Mexico...here we go again

Unfortunately Mexico being in the news shocks no one these days. It seems they cycle in and out of the news every 3-4 months or so. If it's not some crime that happened to a tourist, it is the cartels killing their own people in tourist destinations. This cycle of bad news has a huge affect on tourism in general. Many travelers will cancel their trip all together while others will decide not to book their Mexican getaway afterall. These decisions are often made BEFORE consulting a travel professional.

Would our consulation and opinion change a client's mind one way or another? Maybe. But what we are here today to do is NOT convince someone to go to Mexico, it is more to help someone understand the facts so they can make an informed and thought out decision.

So the biggest question we get asked about Mexico is...is it safe? And our answer is not too convoluted. Safer is maybe a better way of asking it. Is any destination safer than another? Some might tell a traveler that Paris is safer than say...Athens Greece. But if a traveler is in Paris and just happens to fall victim to a random crime, their answer may now differ. What if a travel agent tells someone that it is safe to travel to Greece and that client then gets robbed at their hotel? The client may come back and blame the agent and ask why they were told it was "safe." You see what we are getting at?

So in this latest case of violence in Mexico...here are some facts. The cartels have been operating in the area of Puerto Vallarta for a long time. They just never do anything to harm tourists (most likely due to tourism benefitting them as well). This latest activity also had no tourists as targets, only their own government. But it had escaleted to the point that it trickled into the tourist areas causing businesses to close as well as disrupting airport activity. Now we have sent a lot of clients, including ourseleves, to Puerto Vallarta over the past several years. It's a beautiful place and we have never had issues. Thankfully we did not have clients there during this latest issue. But we very well could have. Our point is that this was random and unforeseen and in an area that is hundreds, even a thousand miles away from more popular destinations such as Cabo and Cancun. In fact, it is about the same distance as NYC is from Miami FL. We have never had anyone cancel a trip to Miami because of a bad news story coming out of NYC.

Those are the facts. Now if someone looks at those facts and says they still are uncomfortable with traveling to any part of Mexico, then that is their decision and at least they had a chance to hear the facts beforehand. But if someone were to then ask us if Cancun is "safer" than Puerto Vallarta? Our answer would be to just stick with the facts. Are there cartels in Cancun? Sure. Have they attacked tourists as far back as any of us can remember? No. Could they get violent at any point because of some issue with their own government? For sure. Could that same form of gang vs government violence break out in say...a city like London? Of course. It could happen in Paris or London or Madrid or Dublin and so on and so on.

This does not mean you should hide in fear and never travel to these amazing places again. It does not mean you should cancel any and all international travel. It simply means that wherever you travel to, you need to make sure you always:

• Stay vigilant. Be aware of your surroundings

• Stay in well lit areas at night

• Do not walk down darkened alley ways

• Stay in areas where there are other tourists and crowds where you can still blend in and not stand out as a tourist

• Keep money and valuables out of sight and in the hotel safe when possible

• Stick with guided group or private tours booked through reputable tour companies

• Let family members back at home know when and where you will be traveling to

These recommendations of ours apply to any and all places you might travel to including domestic trips here in the U.S. This is our answer to the question..."Is it safe to travel to Mexico?" What's your thoughts about traveling to Mexico right now?