Anyone Live Or Visited Mexico City? Is It Safe?
 

I have a friend going down for a wedding (2-3 hours outside of mexico city). He is going down in a group of 7 people. I told him he should be getting some kind of security to at least take him back and forth to the resort the wedding is being held at.

He says they are taking a public bus to get to the resort from the airport and it should be fine.

Is he crazy or am I being too anal about the security issues in Mexico City?

I think he is crazy!

mexico is nuts...but it really depends on the area you are in i think

its off my travel list anyway for awhile

Stay near the airport and you are fine.
I wouldn't advise trolling for drugs or hookers, there's a possibility of getting into trouble, although I have been in way worse places.

Mexico city is beautiful and cheap. If you respect people and their city, Mexico is one of the friendliest countries in the world. I know parts of 50 American cities that are much more dangerous than Mexico City. Detroit and New Orleans is 10x more dangerous in my opinion.

Find a bellman that knows great English. Throw the guy a 20. He will follow you around, bring you everywhere, recommend anything you need. And you will have the best trip ever.

We never had any issues when I was in Mexico City. I loved it and would go back anytime.

I wouldn't worry too much about what you are hearing about the border states.

place fucking smells, but not much worse than say Bangkok. i wouldn't bring any kids though, and you'll be fine.

Omg i honestly think you are over thinking this. Watch CNN lately? hehe.

If anything the cartels are going to have the bosses living in Mexico City where it is most protected by govt and have the violence esle where closer to the mexican/usa boarder.

these guys arent dumb they dont shit where they eat.

dont you know how drug networks work? lol

Actaully Mexico City is one of the safer cities in the country right now. For the most part the worries are in the border cities and it seems Cabo has had a spot of trouble lately.

I live almost full time in Mexico. Cancun. And we have the regular crimes any big city has.

Cool thanks guys, i will let him know :)

BTW George we are talking about "Cambo" here! LOL!

Mexico City is fine, when I was last there. Nice place to visit and nice people

Reread the OP. The place is 2-3 hours outside of Mexico City. Sure, if the wedding was in Centro Historico it would probably be safe. How many of you want to go touring Mexico on a bus?

Renting a car could actually be worse. I had friends that went down and rented 2 cars. On the way back from the resort to the airport the cops pulled over BOTH cars and they had to pay 50.00 per car or "go to jail" (their quote from the cop).

The bus could actually be safer, maybe, as they won't be pegged out individually as tourists on their own.

However as someone said above hiring someone for security is pretty easy and advisable.

lol true my bad.

you're toast man. thats the perfect place for kidnapping, all the rich people going in and out of town.

No reason for any group of multiple people on vacation to take a public bus. Come on Cambo, spring for a private airport transfer...

if its cambo he is a goner..lol

no you will all be milled by roving gangs of drug crazed mexicans, sorry.

LOL! That's why i told him he should look into hiring an off-duty cop or something :1orglaugh

He's crazy.

if they are going def insist on the security. one of our members here lost his friend and biz partner to a violent crime down there within this week. don't let them go without security and tell them to hire their own van/driver for the trip.

Depends on what he looks like.
If he looks like the average well off ignorant candian/ american he is def nuts

Tel him to get a car and a driver / security that speaks english

Cambo needs to worry more about himself in Mexico than Mexicans :1orglaugh

All the drivers double as security dudes.
However if you are stupid rich acting American and you hire some random driver/security they will prolly kidnap you too haha

I hear its a dump and not safe

Then again im having a pissy morning so......

Some friends of mine go down to Mexico - Acapulco - a few times a year. Husband is Mexican, but born in the US. Last time they went there was a shoot out in their hotel. That seemed to have ended their Mexican vacations.

I got freaked out when I was talking to Rico from Panchodog.com at the Phx Forum this year. He is mexican and had to move... Crazy..

its safe just be ready to die a horrible death. never know.

any heavy tourist area is safe - they (tourist area) pays big bucks to the cartels to keep the tourist safe

^^^ yikes

Planes and luxury buses are the safest in central Mexico for random people that no-one is specifically looking for. Just keep very low profile. Hiring security will just make you a bigger target. Renting a car is probably less safe than major luxury bus lines. Cuernavaca had some partying curtained in the spring, but should be ok now. Roads around Acapulco are probably not safe now. And I would not be driving around Monterrey area now, even though it used to be safe. But any tourist/partying spots in central MX or Cancun are basically fine. I would feel much safer partying there than in New Orleans.

