That’s part of the problem. A general warning for an entire country. That’s like tourists staying away from the U.S. because of problems in one city, state, or region.

That’s a good point about the nightly news and American cities. Often the same feel of fear thrown out there.

@fly girl

You make a good point about checking out different viwepoints in addition to the traditional media. Caution is necessary, but that also depends on where you go in Mexico and elsewhere.

If I was given the opportunity to go to Mexico this week, I would take it. It is such a beautiful country.

If people were to listen to the nightly news in any American city, they would not want to come here either. Violence, unfortunately, is everywhere and you just need to travel smart. Plus the drug cartels are not going to target tourists.

Thanks for the update and have a great weekend.

@leisureforte

Travel smart, indeed. Mexico is worth visiting.

Enjoy and have a great and long Easter weekend!

That’s a good point and example. I understand the need to warn the populous, but fear is easily spread. Makes it hard to keep ones head and make a rational decision. I’m thinking it would be interesting in the future if things like Twitter allowed us to ask people who are actually there about the circumstances in addition to reading the warnings.

@Heather Dugan

Acquiring the necessary knowledge is essential. Observing the locals often works. I guess if the military is there…no one will try anything, but it does show that the basic view a of travelers receive isn’t always the reality of a place. There are cities in the States that have pretty shady areas. I’d like to think that tourists read up before wandering around.

I won’t avoid traveling to Mexico, but I’ll keep current with the advisories and, more importantly, the news articles. -But, I think one should always educate oneself on the details of the destination. It’s smart traveling in any circumstance.

I was in Oaxaca a couple of years ago when there was some serious unrest, but even then it felt safe for me – you just worked out the places you couldn’t go. The US departments and the FCO warned tourists from being there and a lot of people left – I was glad I didn’t, though I probably wouldn’t have travelled there with a warning in place. (I was already in the town when the situation got worse)

It definitely made me rethink what the warnings meant – the words in the official advice bore little relation to my experience on the ground

I’m with you. That beach is meant to have travelers on it

@Kristi

That’s true of certain areas of the States. It’s an important point too. Just treat other big cities around the world like the ones at home.

@Geoff

Mexico is usually filled with Europeans and Americans this time of year. Good to see that you ignored the warnings. In a way it will be nice for you to be around so many locals, but it’s sad for the economy there. Tourism is the #3 industry.

What’s ridiculous is none of these towns has been affected by recent violence, and all are incredibly safe places – probably far safer than most cities in Europe & the US in fact.

~ Kristi

It just looks too picture perfect. I just want to throw my towel down on the beach and go wade in the water … I bet it’s warm … just right.

Good point. Do a little research and use common sense. The State Department is trying to keep everyone safe not trying to stop travel. Read the warnings and take the suggestions, but don’t o=be turned off by it.

@Lisis

Ha! Me too.

=-)

The economy probably had some effect on the drop in tourists too. Though much of the info cited in the report is tied to the coverage and alerts.

@Alik Levin

Better not to jump to conclusions about a place until looking at the resources about the country. True.