Mexico

[jamesnnb]

We see the State Dept has issued warnings (strongly suggest to reconsider travel) on travel to Mexico, including Cabo, Puerto Vallarta and Sinaloa where Mazatlan is located. These are the 3 stops for our upcoming cruise. Has anyone heard if Princess is offering an opportunity to cancel and rebook another cruise/another time at no fee/loss of monies? We are fully paid.

[iamaqt2]

47 minutes ago, jamesnnb said:

We see the State Dept has issued warnings (strongly suggest to reconsider travel) on travel to Mexico, including Cabo, Puerto Vallarta and Sinaloa where Mazatlan is located. These are the 3 stops for our upcoming cruise. Has anyone heard if Princess is offering an opportunity to cancel and rebook another cruise/another time at no fee/loss of monies? We are fully paid.

Princess will not be cancelling these port stops.  While the state dept. may be issuing travel warnings for these "states", the ports of call themselves are kept very safe by the Mexican government.  Tourism is their bread and butter, and they rely on the money that the cruise ships bring in.  You will see the Mexican government patrolling the port with machine guns while in their uniforms.  They have trucks that they ride in the back of, and they police all the local malls.  I do land vacations as well as cruise vacations in Mexico, and have never felt unsafe in the port towns.

[jennybenny]

I have seen Mazatlán taken off a cruise itinerary before, and that would be disappointing. We love getting off the ship, going to eat close by and walking back. Agree with the previous response about Mexico having a strong military presence and given the current conditions I would still take the cruise and do something in every port. In PV we always take the public bus to the malecón. In Cabo we go to Medano beach and we do all these things on our own. We've done the open air taxis in Mazatlán a million times as well.  Hopefully they won't take any ports off. Plus, being so close to your cruise, I don't think they will remove ports. Good luck!!

[pathi]

We plan on retiring in Mexico. Puerto Vallarta is one of the cities on our list. Just cant decide between mountains or the beach.

We spend about 3 months of the year in Mexico now. I have never felt uncomfortable in any of the areas we have visited.

I do exercise the normal caution I would in many areas of Atlanta.

[joeyancho]

Everyone feels safe until the bad thing happens. There are over 500 Americans missing in Mexico.  When the cartels start shooting those soldiers and cops disappear,  fearing retribution.  Mexico is owned from the top down by the cartels.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

[wcflats]

Ok pathi.   We have been to Mexico on several princess cruises with one coming up May this year on emerald princess.   Never felt uncomfortable with any of the places that we’ve been.  

[JimmyVWine]

I don't see any changes coming in the near term, (as in, the timeframe of your cruise), but long range, who knows.  Remember that the "Original Love Boat" used to sail to Acapulco as part of its routine itinerary, and Princess hasn't stopped there in decades. Most everyone has called it quits there.  I think that only NCL goes there now.  So the idea that a common port might get pulled from the rotation is certainly not out of the question.  But I don't think we are quite there yet.

[LACruiser88]

We are currently on the Sapphire and will be in Puerto Vallarta on Monday and Cabo San Lucas on Tuesday.

[Rick&Jeannie]

2 hours ago, LACruiser88 said:

We are currently on the Sapphire and will be in Puerto Vallarta on Monday and Cabo San Lucas on Tuesday.

We await your report!

[Shippy]

We just got back from a Holland cruise last week.

We went to Cabo, Puerto Vallarta & Mazatlan.

Had a wonderful time.

Took the Hop On/Hop Off bus in Mazatlan. Had lunch at Pancho's in the Golden Zone on the beach. I highly recommend it !.

[geocruiser]

16 hours ago, jamesnnb said:

We see the State Dept has issued warnings (strongly suggest to reconsider travel) on travel to Mexico, including Cabo, Puerto Vallarta and Sinaloa where Mazatlan is located. These are the 3 stops for our upcoming cruise. Has anyone heard if Princess is offering an opportunity to cancel and rebook another cruise/another time at no fee/loss of monies? We are fully paid.

