Registration is now open for the 2023 edition of the Cruising Fleet trip to the beautiful Valle de Guadalupe in Baja California!
We have a great trip planned, with plenty of wonderful food and wine.
This overland “cruise” will start and finish at the SDYC parking lot where 20 Cruising Fleet members will board vans on Friday morning, April 21st, returning to SDYC on Sunday afternoon, April 23.
As with previous trips, we’ll be enjoying wonderful food, camaraderie and several wine tastings from some of the best vintners in Mexico’s most important wine region. For example, Lechuza is back on the itinerary this year; they’re the only Mexican winery that has been included on the menu at Thomas Keller’s famous Napa Valley restaurant, The French Laundry.
Since we’re expecting the trip to be oversubscribed, we will choose who’s going using a lottery like last year. We’ll do the lottery at the beginning of March. The first 20 chosen (recognizing that some are couples, some are singles traveling alone, and some are singles traveling together), will be confirmed for the trip. Importantly, the waiting list will also be chosen by the same lottery, and the order of the names chosen will be the priority order for filling spots if they open up due to cancellations.
Last year, everyone who wanted to go on the trip was able to go because we had cancellations. So if you’re not chosen initially, don’t despair!
We expect the total cost of the trip — including round-trip transportation from SDYC, transportation around the Valle for 3 days, discounted hotel rooms, all gratuities, and food and wine — to be in the neighborhood of $650 to $800 per person. (Note: The cost of the first night’s dinner and breakfast on Saturday and Sunday will be on your own and are not included in the estimate above.)
Your Cruise Captains — Larry Shushan, Maggie Acosta, and Cathy and Joe Cibit — have personally scouted all the locations, and we can assure that you won’t be disappointed.
Here are additional trip details:
— No non-member guests can be accommodated for this trip because we’re strictly limited to 20 people based on the capacity of our two vans. Also, we cannot accommodate people driving on their own. Our group size limit is based on logistics at the restaurants and wineries.
While they may not be required everywhere, please plan to bring masks that fully cover your mouth and nose because some venues we’ll be visiting may require masks. Out of courtesy for the van driver and your fellow passengers, it is recommended that masks be worn while on the van.
Important note about boats: Mexico’s entry requirements for boats since the beginning of the pandemic has made bringing a boat for a short trip like this too complicated and time-consuming, so we won’t be able to accommodate boats this time.
Finally: You MUST have a valid passport to travel to and from Mexico for this cruise. No exceptions are made by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. A current Global Entry or SENTRI card would be useful to allow quick entry at the border (all guests will enter the U.S. via the pedestrian access; van will drop us off at the border and pick us up on the U.S. side.) If you don’t have a valid U.S. Passport, please do not register for this trip. NOTE: a Global Entry or SENTRI card is not a reliable substitute for a U.S. Passport. Also, if your passport or other credentials are expiring within six months of April 2023, please try to renew before the trip.
Questions? Please e-mail or call Larry Shushan at larryshushan@gmail.com or 510-701-6920.
