State Department travel warning for Playa Del Carmen, Mexico

[njbm 2,863]

Pretty close to Puerto Morales, home of Desire. I think that this is of concern. Thoughts?

[SW_PA_Couple 4,023]

I could be run over by the number 23B bus that I typically ride on Bower Hill Road. I could get knocked over the head by a mugger while on a vacation trip to New York City. I could eat a bad oyster at a seafood restaurant on Lake Arthur. I could get blown up by a terrorist bomb in Mexico. I could stay at home and die of boredom.

[padoc 1,701]

Mexico is rapidly approaching failed state status. I'd certainly take the State Department warning into consideration if I was planning a vacation.

[njbm 2,863]

We are passing on Desire, going to Caliente. We don’t look for trouble. Apropos to SW PA, we were in Israel and Jordan in October, 2017 and there was a terrorist attack in New York City, in which we find ourselves frequently. You never know.

[Guest]

Part of the problem is that State Department warnings tend to be based on an entire state, not the tourist city sitting on the coast. In that sense, the nice tourist town on the beach could be perfectly safe but the rest of the state, no so much. A good example is Mazatlan, a very lovely town but which is part of the large state of Sinola, which has a great deal of drug cartel activity. We look at the U.S. ratings but also the Canadian governments assessment as well.

[JandKinBoise 856]

I read the warning. Rather than paraphrase, here is a screen shot and the affected area. I don't think I'd cancel a trip, maybe stay a little closer to the resort than usual.

 

[GoldCoCouple 4,064]

There's been a warning for the area for awhile now. While we don't leave the resort and definitely don't go into town or go shopping, we have decided until things get better to not go there and take the risk. Too bad, too. Our bi-yearly trip should have been November of last year and we really miss Desire. Mexico is just a mess right now...

[njbm 2,863]

I understand that the warning pertains to certain neighborhoods and ferries. One does not want to be Chicken Little. But Mexico should get its act together. It is a beautiful country with a rich heritage, but the criminal element gives tourists pause. It happened in Egypt, Turkey and, to a lesser extent, the US.

 

I did not know about the mass shooting, but it doesn’t make us feel any better.

 

PS, we’ve recently traveled to Russia, Cuba, Brazil, Israel and Jordan, so we haven’t dodged dodgy places.

[GoldCoCouple 4,064]

Still, why take chances. We have felt uncomfortable on the ride to and from the airport. If you don't believe that foreigners are being targeted for robbery, you are fooling yourself. The country and people are in dire straights and money is money. Why take a risk that can be avoided? If it helps any, we aren't planning any trips to Austin TX either.

[Twilighttap 168]

You could choke on a Cheerios at breakfast, sure, but why go into a drug cartel war zone in Mexico? There’s many safer alternatives.

[GoldCoCouple 4,064]

A ten minute ride to the resort in an unmarked window-tinted SUV from a reputable company...

 

Whoever you are using sure drives faster than the ones we get. More like 20-30 minutes for us.

[SW_PA_Couple 4,023]

Maybe it seems like ten minutes. All I know is it's a 2-beer drive.

That is how I used to relate driving distance when I was living and working in Wyoming.

[robaval 219]

We go to Mexico three or four times a year now. Generally we stay a 7 to 9 days. We like Hidden Beach Resort, El Dorado Royal, El Dorado Maroma, etc. We simply have never had an issue with travel to and from the resorts from CUN. We do use Lomas Travel for transportation and line it up before leaving home. For quite a few years now we have not left the resort to go shopping, bar hopping or restauranting like we used to. Day trips to Tulum, etc. not a issue, but we avoid the real Mexico towns, bars, restaurants now......... Julie

[robaval 219]

PS Rob regularly works in Vera Cruz, Guadalajara, Tepic, Culiacan, Puebla, etc. and has for many years. Now days, he goes from the airport using client provided transportation directly to big, name brand hotels with security and he doesn't leave to shop, tour, dine or bar hop. I used to travel with him occasionally years ago and really got to see and love Mexico, but NO more.... We feel sorry the regular Mexicans who are really nice people as we can't give them our business anymore, that's part of the reason why we see so many closed up shops, etc. when traveling to and from airports. Rob's clients who he has worked with for years, pick him up at the hotel each day with a different vehicle, different time and use different routes. Places like Vera Cruz, the entire police force was dismissed and the Mexican Marines police the town and harbor...... Julie

[njbm 2,863]

I understand that Acapulco, once a tourist magnet, no longer attracts tourists due to drug cartel problems. Quintana Roo,the state of Cancun, used to be tranquil, but it sounds like there are problems arising. Every trip is a cost benefit analysis. My wife worked on me for years to go to Israel, which seemed very safe in October, 2017. So was Austin, Tx last month. Things change, stay aware.

