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I will be traveling to Playa de Carmen on April 28th for 6 days.
I will be staying at the Sandos Resort there. I am flying into the Cancun airport. I think its about an hour drive to the resort.
1.) With all the news about violance, kidnappings, murders, etc.
does it carry into Playa De Carmen or Cancun or is it just on the border towns?
2.) With all this talk about a Civil War breaking out in Mexico, how would that affect tourists who are already there?
I will be traveling to Playa de Carmen on April 28th for 6 days. I will be staying at the Sandos Resort there. I am flying into the Cancun airport. I think its about an hour drive to the resort.
1.) With all the news about violance, kidnappings, murders, etc.
does it carry into Playa De Carmen or Cancun or is it just on the border towns?
2.) With all this talk about a Civil War breaking out in Mexico, how would that affect tourists who are already there?
I work for a company with significant operations throughout Mexico. All executives travel accompanied by armed security and all employees have specific instructions on how to handle various situations.
In the recent past, you could avoid border towns like Nuevo Laredo and you could feel pretty comfortable that you would not encounter much violence. Then the advice was to avoid all border cities. However, cities in the interior cities like Monterrey and Cuidad Mexico are encountering drug-related violence.
My recommendation is to consult the websites of the US State Department, and the similar websites published by the British and Canadian governments. These are the BEST up-to-date resources that are available for travelers. One of the great frustrations of these people are the number of travelers who disregard these warnings and end up in trouble.
Personally, I would not travel to Mexico at this time for pleasure. Even though the resorts are probably the safest place to be, do realize the the drug cartels are desperate and at some point, tourists will be an attractive target.
I just travelled across the border from San Diego to Ensenada just last December and didn't have any issues, I didn't see any gangs or anything. The media often exaggerates stuff. I would like to add that I was out at night in Ensenada till 2am at night and didn't see the slightest sign of any trouble. I've been to Playa Del Carmen, and I highly doubt you're going to encounter anything unusual. Tourism is their bread and butter there and I doubt the government is going to allow any violence in that area.
Honestly, the resorts are the worst parts of Mexico outside of the border. I lived for 4 months in Mexico and the ONLY place we had problems the 3 days we were on vacation on the coast. I was in one of the more politically tense cities- Oaxaca- and never felt unsafe. Had I not left after the incident on the coast, I would have been moving as a 20 year old female alone to downtown Mexico City for a month. Armed guards to travel with? Hysterical.
Why not try SOUTH of Mexico for a change. I've made 5 trips to Central America and will be doing a 6th this Fall, and Honduras and El Salvador have become my favorites. And I have never had a negative experience anywhere down there and I ride the chicken buses and in the backs of Pick-ups, just like the natives. And I've never felt unsafe, going off the tourist circuit to out-of-the-way places. Also, it's cheaper and more like what Mexico was before it became so Americanized.
i stayed exactly where you are staying a little over a month ago. i never felt unsafe at any time. the beach is beautiful and the workers are very friendly. they work their butts off for you. on the other hand, the food was below average and getting through customs in cancun sucked.
My friend's son and his friends are leaving friday for spring break....I know there is alot of things going in Mexico right now...but is Acapulco safe?? Where is all the drug related problems going on right now?
I am traveling to Puerto Vallarta at the end of this month. I have been there many times before and always felt very safe. This time I will be more cautious of roaming around alone -- esp. late at night. I'm not as much concerned about getting in the middle of some drug cartel battles as I am just concerned about the economy and the devaluing of the peso. That combined with spring break and the extra crowds who come into the city from other parts of the country for Easter will just have me keeping a tighter grip on my purse and camera and be more aware of my surroundings and with which strangers I might choose to engage in conversation.
What worries me about the college kids on Spring Break is that they often get drunk out of their minds and engage in risky behavior. If I were a parent sending a child on Spring Break, I think I'd make them stay in the States rather than travel to Mexico right now. But each to his own.
We took a family vacation to Cancun about a month ago and came across pretty much nothing. The resort felt EXTREMELY safe as did the beach. The staff was very
accommodating. However I strongly recommend you put your valubles in a safe when you leave the room. We made the mistake of leaving about 50 $ worth of pesos out on the table while the maid was cleaning and when we returned, it was no where to be seen.
We took the bus into town to do some souvenir shopping and even in some of the rough(er) looking flea markets, the Mexican people were very nice (although they pushed you a lot to buy their things). I wouldn't worry much at all, just be cautious.
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