We have a story. I found Dr. de la Vega on the Web via a few different websites, he has excellent reviews that seem to come from real people. My husband and I needed a lot of work based on what my Bellingham dentist recommended that was extremely expensive, I paid over $800 for a "deep cleaning" that I had no idea would be that expensive until after I was done and and given my bill, learned it was $200 per quadrant. Such a scam. He said I needed 4 new crowns at a cost of over $1500 each, so on the low end I would have been forking out enough cash to buy a used car. I just couldn't pay that, it felt like highway robbery so I did my research and found Dr. de la Vega 's practice. Over the phone in perfect English (his mother was English) we worked out our appointment times and a rough estimate based on what I was told I needed done. We stayed in Tijuana monday night at the wrong hotel, turns out there is a huge difference between Hotel Aqua Rio and Aqua Rio Hotel. One was a more adult hotel outside of the city center, not exactly where I had booked. We were driving to the office and made a wrong turn and ended up driving over the border back into US, apparently it's moved since the last time my husband was there. Due to the long border wait we just left the car and walked over. My mother called while we were still on the US side and told us the doctor had called wondering where we were so we called him and said we really were on our way. So we followed the Google map directions to the office, got there and started filling out paperwork, one piece was a questionnaire about what we were looking to get out of our dental experience and so on. Something just didn't feel right, the place didn't look like what I saw online then we were taken on a tour of the office and shown their supper expensive state of the art equipment, we asked if we were in the right office, no no we were not. I swear it felt like a timeshare or weight watchers sales pitch. So we grabbed a cab and tried to find the right office, the Google maps address was not quite right and our cabbie asked a bunch of other cabbies in an attempt to find the office, as we went around the block I saw it and we hoped out and tipped the guy really well for the honest attempt. When we arrived 3 hours late for our scheduled appointment I expected him to say "that'll be $200 for the missed appointments and see you in a few weeks" the way an US dentist would. I was so happy when he laughed said getting lost is just a normal thing, and had us hop in the chairs and discussed our treatments. I can't say enough good things about this dentist, I really can't. My husband had his tooth extracted on the first visit, one of his assistants came back with a gilt edged blue appointment book, I was asked if 8 am would be OK for the next day's appointment, I said sure. He found us a great hotel to stay in after we told him our hotel oppsie and that he would send a car for me. Back on the other side of the border I looked on booking and realized that yes we had stayed in the wrong hotel the night before. So we found the right hotel which was an easy 10 minute walk the next morning. Dr Camacho is the Endodontist in the practice who performed my root canal, it was nearly painless, and when it did tweak he immediately fixed the issue. The pulled my broken tooth and I didn't even really notice, always wear headphones and watch cartoons, it helps. Dr. de la Vegas son did my cleaning, pulled out my old fillings, replaced them with white amalgam then called his father over to take a look, they decided the former filling was to big to replace so they decided to put another crown on it. They took the impressions, sent it to the lab via a bike messenger and had my Temps back in less than an hour. Our real crowns were done by 1 the next day. Mine wasn't fitting quite right so he worked on it for about 30 minutes getting the fit just right, put it back on the mold and called the bike messenger again to get a new one made, and just like Domino's we had it 30 minutes later. Overall my work cost less than getting one crown here in Bellingham. I am so happy, i had been having really nasty headaches for a few months due to the bad tooth, it's been a bit over a week now and i feel so much better. My father has already made his appointment. Save yourself a ton of cash and headaches and go see this fantastic dentist, he really is just as wonderful as I am claiming read more

