Originally Posted by
JDiver
You're surely joking! Belize City and outliers have significant, and often drug-related crime; areas of Guatemala are quite dangerous; Costa Rica has gone from a tranquil spot where one could go window shopping at midnight in downtown San José to one where you had better watch it - people slash your tires leaving a car rental agency just out of SJO airport, and later when you pull over will offer to "help" you - and steal your luggage, etc.
I'm not saying those places don't have their issues, but justified or not, I think we can all agree that Mexico has had a lot of negative publicity in the past couple of years; recent and well publicized outbreaks of both disease and violence have led many tourists to consider other destinations.
Americans especially have a way of standing out like a sore thumb when visiting a foreign country, and present a smorgasbord of opportunities to criminals looking for an easy target. In the case of SJO, the place has become a victim of its own success.
HI is great and all, I'm just saying it would be nice if AS would consider expanding down south somewhere besides Mexico.