State Department Cozemel Warnings

I was told tht Cozemel has been placed on the State Dept. List of safety concerns. The state dept. website does not say too much, but does list Cozemel. Anyone have information?

thanks,

Mach

i saw this on the today show last week i believe

scary! they arnt saying dont go .. they are just saying BE CAREFUL ... esp to us young spring breakers and the ones who tend to get so wasted they do stupid things...

I live and work in Cancun and have heard nothing about safety concerns for tourists here or in Cozumel. I know that in the northern parts of Mexico it's more risky but here our entire economy depends on tourists. I have some house guests here now and they have fealt safe everywhere and we've been lots of places that tourists wouldn't normally see.

I was told tht Cozemel has been placed on the State Dept. List of safety concerns. The state dept. website does not say too much, but does list Cozemel. Anyone have information?

thanks,

Mach

Does anyone have any information on this?

I know there are warnings asking Spring Breakers not to go to Mexico in general.

I don't believe that Cozumel is a specific threat....but our Government may be issuing a "one size fits all warning" because of the violence on the border.

We were just in Cozumel last month (for the umpteenth time ~ 4th time since October) and it was fine.

I was told tht Cozemel has been placed on the State Dept. List of safety concerns. The state dept. website does not say too much, but does list Cozemel. Anyone have information?

It isn't specifically Cozumel. There are travel warnings about travel to Mexico, especially border towns.

I live and work in Cancun and have heard nothing about safety concerns for tourists here or in Cozumel.

The State Department is warning Spring Breakers from travel to Cancun due to threats of kidnappings.

Cancun and neighboring Isla Mujeras has been a hotbed for the Cuban-American mafia who traffic in drugs and humans. Drugs are exported from the Yucatan, and humans are trafficked in from Cuba and held for ransom from their families in the U.S. Living in Cancun, if you have not seen or heard of any of this activity, I am very surprised.

I saw something on the news the other night. I didn't catch the town or establishment.......but did catch that it was normally one of the busiest bars during spring break. They said this bar normally had up to 1000 patrons at the time they were filming. They said there were zero people besides the bartender inside. ZERO, zilch, nada......that has got to HURT.

So, my question is.......will that encourage a crack down on the drug crimes.......or will it just make things that much worse???

i dont see where it list cozumel...it does give a know before you go section which includes cozumel...but its the typical be careful...mexican jails can be tough...as always everyone needs to be careful while in a foreign country....i think the extraordinary violence is mostly in the border towns...not to say there isnt violence in all towns....there is in the united states...so im sure there is in mexico....we are americans in a foreign country so always be on your guard.

I was in Cozumel just very recently and didn't notice any change at all. The bars are busy, the tourists are spending money and all looks right with the world.

As others have said, it's the northern border sections and the interior of Mexico that are the problem. The tourist areas remain pretty safe...

:)

Here is a link to the U.S. State Department's web site release on Mexico.

http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/pa/pa_3028.html

Some peoplr from our area were on a cruise to cozumel about 2 weeks ago and a young lady(who was of age) was picked up and carried out of a bar by a local, the bar was very busy, luckily someone in her party saw it happen and was able to stop them. So yes be very careful and watch your drinks.

Don't believe everything you're told.

The travel advisories that state department has put out is mostly for the border areas and a few inland areas near Mexico City.

The only advisory in effect for Cozumel is the warning that the ocean on the east side of the island is known for terrible rip tides and several people a year die as a result.

Here is a link to the U.S. State Department's web site release on Mexico.

 

http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/pa/pa_3028.html

Thanks for that link.

Look......here's what you can pull from the above to be concerned about:

"In recent years, dozens of U.S. citizens have been kidnapped across Mexico".

No matter what residents of Mexico.....as well as "enjoy, no problem" travelers say to you.....keep that in mind when you decide what you're gonna do in that country......ANYWHERE in THAT COUNTRY....otherwise you're asking for trouble.

