I'm planning a trip to Cozumel during the summer (may/june) but I kept hearing about all this drug related violence last year. I've read that most of it is in the towns and not near the resorts but just to be safe, who went last year and how was it? Did it appear safe?
I blew off these concerns a while back when beginning to think about trips for me and the wife this summer...I may be over-reacting, but I'm not blowing off the concerns anymore. There's tons of nice places to go where the thought of being decaptiated isn't rattling around in the back of my mind...and, yes, I realize that's probably ridiculous.
I was glancing over honeymoon destinations for myself for summer 2012, and I found a really nice, affordable place in Acapulco. Over 90% on TripAdvisor IIRC ... then I read some of the bad reviews and several from 2008 and 2009 mentioned getting robbed at gunpoint, robbed by police officers, etc. Yep, don't think that we'll be going there. You could try looking up some resorts on TripAdvisor in Cozumel and seeing if anyone says anything about safety.
the nasty drug violence is in northern mexico. cancun has its problems, but you should be ok in cozumel. i have some good friends who just went to playa del carmen and had a great time.
yeah, the place we were looking at was near Cancun. we just decided to look elsewhere. thinking about Turtle Bay Resort in Hawaii so we can recreate Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
I was in Cozumel just two months ago, in November. I was there for only one day with family. I had a fantastic time, didn't feel scared or in danger at any time. I highly recommend it. Had so much fun, I can hardly wait til I can get back. And I wouldn't even consider going to Acapulco or anywhere in mainland Mexico. When I was a kid my parents took us to Acapulco, and Monterrey, and Taxco, and other places in Mexico... but there's no way I would go back now.
We were in Tulum and Playa del Carmen in early December. Didn't feel unsafe at all....walking around, or taking the collectivos about. We did stay away from the drug trade though. Kid's were a bit disappointed, but....we're good parents, so...we just told them 'safety first.'
I went in June. It was fine. The water was freakin beautiful. It's like a swimming pool but with live fishies everywhere.
watch out for the jellyfish though. I got stung and it stings like hell. I had jack ass friends who offered to pee on me I kindly declined have fun!
I went in August via the Carnival Ecstasy, had no issues there, my family and I went to a resort where they had a pool and beach to hangout at, was there maybe 4-5 hours max and then went back to shop on the deck, then back to the ship.
ive heard acapulco is bad too. and ive been to monterrey several times, but i wouldnt go right now. i think the north and northwest are best avoided for the time being, but i feel like the rest of the country is as 'safe' as it ever was. last summer i did a trip where we flew into villahermosa, went to palenque, san cristobal de las casas and then bused into guatemala and went to lake atitlan and antigua. didnt have any problems and never felt in danger. and people we met were really surprised to see americans. they said tourism from the u.s. has died - but the euros still come in droves. the owner of the hotel we stayed at in palenque said she sees only about 25% of the american travelers she used to.
Just came back from a 10 day trip to Cancun/Cozumel (during which the Rockets didn't win a single game ), didn't see or experience or carry out any drug-related violence.
