What to Pack for RVing in Baja, Mexico

Before visiting the Baja peninsula in our RV for the first time, we were equally excited (beach camping and cheap tacos? Yes, please!) and a bit nervous we would forget something. Uncertain about what to expect is probably a fair description. We didn’t know what to pack for RVing in Baja, so we guessed and made notes along the way. 

We had visited Mexico before RVing, by plane to Cancun, so we had an idea of what to expect from customs and the grocery store. We’ve compiled a to-do list of things that must be completed before crossing the border in our RV, and things we like to bring with us that aren’t as easy to find in Mexico.

Paperwork for RVing in Baja

• Vehicle ownership

• Trailer or camper ownership

• Written permission to travel internationally with your vehicle (if you have a payment or leased vehicle), etc. (We’ve never been asked about this at the border crossing to Baja, but some have)

Vehicle Insurance

You’ll may get asked to show your Mexican Tourist Auto Insurance Certificate at the border crossing since you need to have insurance specifically for driving in Mexico as a tourist. A call to your auto insurance company can help you confirm your coverage, but there are multiple Mexican auto insurance agencies near the border which confirms that most people need to add Mexican coverage to their current vehicle insurance.

From what we understand, if you’re in an accident in Mexico, the police take both parties to jail and will release you once they confirm you’ve got the proper insurance to cover the damage. If you don’t, they’ll release you once the money has changed hands. We don’t know anyone who has had this experience, but it’s not worth trying to go without.

We’ve used Lewis and Lewis both times (https://mexicanautoinsurance.com/), but a Google search can provide you with plenty of options that can provide a quote online.

You may also be able to pause or reduce your usual auto insurance coverage to offset the cost while you’re in Mexico using your supplementary tourist auto insurance.

Travel Insurance (Medical)

Make your own choice here. Currently, travel insurance isn’t required, and in many cases, health care is not expensive, but if you run into a rare situation with a high medical bill or necessary airlift, for instance, you’ll be glad you had emergency travel insurance in place. For our family of 5, this is about $250/month, but that can vary based on factors like your deductible, pre-existing conditions, age, etc.

Tourist Visa (Called FMM)

This paperwork is obtained when you enter Mexico, but the primary purpose is to show you haven’t overstayed your visa when you leave Mexico. Even though you have to obtain the FMM paperwork on entry, you’ll need to keep it with your passport and show it while exiting.

You can do your FMM paperwork ahead of time online, or you can do it in person when you cross the border. Both times, we’ve just done it in person since that’s been the easiest way to be sure it’s completed.

FMM paperwork will ask:

• Name

• Birthdate

• Home Address

• Destination (we just put the city of our first campground stop, usually San Felipe)

• Passport number

• How long you’re staying

The FMM cost is about $43 USD/ person ($717 MXP) for up to 6 month, so for our family of 5, we pay about $215. Since the FMM is good for up to 6 months, we always just get the full 6 months even if we plan on staying for less. It gives us options without risking overstaying.

They’ll usually ask if you have an FMM when you arrive at the border. Our most recent time entering, they didn’t ask us, so when they waived us to leave, we told them we needed to get an FMM, and they had a spot for us to pull over with our trailer to go into the office.

Remember that the FMM is most important for when you leave, so when entering Mexico, the border guards are less concerned with you remembering you need one. If you try and leave without one, they’ll charge you for the full 6-months allowable plus a penalty because they have no way of telling if you’ve overstayed.

For more questions about the FMM paperwork, visit the Mexico Government’s website here.

Vehicle Supplies

Driving the Baja Peninsula is interesting, to say the least. Roads are two lanes with very little to no shoulder, cell service is hit and miss, and many businesses keep odd hours (like not open on Monday and Thursday, and only open afternoons on Wednesday – yes, for real)

If something comes up with your vehicle, pulling over to the side of the road and waiting for a town truck is the last thing on your list, since you’ll likely just be blocking a lane of traffic and may be waiting hours for that town truck. Here are some pictures of our experience driving highways in Baja.