These ridiculous comments you read about "many places in the U.S. are scary", etc...........to our knowledge, there are no known areas here in the U.S. where dozens of foreigners are being kidnapped. Geez ! And no Caribbean islands that we're aware of either where American are being held for ransom !

Be aware ! The government there is not really in full control !

my DIL's sister was going to mexico and her TA told them all to cancel due to the supposed violence and warnings.....they are so disapointed....now going to florida instead...this type of info will kill the spring break economy in mexico.....i feel so bad for the honest, hardworking people...they are the ones who suffer....

We were there last month. We were just told not to wear a lot of jewelry on the streets. We didn't have any trouble at all. It didn't seem any worse than some of the other places. I thought downtown Panama was a lot dumpier. We saw the canal and came back to the stores. They told us not to wear a lot of jewelry there either. Soem of the downtown area in Panama had a lot of dumpy stores. The guide was going to let us down in the streets. I said don't bother. A lot of stores had bars. Other couple we were with wanted to be left down there. I said no way. People in Cozumel were very nice and went out of their way to help us. Of course, we were only there for the day.

It surprises me that cruisers like us tend to leave our common sense at home when we arrive at many ports.... We hear of people going down dark alleys alone, going off with locals who promise to show you places that no other tourist normally see....

We teach our children to be wary of strangers at home, why would we not practice what we preach while sailing to a port... In many places that cruiseships port people are not as fortunate as some of us and maybe in dire need of money to support their families... They may feel that this is an easy way to make a few dollars....

When traveling inside and outside the US people need to keep their wits about them and not try to drink the most drinks ever served to a parton in Carlos and Charlies, ect.... This should be the way in ever port not just Mexico..... JMHO....

Joey & Pat

There is a drug war between rival gangs in mexico that has esculated.

Drive -by shootings etc.

The governments both canada and usa are warning the public.

This is all of mexico

I would program the telephone numbers of the us consolate in every location i visit outside the us and also make sure that you have international roaming setup with your cell provider. It wouldnt hurt to have the phone number of the local police programmed in your phone also. Greg

I was in Cozumel just very recently and didn't notice any change at all. The bars are busy, the tourists are spending money and all looks right with the world.

 

As others have said, it's the northern border sections and the interior of Mexico that are the problem. The tourist areas remain pretty safe...

 

:)

CANCÚN, Mexico – Students preparing for spring break at this beach resort have a spate of bad local news to factor into their plans: the brutal slaying of an army general, the jailing of the police chief for alleged complicity in the killing and a link to the feared Zetas drug gang based along the Mexico-Texas border.

But as the bulk of "los espring breakers," as the Mexican media call them, start to arrive this weekend, analysts say that there is a latent fear that Cancún could go the direction of once-popular party spots for Americans like Ciudad Juárez, Tijuana and even Acapulco, which has had drug hits along its hotel strip.

Arturo Yañez, a commentator on the drug trade, said Cancún "is on the verge of becoming the Ciudad Juárez of the southeast because it is one of the principal entrances for drugs from Central America."

Both Juárez and Cancún have had a rapid influx of outsiders and a history of police corruption.

Mach, sounds like it's creeping further down Mexico way......

Thanks for all the input, I agree after 5 cruises I have seen people do a number of just plain stupid things. At this point, have a good head about things, I am sure we will be fine. Thanks for all the input.

Mach

My wife and I are scuba divers and have spent 5 weeks in Cozumel over the last three years. Cozumel is very safe as the island is dependent upon tourism and they don't tolerate much in the way of crime. Yes, there are some pickpockets and petty theft if you leave yourself vulnerable but not the type of problems they are having along the border. We visit many of the local restaurants in town well back from the waterfront and walk all over town after dark and never have any problems. Take the normal precautions you would anywhere else and have fun.

None of the things described above are related to cruise ship passengers visiting Cozumel. Not Cuban mafias, not drive by shootings, not border town drug gangs, and definitely not deserted bars.

