Is travel to Mexico safe?

How Safe is Mexico was written by Carol Pucci and was posted on The Seattle Times
I’ll be taking my first trip to the Yucatan in Mexico later this year, and I’m excited to delve into Merida’s music scene, explore ancient ruins and relax along the Mayan Riviera.
I’m also thrilled about the prices. I’m paying $60 for two, including breakfast, at the Hotel Julamis, a boutique inn with a garden and pool in Merida’s historical center. For a short stay in the beach town of Puerto Morleos, I found a studio apartment for $80, with free bikes thrown in.
I’ve traveled in Mexico for years, and I always look forward to going back. Mexico is cheaper than Hawaii and, to me, more interesting than Costa Rica. But with all the reports of drug-related violence and killings, people ask, “Is it safe to go Mexico?”
I put the question to Mexican Tourism Secretary Gloria Guevara, who was in Seattle recently for meetings with airline executives and travel agents.
Her answer: “Get a map.”
Misconceptions of Mexico
Surprisingly, Guevara didn’t sugarcoat the impact the violence among warring drug cartels has had on how people feel about travel to Mexico. How could she when I brought along a news clipping about a man’s torso and arm found on a street near a beachfront hotel in Acapulco? Mexicans are as upset about what’s happening in their country as anyone.
But Guevara points out that Mexico is a big country, with 2,500 municipalities.
“All of the problems you hear about have occurred in just 80 of these places, less than 5 percent,” nearly all outside the places most travelers go.
“Asking if Mexico is safe,” she says, ” is a little like asking if something happens in Atlanta, is it safe to go to Seattle.”
Fair enough. So what is the biggest misconception people here have?
“When they think of Mexico, they don’t think about specific places,” Guevara says. “They just say ‘Mexico.’ ”
It’s true that drug-related violence has left thousands of Mexicans dead in the border towns of Ciudad Juárez and Nuevo Laredo. The violence lately has begun to spread, and the country remains under a U.S. State Department travel warning (see www.travel.state.gov).
It’s also true that most American tourists go to a handful of destinations such as Los Cabos, Puerto Vallarta and the Mayan Riviera, all areas as safe as they look.
Tourism is hugely important, generating 22 million international visitors annually, 2.5 million jobs in 2010, and $11.8 billion in revenue, according to Mexican government figures. It’s Guevara’s job to promote travel. But I get her point.
I’ve never felt unsafe in Mexico. Not taking the subway in Mexico City. Not riding a long-distance bus to Mazatlan in the state of Sinaloa, home to one of the most powerful drug cartels. Not walking the streets of Guadalajara, Sayulita, Oaxaca or Guanajuato.
Most people who go to Mexico feel this way, Guevara said. Ninety-nine percent of travelers who responded to a recent government tourism survey said they had a good experience and would go back again, she said.
“The fact of the matter is that most of central and southern Mexico sees less violence than many U.S. cities,” writes Lonely Planet guidebook author Robert Reid.
The U.S. travel warning advises which areas to avoid. None include Reid’s top destinations — Mexico City, Merida, Todos Santos, San Miguel de Allende, Huatulco, Playa del Carmen, Guanajuato and Puebla. I’d add Oaxaca for food and art and Guadalajara for shopping.
Guevara says that the best way to judge what it’s like in Mexico is to ask someone who’s been recently.

Have a safe trip......

Have a safe trip. Wwe here this as a goodbye or Bon Voyage all the time when we travel. This post will help you stay safe while traveling. The U.S. State Department has issued the following advice for American traveling abroad. We at The Way To Go Travel  in Kansas City, believe that these practices should be employed all the time while traveling domestically or internationally.

What to Take

Safety begins when you pack. To help avoid becoming a target, do not dress in a way that could mark you as an affluent tourist. Expensive-looking jewelry, for instance, can draw the wrong attention.
Always try to travel light. You can move more quickly and will be more likely to have a free hand. You will also be less tired and less likely to set your luggage down, leaving it unattended.
Carry the minimum number of valuables, and plan places to conceal them. Your passport, cash and credit cards are most secure when locked in a hotel safe. When you have to carry them on your person, you may wish to put them each in a different place rather than all in one wallet or pouch. Avoid handbags, fanny packs and outside pockets that are easy targets for thieves. Inside pockets and a sturdy shoulder bag with the strap worn across your chest are somewhat safer. One of the safest places to carry valuables is in a pouch or money belt worn under your clothing.
If you wear glasses, pack an extra pair. Pack them and any medicines you need in your carry-on luggage.
To avoid problems when passing through customs, keep medicines in their original, labeled containers. Bring copies of your prescriptions and the generic names for the drugs. If a medication is unusual or contains narcotics, carry a letter from your doctor attesting to your need to take the drug. If you have any doubt about the legality of carrying a certain drug into a country, consult the embassy or consulate of that country before you travel.
Bring travelers’ checks and one or two major credit cards instead of cash.
Pack an extra set of passport photos along with a photocopy of your passport’s information page to make replacement of your passport easier in the event it is lost or stolen.
Put your name, address and telephone numbers inside and outside of each piece of luggage. Use covered luggage tags to avoid casual observation of your identity or nationality. If possible, lock your luggage.

