How safe is MX?+

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A USA Today story gives it at 24 per 100K for the full year of 2012. Mexico murder rate falls to 22 per 100,000 from 24 With a number of sources already showing an error of 36%, and no attribution or timeframe for their data for the rate given for Mexico (or anywhere else), it calls into question all their data for their Advertisement.

After a bit of hunting for the population of the state of Guerrero, home to the resort city of Acapulco, has a rate of 79 per 100K, doesn't make the ad.

I concur with DandyDon, if you watch where you go and what you do you can be reasonably safe almost anywhere in the world.



Bob
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There is no problem that can't be solved with a liberal application of sex, tequila, money, duct tape, or high explosives, not necessarily in that order.
 
A little bit of statistical sleight of hand there, under the heading of cherry-picking. The US cities they chose for comparison were selected from among the most dangerous cities in the United States. Sure, they left out Newark, because that would have been too obvious, but they also left out NY (which is extremely safe, as big cities go). Then they compared those cherry-picked cities to Mexico's national murder rate. Wikipedia puts that rate at 23.7 per 100,000, not 14, and the equivalent number for the United States is 4.7, or about 20% of Mexico's. If I picked, say, Tijuana, Chihuaha, Culiacan, and Victoria de Durango, and compared them to tourist hotspots like St. Louis (never been), I think that relationship (i.e., 5:1 ratio of homicides) would probably hold up.

But if you are trying to decide between a trip to generic Mexico and a vacation in sunny Baltimore (to Eat Bertha's Mussels, perhaps?), then they have provided some useful insight, perhaps.
 
The real question is how safe is MX for a tourist?

As a US citizen I can feel comfortable in many "dangerous" cities because I blend in and am sensitive to my surroundings. In a alien culture, I stick out like a sore thumb (target) and may be oblivious to threats.
 
I feel very at ease on the Mexico Caribe coast from Cancun to Xcalak and inland. On Cozumel the entire island is centered on tourism so I feel completely at ease. Can you get in trouble, of course you can, just like any other area of the world. I live in the Dallas area and I am pretty sure that there are areas that I could go to and get mugged at 2AM on Sunday morning (like the ‘hood&#8217:wink:. When you hear of spring breakers getting robbed in Cancun it is alarming until you hear they went 40 miles out of town in the middle of the night to find a ‘gentlemans’ club (I.E. Cat House). Just because you are on vacation don’t lose all common sense and you will be fine.
 
Sources aren't too great..that wiki list shows IRAQ as being safer than Israel. Garbage in..garbage out. I thought the Yucatan, esp Cozumel was pretty safe and i have spent a lot of time in dangerous places. Would take my kids to Cozumel.
 
Would you spend a week in the statistically most dangerous city in the US or the most dangerous city in Mexico?
 
I've enjoyed all of my time spent in Mexico. While we didn't stray too far from the 4 lane highway, the locals have always been exceptionally nice. Forgiving a police bribe and/or government inspection here and there (understand that you DO have to plan for these things when driving), I've had nothing but good experiences and can't wait to go back!
 
In Mahahual several years back we saw police, marines and army. Saw a funny site on the beach road one day where a solider was in full fatigues in a beach chair shotgun on lap, sleeping. The funny part was it looked liked he was guarding the chickens.


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