Mazatlan U.S. state dept. travel warning?

[zeyedeco7]

I was looking through tripadvisor's Mazatlan forum's trying to find something for when I'm there in March and in big red letters at the top of the page it said there was a U.S. state department warning. So I go to the travel warning page and read through Mexico. I find this:

 

"the city of Mazatlan has experienced a recent increase in violent crime, with more murders in the first quarter of 2010 than in all of 2009. "

 

I new of a travel warning for a while now, but only really in the border towns. This news is a bit surprising. Will the boat still port?

 

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_4755.html

[singinglizzie]

If you read this warning you will see that it references the border towns. There have been many posts and threads already about the safety in Mexico. The locals say the drug related violence is happening elsewhere. It's like saying don't go to Oregon because there is crime in New Orleans. While only you can decide for yourself, we feel it is safe, otherwise we would not travel. You can find crime threads as well for the Virgin Islands and Carribbean. You might want to post on Trip A... where you can ask some of the ex pats that live there to get a more realistic idea. Hope this was helpful.

[Aussiemick]

I was looking through tripadvisor's Mazatlan forum's trying to find something for when I'm there in March and in big red letters at the top of the page it said there was a U.S. state department warning. So I go to the travel warning page and read through Mexico. I find this:

 

"the city of Mazatlan has experienced a recent increase in violent crime, with more murders in the first quarter of 2010 than in all of 2009. "

 

I new of a travel warning for a while now, but only really in the border towns. This news is a bit surprising. Will the boat still port?

 

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_4755.html

This stuff is really overblown by the media. We live in Mexico and from the reports I see on TV you should be more concerned about boarding the ship in LA than getting off in Mazatlan. We sailed to Mazatlan on HAL last month, got off the ship, walked to old town, took a taxi to the malecon, walked back part way and got a taxi back to the ship. I have yet to see one report of a cruise passenger being attacked in any city in Mexico. The majority of crimes are between the cartels, drug runners killing drug runners. If you don't buy, use, sell or transport illegal drugs you chances of violence are no more than any US city of comperable size.

[retired rascal]

There have been various warnings about Mexico for more than a year....and there have been "incidents," but mostly close to the US border. We were a bit apprehensive before a recent cruise. What was clear is that the Mexico authorities want to preserve tourism...the show of armed forces and police was astounding....I felt safer in some Mexican ports and in some US cities.....I wouldn't wander off on my own into the hinterlands....but I wouldn't do that in many foreign countries.

[zeyedeco7]

If you read this warning you will see that it references the border towns. There have been many posts and threads already about the safety in Mexico. The locals say the drug related violence is happening elsewhere. It's like saying don't go to Oregon because there is crime in New Orleans. While only you can decide for yourself, we feel it is safe, otherwise we would not travel. You can find crime threads as well for the Virgin Islands and Carribbean. You might want to post on Trip A... where you can ask some of the ex pats that live there to get a more realistic idea. Hope this was helpful.

 

It references Mazatlan specifically. That's why I'm surprised. I wouldn't post anything about it if it was just the border towns. I've known about the drug war in Mexico for a long time.

[roger001]

In Mazatlan a year ago, whe had a fine time, felt totally secure taking a 4 hour open trolley bus tour of Mazatlan, including a lunch stop for fantastic shrimp. The tour stopped at various places including the downtown market where we walked around. No problems at all. I'd go back any time. Having grown up in L.A., I certainly would not feel as easy wandering about parts of it.