Topic: Crossing into Mexico

Since the orginal topic has been closed and I just can across this updated Mexico Travel Warning in the M3 Report, published by the National Association of Former Border Patrol Officers Inc., I am creating a new topic with the same subject for those that might be interested. This January 9, 2014 Travel Warning replaces the one issued on July 12, 2013.
If further comments are not allowed, the topic may be locked.
R

Mexico has changed, it's not really safe to travel in Mexico.

I feel sorry for the people of Mexico.

While the situation has improved, it's still bad.  Don't travel into Mexico unless you absolutely have to. 

It's still quite dicey around Ciudad Juarez.  Happily, Baja California has settled down enough that it now feels safe, as long as one takes the normal precautions.  During the times it was bad in B.C., my company banned personal travel into Mexico.  They no longer do.

What am I missing here ??....

why would anyone ever want to take their next family RV vacation in any place the was...... "quite dicey but appears to have settled down now"  ?

We are spoiled here in the U.S., we know that the law will be enforced and you can trust the authorities, but everything is different in Mexico. as Americans we often thought of Mexico as just a depressed older American neighborhood...it's not........... it's a 3rd world nation with a lot of problems.

you can't trust the authorities, you're not guaranteed the rights we have here. You could be falsely arrested and die in jail before anyone from here can help.

Bribery is the accepted legal system and  Kidnapping Americans is considered an industry there. Mexican authorities like to show us that "We are Mexico, the U.S. can not tell us what we can do".

If you get into trouble in Mexico (even a traffic accident), your only hope is to hire a "Mexican Bribery advocate", and hope you and your family can survive incarceration until you can get home.

I'm sorry, but I am one person that does not see " the romance" of Mexico.

TonyDtorch said:

What am I missing here ??....I'm sorry, but I am one person that does not see " the romance" of Mexico.

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^^^X2^^^

Wow : Is this forum exclusively for those with no knowledge and narrow minds? Have any of you ever been to Mexico in an RV? We have a winter home in Mexico and have travelled as far south as Chiapis. Leaving for the south in a week or so. Mexico is no more dangerous that east LA, the Safeway in Tucson where gabby was almost killed. Like the USA there are pockets in Mexico where you should not be. Thousands of RV'rs travel Mexico with no problems. We do not go to bars at 3 in the morning. We do not go to areas where drugs are sold and do not get involved in drug deals or use drugs. Every major city in North America has "bad areas". No RV'r has ever been murdered. Most of that violence is drug dealer V drug dealer. Or cartel V cartel. To the peron who stated he would not go to Mexico as he does not have his American rights: You had better not plan on visiting any another country in the world as those so called American rights are not recognized once you cross the border or get on a plane to another country! This past year was a record year for Mexican tourism. Not just Americans and Canadians but Europeans and those from South America. There are over 1,000,000 ex pats living in Mexico  and leading normal peaceful lives. I would suggest that one do some reading. Go to RV.net and read the Mexico forum for starters. Lots of RV'rs who visit Mexico every year. It is rare to hear from an RV'r who took a caravan to Mexico state he would not go back! Mexico is not considered a 3rd world nation. It is a developing nation . That plant gets Fords top quality award every year. VW has a huge operation in Mexico as does Chevy. Is that a 3rd world nation?

moisheh said:

Wow : Is this forum exclusively for those with no knowledge and narrow minds?

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No. Perhaps just different knowledge than yours.
I've spoken to the border patrol who would disagree with your assessment of the dangers in Mexico.
Also, regarding tourism, there is a big difference between vacationing in the shielded, americanized citadels (I beleive they call them "resorts") and visiting the real Mexico.
I'm glad you've had wonderful experience there. Others have not.

Let's try to keep this civil.

I traveled to/through/from several continents for a living for many years, so I'm no stranger to "foreign countries". But call me 'without knowledge' when it comes to travel south of the border. Our (non-business) visits to 'Mexico' have been limited to the Baha California peninsula. We've crossed the border by car, bus, cruise ship, our own boat, and on foot (multiple times). I have no doubt that border towns and cruise ship ports aren't representative of the bulk of the 'interior' towns and villages.

Some years ago, we planned to make a multi-month boat trip around the Sea of Cortez with friends. Regrettably, due to business conditions, our friends were forced to pull out, and we decided not to go, preferring to have a buddy boat on the trip. More recently, fuel prices have made it an expensive trip.

Having talked multiple times with folks who've taken their RV south, and having read a lot of trip reports, I've had a long-time itch to make a trip to the Mexican mainland. However, in recent years, reports such as the ones that Richard and others have previously posted, and various other readings, have made me seriously reconsider. I'd be especially concerned around the border towns.

@RLSharp:  Are you former BP?  Not a lot of people know about the M3 report unless they are or were BP.

I have friends (retired USBP) who live in Mexico and have had zero problems.  I have not been across the line for several years, and that is a problem for me because I really enjoy visiting Mexico.  I do plan to go to Cabo this summer for a wedding, but I would NEVER consider a long road trip due to highway robberies and military check points where if they like something you have, it usually ends up staying with them.  If I did go, it would have to be in a caravan.

