With so much negative news coverage about the battle going on between the Mexican law enforcement agencies and the drug cartels, folks back home in the US think that traveling to Mexico is like entering a battle zone.

Little is said about all the normal things going on in Baja. The video above was recorded last month by our very own San Felipe web caster/reporter, Kat Hammontre on a recent trip to Tijuana.

I know growing up in Southern California, we had an erroneous image of TJ as being only a sleazy back street type party town. I was pleasantly surprise when I travel through it a few years back to discover a bustling metropolis with skyscrapers and banking districts but even then I was just driving through on my way home from Rosarita so I didn’t take time to explore the beautiful beachfront boardwalk or cultural areas Kat caught in her video.

Yes, there are areas and situations that are dangerous in Mexico, as there are in some areas of Los Angeles, New York or any major city. Ask me sometime about my daughter’s harrowing experience in Compton last one night a few years back or about our recent visit to my brother’s house in an upscale neighborhood in Costa Mesa (that’s Orange County folks). I was told I should not leave anything in my car top carrier overnight or it would walk away.

When I recently compared the crime statistics between Baja California and California, US, I discovered that even though Baja’s homicide rate is at it’s highest these last few years, Baja still has less homicides/100,000 than California has had every year but 2 for the last 40 years.  Why weren’t we advised it wasn’t safe to live in California all those years?

It makes me wonder if all the publicity about the drug wars and related deaths is more about deterring US citizens from spending their money south of the border.  

Four years ago when we bought in San Felipe people were flocking south to invest in affordable vacation or retirement homes.  Prices here were starting to escalate rapidly.  Not so today.  If you are looking for a REALLY affordable second home, now is the time to buy in San Felipe.  Homes are selling for a fraction of what they were four years ago.  If you still have some cash to work with, now is the time to start shopping!

The Mexican government cautions:

Millions of U.S. citizens safely visit Mexico each year.  This includes tens of thousands who cross the border every day for study, tourism or business and at least one million U.S. citizens who live in Mexico.  The Mexican government makes a considerable effort to protect U.S. citizens and other visitors to major tourist destinations.   Resort areas and tourist destinations in Mexico do not see the levels of drug-related violence and crime reported in the border region and in areas along major drug trafficking routes…. 

Common-sense precautions such as visiting only legitimate business and tourist areas during daylight hours, and avoiding areas where criminal activity might occur, can help ensure that travel to Mexico is safe and enjoyable.