Why You Should Visit Flora Farms in Los Cabos, Mexico
Flora Farms, located just north of San Jose del Cabo, is a place like no other. It’s a 25 acre working farm that’s also about a million other things - including a place for great food, a centre for learning, a creative cocktail headquarters, a shopping destination, and community hub .
A glimpse of what makes the property at Flora Farms so special. It’s bursting with life.
If you’re visiting the region of Los Cabos in Mexico, you should make it a priority to visit Flora Farms during your time here. Quite honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if it ended up being a (or the) highlight of your trip.
This gorgeous 25 acre property is located just north of San Jose del Cabo and, depending on how you want to experience Flora Farms, you could conceivably stay a couple of minutes and grab some items from Flora Farms Grocery, a couple of hours and take part in an art or cooking class, or a lot longer if you want to take a peek at their Culinary Cottages and Hillside Haylofts that are available for rent.
I was fortunate to visit Flora Farms with a small group of Canadian media. We made the 20 or so minute drive from the stunning Le Blanc Spa Resort Los Cabos, and it was most certainly well worth the drive.
From a media perspective, it was a photographer’s dream come true, as there was always something to catch your eye. And from a writer’s perspective, it also checked the box, as Flora Farms is a place bursting with stories and life.
About Los Cabos’ Famous Flora Farms
Flora Farms can trace its roots back to Gloria and Patrick Greene, who moved to the area from San Francisco in the early 1990s. The story goes that they came down here to experience a full solar eclipse, and promptly fell in love with the place.
They were apparently familiar with the area as they’d visited with family in the past, but they still didn’t have any intention of laying down roots and, eventually, starting a business here.
They found work here and had started to get a rhythm going when a devastating hurricane struck in 1993, and they lost it all, but thankfully not their lives. With the support of the community, they got back on their feet, with Gloria even started the “La Jolla Art Festival” to support local artists and foster community.
Gloria and Patrick also invested in a 25-acre property in Las Animas where they felt they might be able to have a farm, and perhaps even a home. When you visit, it’s wild to consider that this land was once barren because there’s now so much going on, and it looks like it’s always been there - or at least fits perfectly with the surroundings.
They started building, with Gloria opening “Flora,” a farm-to-table restaurant before its time that was welcomed with rave reviews. Next came an Organic Market, then a BBQ Pit, and shortly thereafter the cooking classes.
Everything evolved slowly (particularly getting the soil and farmland to a place they were satisfied with), and each new venture added something unique to the table.
Today, it’s a whole bunch of different offerings that work in unison, and are all deeply connect to the power of this 25 acre piece of land.
How Can You Best Experience Flora Farms?
Give yourself time to wander around the property. There are hidden gems everywhere.
Below, I’ll break down what Flora Farms has on offer (and is particularly well known for), so that you can make the most of your visit to this famed Los Cabos’ property.
Bring Your Appetite
If you’re talking to people around San Jose del Cabo or Cabo San Lucas, it’s likely that the first thing anyone would mention here is the delicious food on offer, which is quite literally from their field to your plate. Here are your options:
Flora’s Field Kitchen: As they note on their site, “Flora’s Field kitchen is about handmade food using our farm fresh ingredients. Our goal is to create a healthy family meal with a sense of place." All meat served here comes from their 150-acre ranch where animals are raised humanely without antibiotics, hormones and so forth. It’s immensely popular for a good reason, and when I visited, there was hardly a free table, so be sure to book a reservation ahead of time.
The Farm Bar: They serve traditional cocktails, quality wine, and beer from Flora’s Brewery (on tap, naturally). They’re best known for their fruit and vegetable infused cocktails. I, for example, had their Heirloom Carrot Farmarita, and it was heavenly.
Mama’s Pizzeria: They have a separate wood-fired oven that’s focused singularly on pizza. They are very well known for their pizzas, and that’s probably because thy make 15 different masterful Neapolitan style pizzas. If you’re feeling adventurous, try something a little different like the “Farm Bacon with Farm Egg” pizza.
Flora’s Ice Cream Cart: Not shockingly, all their ice cream and sorbet is also house-made. They use milk from their ranch, along with cream base and fresh vanilla.
Take a Tour of the Farm
I’d strongly recommend that anyone visiting takes a tour of the farm because it ended up providing a lot of the context that I needed to recognize just how special this place was. Tours are free, take about 30 minutes, and you can book a tour ahead of time right here.
The farm is worked by hand, and I learned there’s a focus here on “companion planting” (when two plants are grown close to each other to benefit each other).
You can find a full description of their farm practices here, but I wanted to pull out this segment in particular, as it sums things up rather beautifully.
“Here, we have an ideal winter growing season that can last up to 8 months. We farm mostly Heirloom vegetables and herbs through the months of November – June, and fruits like pineapple, plums, mangos, papayas, guyabana, soursop, and bananas from July through October.
We cultivate and weed by hand, and over time the need to weed becomes minimal. We plant and harvest by hand, trellising tomatoes and cucumbers on wood stakes and using the shade created to protect light sensitive crops.
