Indeed, the U.S. government has posted a travel alert regarding Mexico travel; the alert urges travelers to stay on cuotas, or toll roads, and notes that the greatest potential danger is along the Mexico/U.S. border, especially in Juarez (south of El Paso, Texas) where Mexican drug cartels have been warring with one another and with the US in recent years (deaths and violent crimes within this sector have, though, been limited to this sector). And the Justice Department's Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is urging college students to avoid Northern Baja in Mexico during spring break, a very unusual move by the ATF.
Those in-country in Mexico, however, are saying, essentially: use the same common sense as always when traveling, and don't worry about it. And it is important to note that the state department has issued a milder travel alert, not a more serious warning regarding travel to Mexico and spring break safety in Mexico; in a press briefing on March 6, 2009, State Department spokesman Gordon Druguid said, "The Travel Alert fully encompasses the problems that are to be encountered in traveling to Mexico at this time." And the the current alert does not discourage you from traveling to Mexico for spring break because of safety concerns -- it notes that one should be careful along the US/Mexico border... as always. If you're headed to resort towns (like Puerto Vallarta, Cancun and Acapulco) within Mexico, you will, of course, be very far from the US/Mexico border.
The ATF bureau's Los Angeles field division is discouraging travel to Tijuana and Rosarito Beach, with officials saying that the area south of San Diego experiences much "drug-fueled violence," according to an AP report. Rosarito Beach, of course, is a main stop on the spring break trail, especially for Southern Californians.
What to Do About Spring Break in Mexico?
Ultimately, of course, you'll make your own decision regarding traveling to Mexico for spring break... if you go (and we went ourselves -- driving from the US to Mexico -- in March, 2009), just observe the usual safety travel protocol. We can tell you that we've been traveling in Mexico frequently when the US government issued travel alerts for that country, and I've always been perfectly safe -- however, though it is always important to follow basic travel safety rules when you're on the road, dangerous times abroad necessitate particular attention to safety. Since a travel alert has been issued for Mexico, consider registering with the US embassy in Mexico if it will ease your or your parents' mind(s). Learn more:- All About US Government Travel Alerts and Warnings
- Registering With American Embassies
- About Spring Break Safety
- About Driving To Mexico: Borders, Insurance and More
- About Driving In Mexico: Rules of the Road
- About Driving Home From Mexico: US Customs
- From About.com's Guide to Mexico: Is Mexico Too Dangerous?
Please go on to the next page to read a typical communication from a campus this spring regarding safety in Mexico for spring break...
Mexico had a solution for the country's drug issues, or at least a start on a solution, but some politicians in the U.S. didn't like that solution and had a big hand in shooting it down:
