Is It Protected to Travel to Mexico Proper Now?

Many vacationers are rethinking their spring break and summer season World Cup plans after violence erupted throughout Mexico this week. On Sunday, February 23, the killing of Mexico’s most-wanted cartel boss, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, referred to as “El Mencho,” triggered a wave of lethal retaliatory violence, together with fires and gunfights, throughout 20 of Mexico’s 32 states. At a press convention the next day, Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum tried to assuage fears, as she advised reporters, “The country is at peace. It’s calm.”

A spate of journey advisories, flight cancellations, lodge lockdowns, and pictures of unrest in information headlines steered in any other case. Cervantes, the pinnacle of the highly effective Jalisco New Generation Cartel was killed at his mountain retreat in Tapalpa, Mexico, about 250 miles east of Puerto Vallarta within the state of Jalisco, however retribution assaults flared up throughout the nation. While tourism is often unaffected by drug cartel violence, this time was completely different, with incidents in common vacationer locations together with Puerto Vallarta, Cancún, and Playa del Carmen prompting shelter in place warnings from the U.S. authorities that lastly lifted the morning of Tuesday, February 24.

With spring break simply weeks away, and East Coasters searching for respite from back-to-back winter storms, the latest upheaval in Mexico has left vacationers involved about whether or not visiting the nation is secure proper now.

“Travel to Mexico is not risk-free under current conditions,” mentioned Kent Webber, a former Pentagon officer and a senior supervisor at Global Rescue, a U.S.-based journey security group. “Anyone with upcoming plans should closely monitor developments as their departure date approaches, avoid areas that have not stabilized, and be prepared to postpone travel if the security environment does not improve within the next one to two weeks.”

On Monday, Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum said in an address to members of the media that flights to vacationer locations had been anticipated to renew regular operations by Tuesday. And as of Tuesday, Puerto Vallarta Airport (PVR), which skilled a number of the worst flight disruptions from the unrest, was again to 90 p.c of typical flight operations, in accordance with an e mail from Alejandra Cornejo, director of tourism for Puerto Vallarta.

What to Do If You Have Upcoming Travel to Mexico

People with upcoming journey plans for Mexico ought to look carefully at their vacation spot’s safety state of affairs. The U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Mexico have been updating the security alerts on its web site each day with the standing of flights, roads, and different security measures. For the previous couple of years, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) has classified Mexico underneath its second-lowest Level 2 journey advisory, recommending American vacationers “exercise increased caution” within the nation. The final replace in August 2025 added terrorism to the dangers. Overall, the nation has retained its Level 2 standing, even in gentle of the latest unrest.

Mexico is a large nation—3 times the scale of Texas. This map on the State Department web site breaks down which states are extra in danger. Much of the nation stays Level 2, together with Mexico City, Baja California Sur, and Quintana Roo.

As of late February, tourism operations in Baja California Sur, the place journey journey hotspots La Paz and La Ventana are positioned, had been uninterrupted. In Quintana Roo, a state that’s dwelling to common spring break spots similar to Cancun, Playa del Carmen, and Cozumel—about as removed from Jalisco as Milwaukee is from Miami—was additionally largely unaffected.

“Tourism activity across the Mexican Caribbean continues to operate normally, including airport operations, ground transportation services, hotels, and tourism experiences,” Quintana Roo’s secretary of tourism, Bernardo Cueto, tells Outside  by way of WhatsApp.

The state of Nayarit can be thought-about a Level 2, however a spokesperson at Tropicsurf, a high-end surf tour firm, mentioned it had a shopper determine to play it secure and postpone an upcoming journey by one month. The firm ran two surf classes on Tuesday, February 24, for company in San Pancho, a city in Nayarit, and mentioned the shoppers didn’t appear involved or panicked within the slightest.

“We also had a family depart today to fly back to California, who were completely relaxed regarding their transportation from the resort to the airport,” mentioned the spokesperson. “The biggest issue now seems to be loss of business from people feeling scared and cancelling or not booking.”

While different elements of Mexico are presently underneath strict security alerts as a result of safety incidents, Baja California Sur stays secure and isn’t a part of the energetic, localized journey restrictions impacting different states.

However, there are six states underneath the upper Level 4, or “do not travel” warning, together with Colima, Guerrero, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas, Zacatecas, and Michoacán, which is dwelling to a big swath of Mexico’s UNESCO-listed Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve.

Talk to Your Hotel or Local Tour Operator

Beyond spring break, which within the U.S. sometimes spans late February to mid-April, February and March coincide with peak butterfly migration months and vacationer visitation. Many native companies in Michoacán, together with the Monarch Reserves, closed for the day on February 22. U.S.-based tour operator Natural Habitat Adventures leads journeys within the Monarch Reserves within the far jap portion of Michoacán and cancelled all departures within the space by February 24, out of an abundance of warning, in accordance with Davis English, the corporate’s senior vp of visitor expertise. They will resume journeys starting March 1.

“While the State Department’s continued warning of visiting eastern Michoacán is warranted for some parts of the state, we no longer believe it to be an accurate reflection of the risks for the areas we visit,” English advised Outside, noting that many occasions journey advisories are blanket statements for very giant areas. “It can be like saying there was an incident in Albany, so don’t travel to New York,” he shared.

Mauricio Miramontes, Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA)’s ambassador in Mexico, advised Outside that as of Tuesday, he had touched base with tour operators of the Mexican Association of Adventure Travel and Ecotourism (AMTAVE) from Jalisco, Sonora, State of Mexico, and Nayarit and acquired constructive suggestions relating to the protection state of affairs.

“There is no evidence of consistent risks connected to the last incident on Sunday nor evidence that violence is targeted at visitors or tourists,” he mentioned. “I would recommend connecting with travel professionals with local relationships within the destinations you are traveling to ensure the best experience possible.”

If you’re presently in Mexico or have journey plans within the coming weeks for areas that had been just lately experiencing unrest, Webber, at Global Rescue, extremely recommends getting ready for contingencies. “Ensure passports and travel documents are accessible and valid, register with your embassy, confirm you have the financial resources to shelter in place or secure unscheduled transportation, and reduce exposure by limiting tourist activities until conditions fully stabilize,” he mentioned.

Ahead of journey, Americans can join the State Department’s free Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP), which permits officers to extra simply find and make contact with them in an emergency. “Complacency is the greatest vulnerability in a fluid security situation,” mentioned Webber.

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Jen Murphy is a daily contributor to Outside and commonly travels to Mexico. She was in Michoacán final November. She beforehand reported on security in Mexico final summer season and within the fall of 2024 for Outside.