Is It Safe To Travel To Mexico?

Consumer Affairs reporter Darryl Nelson recently interviewed well-known travel expert Peter Greenburg, asking him a frequent travel question these days: is it safe to travel to Mexico?  Greenburg’s answer was, “Unequivocally, yes.”  Says Greenburg:

“If you look at the map, Mexico is a huge country and whatever violence is happening in Mexico, first of all, it’s directed at Mexicans to other Mexicans. Americans are not being targeted, and let’s take a look where it’s happening.

It’s happening in locations where American’s don’t even go—in Nuevo Laredo, Ciudad Juarez—and if you actually look at the real numbers of how many people have been killed in the drug violence, it is staggering, there’s no getting around that. Depending on who you believe its 50,000 to 60,000 people in that last 20 years.

Of those, ask yourself how many of them were Americans. I can tell you, less than 20—and of those 20, I think 17 of them were vacationing American drug dealers, because look where they were killed. They were killed in places like Nuevo Laredo and Ciudad Juarez.”

Greenburg himself travels to Mexico several times a year, and has not encountered any problems.  He highly recommends Mexico  as a tourist destination for active and adventure seeking travelers.  As far as safety is concerned, he suggests travelers take practical safety precautions, such as informing themselves about the area or country they are planning to visit, and using common sense while traveling.  And what about spring break? Should spring breakers avoid the country? Greenburg says that parents should be more concerned about their kids’ alcohol consumption and partying, than being faced with violence.

Read the full article here.

Lonely Planet’s U.S. Travel Editor Robert Reid gets asked frequently if it’s safe to travel to Mexico, and his answer has always been, “If you’re thoughtful about where you go, the answer is yes.”  Reid says that perhaps a better question is, “Do you think it’s safe to go to Texas?”

Mexico, a country that is roughly the size of the UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy combined, has been singled out in the mainstream media, especially when compared to other popular tourist destinations which have far higher homicide rates like the Bahamas, Belize and Jamaica (36, 42, and 52 homicides per 100,000 people, respectively).

While Mexico tourism is finally starting to bounce back with Canadians and Brits, Americans remain reluctant to return.  Even though U.S. violent crime statistics suggest that Americans are more likely to encounter violence at home, especially if you look specifically at Mexico’s most popular tourist destinations.  For example, Disney World’s Orlando saw 7.5 murders per 100,000 residents in 2010, which is higher than popular Mexican destinations Cancun (1.83) or Puerto Vallarta (5.9).

Reid asks American tourists to consider 5 things, before forming an opinion on Mexico.

1. Mexico may be more dangerous than the U.S. overall, but not for Americans.  4.8 per 100,000 Americans were murdered in the U.S. in 2010, while only 2.1 of 100,000 visitors (who may or may not have been connected to drug trafficking) were murdered in Mexico.
2. Texans are twice as safe in Mexico than in Texas, and three times safer than in Houston.
3. Texans aren’t the only state citizens that are safer in Mexico than their home state (yes, New Orlean’s homicide rate is triple that of Mexico’s national homicide rate).
4. The vast majority of Mexico is not on the U.S. State Department’s travel warning.
5. President Obama’s daughter Malia went to Oaxaca for her spring break, despite Texas’s alarmist travel warning.

Mexico offers some of the greatest travel experiences in the world, and as the U.S. State Department says, “millions of U.S. citizens safely visit Mexico each year.”  If you can go to Texas, New Orleans, Orlando or the Bahamas, you can certainly go to Mexico.

Read the full article here.

Cathy Brown of Escape from America travel site, writes recently about people’s reactions to her travels to Mexico, reactions founded from what she calls “misguided, baseless fear.”

She asks people to look at the facts, saying:

“Mexico is roughly the size of Western Europe. Of Mexico’s 2,500 municipalities, only 18 have been considered to be a security problem.  Please read that sentence again. Pretty sure that leaves you with a 2482 very safe options if you want to travel to Mexico. Yes, there are places in Mexico that have had problems with drug violence. But the majority of Mexico’s organized-crime killings last year took place in a mere three of Mexico’s 31 states: Chihuahua,Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon. I am not here to dispute that there has been and is drug violence in Mexico.I am here to point out that those specific places are likely nowhere near where you as a tourist or expat are planning to go.”

She goes on to cite the statistics on the higher homicide rates per 100,000 inhabitants that exist in U.S. cities such as Baltimore, Washington DC, and Detroit.  Mexico ranks behind the U.S. in drug offenses, ranked 12^th in the world (the U.S. is ranked 4^th).  When it comes to homicides with firearms, the U.S. ranks 7^th, while Mexico ranks 17^th.

As with any place you travel, you should exercise caution, and be aware of which areas should be avoided.  However, Brown encourages people to make an informed opinion about Mexico and to look at the media hype with a critical eye.

Read the full article here.

Is Mexico getting safer? As the LA Times reports, the total number of drug-related deaths throughout Mexico has been declining.

Although the U.S. State Department’s most recent travel advisory regarding Mexico tells travelers to defer non-essential travel to 4 of Mexico’s 31 states, it is less guarded about Mexico compared to previous advisories.

Read the full article here.