[padoc 1,701]

We'd go to Isreal as opposed to Mexico in a heartbeat. If something bad happens there, the Israelis are organized, professional and deadly. The only thing you can honestly say about Mexico is that the cartels are deadly, the government, not so much. With the rampant corruption in Mexico, who could you trust? Conversely, I'd feel real secure with a couple of people wearing IDF uniforms no matter where we were in the country.

[njbm 2,863]

The security was terrific all over Israel. They are very serious about it. Not kidding around.

[njbm 2,863]

Iowa family of four found dead in their vacation condo in Tulum, Mexico today.

 

I am sure someone was killed in Tampa today and I don’t think anyone is breaking into Desire to kill people, but I think Mexico and Quintana Roo is killing the goose that laid the golden eggs.

[cplnuswing 4,712]

Tragic, but things may not be what one would think though, or at least that's the early indication.

 

Iowa family reported missing found dead in Mexico condominium

 

That being said, I do agree about the golden goose and for a while now have been wondering myself how long it would take for the situation parts of the country finds itself in to start effecting everywhere.

[njbm 2,863]

Do you think it was a intra-family murder suicide as opposed to intruders? I guess we’ll find out.

[PeterJ 932]

40+ years ago one of my sisters married into a socially prominent Mexican family that had lost most of its wealth as a result of being on the wrong side of the 1930s revolution. My sister and her husband live a fairly typical upper-middle-class life, sending their kids to college in the U.S., etc.

 

For Americans who frequent the tourist enclaves on the Mexican coastline it’s hard to imagine what life is like for people in the country. Mexico has in many ways come a long way in the past couple of decades, once the PRI’s decades-long iron grip on political power was broken and “normal” politics began to flourish. While by US standards official corruption is still high, it is much less of a challenge to the rule of law than it was. That has gone hand in hand with increased economic development and a sharp reduction of extreme poverty and growth of the middle class.

 

Still, Mexico endures a level of public violence that it is hard for us in the US to get our heads around. For instance, in upscale urban and suburban areas ATMs are flanked by guards armed with submachine guns. The countryside is worse and “getting worse-er.” My sister and her family used to restrict their inter-city travel to driving during the daytime. Now they fly.

 

Wealthy Mexicans are inconvenienced, but they have the resources to protect themselves. Gangs gave up kidnapping wealthy people because after a ransom was collected the private security their victims employed would track down the kidnappers’ families and execute them. So, now kidnappers focus on the middle-class and upper-middle-class. It’s referred to as “espress kidnapping”. The kidnappers grab a family member and demand a smallish ransom, maybe just a few thousand dollars. The victim’s family goes to the bank, gets the money and turns it over. The whole deal is over in an afternoon. My sister has many friends who have been victims of this almost-petty crime.

 

It’s hard to know how long it will take Mexico to get its violence problem down to a manageable level. Progress has been made. But it’s quite clear that the US is part of the problem. While by most accounts the use of drugs has increased among Mexicans, the big driver of Mexico’s drug-trafficking is demand in the the US. And the US is the source of the guns that fuel violence in Mexico.

[JandKinBoise 856]

Excellent post PeterJ. We get so much hearsay, shit headlines, propaganda and general misinformation about Mexico. I hope they get a handle on this. They will need to figure it out with no expectation of laws changing in the US for the better.

[njbm 2,863]

There is something seriously wrong in Mexico and the United States. The cultures are very violent. Is it easier to earn a living through criminal enterprise rather than working?

 

Canada looks like the best place to live in North America!

[njbm 2,863]

That Iowa family died of gas inhalation. Sad to hear. Apologies to the drug cartel.

[Gorgegon 17]

Please take the travel warning seriously and avoid traveling to Mexico, I am trying to reserve at Desire and is fully booked for the next two months!!

[agreatguy 269]

I heard this morning that the travel warning had been lifted.

[njbm 2,863]

So sorry about the Toronto van incident today. Nowhere is safe.