LindaTerrill

Yes, there are some dangerous areas in Mexico, but there are dangerous areas in Atlanta (my home), New York, Los Angeles and so on. Mexico is a huge country, and really diverse. Adventure, rafting, beaches, museums, archeology, wonderful cuisine and even wineries. And absolutely fabulous hotels and resorts!!

There's not a day that goes by when someone doesn't say to me, "What? Mexico? But it's not safe!"

Some identified areas are not. So don't go to those, and those dangerous areas are a one or two days drive from some of the greatest destinations. Do consider visiting the hundreds of other amazing places in Mexico. IMHO you'll be delighted with what you find.

Here's an interesting perspective on how Mexico compares to US cities in terms of safety.

http://www.journeymexico.com/blog/tr...usa-vs-mexico/

I have nothing against Fon du Lac. Wisconsin, but for a vacation I think I'll head south of the border.

jwhite4304

+1

Just returned from the Yucatan area of Mexico and never felt unsafe in the areas we visited. Actually felt safer than in the big cities that my travels take me..

gomexico

The piece you link has, I believe, been widely denounced as "not accurate" information planted by the Mexican tourism authorities. It appears, ver batim, on several or more websites.

If you think the war and level of terrorism taking place in Mexico, in many parts of Mexico, in parts wherer many tourists are destined, is no different than you find at home then you must live in Afghanistan or Baghdad.

I understand and respect varying viewpoints on "safety" but there is absolutely no comparison between the violence and carnage taking place in Mexico with any other place on our planet. Mexico is far worse.

The factual information is easily found on the internet. People interested in the topic should "google" or otherwise search for those things and inform themselves.

Thanks.

Ancien Maestro

Was reading the paper of another mishap that has happened to a former US citizen today living just outside of Puerto Vallarta..

But, who in their right mind would keep 13K cash in a safe onsite in the house?

gomexico

I believe the incident you're speaking of involved a Canadian who lives in the PV area and that this was a crime for which the victim may have known his attacker(s) and it may have been the result of a personal dispute of some sort. Not the type of crime many tourists, short-term visitors would encounter.

Ancien Maestro

Yes, I think you're correct..

I didn't remember if he was Canadian.. The individual was a stalwart of Mexico living and his wife left for an hour and came back to find her husband on the floor and the safe open..

Secfor

We just posted the below on another thread but when signing out, we noticed this related subject. Mexico is a beautiful place but with all the military weaponry in a good part of the country and even traveling through the areas that have not been as effected by the violence, it is really a roll of the dice visiting there.

99% of the time you can go down, have a great time and and return with a memorable trip under your belt. But remember this, nobody woke up in the morning and said to themselves "I think I am going to get kidnapped today". Many never "felt unsafe" right up to the time they were attacked. It human nature, unless we see third-world conditions or rockets whizzing by, we feel safe.

For my family, who used to be avid Mexico travelers, I ask that they travel someplace where the vehicle next to them doesn't have a trunk full of AK 47s or an anti-tank rocket in the back seat.

Just a Mexico security guy's view.

Sean

Secfor International


***Monterrey Safety thread***
Local staff in Monterrey (and other hotspots in Mexico) will generally downplay the violence and kidnap threat. They quite often will not have effective strategies for their own security other than some local information regarding what areas are considered "bad".

Monterrey is a beautiful city, but it is a city in denial of a threat that is not just restricted to bad-guys and locals. Get consultation from a US security consulting firm to at least get and idea of the actual real threat you will not be hearing from US news sources or the local associates. Most consulting firms will give you a good idea of what is going on for free.

Sean Jarvis
Secfor International
www.secforinternational.com

Ancien Maestro

Thanks for the insight Sean..

I think we're pretty much committed going next month to Mexico.. I've decided not to rent a vehicle, rather get shuttled around and sticking with the tourist places along Mayan Riviera and Cancun.

Are these areas relatively safe in your eyes?

Secfor

Sorry for the delay, this is not a regular forum for me.

Hope your trips went well. Tourist areas, buses vs taxis. Its all still a roll of the dice. You just never know. The best thing to do if you travel to risk areas, is learn how to determine the specific threat against you. Get proper training on safety planning, detecting problems before they develop, and dealing with a serious problem if you missed the development stages. Anyone can do this, it just seems that most anti-kidnap schools want to turn travelers into commandos instead of thinkers. You can avoid most problems if you know what to look for in the early stages and have a contingency already in place BEFORE you are under the stress of an attack.

Sean Jarvis
Secfor International
www.secforinternational.com

Ancien Maestro

Hi Sean,

The trip went really well.. as I heeded your advice and others..

I didn't rent a vehicle, which saved me probably $800.. plus I did the moon palace time share presentation and received 6 trips on top of my visit to moon palace.. Tours picked us up every second day from Fairmont Mayakoba, and we had more than enough excursions than we wanted.. The best part was we only paid $50 per adult for 2 adults, and $35 for one kid and walked away with $1,500 plus worth of tourse..

Very efficient and money saving vacation.. all in all, very eventful and safe..

Thank you to and thanks to the FlyerTalk forum for assistance

frequent traveler

Not to be alarmist, but thought this is an indication of a power struggle between the cartels and local police in PDC . . .

http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2011/0...ecuted-in.html

I'm still planning x-mas in Cancun.

Ancien Maestro

One of the reasons why we were considering not to go to Riviera Maya..

But we stayed on the tour buses, and stayed within tourist zones.. but this execution in Playa Del Carmen definitely hits home.. I will probably reconsider revisiting on a regular basis, unless the crime acts get cleaned up..

We could have been caught in a crossfire..

globetrots

"We could have been caught in a crossfire..."

Seriously?! Like the ones in Tuscon, Michigan, Texas, or Ohio this year? More tourists have gotten killed in Yosemite National Park than in all of Mexico so far in 2011.

The Yucatan has a crime rate on par with Belgium. More stats here on U.S. cities vs. tourist zones in Mexico:

http://travel.booklocker.com/2011/05...usa-vs-mexico/

Yes, parts of Mexico should be avoided, included Monterrey and most any other city near the U.S. border (where all the firearms are coming from). But it's a huge country, just like the U.S. and Canada.

Ancien Maestro

Thanks for the article.. keeps everything in perspective..

We trekked down to Maya Riviera in July, and felt pretty safe when staying at the resorts and mainstream tours..

tcook052

I'd like to read the article but keep getting:

Internet Explorer cannot display the webpage

so is there another way to link it?

FWIW I was in Mayan in Aug. and did a few trip off-resort and didn't feel unsafe but that's my impression.