Building Bridges in Tijuana Doctor Ignacio De la Vega Dentistry -- where art, science and compassion converge. In 2008 I initiated the most significant dental project of my life. At 56, after a British schoolboy's typical indulgence in sweets and a lifetime traveling under developed countries, my mouth was a decaying mosaic of foreign dentistry. Fellow writer and international globetrotter Tal Brooke introduced me to Dr De La Vega after California dentists had recommended pulling four teeth deemed "beyond repair." They advocated replacing these teeth with implants as well as root canals and fillings for eight other teeth. The quoted cost: $14,000 (plus a great deal of pain and suffering!) So I called Dr Ignacio De la Vega (he likes to be called "Nacho") and he had me email him the x-rays. We decided I would come to Tijuana for three days, staying one night at the Villa Zaragoza hotel from where I could walk back and forth to his clinic. I got to Tijuana early on the first morning and Nacho decided he could save the molars the US dentist had recommended for extraction by building a bridge instead of doing implants. His resident endodontist Dr. Camacho immediately went to work on root canals. I barely felt any discomfort as they were generous with the anesthetization. Interestingly, while my American dentists used a single film picture for a root canal x-ray, Dr Camacho repeatedly shot digital x-rays I could view on a laptop, making sure every piece of the nerve was properly reamed out. A rubber mold was taken and while it was sent to a lab across the street a young lady worked industriously, replacing Third World fillings and removing decay from every suspect tooth. Vigorous, confident and efficient, she always made sure I was comfortable. On the third morning the bridge was ready and Dr Nacho added a gold crown to ensure accurate chewing and durability. Today in 2014 that bridge is still going strong. The cost of the entire project -- a three-tooth bridge, at least five root canals and ten fillings came to a mere fraction of the California price. And I didn't have to endure the long waiting period of implant surgery. I've made four more visits since 2008, once bringing along my son for a filling. To help his modeling career Dr Nacho gave him a great UV whitening job while I sat in an adjacent chair for a post to support a fake front incisor that had broken off while eating dried mango. This week I've just returned from a second bridge job. Again, Dr. De La Vega was able to use existing teeth as anchors for a set of realistic teeth bridging gaps from the loss of two broken teeth extracted in Miami a couple years ago. Beyond mere dentistry Dr Ignacio De La Vega is a skilled healer. His chair-side manner is reassuringly compassionate, informative and cheerful. He's a family man, an accomplished musician and an innovative dentist able to spot problems and immediately come up with solutions that won't break the bank. Dr De La Vega's reputation has spread such that some Hollywood film stars who need great looking teeth now make the trek to Tijuana for his services. On one occasion I even met a couple who had driven down from Alaska! The biblical proverb says "The eyes are the window to the soul". Dr De La Vega says "The mouth is your gateway to health." Now at 61, I expect dental maintenance with Dr De La Vega will be an ongoing process so I recently got approved as a "Trusted Traveler" in the SENTRI program which allows you to use a much faster border control express line when coming back into the USA. read more

We live in Los Angeles County and every single time we go to a dentist here we feel we are being ripped off. For years we had been meaning to go to Tijuana and look for a new dentist but every time our friends and family talked us out of it. So finally we decided to just do it, I Googled for dentists in Tijuana and found quite a few of them on Yelp! Dr. Ignacio de La Vega's glowing 4 and 5-star reviews drew our attention and we decided to contact him. We emailed him and within 24 hours received a reply AND a phone call from Dr. de La Vega and set up an appointment to go see him. Let me say that despite all the negative things you hear about the border crossing between San Ysidro, USA and Tijuana, Mexico, we found this not to be the case. We parked on the USA side on a residential street about a 10-minute walk to the Pedestrian crossing, we never felt unsafe and within 5 minutes we were on the other side of the border, in Mexico. We walked all the way from the border crossing to Dr. de La Vega's office and it took all of maybe 25 minutes, easy peasy walk. We found the walk easy and more importantly SAFE to do, unfortunately Mexico and Tijuana in particular get a bad rap here in the US but we found our experience in this bustling city to be 100% positive and have only GOOD things to say about it. Dr. de La Vega greeted us personally and we tell you, what a genuine and true gentleman and a fabulous dentist Dr. Ignacio turned out to be. The first thing he did was to explain to us how he works, his philosophy about how he treats his patients (the same way he would want to be treated if he was the patient) and also explained to us the various payment options. His office is brand new, very welcoming and up to par if not better than some of the dentists we have been to in LA. All the high-tech dentist equipment is new, immaculately clean and we noticed them cleaning and scrubbing everything in between patients. Both myself and my wife had some dental work done and a few oral issues dealt with and attended to. The entire staff starting with Dr. de La Vega and his professional team all spoke EXCELLENT and FLUENT English (their English is a million times better than my Spanish... :-) ) and they explained to us and kept us informed of what was going on as they worked first on me and then my wife. Due to the nature and amount of work involved, we will need a second visit to Dr. de La Vega's office and have already planned this. We would go back and again to Dr. de La Vega in a heartbeat. His work ethic is EXCELLENT, something that surely cannot be said for dentists in general here in the USA. His fees/charges are also very reasonable when compared to what one would expect to pay in the USA for the same quality of work. If you are on the fence (like we were until we found Dr. de La Vega) about looking for a dentist in Tijuana Mexico, just take it from us: CHOOSE Dr. Ignacio de La Vega. A true gentleman and a fabulous dentist he truly is. Alfred & Maria Micallef Los Angeles USA read more