Thanks guys i told him not to worry and to try and dress up like a local and fit in

http://image.com.com/tv/images/proce...3fa6dd_pvt.jpg

I think you're being too anal. Just tell your friend to use some common sense, stay low key, and he'll be fine. You know, don't go strutting around with a $2000 ring, and $4000 watch, type of thing. In general, people aren't going to give a shit about you.

Remember one day years ago, I woke up in Edmonton one morning, bored and stressed from work. Packed a bag of clothes, hopped into a taxi to the airport, and looked at the departures sign. Seen a flight for Mexico City leaving in a couple hours, and I thought to myself, "Aha! That's it, off to Mexico I go!".

Booked my flight, and 12 hours later I was in driving around in downtown Mexico City with a total stranger in his private car. He wasn't a taxi, but just some guy hanging out at the airport hoping to make some extra cash. Got dropped off at a hostel, grab myself a room, and wandered around a bit without the slightest clue as to where I was.

I was still in a little bit of shock due to my stupidity, and thinking, "ok, now what the fuck did I get myself into? 14 hours ago I was in Edmonton!". About an hour later I was in some plaza, doing tequila shots and smoking weed with the locals. Was a great night!

I woke up wanting a break from my daily routine, and that's exactly what I got, lol. :)

It's perfectly safe until you get kidnapped and held for ransom =)

Cam will be fine. Just have him walk around with a shirt that on the front says "Nice Jewish Boy" and on the back "My family is Rich".

LOL! That's an awesome story! :1orglaugh:thumbsup

:1orglaugh:1orglaugh:1orglaugh

hahaha, good one Howard :)

Whats to fear about vicious, well trained, paramilitary narco terrorists that love cutting peoples heads off and leaving them in the street and hanging out in a city thats topped the list for kidnapping rates for a couple decades now?

Personally, I don't see how a big party in Mexico City could go wrong for some well off people from North America.

Yeah, just do any noise or try to get anything, if they get robed, or pickpocket don't report it, just move on and get to your destination. Since its a big group they won't do anything, stay together, don't stay in a single place for too long, etc..

nope... would NOT go... read this::::

http://www.alipac.us/article5727.html

This can't be real :Oh crap:(

By the way, i wanna know this also

Have him get in touch with TEAM BUDS security detail we had in Cabo.. they will be just fine with our guys ;)

You couldn't pay me to visit Mexico right now.

Right now it's not safe, IMHO.

Tell him to have someone of the family wait for him in the airport... It's one of the most dangerous countries in latin america, after Caracas, Venezuela.
.

You're not going to encounter or be concerned with real cartel members, you're really just concerned with typical street thug types and the police, who are pretty much one in the same. To get from Mexico City to an outer city like Cuernavaca or wherever you're going with a group of people, I'd take a taxi to a bus station and take a greyhound like bus. You're trying to lay low and look normal, and that's probably the best way to do it. Everyone takes buses there, they're pretty nice, generally better than Greyhound in the US.

Don't be loud and obnoxious, don't wear jewelery at all, and I'd say you're no less safe than travelling in the US or any other country for the most part. I've traveled very extensively in Mexico by car and bus for years, and I've yet to have even the slightest problem. Mexico isn't even very high on the per capita murder rate, INCLUDING all the violence since 2006, of which ~90% is cartel related.

It's a wild place for sure, but it's not like the people there are hiding out, everyone goes about their business every day like they do in every other country. You just can't expect the often false sense of security provided by first world countries. A police officer makes like $200 US/mo in Mexico, it's a really shitty job even for them.

yes it is safe, 100% .... been in mexico many times , love it :)

LOL! Good idea! I'm sure that one dude would fly over and be very helpful and insightful for Cambo :1orglaugh

get the person they like the least to wear flashy jewelry and clothes and talk loud and obnoxious as a decoy.

It all depends on how much you value your life.