Mexico travel/safety
What is the safest place to visit in Mexico?
5 Answers
I have spent a lot of time in Mexico. To see the US news, you'd never go there. Indeed, the narco wars are horrible. BUT, if you stay away from the areas where this is happening, Mexico is perfectly safe. Safer, in fact, than the majority of other Latino countries. Stay away from the estados of: Chihuahua, Durango, Sinaloa, and Guerrero, these have the most problems. States which do have some problems, but not to this degree, are Baja california, Ouaxaca, Soroa, Morelio, Michuacan, Nayarit, Quintana Roo.
The states of Yucutan, Tlaxcala, Veracruz, Campeche, Queretero, Zacateras, Hidalgo, Tabasco, Aguas Calientes, Nuevo leon, San Luis Potosi, Puebla, Jalisco and Guanajuato all have very low to modest crime rates. They are listed in reverse order.
Obviously, I have offended someone by this list! I take my information from an objective source.
If you google the following document: índice de inseguridad ciudadana y violencia, published by the Centro de análisis de políticas públcas, you'll find a very comprehensive report, in Spanish, of crime and violence in Mexico, from 2009.
I encourage you to travel to Mexico. As you would no matter where you travel, be smart. It's such a beautiful country, with wonderful and caring people.
J
I won't say it is the safest but I have never felt threatened in Quintana Roo (Mayan riviera).
Lets see. Dont go anywhere near the border, michoacan, and la zona sur del df. Big cities have better hospitals than smaller towns because smaller towns dont have much supply to medicine. If you live iun a smaller city and are being taken to the larger city hospital and you die on the way, well too bad. (not trying to be mean but its the truth.) If you take a pet, make sure your pet doesnt get sick because the supply for medicine is close to nothing for animals and they will do much more harm to your animal than you think. Do not think about going to Ciudad juarez.
I mostly agree with Jeremias, with the added note that Monterrey, Veracruz and Cuernavaca are now considered to be dangerous. Also, Acapulco should be avoided. I am personally very sad about what is happening in Veracruz and Cuernavaca; they were two of my all-time favorite places in the country. I have read articles that talk about ex-patriots leaving San Miguel de Allende because of narco danger.
Another web site to check out is Proceso.com.mx...this is a non government web site and thus offers a different perspective, for better or for worse.
My husband and I teach English several months a year in a city on the Pacific coast of Jalisco. So far so good - just an occasional drug related episode, but nothing that affects the tourist population.
Unfortunately, Mexico is now considered to be the most dangerous country in the world for reporters, so it is somewhat difficult to measure the degree of accuracy in the media. Also, any reports from the Mexican government are open to question, since many of the state governments and an estimated 70% of municipal governments are infiltrated to a greater or lesser extent by the narco traffickers.
Be alert, don't go to clubs, take only "radio taxis" if you are in a large city, and stay in well-travelled areas. Driving along isolated highways isn't a good idea; if you choose to drive, stay on the well travelled routes and only drive during daylight hours.
I went to Playa del Carmen in Quintana Roo this past May and did not feel the least bit in harm's way, and that was after the drug-related violence was well under way. I also went the prior year in May in the midst of the swine flu epidemic and didn't feel the least bit worried either, although I did have to stand in line and get my temperature taken coming and leaving. I think the border towns, especially Ciudad Juárez and Tijuana would be best avoided, but since I haven't been to either in this century, I can't really comment.
