Alex Romashko. Date of travel: Nov 2004
La Paz is an absolute delight! Why is La Paz so great? 1) Ecotourism! Being a scuba diver, I found that the dive sites accessible from La Paz are some of the most varied and prolific I have ever seen. On a one week trip with 4 diving days, I snorkeled with whale sharks, turned underwater sommersaults with sea lions, dove in the middle of a swirling school of hundreds of thousands of green jacks, witnessed the hunting behavior of massive schools of crevalle jacks and barracudas, heard the underwater sound of thousands of fish fleeing a school of predators, and felt like I was diving in an overcrowded fishtank! In fact, you can't take an underwater photo of just one subject without incidentally getting at least a few other species in the photo. Add this to the pink rocky beauty of the islands in the Sea of Cortez and you have an incredible destination! (We chose Club Cantamar for our diving charters, which was an excellent operation). Oh yeah, there's also sea kayaking, hiking, bird watching, deap sea fishing, mountain biking, sunbathing, ... 2) The town La Paz is anything but the *stereotypical* Mexican City as Americans might imagine. It is a vibrant city. Every morning along the ocean front walkway called the Malecon, you will see all sorts of joggers, walkers, strollers, getting their morning exercise. The Malecon itself is lined with nice stores, restaurants, and hotels, but feels like a real city and not like Cancun. You won't see drunk fraternity brothers shouting and stumbling down the street. You just see the people of the city enjoying life. It is clean, and the people obviously care about their city. If you're staying for a while, you can find supermarkets to rival any in a "first world" country. 3) The people It may sound hokey, but the people of La Paz really stand out. Everyone we met, from people working in the service industry (waiters, hotel staff, store clerks) was helpful and friendly. People on the street offered help when it looked like we were lost or had questions. We never once felt like we were in a neighboorhood that we shouldn't be in. The citizens are proud of their city, and take good care of it and its visitors. Tour Operator: self-planned

La Paz? Hang around La Concha! - Martin and Jeanene. Date of travel: Aug 2003
I don't remember where we shopped; we just walked around and looked at the old buildings, the shops, and bought a small nativity to bring home. Why would we be interested in La Paz when we were staying at the terrific La Concha Resort! I highly recommend it.