The bars you saw were probably in Rosarita near the border in the Baja, 2,000 miles from Cozumel (CNN is running a story about Rosarita and Tijuana while falsely proclaiming it to be all of Mexico). The nearest hotbed of drug gang violence is 1,500 miles away in Ciudad Juarez. There have been no kidnappings of innocent tourists. The news just says "U.S. Citizens" so that you think it's tourists but it's not - it has been drug smugglers, ex-Cartel members, and relatives of people involved in these things, and has not been in Cozumel or any other southern resort town.

The state department warning was meant to head off spring breakers from flooding Tijuana, Rosarita or Ciudad Juarez, popular spots for kids in the southern states, where there are things going on currently. There is no threat in Cozumel, Costa Maya or any other port town in Mexico you might be visiting on this cruise. If you aren't afraid of drug gangs in your city, which is almost certainly closer to the border violence than Cozumel, and probably has a higher crime rate, you don't need to worry about Cozumel. Relax and have fun like the other 4 million visitors a year to the area do!

Thanks for that link.

 

Look......here's what you can pull from the above to be concerned about:

 

"In recent years, dozens of U.S. citizens have been kidnapped across Mexico".

 

No matter what residents of Mexico.....as well as "enjoy, no problem" travelers say to you.....keep that in mind when you decide what you're gonna do in that country......ANYWHERE in THAT COUNTRY....otherwise you're asking for trouble.

 

These ridiculous comments you read about "many places in the U.S. are scary", etc...........to our knowledge, there are no known areas here in the U.S. where dozens of foreigners are being kidnapped. Geez ! And no Caribbean islands that we're aware of either where American are being held for ransom !

 

Be aware ! The government there is not really in full control !

So, I guess Americans just kidnap each other? My city had an entire family kidnapped for ransom last month. We have robberies, car hijacking, rapes and murders almost every day. IN the CITY where I live...I'm not including the entire U.S. The world is full of crazy people. To imply that you're "safe" in America and Mexico

is the only destination that isn't "safe" is stretching the Mexico Travel advisory a little too far. I agree, I would avoid border towns and large Mexican cities, particularly tourist areas. But, i don't see Coz being impacted by violence from drug wars due to it's location and military prescence. It could change tomorrow but until it does, I see no need to cry "Wolf" where Cozumel is concerned.

None of the things described above are related to cruise ship passengers visiting Cozumel. Not Cuban mafias, not drive by shootings, not border town drug gangs, and definitely not deserted bars.

You are not entirely correct in your statements.

Cozumel has been effected by the drug trade. Next time you are there, note the presence of soldiers on the East side of the island. In recent years, Cozumel has become an increased drug route from Cuba.

The point is to just be aware of this, not necessarily to stop traveling.

You are not entirely correct in your statements.

 

Cozumel has been effected by the drug trade. Next time you are there, note the presence of soldiers on the East side of the island. In recent years, Cozumel has become an increased drug route from Cuba.

 

The point is to just be aware of this, not necessarily to stop traveling.

A little bit of mixed information. Cozumel is not part of the drug route - that is on the mainland, not the island. Cozumel occasionally finds packages floating up on the east coast beaches, but similar packages end up being discovered on the mainland about the same time or within a few days. Theory is traffickers dumped their load with two possibilities. One is they feared they were about to be caught and the other, more probable, they used a few packages as decoys to attract military attention to specific areas while they make their real delivery somewhere else. Trafficking on the island proper has never been proven though suspected. I strongly believe it is not a stepping stone for drugs, but the vast stretch of the Riviera Maya certainly is prime territory. Removing a large quantity of drugs from Cozumel would prove to be logistically difficult at least. There is a navy base in Cozumel so the presence of military is constant or has been the eleven years I´ve lived on the island. The military even patrol the streets at night and work hand in hand with the local and state police units. Its a great place to live and visit.

I posted this link in another thread, but it is appropriate here also.

The following is an abbreviated response from the Mexico Tourism Board:

http://collage.triseptsolutions.com/VendorCenter7.5/VAC/pdfs/MEX_tourism_respons e.pdf

Good read!