Please NOTE this Dental office is in Tijuana, Mexico Address: CALLE 4ta, Tijuana B.C., Mexico, 22000 Phone (619) 399-3538 Dr. Ignacio de la Vega is an excellent dentist , as well as a warm and caring person. My father practiced dentistry for over 40 years and is retired now. He went with me to see Dr. de la Vega's when I first started going and was very impressed with his work. I have had serious dental problems for years because of TMJ and grinding, as well as multiple, serious medical problems that lead to complications with my teeth and treatment. And in all of my years seeking dental care in the states since my father retired, I have never had a dentist accommodate me, or give me the kind of quality care and service that Dr. de la Vega and his skilled team have. His facility may be small, but it has all of the modern equipment that dental offices in the states do. And my dental care was even better, yet it cost me a fraction of the price it would in the states. And what has been most shocking about some U.S. Dentists, is that some have told me that I needed work that I did not. Dr. de la Vega has been honest with me, when other dentists have not. He has also worked me in when I have had several emergencies. Dr. Camacho is the highly skilled Endodontist who works in the office beside Dr. de la Vega. This eliminates the need for repeat visits. Root canals and dental are taken care of at one time and a week or so later you come back for your permanent crown if you need one. No U.S. dentist operates with such efficiency. Dr. de la Vega also has an amazing lab man, Antonio Gonzalez, who has almost 30 years experience making beautiful crowns and gets great temps done on the spot. Dr. de la Vega son, who is also very nice and in dental school, is his chair side assistant. They all form a wonderful team. Dr. de la Vega speaks fluent English and is charming, intelligent and helpful in conversation in every way, whatever your need. And contra to what I have heard, I have not had any problems getting down to see Dr. de la Vega. His office is a five minute drive minutes from the U.S. border to the office. I either get a taxi or drive a car straight there. I found the Mexican people to be very kind and helpful in my travels in and out of Mexico. I have recently been driving down to the office and find parking right on the street in front of the office and have never had any kind of trouble. On week days getting there from the border takes ten minutes max. Getting out, takes about 30 to 45 minutes wait in line at the border except on holidays or weekend nights. I would suggest going if you are in need of dental care. You will not regret it. You will love Dr. de la Vega and his staff. Sincerely, Cathy Magar read more

Dr .Ignacio de la Vega & his staff are extraordinarily kind and deliver exemplarary, professional services w dished up with a whole lotta love. Everyone in the waiting room spoke highly of Dr. De la Vega and his staff, many were patients for numerous years. I could not be happier with the work he and his staff performed with such a dynamic team effort. When is the last time you went to the dentist and left feeling like fanily? Seriously, folks, Dr. De la Vega and his staff are worth coming to Tijuana for regardless of where you live in the States! The visit will more than pay for itself. I was quoted $ 4500.00 for the work I needed in the States and other neccessary work was even left out.My total bill with Dr. De la Vega was less than $1000..The bad wrap Tijuana gets is crap and highly unfounded! Tijuanans are cordial and respectful and the cabbies are fair and honest. I felt completely safe and loved soaking up the friendly, relaxed vibes. Crossing the border is a dream nowadays during the week, there was virtually no wait on our return from two visits. Doctor De la Vega's office is conveniently located only a 5 minute 5$ to 7$ cab ride from the border. Best of all his office is right down the street from Calle Revolucion, which hosts the famed Caesar^s Restaurant where the Caesar salad was born. The food is excellent, the staff professional and efficient and above all kind. What an amazing experience, simply unparalled as far as any dental experience I have ever had in 45 plus years..Dr. de la Vega is a perfectionist and will not let you leave unless everything feels "perfecto".He is a great communicator and values being a partner in your optimal dental health. He takes every opportunity to educate you. If you are considering Tijuana for dental care, look no further than Dr. De la Vega. He is apparently known amongst the locals, along with his partner Dr.Comacho, to be one of the best in Tijuana. It is also a family practice boosting the power of the feminine as there are a few female dentists presiding too , which gives their practice a 6th star in my book.If you vist the dear Dr. De la Vega after reading this, please tell them Rose sent you. Consider these final words: Treat yourself to Dr. de la Vega and his staff, it is not just a trip to the dentist, it is an adventure, as well as one of great cultural exchange with our worthy neighbors.Gracias a Dios por Mexico y Tijuana!xxxooo read more