Do you have trip ins, that has cancel for any reason?  You also can enroll in this

 

 

https://step.state.gov/step/

Benefits of Enrolling in STEP
The Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) is a free service to allow U.S. citizens and nationals traveling and living abroad to enroll their trip with the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.        
Receive important information from the Embassy about safety conditions in your destination country, helping you make informed decisions about your travel plans.
Help the U.S. Embassy contact you in an emergency, whether natural disaster, civil unrest, or family emergency.
Help family and friends get in touch with you in an emergency.

 

 

If you feel unsafe, then don't get off the ship.

[jamesnnb]

4 hours ago, geocruiser said:

Do you have trip ins, that has cancel for any reason?  You also can enroll in this

 

 

https://step.state.gov/step/

Benefits of Enrolling in STEP
The Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) is a free service to allow U.S. citizens and nationals traveling and living abroad to enroll their trip with the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.        
Receive important information from the Embassy about safety conditions in your destination country, helping you make informed decisions about your travel plans.
Help the U.S. Embassy contact you in an emergency, whether natural disaster, civil unrest, or family emergency.
Help family and friends get in touch with you in an emergency.

 

 

If you feel unsafe, then don't get off the ship.

I had not heard of STEP before. I’ll take a look, thanks. Interestingly enough, this was also in the article “In the advisory, would-be travelers are warned they may not be able to seek help from the U.S. if something goes wrong.”.  And, “The U.S. government has limited ability to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens in many areas of Mexico, as travel by U.S. government employees to certain areas is prohibited or restricted.”  
That said, we’re not in fear — just wondered if Princess was responding to the State Department’s recent warnings. That’s all. And, I think most everyone would know if you don’t feel safe in some port, you wouldn’t get off, lol. Common sense. Cruising is a great way to travel. 

[Tapi]

Couple of things to keep in mind:

 

Even if there’s a travel warning for a specific state in Mexico, it may only apply to certain parts and not the entire state. Puerto Vallarta is in Jalisco, and while there’s a level 3 warning for the state, the city of Puerto Vallarta is considered safe for tourist travel. 

Baja California Sur, where Cabo San Lucas is located, is under a level 2 warning (very common for international travel). Cabo San Lucas is considered safe for travel as well. 
 

To put things into perspective, there are other countries that frequently appear on Caribbean cruise itineraries (like Jamaica, Honduras and Trinidad and Tobago) that are currently under a level 3 travel warning, yet the cruise lines continue sailing there because the specific locations visited are considered safe. 
 

When we did this itinerary 4 months ago on Celebrity, Mazatlán was replaced with Ensenada. The state of Sinaloa (where Mazatlán is located), was under a level 4 (do not travel) warning at the time (probably still is).
 

 

Edited April 1, 2023 by Tapi

[jamesnnb]

2 hours ago, Tapi said:

Couple of things to keep in mind:

 

Even if there’s a travel warning for a specific state in Mexico, it may only apply to certain parts and not the entire state. Puerto Vallarta is in Jalisco, and while there’s a level 3 warning for the state, the city of Puerto Vallarta is considered safe for tourist travel. 

Baja California Sur, where Cabo San Lucas is located, is under a level 2 warning (very common for international travel). Cabo San Lucas is considered safe for travel as well. 
 

To put things into perspective, there are other countries that frequently appear on Caribbean cruise itineraries (like Jamaica, Honduras and Trinidad and Tobago) that are currently under a level 3 travel warning, yet the cruise lines continue sailing there because the specific locations visited are considered safe. 
 

When we did this itinerary 4 months ago on Celebrity, Mazatlán was replaced with Ensenada. The state of Sinaloa (where Mazatlán is located), was under a level 4 (do not travel) warning at the time (probably still is).
 

 

Good points. Thanks.

[Incognito1]

15 hours ago, joeyancho said:

Everyone feels safe until the bad thing happens. There are over 500 Americans missing in Mexico.  When the cartels start shooting those soldiers and cops disappear,  fearing retribution.  Mexico is owned from the top down by the cartels.  