DO NOT bring extra gasoline or diesel outside your vehicle’s fuel tank to the border. It will get confiscated if found, and you may be issued fines. If you make a habit of having extra fuel on hand, bring empty jerry cans to the border (leave the lid off for ease of inspection) and fill them up after you cross.

Here’s what we would recommend having on hand. If you’re a full-time RVer, you might have most of these things stored away somewhere, but double-check before crossing into Mexico:

• Coolant

• Oil

• DEF fluid (if you have a diesel truck or camper that requires it – it’s not available at many stores, so while you can grab a bottle of washer fluid or oil most places, DEF is a must-have to bring with you and is not counted as fuel)

• Windshield washer fluid

• Jack and spare tire

RV Supplies to bring with you to Baja

• Jack to replace a tire (unless your car’s spare tire jack reaches up to your RV’s frame)

• Extra internal lightbulbs (LEDs if you’re hoping to conserve power and be off-grid beach boondocking in Baja)

• Set of automotive fuses for your RV

• Generator or solar setup for your RV (or both). There are plenty of RV parks in Baja, but to really experience the best of RVing in Baja. be prepared to go off-grid for at least a few days at a time. For some people, that means a portable battery bank for charging a cell phone or extra battery on their RV, and for others, that means internet connectivity for work and a second fridge running (for a family of 5!)

• A method for drinking water. We have a UV filter built into our trailer called an Acuva, but you might pickup a 5-gallon bottle with a cap and a compatible hand pump for the top for purified drinking water. In theory, these things are available in Baja, but sometimes stock and availability are factors. (also, bring personal water bottles with you for hikes, wandering downtown, and even to restaurants since it’s best not to drink anything that’s not bottled.)

• Things that you already know often wear out or regularly need replaced on your rig – a water filter, a particular type of lightbulb, the cupboard clasp, or that one screw that seems to always loosen while traveling and disappear to who-knows-where. We have a LevelMate Pro Bluetooth leveler for our trailer that takes a specific type of watch battery, so rather than hunt for that in Baja, we grab a couple before we leave the US)

If you’re planning to boodock on the beach (camping without hookups) then read this article about how to prepare for boondocking on the beach in Baja.

Car Snacks

This probably goes without saying, especially if you’re RVing as a family, or a couple, or an individual… actually, everyone enjoys car snacks.

While you might love a packet of sunflower seeds or some peanut-butter-filled pretzels, in Baja, you’ll never know when the ONLY 2-lane highway North-to-South might be backed up with an accident, so don’t get caught in the middle of Baja with nothing to eat or drink for hours waiting for a tow truck from the nearest city to clear the road. It’s also not helpful to be ‘hangry’ at the border crossing – either you or your kids – so have something on hand to keep everyone in top shape when there’s really no way to tell how long the process will take.

Internet Access

If internet access is important for you, then bring Starlink or another form of internet connectivity.

Cell service is inconsistent in areas where it’s expected to be available, and many times not existent for long stretches of highway between cities. If you’re going to hop between RV parks that have wifi, and it’s mostly just for keeping up with friends and family on social media, then you’re probably fine, but if you need reliable internet for work, or would like to have a backup plan for long drive days, then don’t count on your cell service alone.

Groceries in Baja California

Part of experiencing Mexico is getting to experience what food and groceries are like for another country and another culture. While we love browsing the store and trying new foods – some we don’t even recognize – there are also a few things we like to bring with us.

If you have dietary restrictions or preferences, bring what you can with you because there are no guarantees in Baja.

You can sometimes find a store that has imported products from the US, but they are considered a specialty item here, so you’ll pay a significant premium (on our last grocery trip, we found an $8 can of baked beans and a typical package of bacon for $25USD).

Local food in Mexico is not pre-packaged, so plan to eat plenty of fresh meat, vegetables, and fruit to stick to your budget.

