San Felipe was founded in 1916 as a commercial fishing port. Still operating a sizeable shrimp-fishing fleet of small pangas, the pueblos' principal income has changed over the past five years, from fishing to tourism and retirement living with as many as 250,000 American and Canadian visitors annually. November through March is the prime "snowbird" season with mobile homes arriving from all regions of the US and Canada. Increasingly we now also see tourism and investment in retirement homes from places as far away as Australia. Easter week and the surrounding "spring break" weeks, when college students from schools around the southwest USA invade San Felipe, is the busiest time in town. Hotel rooms are at a premium and traffic jams are routine on the road to and from the border crossing in Mexicali. During the summer months, May through September, the weather is ideal for a relaxed lifestyle on the beaches. Fishing is good and the pace of life slows considerably.Now San Felipe has become into a small friendly fishing community of 15,000, is the northern most beach resort community on the West Side of the Sea of Cortez. Only 2.5 hours drive south of the Calexico / Mexicali border.
San Felipe has gradually transformed from a sleepy fishing village into a popular vacation resort with an International Airport, Nightclubs, Restaurants, Sport-Fishing, Snorkeling, Sailing Cruises and Sightseeing Tours. San Felipe is also home to dirt bike and desert racing enthusiast.
San Felipe's Sand Dunes
