Why not the tap?
Municipal water in Los Cabos is treated, but it passes through old pipes and, in most buildings, rooftop storage tanks (tinacos) and cisterns before it reaches your tap. Quality can't be guaranteed by the time it comes out, which is why residents buy purified water for drinking and cooking. Treat tap water as fine for showers and washing, not for drinking.
Ice, drinks and cocktails
Restaurants, bars and hotels that serve visitors buy ice made from purified water, often the cylindrical kind with a hole through the middle, which is a good sign it came from an ice factory. Supermarket and OXXO bagged ice is also purified. Street stalls are the exception to be careful with.
Aguas frescas (fruit waters such as horchata and jamaica) in established restaurants are made with purified water. At street stalls, it depends on the stall.
Brushing teeth, salads and fruit
A few habits that most visitors follow:
- Brush your teeth with bottled water, or at least don't swallow tap water. Most people with sensitive stomachs use bottled.
- Salads and raw vegetables in good restaurants are washed in purified water with disinfectant drops; that's standard practice in Mexican kitchens.
- If you're preparing produce at a villa, wash it in bottled water. Supermarkets sell vegetable disinfectant drops (look for Microdyn).
- Keep your mouth closed in the shower if you're cautious.
- Canned and bottled drinks, coffee and tea made with boiled water are fine.
Buying water in Cabo
Bottled water is sold everywhere: supermarkets, OXXO convenience stores and pharmacies. For a family or group, the cheapest option is garrafones, the 20-liter jugs sold at supermarkets and water shops, which sit on a stand or a dispenser. You pay a deposit on the first jug and swap empties afterwards. Our grocery guide lists the stores near Médano.
Carry a refillable bottle and fill it from purified water at your hotel or villa rather than buying single bottles all day.
What about hotels and resorts?
Most resorts in Los Cabos put bottled water in rooms and have purified water stations. Some larger hotels run their own purification systems and label their tap water as drinkable; if the property says so in writing, you can trust it, but otherwise assume the tap isn't for drinking. At Villa 1, ask our concierge about drinking water for your stay.
If you do get sick
Traveler's diarrhea usually passes in a day or two. Rest, drink plenty of bottled water and oral rehydration salts (sold as Electrolit or Suero Oral in every pharmacy), and eat bland food. Pharmacies are everywhere in Cabo, many with a doctor's consulting room next door for minor illnesses. See a doctor if you have a high fever, blood in your stool, or symptoms lasting more than a few days, and be quicker to get help for babies, older travelers and anyone who can't keep fluids down. Travel medical insurance is worth having.
Swimming pools and the sea
Pools at hotels and villas are chlorinated and maintained; don't drink the water but don't worry about it either. The Sea of Cortez at beaches like Médano is monitored by health authorities, and several Los Cabos beaches hold Blue Flag certification for water quality. Our swimmable beaches guide has the details.
Water at restaurants, markets and on tours
At sit-down restaurants, water served in a bottle or from a jug at the table is purified. If you're not sure, ask for agua embotellada (bottled water) or agua purificada. On boats and tours, operators usually include bottled water and ice in coolers; bring your own bottle for longer trips in summer.
At markets and street food stalls, choose drinks from sealed bottles or cans, and fruit you peel yourself. Fresh-cut fruit cups with lime and chile are popular and usually fine from busy vendors, but if you have a sensitive stomach, save them for later in the trip.
Travelers with extra risk
Babies, pregnant travelers, older guests and anyone with a weakened immune system should be stricter: bottled water for everything that goes in the mouth, including formula and toothbrushing. For babies, see our guide to Cabo with a baby or toddler.
Cooking at a villa or condo
If you're self-catering, use bottled or garrafón water for drinking, cooking pasta and rice, making coffee, and washing produce. Boiling tap water for a full minute also makes it safe, but using purified water is simpler. Fill ice trays with bottled water or buy bagged ice. Wash dishes in tap water as normal; that's what everyone does. A garrafón on a stand in the kitchen, with a refillable bottle for each person, cuts down on plastic and saves carrying crates of bottles from the supermarket.