Plenty of fresh produce and milk alternatives are available in Baja, but our vegan friends have told us that getting tofu and products without animal fats can be challenging. You can’t cross the border with fresh produce, so use that produce drawer for the specific things you’d like to be sure to have on hand.

Groceries that are common in Baja:

You’ll find these everywhere, so you won’t need to stock up on them specifically:

• Fresh fruit and vegetables – all sorts. We haven’t looked for anything fresh we couldn’t find.

• Yogurts, Milk (lactose-free, heavy cream, whole, 2%)

• Corn chips, tortillas, etc – along with fresh salsas, guacamole… everything you would imagine in Mexico.

• Fresh and frozen meat and seafood (this is where we get a bit more particular, so we’ll sometimes pass on what’s available at the grocery store, but it’s easy to find meat in many forms)

• Most pantry items and ingredients – chips, cereal, crackers, cookies, sugar, flour, baking soda, vanilla, etc.

• Teas, coffees (decaf is available but rare), juices, alcohol, soda, and bottled water.

• Fresh pastries and bread.

Groceries we have trouble finding in Baja:

Cheddar and Mozzarella Cheese: This visit, we’re finding more mozzarella cheese, but cheddar seems to be non-existent unless you find a grocery store that has imported products from the US specifically to mark up and sell to tourists (like an $11 box of Red Lobster biscuit mix we saw or a $8 can of baked beans).

We enjoy a lot of cheese, and while there are cheeses here we can’t find very often in the US and Canada and enjoy trying, there’s also some familiarity with having mozzarella for homemade pizza or particular tastes for specific recipes.

Peanut Butter: Not impossible to find, but selection is limited so if you prefer natural peanut butter without sugar or a specific brand, bring some. We did a Costco run before crossing and picked up what we needed. You might also find some products available but in a very small quantity (imagine a travel-sized jar of peanut butter to get through TSA), so you’ll be paying more once you get enough peanut butter for a second slice of toast.

Bagels: Bring some with you and freeze a sleeve if they’re a must-have! We’ve found them in some grocery stores, but not everywhere, so it may depend on how frequently you’re moving to new areas and how badly you need that morning bagel.

Sour cream: In Baja, you can find crema (which is like a runny version of sour cream) and medicrema (which is like half way between heavy cream and sour cream) but it’s not traditionally what we think of. We like to bring some, but our boys enjoy it so often that we run out quickly.

Black Tea: We had a friend who had a routine of enjoying black tea every evening before bed, and while you can find variations of fruit teas here, she had a hard time finding plain black tea. We had an extra box of Lipton to share, and you’d have thought she hit the jackpot when we met up for a visit.

Chai Latte Syrup: Yes, this is Adam’s addition to the list since it’s his favorite casual beverage and probably won’t apply to most people. Even though there are Walmarts and Costcos in Los Cabos, chai tea mix is usually powdered, not the liquid carton available at Walmart or Target. If you’re coming, bring Adam an extra few cartons!

Whole Bean Decaf Coffee: Celine’s addition to the list. Decaf coffee is available here, but it’s usually instant. We can also rarely find it already ground which is second best to whole bean that we grind ourselves, so we usually stock up on whole bean decaf.

Freezer Foods: We enjoy perogies, breaded mozzarella sticks, and dainty pastries. They’re pretty difficult to find here, and when you find them, they’ve clearly been marked up from imported from the US, so we like to grab a few of these familiar favorites to keep in our freezer for a special occasion. We don’t make them part of our regular diet anyway.

Pickles: Most of what’s pickled in Baja are jalapenos or other types of peppers, so if dill pickles are your thing, pick up an extra jar. (same for relish if that’s a must-have)

Rarer (but not impossible) to find:

• Kleenex

• Parchment Paper

• Paper Plates (you can usually find styrofoam)

• Chai Latte (I’m not bitter)

These may seem like simple things, but realizing you might not be able to find that one product you’re used to having is part of the adventure (like the time I couldn’t find chocolate chips for cookies in the baking aisle to realize on the next visit that they were kept in the candy aisle).

