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Cancun is unarguably the go-to sunny getaway for hundreds of thousands of Americans. A metropolis like no different, it presents guests each the colourful ambiance of different equally-busy international hubs, and extra secluded seashores (if the place to search for them).
On the opposite hand, Cancun’s status as a really perfect summer time vacation spot has come underneath menace currently as a consequence of studies of elevated violence, even in traditionally-safe vacationer areas, journey scams, and even the landfall of an unprecedented quantity of seaweed.
If you’re considering of flying to Cancun quickly, and have been following carefully these highly-publicized developments, you could be questioning whether or not this massively standard seashore hotspot is certainly a really perfect decide. After all, is Cancun nonetheless a protected vacation spot to go to for 2022?
There is quite a bit to unpack right here, however briefly, sure.
You could be questioning how precisely we’re capable of nonetheless deem it a protected metropolis even after taking into consideration current studies, which we have covered extensively ourselves, and the doubts raised by many different journey information web sites about safety in Cancun. Here is why:
On Travel Scams
By being an already sought-after vacation spot that’s now experiencing overwhelmingly excessive demand, it hardly comes as a shock that ghost journey businesses, just a few ill-intentioned cab drivers, and different scammers have intensified their operations in Cancun and the broader Riviera Maya in current months.
Even although we can not overlook the truth that 250 scams happen round Mexico per hour, and numerous these are in Cancun, vacationers additionally danger being victims of fraudulent taxis and/or tour operators nearly anyplace on this planet. Although Cancun isn’t any exception, that is removed from being a Cancun-exclusive challenge.
Foreigners have traditionally confronted scamming when touring all through the Caribbean, with Belize and Jamaica being two infamous examples. Even the preferred cities in Europe are usually not exempt from their fair proportion of journey scams. In different phrases, worldwide journey isn’t risk-free, particularly when you may’t converse the language of the nation you’re visiting and will, due to this fact, be taken benefit of.
Still, there are some precautions vacationers can take to be higher ready when flying overseas and in concern of being scammed, resembling:
- Booking journey packages solely by licensed operators in Mexico
- Pre-book an airport switch earlier than touchdown in Cancun
- Once in Mexico, solely use licensed taxis, both by calling or requesting a driver by an official app
- Never get right into a cab with no seen taximeter or earlier than agreeing on a worth for the route
On Violence:
We have all heard of Cancun’s current run-ins with the regulation. Gang shootings, robberies, and murders linked to organized crime within the metropolis have taken the information by storm. For that purpose, we don’t blame extra cautious vacationers for having reconsidered Cancun as their summer time vacation spot.
Having mentioned that, we want to pose a query: which large metropolis doesn’t battle, a method or one other, greater crime ranges in comparison with less-dense areas? Cancun isn’t a single seashore or a resort city: it is among the largest cities within the Caribbean.
While violent incidents have undeniably elevated, main the United States to revise its Travel Advisories, Cancun is sure to file extra incidents than different smaller cities in Quintana Roo as a consequence of its place as a global hub.
Still, when assessing journey dangers and selecting their subsequent vacation spot, vacationers ought to all the time analysis the violence ranges of their dream trip vacation spot, however also needs to evaluate them to the place they presently dwell.
It is price noting the town of New York, which presents of the main metropolis breaks in North America, can be going through a violence surge this 12 months, with a marked improve in each shootings and murder. The similar goes for Los Angeles, the place violent crimes were up by 60% in 2021 in keeping with LAPD knowledge.
Even although a number of cities throughout North America, each within the U.S. and Mexico, wrestle with crime, it’s Cancun that has been significantly pinpointed as violence-ridden currently.
However, because the U.S. State Department itself affirms, shootings are usually not directed at vacationers, and are as a substitute a results of quarrels between legal teams, despite the fact that bystanders can nonetheless be injured.
Despite these dangers, that’s the exception fairly than the rule.
Mexico Takes Tourist Safety Very, Very Seriously
Lately, Mexico has been investing closely in safety, deploying none lower than the National Guard to maintain vacationers protected in Cancun, and vowing to clamp down on corrupt entities extorting vacationers within the wider Quintana Roo. This is a rustic in search of to determine itself as a protected haven within the post-pandemic world, because it has been recognized to take safety considerations very critically.
As Dario Flota Ocampo, Director of the Quintana Roo tourism Board stated, ‘Quintana Roo remains a safe destination to visit (…) it continues to operate normally and remains one of the world’s main locations’.
On high of that, the U.S. doesn’t advise vacationers towards journey to Cancun (or the Quintana Roo state) citing violent crime, although they need to ‘maintain a high level of situation awareness’ and keep away from dangerous areas. Like anyplace else, guests are urged to stay in vacationer zones and be cautious when strolling after darkish.
While we do encourage all our readers to observe this steerage whereas on trip, we will guarantee you Cancun isn’t any more dangerous than a number of different locations in Mexico, together with Mexico City, Baja California Sur, Oaxaca, and Chiapas.
In reality, the U.S. considers it a lot safer than explicit Mexican states, resembling Sinaloa or Colima.
Bottomline
Throughout the pandemic, Cancun has maintained its standing as one of many freer, and maybe most tourist-friendly locations on Earth, incomes a king-of-tourism, kind nickname. Even throughout the woeful months of December and January, when Omicron was rampant and restrictions had been the norm, it remained open and recorded a record number of visitors.
This implies that, whereas quite a few rivals throughout the Caribbean imposed strict entry necessities, Cancun went the alternative method fully and permitted all to enter restriction-free, regardless of vaccination standing. On high of that, Cancun Airport has not seen a single relatively quieter month since Mexico determined to maintain its borders open.
Due to this formidable transfer, it has been on the forefront of the minds of many vacationers – and on the radar of the mainstream media – for months on finish. To put it merely, Cancun is being carefully watched by all, which implies any native incidents will likely be shortly picked up on, and subsequently scrutinized.
Yes, shootings and robberies happen, and sure, they’ve develop into extra widespread in vacationer zones as gang exercise worsens, however the danger of being caught in a crossfire, or experiencing any abuse in any respect, continues to be inside acceptable ranges each by Mexican, U.S., and different worldwide requirements.
Unlike in other parts of Mexico, the place the U.S. authorities issued journey restrictions for U.S. authorities staff and has been adamant Americans ought to chorus from visiting, Quintana Roo and Cancun have not been particularly focused.
This corroborates our findings that Cancun stays a protected vacation spot with no significantly exacerbated security or well being dangers when in comparison with others.
At the similar time, we want to remind vacationers this doesn’t imply Cancun is crime-free. When visiting, it’s best to keep in mind all the data we’ve got given you on right here and watch out for your environment, particularly in crowded areas the place robberies and pickpocketing may happen, equally to any massive metropolis.
Read More:
Travel Insurance That Covers Covid-19 For 2022
Cancun Deploys 6000 Soldiers To Keep Tourists Safe Amid Record Arrivals
Cancun Hotel Guests Will Now Have To Sign New Form Acknowledging Laws
Cancun Beaches Are Safe, Clean And Ready For Tourists
Mexico Adding Seaweed Barriers To Popular Tourist Hotspots Including Cancun And Playa Del Carmen
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Disclaimer: Current journey guidelines and restrictions can change with out discover. The choice to journey is in the end your accountability. Contact your consulate and/or native authorities to substantiate your nationality’s entry and/or any adjustments to journey necessities earlier than touring. Travel Off Path doesn’t endorse touring towards authorities advisories
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