M3 has been mentioned here on a number of occasions; One of our staff members has an active serving relative.

inscop said:

If I did go, it would have to be in a caravan.

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At this time the caravan companies have suspended trips to Mexico.

I love Mexico.
I've been there several times.
In the resort communities, I felt cautiously safe, and always stayed aware of my surroundings.
The only place in Mexico that I felt really uncomfortable, was Mexico City.

Mexico always had drugs, corruption, and Cops who acted outside the law, but today it's downright dangerous.  The drug cartels don't fool around, and the chances of becoming collateral damage, is as high as being a target of crime.  I'll stay away for now, just like I did in parts of Jamaica, Egypt, Israel, Turkey, and other countries that are dangerous for Americans.  After I retired, and was offered the job training Law Enforcement in Iraq and the rest of the middle east, protection was provided, both personal protection (you remained armed, always used ballistic protection, and remained alert and aware), and protection of military body guard details 24/7, but that was done for the money, not recreation.

I couldn't justify going someplace on vacation, where I couldn't relax, enjoy myself, and de-stress, but had to constantly be on guard against attack, or become a victim.  But to each his own, I guess!

Actually there are at least 4 caravan companies that  are in Mexico as we speak. One left San Carlos last week. One is expected further south. They do not run as many as years ago but I have been told they were sold out this year. 2 years ago almost none were running. RV tourism is down but mostly due to the lack of really good facilities and a new generation of RV'rs that want everything deluxe. Roads have improved. Many RV parks have been sold as the beach front property is too valuable to be used  for an RV park. Fuel is not  inexpensive as in former years and tolls are high. But it is still a worthwhile experience. I really did not mean to paint everyone with the same brush but when someone posts a one liner with  information that is not factual and no links to supposed problems it can be frustrating.

inscop said:

@RLSharp:  Are you former BP?  Not a lot of people know about the M3 report unless they are or were BP.

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No, a friend, who had gone to Puerto Pe?asco annually for many years, recommended it to me. We use to go to Puerto Pe?asco with him on occasion, but no longer feel safe making the trip. He also has stopped going. I still subscribe to the M3 Report just to get the news on Mexico and Central America. This is about the only place you can get current news on Fast and Furious and the murder of Agent Terry Brian. The MSM will not cover this objectively, if at all.

I have mentioned the M3 Report on the RV Forum on several occasions in the past.


R

I have Spanish speaking Mexican-American neighbors that used to visit their relatives in Mexico very often, they had a bad experience with an intentional traffic accident and the all the bribes necessary to the police to get out of it.

Now....They say they will no longer be going down to Mexico.

I believe that travel to foreign countries has changed for Americans. 

I hear a lot of people say they will be doing all their vacationing and retirement traveling right here in the states.

My guess is that will show up as an increase in the RV industry in the coming years.

 

Escapee's has a trip to Mx leaving soon...

      As I sit here in our winter home in St Petes Florida, and admit that we have no intention of anytime soon RVing in Mexico, I am also cognizant of a lot of Canadians who do not consider the USA a safe place to visit, and will no longer travel here.  So, I guess what I am trying to say is that cannot just write off Mexico as it is a large diverse country that is trying to get its problems under control.  So much of the perception is how the news is presented and sensationalized, with only the worst tragic incidences blasted all over the press.  My employer from which I retired bought and then expanded a large Bank in Mexico.  I know a lot of people who worked for years in Mexico, and they speak highly of their time there.
    So, if you don't want to go, that's your prerogative.  But lets no anyone of us be so smug that we think that we don't have areas in our own countries that are not safe, or that things are occurring that have outsiders not wanting to visit.

Ed

The Escapees trip to Mexico is a great inexpensive caravan. They are a great bunch of people who know how to have fun and at the same time they do good deeds. Bring school supplies and more for kids. Raise money for local Mexican charities. They do not go deep into Mexico and I have never heard of anyone of their group having serious problems while in Mexico.

I've lived on the border for 25 years now.  El Paso is the safest large city in the USA....Juarez is essentially Baghdad/Mogadishu/Beirut/khandahar in this hemisphere.  In our younger days, we spent a ton of time in J-Town....considered it our backyard.  Loved the people, the food, the shopping, the whole experience.  It's 6 miles from where I'm sitting, and I haven't been in over 2 years.

The big difference in feeling unsafe in the USA and Mexico is that the constitution applies to everyone here, and while there are dirty cops here, they are a very small minority.  You have NO rights in Mexico, and the govt and the cartels are essentially one and the same.  You are a commodity that can be bought and sold there, and there is absolutely close to zero anyone can or will do about it if you get in trouble down there (real or concocted). 

I love Mexico as much as anyone.  It breaks my heart to see what has happened.  The situation is getting better, but it is still quite perilous.  Kidnappings are common.  You have zero right to carry a firearm to defend yourself, so you are at the bad guys mercy, and they have none. 

There is plenty to see right here in the good old US of A.  Please avoid Mexico.