The U.S. State Department has issued a travel warning – not a travel alert – regarding the ongoing and dangerous security situation in Mexico, which has begun spreading into resort and tourist areas. If you’ve been considering a Spring Break vacation in Mexico this year, we suggest you reconsider.
A number of U.S. citizens have been the victim of growing violence in a number of areas of Mexico, including being murdered, caught in gun battles, kidnapped, carjacked, and robbed on the highway.
The rising number of kidnappings and disappearances have caught the attention of the media as both locals and expats are also targets. In some cases, local Mexican police officers have been implicated in these crimes.
If you do choose to travel to Mexico this Spring Break season, see the U.S. State Department’s state-by-state assessment (scroll down to see this portion) to understand the risks you are facing. Be sure to have travel insurance that includes travel medical coverage and medical evacuation in case you are injured and need to return home.
Review our Travel Safety Tips for information on finding travel medical care in a hurry and the top 12 hotel safety tips (among others).
Remember, your standard trip cancellation coverage will not let you cancel your trip simply because you got nervous and changed your mind. If you book your travel to Mexico and media reports make you nervous, you’ll need ‘cancel for any reason’ protection if you are to get 50-100% of your pre-paid travel costs back.
