Our timeshare company opened a new hotel near Loreto, which is located on the Sea of Cortez on the Baja peninsula of Mexico.  The pictures of the hotel looked fantastic and it looked like the town of Loreto was a step back in time.  The gray days of winter helped convince us to book the trip.

     We flew to Los Angeles  and easily made it to our connecting flight that was on a small turbo prop plane.  I was a bit nervous about flying on a plane painted in Oregon Duck colors,since I was a Washington alum, but the flight was smooth and we enjoyed the view of the Sea of Cortez.  We landed at the newly remodeled airport at Loreto and had excellent ramp access to the terminal.  A shuttle from the hotel picked us up and we enjoyed the 45 minute drive through the desert to the Villa Palmar.  It was a beautiful property and there was hardly anyone there.  We had a nice dinner and were amazed at the quiet of the desert night.

    We strolled around the grounds of the hotel the next morning and arranged for Debi to have a spa treatment at the luxurious new spa.  I rented a kayak and sampled the snorkeling in the bay.  We had lunch by the pool and watched as cormorants soared above us in the updrafts by the cliffs. We explored some dirt roads around the hotel and got a good taste of the desert environment.  We were amazed at the clarity of the stars in arid night sky.

    We caught the shuttle into Loreto the next day and explored the shops in the historic town.  We visited the 16th century Our Lady of Loreto mission and enjoyed strolling along the newly constructed malecon by the waterfront.  We ended our visit with a delicious fruit filled popsicle.  We enjoyed some more sun and then headed home totally rejuvenated.