U.S. Issues New Travel Advisory for Baja California Including Los Cabos

Last Updated 3 years ago

The U.S. State Department has issued a new travel advisory for Baja California that includes the popular tourism area of Cabo.

The U.S. government recommended its citizens “reconsider” their travel plans to Mexico due to a high level of COVID-19 cases and the growing safety concerns and violence cases related to organized crime and drug trafficking. The current administration issued through the State Department a new travel alert. It warns that according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the level of COVID-19 infection in Mexico is level 3.

The U.S. issues a travel alert for Mexico and asks Americans not to travel to 5 states due to crime. “The risk of contracting COVID-19 and developing severe symptoms may be lower if travelers are fully vaccinated,” states the new and updated alert to U.S. citizens launched by the State Department for travel to Mexico.

Regarding the climate of insecurity and violence related to organized crime and drug trafficking, the U.S. government emphasizes that traveling to Mexico implies the possibility of being a victim of homicide, kidnapping, car theft, and assaults that are very common in that country.

“The U.S. government has a limited capacity to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens in many areas of Mexico, considering that government employees are prohibited or restricted from moving through certain regions of that country.” U.S. Embassy Employees in Mexico and its consulates are prohibited from traveling at night, taking taxis on the street, and driving through some areas of the country’s northern and inland border. The State Department advises U.S. citizens that due to high levels of crime and kidnappings to avoid travel to the Mexican states of Colima, Guerrero, Michoacán, Sinaloa, and Tamaulipas.

He adds that for the same situations they should reconsider travel plans to the states of Baja California, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Guanajuato, Jalisco, State of Mexico, Morelos, Nayarit, Sonora and Zacatecas.

For trips to Aguascalientes, Baja California Sur, Hidalgo, Mexico City, Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosí, Tabasco, Tlaxcala and Veracruz, the U.S. government asks travelers to take the necessary precautions due to crime and kidnapping cases.

For more information on the travel advisories for Mexico, you can visit travel.state.gov.

This news comes after the annual review issued by Allianz Partners of the “Top 10 Spring Break Destinations”. American tourists plan to travel to warm weather destinations, and spring break bookings have increased 134% this 2022 vs. 2021. Mexico and other international destinations are a favorite this travel season. While there are still entry restrictions for some international destinations, there is an increasing demand after 2 years of lockdowns, and this can be reflected in airline routes being restored. For the fourth consecutive year, Mexico holds the 3 top spots, with Cancun on the No. 1 spot and Los Cabos y Puerto Vallarta holding the No. 2 and 3 spot of the Top 10 International list.

The CDC just recently changed Mexico’s travel advisory rating, moving it from Level 4 (very high risk) to Level 3 (high risk) for COVID. Mexico has had almost 5.64 million cases of COVID-19 and around 322,000 deaths as of March 24. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has come under fire for not taking enough measures to control the virus. According to critics, life has continued quite normal for many, without strict restrictions, which has led to high mortality and infection rates.

Mexico has dispensed approximately 189 million vaccine doses and continues to implement its traffic light system of restrictions. With green meaning, there are no restrictions in place.

As of March 18, all of the most popular destinations were green, which include the following states:

– Baja California (border city Tijuana neighbor to San Diego, California).

– Baja California Sur (Los Cabos).

– Guanajuato, (San Miguel de Allende where many expats are located).

– Jalisco (Puerto Vallarta).

– Mexico City (the cosmopolitan country’s capital).

– Quintana Roo (Cancun/Riviera Maya).