Puerto Vallarta (PVDN) – After the kidnapping of four Americans in Matamoros and the murder of two of them, alerts were issued for the spring breakers that fill the Mexican beaches this season.
For this year, the most common spring break dates for young American students will be between March 11 and April 1.
However, in view of the security situation, border officials, for example in Texas, are advising students not to travel to Mexico, or at least reconsider.
Six states are at alert level four from the State Department, the maximum, which means not to travel: Tamaulipas -where the kidnapping occurred-, Colima, Guerrero, Michoacán, Sinaloa, and Zacatecas.
Seven other states have alert level three, which means reconsider travel, due to violence and the high risk of kidnapping or being caught in the crossfire between criminal gangs.
Those seven states are Baja California, Chihuahua, Durango, Guanajuato, Jalisco, Morelos, and Sonora. Only two states: Campeche and Yucatán, have the lowest level of alert, which indicates taking normal precautions.
Mexico is one of the favorite destinations for spring breakers. Last year, more than 30 million Americans traveled to Mexico from January to November.
And several of the favorite destinations are in states that are at the maximum alert level, such as Puerto Vallarta -Jalisco-, Cabo San Lucas, Playa Rosarito -both in Baja California-, and Acapulco -in Guerrero-.
Richard Sindelar, a professor at the University of St. Thomas, lamented that spring breakers generally do not review travel alerts or precautions to take when traveling to a place. In an interview, he asked young people to “take seriously” the State Department alert, especially those considering traveling to Matamoros. “That city is particularly dangerous because there are two cartels involved in what can be considered a war between cartels. Their first instinct will be to kill you, rather than negotiate.”
Although, there are zero American students who have chosen Matamoros as their Spring Break destination.
For those who decide to travel despite the warnings, Sindelar recommended “remain vigilant of what is happening around you.”
It should be noted that the city where Sindelar teaches, Minneapolis, is one of America’s most dangerous cities with a 58 per 1,000 crime rate.
US travel warnings aren’t without merit. Miami is the top Spring Break vacation spot in the United States and reported 47 homicides last year. Cancun, the top Spring Break destination in Mexico closed last year with 421 homicides. But not all destinations are equal, take Puerto Vallarta for instance.
Puerto Vallarta has an extremely low crime rate compared to any Spring Break destination in the United State. Puerto Vallarta scores 37.01 on the crime index (0 being the lowest and 100 being the highest), while Miami scores 58.45.
Puerto Vallarta (PVDN) - US travel warnings aren't without merit. Miami is the top Spring Break vacation spot in the United States and reported 47 . . .