What to Leave Behind

Don't bring anything you would hate to lose. Leave at home:

• Valuable or expensive-looking jewelry
• Irreplaceable family objects
• All unnecessary credit cards
• Your Social Security card, library card, and similar items you may routinely carry in your wallet.

Leave a copy of your itinerary with family or friends at home in case they need to contact you in an emergency.
Make two photocopies of your passport identification page, airline tickets, driver's license and the credit cards that you plan to bring with you. Leave one photocopy of this data with family or friends at home; pack the other in a place separate from where you carry the originals.
Leave a copy of the serial numbers of your travelers' checks with a friend or relative at home. Carry your copy with you in a separate place and, as you cash the checks, cross them off the list.

Happy Travels,

Ron Trimper
The Way To Go Travel
816-392-5880
rtrimper@thewaytogotravel.com


this information from and more info at:
http://travel.state.gov/travel/tips/safety/safety_1747.html

Ever miss the boat?

Why it is a good idea to buy insurance or air through the cruise-lines...



One hundred and forty-five passengers missed their cruise Sunday night when Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Seas left San Juan, Puerto Rico, early to avoid Hurricane Irene.
The ship was scheduled to depart at 8:30 p.m., but the cruise line says port officials began to limit harbor traffic at 12:30 p.m. that day, forcing the vessel to leave three hours early. That evening the storm lashed the island, knocking out power to 800,000 homes.

Of the 145 guests left behind, 15 of them had purchased their airfare through the cruise line and were given hotel accommodations Sunday and Monday night, and flown to Aruba on Tuesday to catch up with their seven-day cruise. The other 130 were left on their own.
"Independent guests were advised of hotel availability in the area, but the expense was on them given that it was a weather-related event," Royal Caribbean spokeswoman Cynthia Martinez said in a statement.
One passenger, Nicole Washington of Baltimore, said when she and her family arrived at the docks Sunday around 5:30 p.m., the gates were locked and the ship gone, she told  a CBS affiliate.

This item was written by Larry Bleiberg, former travel editor of Coastal Living magazine and The Dallas Morning News. Bleiberg is serving as Guest Editor of The Cruise Log while USA TODAY Cruise Editor Gene Sloan is away


Ron Trimper 
The Way To Go Travel
Kansas City MO 64113
www.thewaytogotravel.com

packing tips from a travel agent

1. Pack Clothing

   • Remember this order of operations: shirts on the bottom, then dresses (if applicable), then pants.
   • Stack tops, unfolded, by placing wrinkle-prone tops toward the bottom of a pile and less easily wrinkled ones toward the top.
   • Fold the sleeves in toward the shirts' torsos.
   • Fold the shirts in half from the bottom. You now have a rectangular bundle of shirts; place it in your suitcase.
   • Drape long dresses in the suitcase so that the ends hang over the sides.
   • Place pants and skirts on a flat surface; fold each in half lengthwise.
   • Stack pants and skirts on top of one another, with easily wrinkled ones on the bottom and sturdier ones, such as jeans, on top. Fold the stack over, so that its length is halved.
   • Place your stack of pants and skirts on top of the dresses, then fold the ends of the dresses over the pants and skirts.

   Pack Accessories

   • Roll ties loosely.
   • Stuff socks in shoes. Pack underwear in mesh laundry bags or side pockets to save space.
   • Arrange each pair of shoes so that the heel of one aligns with the toe of the other.
   • Wrap pairs of shoes in separate plastic bags, and place them along the border of your suitcase.
   • Protect clothes from leaks by placing toiletries in a plastic bag.
   • Pack essential toiletries in a carry-on bag. Include your toothbrush, toothpaste, makeup, medication and other important items.

Ron Trimper

Travel Agent

The way To Go Travel in Kansas City

816-392-5880

rtrimper@thewaytogotravel.com

Happy Travels!!