Generally speaking, outside of a dietary restriction, there’s no need to be concerned about getting foods you’ll enjoy in Baja. They just may not be the exact brand you’re used to, but if you like something specifically, stock up before crossing the border.

Crossing with Pets

We don’t have pets, but we know plenty of people who travel with their pet to Baja. Check current requirements from the US department of Agriculture website here.

Clothing Packing List

If you’re a full-time RVer, then you probably have whatever clothes you own on your RV already, and while you won’t need to pack your winter jacket, you’ll still want warm clothes for a windy day or sitting around the fire in the evening, clothes for warm days, and swim clothes for getting in the sea (or at least the pool or hot tub at a campground here and there).

Cash Mexican Pesos & US Dollars in Baja

There’s an interesting mix between places that only take cash and places that will take card. Established grocery chains, gas stations, and restaurants take cards, and many retailers will also, but you can expect that many small restaurants, vendors wandering the beach, and fruit stands are cash only. You also can expect that a gas station that usually takes cards may not have internet service at any given moment, so have cash on hand as a contingency.

Getting cash out in Baja comes with hefty fees, and many people will take American at a reduced exchange rate, which ultimately costs you anyway but is good in a pinch.

We always get Mexican pesos (MXP) before we cross the border. The cost is much less at a home bank than at a Mexican ATM. At some point, we try and top up, but we try to do that in as few transactions as possible (visit the ATM once a month instead of once a week) and we ask to pay with card as often as possible.

We keep our cash tucked away in our RV and carry $50 (About 1000 pesos) each in our wallets unless we have a specific purpose for it (like staying a week at a beach at $10/night).

I would also recommend getting a credit card or debit card with no foreign exchange fees, meaning that they don’t charge you a premium (sometimes up to 3%) if you use the card outside of your home country. We have both and AMEX and a VISA, which have no foreign exchange fees. If you’re coming for a few weeks, it may not be a concern, but for us to come for a few months and making purchases multiple times each week, the yearly fee for that card saves us plenty on exchange fees.

Cash spending can vary depending on if you eat out more or less often, stay at campgrounds that accept VISA in Baja, or shop at local fruit stands compared to chain grocery stores. We find that we need about $500 USD/month in cash = about $10,000 MXP Pesos and the rest we can put on card.

Things you cannot take across the Mexico Border

• Fresh fruit or vegetables
• Fresh meat
• Gasoline
• Firearms
• Drugs, Alcohol, or Tobacco
• Currency equivalent to more than $10,000 USD
• Prescriptions are allowed, but need to come with a doctor’s note outlining the patient’s details and listing the prescriptions. Here are full details about bringing medications on Mexico’s website.

BONUS RV Accessories that we’ve found really helpful for Baja, Mexico

There are plenty of places to stay on the beach. This outdoor rug gives us a transition to take our shoes off or have a wash bucket between sand and our RV

Speaking of sand everywhere…

Baja is best experienced on beaches, and since very few beaches have level, paved RV sites, you’ll want to be sure your RV is level

We bought a folding table right before we left this year for Baja. It’s been a game changer since we’re not often at campgrounds and enjoying as much beach time as possible includes having dinner outside or playing games under a palapa or shade tree.

There are definitely times when you’ll want to have it as dark as possible to enjoying the nighttime sky, but other times, you’d like to sit around with friends and enjoy an evening snack together, so some solar outdoor lights are great to both enjoy the beach, but also be able to see friends for a conversation.

Bring some lighting for dark beach evenings in Baja

 

If you haven’t been to Baja before in your RV, you might be wondering if you need to speak Spanish to RV in Mexico. Here’s what we learned, and some Spanish words you should know to help you get by: