Travel Warnings-Mexico
 

Spring Breakers Fear Mexico Border Town


Some Students Avoid South Padre Island This Year


http://www.abcnews.go.com/Travel/Bus...4421202&page=1

From US, England and Australia governments:
USA: http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_p...a/pa_3028.html
UK: http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?...=1013618386217

Australia: http://www.smarttraveller.gov.au/zw-.../Advice/Mexico

Haha that's not Mike from the Real World... that's David. Right? I know it's not Mike.

And that's some scary shit!

That is David from (i believe) the Seattle season.


That article is interesting...and maybe that is what is happening in southern TX, but I haven't heard too much about it happening over here (and we are the supposed Capital of the Border)

It is a lot harder to get to and from Mexico though, and I know it is keeping a lot of people from going over to Mexico in their daily lives, but the whole mandatory-needing-a-passport thing isn't enforced too strongly (at least here where i'm at, i can't speak for the rest of the border towns).

I don't find that very surprising. I live about 1hr away from Juarez Mexico and there has already been about 6 or more murders (all law enforcement) just this year. There was also a hit list of officers left at a monument there. At first it wasn't taken serious but now it is. If that is happening in a major border town like Juarez I would expect it to be happening in the smaller towns too where the cartels are trying to keep their power.

There have been a few Canadians murdered in Mexico over the past couple of years too. I don't know if it's a conincidence or not, but many of them were of Italian descent. Does Mexico have something against Italians?

Interesting. I went to South Padre for SB in undergrad, it was interesting. Stayed at the Bahia Mar too. It was pretty sketchy, but a good time was had by all.

Frankly, other than it being crazy, I don't get the appeal. The island is not especially nice, nor is the beach very impressive if you're someone used to the other side of the gulf coast. Matamoros is fun, although certainly not much of a cultural experience. It does seem more authentic than Tijuana, but I'm not really sure that is a good thing.

My husband does a lot of business in the Maquilladoras (along the Tex-Mex border) and has salesmen that travel into the area all the time. It has gotten more and more dangerous, where in years past, they would stay on the Mexican side of the border for convenience, now, NO WAY! They also only go during the day, and if they have to stay for a night time dinner, they hire a Mexican driver who knows how to navigate the streets safely (or as safely as possible). Also, they never take their own cars, it is better to fly into McAllen, Laredo, El Paso, etc. and rent a car - because if its going to get jacked, much better to not be your own.

It is no joke that it has gotten incredibly dangerous.

I can remember how many years ago, my mom and her friends would take day trips into the northern Mexican towns, with us kids tagging along, to buy pottery and neat furniture and fixings. It was a completely different time - I feel really sorry for those poor people, the crime has gotten totally out of control.

Yeah...haven't heard about that.

I live 10 minutes from the Juarez border, anything I hear about law enforcement isn't surprising and many I don't believe. The law enforcement in Mexico is sooo corrupt that you are better off killing the cops instead of anyone else.

A girl from my dance group (who i've known for 10+ years) has an older step brother who was shot and killed by Juarez police. Why? Because he had a new truck and they wanted it.

BUT that isn't unusual for Juarez.

I'm :confused: over this comment...

this has been going on for some time -- I vaguely recall posting something similar a year or so ago.... it was the same story --- people getting caught in the middle of the drug wars.

personally i've never gone to Mexico for Spring Break. I hear it's beautiful and fun, but I am really just too scared that I'm gonna say the wrong thing in my broken Spanish or something and I'll come back with a missing kidney or not at all

Mexico's not a safe place to be right now. A few weeks ago, rebels in Tijuana stormed the police chief's house, killing him and his family. My mom and some of her friends cancelled their trip they were going to take to further south in Mexico this spring.

Mexico has for a long time been fairly unsafe, but in recent years it has gotten out of control. Even in the late 1990s things were starting to get ugly. Now it is not safe on either side of the border.

Makes you wonder how Bush can hope to bring peace and stability to the world when he couldn't even be bothered to take care of US citizens in his home state.

What about? Tijuana is a tourist hellhole. I mean, it's fun, but it is hard to cut through the crap to get to the culture. Same for Matamoros, though it seems a little less touristy, and a little more seedy. I'm not sure which is worse.

Honestly I think its the same way every where along the border. In Juarez if you don't speak Spanish the vendor will take advantage of you. The problem with border towns is that a lot of tourist are just in one area of town. I honestly will not go to Mexico by myself. I go with my dad since he grew up there and knows the area.

There are a lot of nice places to visit. But most of the tourist spots are not that great. If I do go to Mexico I am just glad that I have family in most major cities that can show me around and not just get stuck in the tourist area.

This is kind of scary. My husband and I will be going to Tijuana the first week in April. I will keep checking the travel advisories before we leave.

Why are you and your husband going to TJ? It's where college kids go to party, or where other tourists just pass through on their way to other places. It's really dirty and skeezy, just warning you.

We have lots of clients and employees that live in TJ , Rosarito, and Ensenada, so we've been down there for quite a few weddings etc. Not going to any now. Aside from the increase in violent crime, the border wait time is about 2/12 hours to cross at San Ysidro. And, keep in mind you now need a passport to re-enter the States, even if you're only going across to shop for the day. Not worth the hassle. Enjoy San Diego, shop, eat and stay here instead! and above all, be SAFE.

We will actually be passing through as well. We are flying in to Las Vegas, hanging out there a few days and then driving to San Diego to see some friends.

wow that's really scary :(

i was actually in tijuana for work just a few short months ago. it was my first trip to mexico - believe it or not.... and i grew up in south texas!

I went on a cruise that included Mexico this year. Had a lot of Spring Breakers in it. I had no problems whatsoever. But two people apparently got fake IDs in Cozumel and tried to use them to buy alcohol on the ship. They were kicked out of the ship and had to go straight home from Cozumel. Another girl got so drunk that she just passed out on a street in Cozumel- but was found and rescued on time.

Overall, I felt very safe both in Cozumel and in mainland Mexico. But then, I did not drink while in foreign soil, took good care of myself and my belongings, and spoke Spanish to the natives so they knew not to take advantage of me.

Sort of a sub section to this thread:
Briefing: The gang war that’s ravaging Mexico
How powerful are Mexico’s drug gangs?
In much of the country, more powerful than the government itself. Mexico’s three main drug cartels are effectively in control of swaths of the country’s Pacific Coast, industrial heartland, and tourist havens of the Gulf Coast.
With their staggering income from drug smuggling—$8 billion to $23 billion a year, according to U.S. estimates—the gangs can afford more powerful weapons than the police, and they don’t hesitate to kill the politicians, cops, and journalists they can’t bribe or intimidate.
http://www.theweekdaily.com/news_opi...ng_mexico.html

Drug trade tyranny on the border

Mexican cartels maintain grasp with weapons, cash and savagery
TIJUANA, Mexico - The killers prowled through Loma Bonita in the pre-dawn chill.
In silence, they navigated a labyrinth of wood shacks at the crest of a dirt lane in the blighted Tijuana neighborhood, police say. They were looking for Margarito Saldaña, an easygoing 43-year-old district police commander. They found a house full of sleeping people.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23656496/

Just a note after re-reading this thread.....if you visit Mexico don't assume that because you speak Spanish to the "natives" that you won't get taken advantage of. I know it sounds harsh, but they can tell who is a tourist and who isn't, especially if you aren't of Mexican descent.

I learned this when I was traveling in Mexico a few years ago. I was in a sort of touristy city in southern Mexico and was looking for gifts and I was just talking to the people who worked at the shops about tourists and such. Its amazing what they were telling me, like the price differences for people who they think are non-Mexican tourists vs. Mexican tourists.

LOL

Lastest Canadian Government travel warning:
http://www.voyage.gc.ca/dest/report-...country=184000

Is this type of information not readily available to the public anywhere else?

I ask this because a lot of that information seems VERY common sense for anyone traveling (especially to a foreign country).

I don't know if there is information like this about Canadians travelling to other countries, but most of this information isn't necessarily Mexico-specific.

IIRC, I posted most of this well up top. If not:
http://travel.state.gov/ US
www.fco.gov.uk UK
www.smarttraveller.gov.au AUSSIE
http://www.voyage.gc.ca/dest/ctry/reportpage-en.asp Canada

I would be not be too surprised if most major countries have similar sites.

And I have this as part of my travel info listing; did not have to look up.
And I have used them along with CDC's site prior to my travels.

I agree, but I still don't understand tourists who forget their brains at home when they go travelling.

For me, the test is, "would I do this at home?", such as "Would I go motorcycling without a helmet?"

I shake my head at people who rent motorcycles/scooters, whatever in Thailand (or other exotic land) and do so without a helmet (maybe helmets aren't available to rent, but I wouldn't be willing to risk a brain injury overseas). I'm just saying. I sure as h*ll would not get on some motorized type of thing like that without a helmet.

Have you read the travel warnings and country-by-country information sheets available on our state dept's Web site? It's full of plenty of common sense stuff, too...things like "Don't try to bring drugs into the country."

As per the following: