Memorial Day Weekend in Rocky Point
The Experience
Even though Memorial Day weekend is not a Mexican holiday, in Rocky Point it compares to some of the biggest Mexican holidays in it’s celebratory energy.
Hundreds of tourists visit Puerto Penasco during this time, mostly from Arizona and California.
This holiday is filled with many events and activities.
You will enjoy live music and dancing throughout town. The sand dunes will be packed with ATVers racing up and down the hills. Taco stands, restaurants and bars will be offering their best meals and drinks. Beach vendors will parade up and down the sandy beaches pushing their carts filled with ice cold micheladas, margaritas, spicy mangos, spiced coconuts and fresh ceviche.
You will hear people laughing and screaming as they are dragged through the waves on the banana boats. Festive music echoes through the area as sunset cruises pass by.
The Drive Down
If it’s your first time traveling on this holiday be prepared to encounter long lines at the border, both going in and coming back.
The border will have extended hours during this specific time. Friday May 26 and Monday May 29, the border will be open from 6am to 10pm. All other days the border will be open from 6am to 8pm daily.
I suggest you arrive at the border at the very least 2 hours before it closes or you may not make it in or back!
The earlier you get in line the better.
Make sure you have Mexican car insurance.
Be very mindful of your speed right after you cross the border going through Sonoyta! Police are even more vigilant during this time and will pull you over even if you’re going only one kilometer over the legal speed limit!
Speed limits are posted in kilometers not miles. The border town of Sonoyta has a maximum speed limit of 40kmh or 25 mph. Some areas within the town can be as low as 25kmh or 15mph.
You may want to fill your gas tank in Lukeville right before you cross the border. And it turns out that as of the time of this writing gas prices in Lukeville are lower than in the Phoenix area.
Gas prices in Mexico are also high and unfortunately sometimes at the gas stations they may put less gas in your car than what you think. Not a common thing but it can happen.
On The Beach
Get to the beach or pool as early as possible if you are wanting to take advantage of the shaded beach palapas or pool umbrellas. They are first come first serve.
Don’t worry if you miss out on the shade, there are plenty of tents available for rent on the beach.
Book organized activities in advance, such as fishing, bird island tours, Pinacate biosphere tours, golf, spa treatments. They do sell out.
If you can, when going out to eat try to go during off peak times. Restaurants get really busy especially the more popular ones. Sunday and Monday mornings in particular are really busy as people have breakfast and lunch right before they head out of town.
Bring lots of small dollar bills to pay the vendors on the beach, they normally don’t carry change.