As reported in The San Francisco Chronicle, The U.S. State Department’s recent update to its travel warning on Mexico on November 20, 2012 was notable due to the lack of fanfare that has characterized previous warnings.  Also notable is that:

“The State Department has gotten more specific about where travel is dangerous in Mexico – and where it is not. The vagueness of earlier alerts led wary travelers to conclude that all of Mexico was going up in flames. The state-by-state evaluations produced this year, clearly outlining areas to stay away from and places that call for caution, are finally informative enough to encourage travelers to make intelligent decisions.”

Excluding Acapulco, all of the major Mexican tourist destinations are given the green light, including: Mexico City, Cancun and the Riviera Maya, the Costa Maya, Chichen Itza, Merida, Campeche, Baja California Sur, Los Cabos, La Paz, Todos Santos, San Ignacio, San Miguel de Allende, Leon, Oaxaca, Pueblo, and more.

The article goes on to review the areas of Northern Mexico which remain on alert, including Baja California (not to be confused with Baja California Sur), Tijuana, Nuevo Leon and Ciudad Juarez.

To read the full article, go here.

The Seattle Times discussed recently how to have a safe and enjoyable vacation to Mexico.  The article states that almost all of Mexico’s major tourist destinations are in states that have no travel warnings, including Mexico City, San Miguel del Allende, Oaxaca, Huatulco, Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Tulum, Merida, Chichen Itza and Los Cabos.

From the article:

“The truth is that anywhere you travel, anything can happen. But being educated about where the risks lie in your travels should quell any apprehension about visiting Mexico and experiencing the country’s world-class cuisine, rich culture and majestic nature.

Of Mexico’s 31 states and one federal district, 14 have no travel warnings, according to the U.S. State Department, and seven have travel warnings for specific areas. The department recommends deferring “nonessential travel” to the remaining 11 due to drug-gang violence.

With most violence occurring in areas near the U.S. border and in the southwestern states of Guerrero and Michoacan, there is still plenty of safe territory to explore.”

The article also points out that despite the sensationalized media coverage of Mexico, the country remains a popular tourist destination for Americans.   The 2012 Travel Trends Survey among Travel Leaders reveals that 4 of the top 20 most popular American tourist destinations outside of the country are in Mexico, including: Cancun (#2), Playa del Carmen (#3), Cabo San Lucas/Los Cabos (#11) and Puerto Vallarta (#15).

The article also offers some excellent tips taken from both Mexicans and American expats on having a safe and worry-free trip to Mexico.

Read the entire article and its full list of safety tips here.

As USA Today reports, the Mexico that Americans perceive and the Mexico that has developed over the last 20 years are two different places.  A recent report by the advertising firm GSD&M and Vianovo found that the three words that Americans most commonly use to describe Mexico include “drugs,” “poor,” and “unsafe.”  As USA Today points out:

“These perceptions reflect the Mexican reality that dominates headlines: soaring crime rates and gruesome murders in a war against drug traffickers. But this window into Mexico overlooks an economic transformation and deepening ties with the United States that reflect a dramatically different country.”

The same poll found that over half of Americans still see Mexico as a developing country, when in fact it is now a middle class nation.  In the past 15 years, Mexico has seen an increase in middle class wealth that includes roughly half their population.  Furthermore, the Mexican economy has become one of the most open and competitive economies, dominated by manufactured goods, and has expanded North American supply chains, supporting jobs for both Mexican and U.S. workers.

To read the full article on Mexico’s increasing economic relevance, go here.

Mexico’s colonial town and expat paradise San Miguel de Allende was recently named one of Conde Nast Traveler’s Top 10 Cities in the World – as chosen by its readers.  San Miguel topped the list along with Florence, Italy, Bangkok, Thailand and Vancouver, Canada.

See the full list at CNTraveler.com.

The Telegraph reports that Michael Nyman, the 68-year-old composer of the film The Piano’s award winning score has relocated from his north London residence to Mexico City, where he feels safer.  Says Nyman:

“I feel absolutely no threat or fear in Mexico City. I know there is a huge amount of drug violence in Mexico itself but at the moment it is not in the City.”

Nyman bought a terraced property in the La Roma district of Mexico City in 2008, calling the city a “visual paradise” where he can’t stop taking pictures.

La Roma is one of several parts of Mexico City that has enjoyed a revival in recent years.  La Roma itself features Mexico’s famous colonial architecture and a popular arts scene.

Read the full article here.

Another popular travel blogger comes to the defense of Mexico.  Terry from Travel by Terry writes a compelling case about the mainstream media’s continued “myopia” in regard to Mexico and its negative perceptions – he says,

“The media’s image of Mexico is blurred precisely because their focus is on one relatively small, admittedly ugly reality and thus falls woefully short of the retina of responsible reportage.”

Terry cites 3 practical metrics for determining the true state of travel safety in Mexico: geography, statistics, and his own personal experience.

Geography: Terry makes the point that Mexico is roughly the size of Western Europe, and of Mexico’s 2,500 municipalities, only 18 have been deemed a security problem.  His provided map illustrates the large distances between problem areas, and some of Mexico’s most popular travel destinations.

Statistics: He backs up his geography lesson with statistics that demonstrate Mexico’s continuing popularity throughout the world as a tourist destination, noting that most popular tourist destinations have no travel advisory at all, including Cancun, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Riviera Maya and Tulum, the Riviera Nayarit, Cabo San Lucas, Puerto Vallarta, Guadalajara and San Miguel de Allende, Leon and Mexico City.

Experience:  Terry concludes the passionate post by citing his own personal experience from 25 years of travel in Mexico, and never once having had a negative experience.

To read the full article, go here.