Frida not only offers us wines to taste but also a selection of tequila from Tequila Selecto, from Amatitlán, in Jalisco, Mexico.
We then stop for a delicious Mexican lunch at the King and Queen Cantina in Ensenada. Ole! Next, it’s on to Rondo Vineyards. We can enjoy their lavender gardens and views of the valley, not to mention their delicious wines in their cellar tasting rooms. Back at the campground, it’s time for a fantastic Fantasy Beach Party, right at Clam Beach!
Our last full day in Mexico is truly relaxing. We have the morning free to just enjoy each other and our beach environment. That afternoon, we have a Farewell Social Get together, and then travel to Finca Altozano, a delightful restaurant in the Guadalupe Valley, where Executive Chef Oscar Torres creates globally influenced cuisine sourced from local farms and markets and paired with local wines. We dine under the branches of a 200-year old massive oak tree, soaking up the aroma of the fine food, exquisite wine, breathtaking scenery and wonderful friendships we have found in the Guadalupe Valley.
The next morning, we enjoy a Goodbye Continental Breakfast and head back to Tecate, where once again we are escorted across the border back to the United States.
Fantasy’s Baja Wine and Dine Tour takes place in both February and November and it’s one you won’t want to miss!