Interior, yes.  Cancun, yes. The western ports and especially Baja California, no.  Excepting Tijuana, of course, but if you're not out alone at night or in areas where drugs are grown/sold, you're fine.

 

My partner accidentally stayed in a cartel hotel on his last visit (cab driver recommendation).  Everyone was armed, it was loud, but he said he did not feel unsafe.

[sfaaa]

PV cruise pier is located right next to a large Mex naval base. Cartels better bring with them a lot of fire power if they plan to attack and overrun PV.

[LACruiser88]

We are docked in PV and passengers are free to explore...

 

[Incognito1]

We were wishing we had done that pirate ship excursion on a previous cruise.  The actors put on quite the show as people were boarding (seen from our balcony) and I'm sure they were just as enthusiastic on aboard.  Plus, they spent several hours on the water - we saw them in many different places throughout the day.  It seemed that people were definitely getting their money's worth.

[SCX22]

I did a Mexican Riviera cruise in December '23.  I felt safe in Cabo and PV.  Mazatlan felt really sketchy and dirty.  There were police with semi automatics riding around in the beds of police trucks.  The beach was awfully dirty and smelly.  I walked the Blue Line to from the port to downtown and had an uneasy feeling.

[Cruise Raider]

On 3/31/2023 at 6:25 PM, jamesnnb said:

Good points. Thanks.

The state department warnings have been in place for a really long time in Mexico.  Princess did cancel the port of Mazatlan for a couple of years when the cartels took over.  So, if any consistent unrest does happen, they will most likely cancel it again.  But for now, they have assurances from the city officials to keep the tourist areas safe to the extent that is possible.  
There are no assurances that bad things can happen but that is anywhere, even in our home town.  But, exercising some increased awareness of your surroundings and remaining in the clearly marked tourist areas is your best bet to staying safe.  Enjoy your cruise.  
 

 

[bjkTX]

On 3/30/2023 at 11:51 PM, iamaqt2 said:

Princess will not be cancelling these port stops.  While the state dept. may be issuing travel warnings for these "states", the ports of call themselves are kept very safe by the Mexican government.  Tourism is their bread and butter, and they rely on the money that the cruise ships bring in.  You will see the Mexican government patrolling the port with machine guns while in their uniforms.  They have trucks that they ride in the back of, and they police all the local malls.  I do land vacations as well as cruise vacations in Mexico, and have never felt unsafe in the port towns.

A few years ago we were on a shore excursion, can't remember where, and we were all looking over a cliff at the water and the shoreline.  Behind us there were shops set us to give us the opportunity to buy a reminder of our visit 🙂  I noticed 3 or 4 military guys all decked out in green and long and short guns standing by the shops.  I went over to say hello and thank them and asked why they were there - and the response was "because you are here."  I felt safer - not safe - but safer 🙂

[Vic The Parrot]

2 hours ago, SCX22 said:

 The beach was awfully dirty and smelly.  

What beach was this?  

[LACruiser88]

We just returned to the ship after spending a great day in Puerto Vallarta.  No problems whatsoever and the town was full of tourists.

 

Tomorrow, Cabo San Lucas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 2, 2023 by LACruiser88

[Vic The Parrot]

8 minutes ago, LACruiser88 said:

We just returned to the ship after spending a great day in Puerto Vallarta.  No problems whatsoever and the town was full of tourists.

 

Tomorrow, Cabo San Lucas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A perfect day!

 

Wish I was there.

It's 52 degrees here in Jersey, and I'm tired of the cold. LOL

[sfaaa]

1 hour ago, bjkTX said:

  I noticed 3 or 4 military guys all decked out in green and long and short guns standing by the shops.  I went over to say hello and thank them and asked why they were there - and the response was "because you are here."  I felt safer - not safe - but safer 🙂

Mex soldiers and police are quite friendly with tourists. They would post for pictures if you ask them nicely.