FYI, I did not make any negative comments in this review, only factual ones. My previous entry was removed, because it stated it was the wrong business, it was the correct business. You cannot only take into consideration the positive when deciding on healthcare. My experience with Dr. De La Vega was just ok. I went to him because I was told that the work that I needed was going to be about $25,000 in the U.S., my dental insurance only covered around $1500 so I had few options. I needed a fixed bridge and several crowns. The total cost with Dr. De la Vega was about $2500. The good points with Dr. De la Vega is that he is very warm, friendly and genuinely cares for his patients. The office was clean, well equipped and fairly easily accessible. Dr. Camacho his endodontist is actually very good. I was told the endodontic work done on my teeth was decent and the roots were still strong. When I had the work done, I was happy because I did not know any better. However only 3-4 years later the bridge failed. I had seen about 5 dentists here in the U.S. as to how to deal with it. All the second opinions that I had received stated more or less the same thing, that the failure of that bridge was forseable, and should not have been done in the way that it was ( the biomechanics were way off.) Secondly, it was cosmetically incorrect because the midline was off. The bridge failed because when it was placed as there was not a proper seal and it leaked early on. The dentists stated that work of that sort should last a minimum of 10 years. They also said that given the fact that Dr. De la Vega had virgin teeth to deal with they should not have been grinded so small, this made them difficult to work with going forward. Thankfully, though the teeth were still salvagable, and I was able to have the work redone here in the U.S., it cost about $26,000. So the $2500 that I spent in Mexico plus the cost of travel were more or less wasted, lesson learned. I guess I can truly appreciate this after seeing the finish product the second time around which is leaps and bounds different from what I had done in Mexico, actually there is no comparison at all. For minor work, perhaps i would consider, major work ....not so much, at least get a second opinion. The upside is that it was not so bad that it could not be redone. read more

It was via Yelp that I found Dr. de la Vega and so I wanted to add my experience as well. I am currently without dental insurance for the first time in my professional career and panicked a few weeks ago when one of my molar crowns broke (for the third time). I was leery of going to TJ for dental work, but after reading all of the positive reviews here about Dr. de la Vega, I decided to give it a try. He is by far the nicest, friendliest dentist I have ever been to. On my first visit, he explained what needed to be done about the crown and recommended a night guard, which he fitted me for and I left with THAT day. A week later I returned for the permanent crown and a cleaning. Cost-wise, the crown, cleaning, and night guard were less than what my previous copay had been for just a crown. I am very happy with his work, and again, I have never been to a nicer dentist. The only hassle, that has nothing to do with his office, is getting back across the border. I live in San Diego, so I took the trolley to the border and walked across. It's a 5-10 minute $5 cab ride to and from his office from the border, but crossing back into the States on foot was a 5-hour wait the first time and a 3-hour wait the second. Don't let this discourage you from going - just be prepared and plan ahead. There are several websites that show the wait time - keep that in mind when you make your appointment. Also be aware that there is border control to get into Mexico now (whereas previously you just walked right in), although I didn't wait more than 30 minutes each time. Even with all of that, I will still be returning to Dr. de la Vega for future dental work. read more

Last summer I emailed Dr. De la vega x rays of two lower front teeth I needed extracted. He responded immediately with a phone call and suggested I save travel expenses and have them taken out locally at a dental college. When I came to him in February, 2014, he constructed a beautiful bridge to replace the missing teeth. He also capped the upper teeth in such away that they match the lower bridge perfectly. A crown was also replaced. All of this was accomplished in two sessions. I came in noon Tuesday and got the installations at 2 pm Friday. He is highly organized. He has his own lab. His team consists of himself, his son who has just graduated from dental school, and his associate Dr. Carlos Camacho who is a root canal specialist. The ambiente in this office is very special. You feel like you are in your own home. Everyone is so charming and so kind you know that you are in good hands. The cost was less than one third the cost in California. I'll be coming back for more work in a month or two. Travel from Northern California to San Diego by train costs $63.75. The trolley to the border was $2.50. A taxi to Dr. De la vega costs $5. Acceptable hotel accommodation runs $25 to $35 per night double occupancy. Hotels with parking cost a little more. I only had to walk 10 minutes from mine. Many excellent restaurants in the City. You can get a good lunch for $5-6. There is a lot to see. If you feel adventuresome you can hop on a city bus and run to the end of the line for less than a dollar. If you have some time the beach is not far. A run down to Ensenada and the famed ocean blow hole" la bufadora" could be enjoyable. Peter Kapp read more

