No, actually, we won't have to go there with a real person, because several robots have landed there, and taken samples of soil and atmosphere.
Old Martian rocks have also reached Earth, that traveled through space when huge meteors or comets hit Mars ten's of thousands of years ago. These explosions sent Martian rocks streaming into outer space, some made it here, many discovered trapped in ice sheets of Antarctica. No bacteria or fossils found in those rocks yet.
At this time, there have been no life forms detected from the USA landers that have spend years there, some still moving around, taking pictures and samples of soil.
For life as we know it to exist, there has to be adequate oxygen and water. There is evidence that water exists on Mars, but the atmosphere, and extreme conditions of going from hot to cold, make advanced lifeforms very unlikely.
A future Mars lander will land near the north pole of Mars to actually drill into the soil to see if there are ice crystals there.
If human are ever to land on Mars and stay long, there has to be a reliable water supply for drinking. It's too expensive to carry enough water for humans planning a long stay there.
Water can be used as a fuel source, using solar power during the day to create electrical current to break H2O down into Oxygen and Hydrogen, then use this in fuel cells for electrical power, when the sun isn't shinning on Mars.
