A month-long leatherworking workshop has just concluded in Miraflores, the small East Cape-area town about 45 minutes north of San José del Cabo that’s been building a reputation as one of Baja California Sur’s more interesting cultural detours.
The course, known as a taller de talabartería (leatherworking workshop), ran from September 5 to October 3 and was taught by master craftsman Juan Julián González Pérez. Classes were free and open to children, teens and adults, part of a push to keep traditional trades from fading out as fewer young people learn them.
What the Workshop Covered
Talabartería is the craft of working raw leather into saddles, belts, reins, holsters and other ranch gear by hand — a skill that has shaped daily life on Baja California Sur’s cattle ranches for generations. The workshop was organized under the 2026 Arte Comunitario en los Municipios (Community Art in the Municipalities) program, according to the state tourism department.
Fernando Ojeda Aguilar, deputy secretary at the Secretaría de Turismo y Economía (SETUE, the state’s Tourism and Economy Secretariat), announced the workshop’s completion. “Preserving traditional trades is also a way of protecting our history and identity,” he said. “Through these workshops, we want new generations to know, value and keep alive the legacy of those who, over the years, have helped build the cultural richness of our land.”
Why It Matters for Visitors
Ojeda Aguilar also pointed out that promoting crafts like this one gives the region something extra to offer beyond beaches and marlin — a chance for cultural and community tourism that brings visitors closer to the customs that set Baja California Sur apart from the rest of Mexico’s resort towns.
That tracks with what’s already happening in Miraflores. The town earned its Pueblo Histórico designation earlier this year, a status meant to protect and promote towns with strong colonial-era or ranching heritage, and it has leaned into that identity with recurring events like its seasonal market and pitaya harvest celebrations.
For visitors willing to drive the extra few kilometers off Highway 1, Miraflores rewards the detour with cobblestone streets, mountain views and a slower pace than the Corridor. A road trip through the Miraflores countryside remains one of the more underrated day trips in the Los Cabos area, and leatherwork has long been part of that rural backdrop — ranchers in the surrounding hills still use hand-tooled tack on working horses.
What’s Next
There’s no word yet on whether the talabartería workshop will return in 2027 or whether finished pieces from this session will be displayed or sold locally. State officials said SETUE plans to keep running similar artisan workshops around Baja California Sur as part of its broader effort to document and sustain traditional trades.
In the meantime, travelers curious about the region’s ranching culture can time a visit around one of Miraflores’ community events, many of which showcase local crafts, food and music in the town’s historic center.