I cannot begin to explain the gratitude I feel for Dr. Ignacio de la Vega and his team. I had a full exam here in the states at a local clinic(Washington), and the quote that they gave me for my treatment plan was through the roof. They told me that all my molars were cracked and in desperate need of attention, as well as a deep cleaning. They told me I could buy a generic mouth guard but they wouldn't recommend it for it would not work, but the one they were selling me was over 4k. I was so stressed and sad with the outcome of the appointment especially because I have always had issues with my teeth and a lot of work done for being young. When I found Dr. Ignacio de la Vegas clinic I decided to book the trip and go based off of word of mouth and the amazing reviews they have online. IT WAS THE BEST DECISION! They took care of me, did x-rays, showed me that there were absolutely no cracks, they provided my treatment plan with their quote and its so much more affordable and realistic! I don't remember the Dr's name that did some work on me as well as gave me medication for FREE but she was so sweet. Their team is a true blessing! They honestly care about you and your well being, I had tears of joy from the relief I got after the little work she did. THANK YOU SO MUCH, I am currently working on setting up my next visit and refuse to go elsewhere. read more

Speechless. nothing but the best in town, if you need to do WHATEVER in your teeth this is the right place... Quick, Super Clean, Amazing Service, Painless. DR. Ignacio De La Vega did my 2 wisdom tooth and i felt nothing (Painless), was less than 10 minutes, and now i feel great. he also did 1 root canal and i was so scared and worried but this was so fast it probably took 10-15 minutes and i also felt nothing, His son is as wonderful as he is, his son did my fillings and deep cleaning and was fast, the results was nice looking teeth... at first i had so much pain in my root canal and called him to get it fix and he used something to put it in my tooth and the pain went away, i was so grateful for that he save me days of pain and tears, everyone in this Group is so nice and kind. the place smells and looks clean and nice, the service is just incredible. The prices were so good , you could never pay what you can pay here with him at the states. I am honestly satisfied with all they've done, if you are looking for really good service and good rates this is the place to be. Thank you Dr. Ignacio we are so Grateful for your services and you Honesty. Thank you. read more

This is the all time greatest dentist in TJ. I have had dental issues all of my life and consequently have spent a good deal of time in a dentist's chair. I've got plenty of experience with dentists as well as a lot of dental knowledge so I know which dentists are competent and which are not. I had been to many dentists in TJ to discuss correcting the botched bridge work done by a dentist in LA that was causing much pain and discomfort. Not one of them can compare to Dr. de la Vega. I thought the bridge had to be removed and individual crowns placed. BUT, Dr. de la Vega thought differently. He made a few modest adjustments that turned out to be exactly what was needed and consequently saved me thousands of dollars that I can now apply to other needed work. He has a warm, effervescent personality and an excellent command of English. He's easy to talk with and listens well. His staff is equally warm, friendly and helpful. His office is beautiful, well equipped and easy to get to. I am ecstatic that I have found such a great dentist. Dr. de la Vega will be my dentist for the rest of my life. read more

Be aware! Arrogant and deficient... This Dentist uses a lot of Web PR, but without any cover and not attached to any reality. In reality he is less than mediocre, to say the least, and I will NEVER return to his office. All during his work he will be compelled to tell you about this or that American customer the he had, just thinking it will compensate for his bad work. His work is sloppy, low quality, and with no attention to details, but meanwhile he continues his stories, and his arrogant behavior. Extremely arrogant, and again, with no cover. He knows everything, or so he thinks, and God forbid you will ask him anything with an open question; it might hurt his Mexican pride big time. While working on one tooth he chipped my other tooth, and surely- blamed me as this is MY fault ("I moved"). I am not going back and not suggesting you go there, as there are PLENTY of other good dentists in Tijuana. Add to this an ancient office with no AC and no modern equipment and a tiny waiting room, normally too hot to bare. read more

Dr. Ignacio de la Vega is the first dentist to be working on my mouth in the last 10 years. The experience was great and the price was about 1/3 the cost of dentists in San Diego. I started out with broken crowns, many worn down teeth and an old man's smile. I've received many compliments from friends about the fantastic looking job Dr. Ignacio has done for me. None of my prior dentists can even start to compare to him. The office is clean, organized and has modern equipment like digital xray machines. The work is virtually painless and the staff lets you know exactly what they are doing while they are working on your mouth. Everyone on his team in the office is professional, friendly, outgoing and happy. This attitude spreads to the waiting room where it's nice to talk with others from many parts of the world The sooner you make an appointment to visit Dr. Ignacio de la Vega, the faster you'll have a perfect smile. I wish I had known about him sooner. read more