U.S. Citizens are being advised to travel in Mexico with extreme caution.
April 27, 2011- A recent travel alert for Mexico made by the U.S. State Department was broadened recently as they advised citizens not drive at night and to stay away from certain areas. They advised travelers to defer nonessential travel to any area where the violence from drug related incidents has increased dramatically.
Those regions include the border state of Tamaulipas and the state of Michoacan in the central part of the country. Included in the warning were parts of another nine states which expanded the scope of the prior alert that was passed down in September.
There are millions of Americans that safely visit Mexico each year. But with the increase of violence there are serious risks that U.S. citizens could face if they decide to travel into certain areas. The warning continued to say that in order to reduce any risk they strongly urge U.S. citizens to travel only during the day throughout the entire country of Mexico. Also it was suggested to avoid traveling on isolated roadways using toll highways whenever there is a possibility.
Some travelers that have experience traveling in the area or have connections to the areas in question had mixed reactions. As of yet there has not been any official response by the Mexican government to the broadened warning.
Tourism officials and those in the tourism industry have always said that the violence for the most part is in the border towns that are a long distance away from where the popular tourist attractions such as beaches, Maya ruins and colonial cities are located. It should also be noted that there is no evidence to suggest that any U.S. tourist has been targeted in the recent increase of violence in Mexico.
