Baja California offers a thousand and one cactus-photographing opportunities

Stretching the length of the 1300-km peninsula, the Transpeninsular Highway is a world-class drive that's best taken at a leisurely pace, and those with enough time (and the steely motoring nerve) to do so will reap huge benefits, not to mention a thousand and one giant cactus-photographing opportunities.

All that coastline means beaches aplenty, though even more enticing than the pristine sands south of Mulegé is the fun that's waiting off-shore.

Loreto is a hub for watersports including kayaking, diving and snorkelling among the rich marine life of the Sea of Cortez.

The Pacific coast is a haven for whale-watchers from February to April, as gray whales arrive all the way from the Bering Sea to calve in the warm, shallow waters of Baja's lagoons.