Los Cabos To Crack Down On Beach Vendors This High Season

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Last Updated 12 months ago

Los Cabos tourism has been breaking records all year and continues to show no signs of stopping. 

With high numbers of tourists coming to the Baja California Sur trending vacation spot, hotel occupancy rates have skyrocketed, and prices have remained high rather than dipping as they typically do during a low season. 

As tourists and their loved ones have been flocking to the beaches, Los Cabos officials have been working harder than ever before to keep the beaches clean, safe, and sustainable for travelers and locals. 

With their prestigious blue flag certification, Los Cabos authorities have 25 certified sustainable, safe, and clean beaches that are some of the best beaches in the world. 

After the hurricanes and tropical storms recently, workers and volunteers have worked hard to dispose of the garbage strewn on the sands and in the waters. 

Another one of the ways that local officials are planning on implementing to keep the beaches safe for visitors is by keeping the street vendors off of the beaches during the high season. 

Monitoring The Influx of Street Vendors On Beaches 

In order to monitor the presence of the street vendors, also referred to as “Golondrinos” in Spanish, Los Cabos officials will increase surveillance.

According to the head of tax inspection, José Samuel Cisneros Peruyero, there are 958 certified merchants in Los Cabos, and these efforts are meant to eradicate unsavory activity conducted by the street vendors on the beaches. 

The Golondrinos are reportedly vendors coming from other cities without permits to sell their products on the beaches in Los Cabos, thus causing an over-crowding of vendors. 

The inspector and prosecutor also made a statement saying that the local government would not only regulate the Golondrinos but also the child street vendors that in past years numbered approximately 130. 

The local authorities are working with parents to ensure that minors are not selling goods on the beach, and overall, through surveillance, will be monitoring commercial activities in Los Cabos. 

Other Issues With Street Vendors 

This isn’t the first time that Los Cabos officials have cracked down on illegal street vendors, as earlier this summer they specifically targeted street food vendors. 

The mission to monitor and prevent the activity of street vendors without permits began in March, and officials since then have been surveying specific high-traffic tourist areas, including Medano Beach, the Cabo San Lucas Marina, and more. 

In this project, the Los Cabos local officials have also reduced the number of child vendors, bringing it down from 130 to about 15 or 20. 

Utilizing a georeferencing system, local authorities have been able to find and track illegal street vendors, effectively preventing their activity on the beaches or around popular hotels. 

Los Cabos authorities have also instituted that vendors with a permit display it and wear a specific uniform so that it is easier to identify those vendors without a permit. 

Recent Issues with Street Food 

Like the local authorities becoming stricter about the presence of illegal street vendors, there have been other issues with street vendors and the products they sell recently. 

The fall season in Los Cabos is also hurricane season, and during the past few months, there have been numerous notable hurricanes and tropical storms. 

The excessive rain from the hurricanes and tropical storms including Lidia and others have caused an overflow of sewer water into the streets. 

This flooding of dirty water has created unsanitary and unhygienic conditions for street food vendors, and to avoid food poisoning or other food-borne illnesses, Los Cabos authorities warned tourists and locals not to eat street food. 

Although the street food stalls are an iconic part of Mexican culture beloved by all, for periods of time in the last few months they have not made the sales they normally do. 

By cracking down on vendors without permits and those with unsanitary conditions, Los Cabos authorities have made the streets cleaner and safer for all.