In all, we plant over 100 varieties of vegetables and herbs. Our growing season becomes a succession of abundant harvests as the hot summer yields to a mild fall, a cool winter and a warm spring.”
I should note here that if you’re especially keen to explore the natural side of the property, and become better acquainted with the flora on Flora Farms, they do also offer a Native Plant Identification Walk.
Make Time for a Cooking Class
At Flora Farms, the cooking classes are set up so that you have a lengthy cooking class as a group, then it’s followed by a delicious lunch (much of which you had a hand in making, of course)
We took part in the Seasonal Tamales Cooking Class, which happens on Wednesdays. We prepared chicken tamales (there was a vegetarian option as well) with hibiscus cream, guacamole, chile de arbol salsa, and caesar salad. There was plenty to eat, so I was a very happy camper in that regard.
On Tuesday, they do a Roasted Vegetable Tacos Cooking Class, and on Friday they focus on Regional Salsas.
It’s worth noting here that all cooking classes include a Farm Tour, one of their craft cocktails, and, of course, lunch. They typically operate between the hours of 10:30-2pm (though often start a little earlier in summer)
Pamper Yourself at the Farm Spa and Salon
I didn’t personally have the chance to take advantage of any of their spa services, but the location sure was lovely. It’s nestled among the seasonal produce and flowers, and I’m sure when you’re there you’ll hear birds politely chirping along. Not a bad setting for a spa, that’s for sure.
The spa is apparently operated by Leo Salon. Leo has spent over 15 years in the spa industry in nearby San Jose del Cabo, so the transition here was rather seamless. They do the standard massages, facials, manicures and pedicures, but there’s an underlying focus on using plant-based products from their own flowers and herbs.
Watercolour Art Classes
Three times a week, Flora Farms hosts cooking classes, but it’s also worth knowing that every Wednesday and Friday (from 10am-2pm), they also host creative watercolour paining classes with local artist Ana Paula Fascinetto.
While I was taking the cooking class, I could see the art class in progress, and it looked, at least from afar, like a very enjoyable way to spend a few hours.
The classes are for people of all skill levels. Your goal in the classes is to create a composition using a floral arrangement or a basket of local fruits and vegetables. The class is apparently divided into two parts - drawing and painting.
On Flora Farms’ website, Ana is noted as saying, “By the end of the painting session, it’s my hope that you leave with a memento of this colorful, inspiring farm along with a few artistic tips to use next time you have a brush in hand.”
What I gather most is that this experience is quite judgment free, and just about flexing a different muscle in your brain with the guidance of an expert, in a serene setting.
Wander and Shop
A friendly local cat at El Wine Bar & Cafe
Flora Farms is almost like it’s own city at this point and, as we know, cities have shops. We actually arrived an hour or so early for our cooking class so that we could peruse the grounds and pop our heads into some of the shops.
I’d recommend adding some time to the beginning or end of your planned visit just so you can poke around a bit. Here’s what’s on offer:
Etnia: A fun twist on traditional Mexican crafts.
Anne Sidora: Offering thematic boxes of fine Mexican products.
El Wine Bar & Cafe: A tasting room that showcases over 300 wines, and even offers over 100 bottles by the glass. I arrived early in the morning, so ended up just getting a coffee, which was also nice.
Eclectic Array: Unique handmade products with a focus on fair trade.
Eduardo Sanchez Jewelry: Featuring the jewelry from this famed Mexican designer.
Santo Cabo: Handcrafted soaps and body care products.
Selfe Edge: Men’s denim, shirts and leather accessories.
James Perse: Bringing Southern California style to Los Cabos.
There’s a little something for everyone, as they say.
Look at the Calendar to See What’s Upcoming
There’s always something new or seasonal in the works at Flora Farms. I’d encourage you to check out their calendar before you visit so that you can see if there’s special on.
In the past, there have been Movie Nights, Songwriter Sessions, Sunset Yoga (with live music), and holiday activities (Easter egg painting, Christmas cookie decorating, Day of the Dead altar competitions etc.)
At the bottom of their site, you can sign up for their newsletter to stay in the know!
So That’s Flora Farms, My Friends
If you’re in Los Cabos, it’d be a mistake not to at least come here for a meal. If you’re in the region for an extended time, then I do genuinely think it’d be worth it to attend some of the classes on offer, take a farm tour and the like. Quite honestly, if I lived here, I think this is a place that I would come to find community and to meet likeminded people.
However you choose to experience Flora Farms, I hope that this article guides you well in that endeavour. Flora Farms is a place where a lot of learning can happen - learning that can expand your horizons.
Besides leaving with a full belly after making (and eating) tamales en masse, I also left with a new perspective horticulturally, socially, and even around what’s possible from an entrepreneurial perspective when you keep community at the forefront.
Be sure to book a reservation ahead of time to ensure you’re able to do what you’re hoping to do, and I wish you all the best on your adventures.
I want to humbly thank Visit Los Cabos (with help from Jesson+CO), and Flora Farms for hosting me as media. All opinions are completely my own.
If you appreciated this article, you’ll love our newsletter, as well as our Facebook group! Feel free to join, all are welcome. If you’ve got any questions or comments, add them below, and I’ll be sure to get back to you.