Wide Open Baja

Most off-road outings in Los Cabos put you in a convoy of rented quads following a guide at a sedate pace. Wide Open Baja is something else entirely. Since 1997 the company has put guests behind the wheel of purpose-built, open-wheel desert cars, the Baja Challenge, a machine designed to deliver the performance and safety of a modern race vehicle, and let them drive the kind of terrain that has made the peninsula famous in motorsport.

The company operates from two bases, Ensenada in the north and Cabo San Lucas in the south, and its Cabo program puts that experience within reach of travelers who have only a day to spare. Options run from a few hours to several days, and the format is explicitly not a follow-the-leader convoy: each driver chooses a comfortable speed while an experienced guide sets the route and regroups the party along the way.

That is why it earns a place here. For the guest who has done the yacht and the spa and wants a story to tell, few experiences in Los Cabos are as visceral, or as well organized, as driving a real desert car across Baja.

What to expect

Every outing begins with an orientation and safety briefing before guests take the wheel. Independent coverage of the company’s longer tours describes a lead guide in radio contact calling out hazards, mechanics in a chase vehicle and backup cars on hand, along with terrain that can include dry riverbeds, rocky tracks, ridgelines and jumps. Expect dust, noise and a genuine adrenaline rush. The company itself is candid that this is not an outing for the faint of heart.

Good to know

• Booking: request availability through the official site’s information form or by phone.
• Requirement: all cars use manual transmissions, so drivers must be comfortable with a stick shift.
• Best for: confident drivers, motorsport fans and groups looking for a high-energy day.
• Formats: from a few hours to multi-day tours, with day tours offered from Cabo San Lucas.