Looking down the center of Weber’s camp sites. Approximately six sites on each side with full hookups. Clay tennis courts on the other side of the sites, both on left and right side.
I’ve known about Weber’s Tennis Courts and Camping Sites in San Miguel since I first found them on the web in 2012, the first year that Jackie and I planned and executed our first camping trip to Mexico.
The campground is well-known (probably internationally) for a variety of interesting reasons. For one, it’s known as a prime location for playing clay court tennis. The exceptionally well-maintained courts are always busy, mostly with gringo retirees playing doubles, but Michael, the tennis pro and son of the owner Hans, also gives lessons to all ages.
For some people I’m sure the sound of tennis balls popping off a tennis racket would drive them crazy. For me, of course, as a former girls’ coach and former long-time player, it’s music to my ears. I did have the chance to hit balls with Michael.
Weber’s is an inner-city campground, which is rare in my recent experience. During the winter snowbirds and others of similar ilk flock to San Miguel, especially those who have been here before more than once. And they come from all over the world, especially Germany, but also Switzerland, Belgium, Spain, and Canada, of course.
Since we’ve been here for five weeks, there have always been a few open camp sites. But campers are always coming and going from here. People arrive, stay a few days, maybe a week, and then continue on their way to their next destination; I never really know.
Some folks have told me specific destinations—some other city in Mexico; Baja via the ferry in Mazatlan; or back home, wherever that may be. And some folks because they love this city so much spend their entire temporary visa time here (six months). And then when their time is up, they head home. I guess you might put us into that category.
What’s particularly interesting about this place is that this is the campground of choice for “overlanders.” Overland campers, both human and mechanical, are a breed of their own. These are the international campers who travel full-time from one continent to another, shipping their campers by freighter (I wrote about these Pan-American travelers a post last year.) For these travelers it’s all about the journey. They tend to drive Range Rover-like campers and come in all shapes and sizes. They are routinely multi-lingual, and very, very friendly to fellow travelers.
Below is a view of truck camper style overlander from Germany. Camper shell built directly on the frame of a 70 Series Toyota diesel pick up.
Below is a unique example of European-style overlander campers: the MAN! Apparently, the owners are long-time residents of the campground, renting the their spot year-round.
Below is another rough-looking Toyota. This is Toyota’s 70 Series diesel run Land Cruiser. Pop-up rear roof gives head room and a place to sleep. Plates are from Switzerland.
We met so many interesting and gracious people since we been here. We’ve met so many, in fact, that it has been hard to keep track of all of their names. In some cases, we were forward thinking enough to get e-mail address, but also we met many folks who we just didn’t get the opportunity to get their contact information. In some cases we met them and then they were gone the next day.
Part of our experience of traveling Mexico campgrounds is that we invariably run into people that we have met earlier in our travels. Pictured below are Rob and Jose from Belgium who are serious overlanders. We first met them last December at Villa Celeste.
Below is a picture of an old Air Stream class-A I spotted boon docking at the Walmart in Ajijic last January. The camper has Oregon plates.
When we arrived in San Miguel a month later, I was headed out on Calle El Cardo toward El Parque Juarez to take some photographs when I came across this old friend parked right on El Cardo, still boon docking:
Weber’s RV Park is virtually in the middle of Colonia San Antonio. There are actually two entrances to the campground on Callejon de San Antonio, which is an extremely narrow, one-way street, especially if there are cars parked along one side. The first entrance below is rarely used, and there is a car often parked directly in the driveway:
This is the entrance to Weber’s on Callejon de San Antonio 16. Weber’s website points to this as the “main” entrance on the map posted on the web site. This is the one I used.
Not sure why this car is parked right in front of the driveway entrance to the park unless it belongs to one of the owners and it’s parked there to keep anyone else from parking in the driveway.
I have described the challenges of driving a truck camper through these extremely narrow streets in earlier posts. Unfortunately, because we arrived on a Sunday of a two-day festival weekend, the narrow streets were even more crowded than usual.
Even so, the truck camper somehow squeezed through several narrow streets and between rows of parked cars to finally arrive at the campground entrance. Thankfully, I was guided by an extremely friendly and helpful Mexican man who later turned out to be Hans Weber, the owner of the campground.
No way I would have made it without Hans’ help.
Once we finally selected a campsite and settled in, we walked through a door in the massive gate that opens to let cars/campers in and out. We took our first step into the city of San Miguel for the first time since the summer of 2010. We explored our neighborhood surrounding the campground for a couple of hours, soaking in the reality that, at last, we’ve returned to the city we loved so much.
Below is the cobble-stone driveway and walkway (on the right) approach to the exit gate and door:
Magnificent gated entryway leads to Callejon de San Antonio:
Below, the gate as it appears from the outside. Note the amazing stone work:
San Miguel light is especially beautiful in the morning and at dusk. Below, mother and child leave for church services on Ash Wednesday at sunset:
Looking down tree-lined Callejon de San Antonio towards Ancha. Bright red Bougainvillea covers the side of a house.
More photographs of Weber’s Campground in my next post.
Call and Response 