Travel issues with Mexican Resorts

[KBecks]

I'm helping spread the word about this issue.  A local family had a horrific experience on their anniversary trip to Mexico, and they are not alone.  Many people have suffered from injuries due to tainted alcohol and/or drugged drinks. 

Please read and spread the word if you know anyone planning to visit Mexican resorts for vacation.

http://www.jsonline.com/story/news/investigations/2017/08/16/blackout-victims-mexico-resorts-have-little-hope-justice/565961001/

[Huskie87]

I've been seeing more and more of these reports.  Definitely scary.  Makes Florida, AZ and SoCal look a lot more attractive for a warm getaway...

[GenXbiker]

I saw this on national televised news very recently.

[Capsu78]

I have totally soured on travel to Mexico, even though I have met mostly very nice, warm folks on many stays... These new stories, coupled with the horrific number of car accidents seem to reside in the shadows and never get coverage in Mexico even though the locals seem to know what's going on.
Case in point, the road into Cabo San Lucas from the airport- I have been there a number of times and  realized I have never been there on a week where there was not a fatal accident involving tourists on that road.  On our last stay in February, my wife drove down to the Costco to get some supplies and came upon a huge fatal accident involving a van crossing over the highway, taking out palm trees and an opposing vehicle.  We looked on the TV news and on the internet but could find no reports, even though every van driver we used that week knew the death count was at least 6 fatalities. 
I used to view the main tourist areas as "safe zones" figuring too many people were interested in keeping the tourist $$$ flowing to let things get out of hand...now I wonder if competing drug gangs are deliberately trying to disrupt rival gangs money flows. 

[KBecks]

Two of my cousins from California were killed in a car accident in Mexico in the 1980's.   It was horrible for their parents.

[LeRainDrop]

I thought it's been well-known for several years that there is a tremendous amount of corruption in Mexico and that the drug cartels have a big hand in the Mexican tourism industry.  I'm a little surprised that people are finding this stuff to be news.  The cartels fight for control of the tourist areas like Cancun because they can make so much money there.

[Capsu78]

I thought it's been well-known for several years that there is a tremendous amount of corruption in Mexico and that the drug cartels have a big hand in the Mexican tourism industry.  I'm a little surprised that people are finding this stuff to be news.  The cartels fight for control of the tourist areas like Cancun because they can make so much money there.

   
Its not a surprise there is corruption at many level of society in Mexico- It's that the suspicion has historically been that the tourist areas is where the money goes to be laundered.  In Soprano's storylines, the Badda Bing was not a good choice of places to make a scene, or dump a body at because "Tony the owner" didn't suffer fools well, more than once anyway.

That is what seems to be the seismic change in Mexico...and it might be connected to the arrest and extradiction of El Chapo.   Dead bodies dumped on the main tourist blvds. is bad for everyone's business. Having guests at premier hotels come home brain dead after having 2 drinks at the swim up bar also impacts your TripAdvisor ratings.

[pachnik]

there was a story on my local TV news about the same thing just a few days ago.  A family had gone to an all-inclusive in Mexico and two of them got very sick from tainted alcohol.   One young woman died IIRC.   Very sad. 

[Capsu78]

Yes, here is the heart wrenching story of the Wisconsin family... The father ended up doing a bike tour to bring awareness.  They successfully donated some of her organs, including her heart...The father got to meet the guy who got the heart and listen to the heartbeat.(tissue alert)

http://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2017/07/12/wisconsin-family-questions-daughters-mysterious-drowning-mexico/469647001/

[Duke03]

My wife and I stopped going to Playa Del Carmen years ago.  Quite frankly I'm beginning to not trust any all inclusive resort in any part of the world.  First off lets be honest.  The vast majority of all inclusive resorts are in third world shit holes once you leave the resort property. It's all a numbers game and they want to get out as cheap as possible so it's no surprise they are serving illegal alcohol. Mexico isn't safe by any means and will not change until Americans wake up and stop spending/giving them any money.  I just looked at the all inclusive resort we use to stay at.  Go figure they are running a huge sale.  Rooms use to go for $700 a night for two people, but you can get them as cheap as $269 a night for two people.

[powskier]

I love going to Mexico, I don't go to any of the resorts popular with Americans.
People are nice, climate is nice, food and lodging are cheap.

Years ago when people were talking about how dangerous Nicaragua was we were enjoying $10 rooms and empty beaches there.

If you lived anywhere other than the USA and read the news about the USA you would never come visit here either.

[expatartist]

If you lived anywhere other than the USA and read the news about the USA you would never come visit here either.

I avoid going to the USA if possible, only visit to see family and for art exhibitions. It's a big world with lots of wonderful places to go.

[KBecks]

I love going to Mexico, I don't go to any of the resorts popular with Americans.
People are nice, climate is nice, food and lodging are cheap.

Years ago when people were talking about how dangerous Nicaragua was we were enjoying $10 rooms and empty beaches there.

If you lived anywhere other than the USA and read the news about the USA you would never come visit here either.

I know this couple personally, their kids go to school with my kids and the parents do a lot of volunteering.  They are wonderful, and responsible people, and their anniversary trip was a total nightmare.   I think they are brave to share their devastating story to try to help others, and that's why I'm helping to spread the word.

A lot of people from the area where we live, with harsher winters, like to travel to beaches, and perhaps, many are a little naive or first time travelers.  At the same time, the growing group of evidence in these multiple stories, from multiple resorts and lack of medical response, is very very concerning.

It's good for people to be aware of some of the risks of international travel and to be careful.   At the same time, travel is wonderful and all of life is a risk.

I am heartbroken for what happened to Heidi and Corey and I'm so glad they are home safe, but no doubt their lives are changed forever by what happened on what was supposed to be a joyful celebration trip.

[dude]

I love going to Mexico, I don't go to any of the resorts popular with Americans.
People are nice, climate is nice, food and lodging are cheap.

Years ago when people were talking about how dangerous Nicaragua was we were enjoying $10 rooms and empty beaches there.

If you lived anywhere other than the USA and read the news about the USA you would never come visit here either.

AMEN!  I've been to Mexico every year, often 2x/year for the past 14 years, including just this past June (to Zihuatanejo). I have never once in all my travels felt unsafe, been harassed by authorities, or experienced anything other than warm hospitality, great food, and a vibrant culture.

[PoutineLover]

I was in Mexico a few months ago, in Cancun, Playa del Carmen, and Tulum. While I was there I went to a club in Playa that ended up having a shooting a week or two after I left. I stayed with a local who told me there are always gang rivalries, but that they try to keep it hushed up for the tourism industry. Obviously where there are tourists who want drugs, there will be people to sell them, and competition for their business. As with any kind of travel, there are always risks, and the specific risks vary depending on the country/area. I wouldn't not travel because of it, but of course it's smart to do some research beforehand and take precautions.

[Duke03]

I was in Mexico a few months ago, in Cancun, Playa del Carmen, and Tulum. While I was there I went to a club in Playa that ended up having a shooting a week or two after I left. I stayed with a local who told me there are always gang rivalries, but that they try to keep it hushed up for the tourism industry. Obviously where there are tourists who want drugs, there will be people to sell them, and competition for their business. As with any kind of travel, there are always risks, and the specific risks vary depending on the country/area. I wouldn't not travel because of it, but of course it's smart to do some research beforehand and take precautions.

How do you take precautions against being served illegal alcohol? Especially when 30% of all the alcohol that is served in a certain country is illegal.  They fake the bottles and the seals.  How do you prevent the bartender or server from slipping something in your drink? 

[Eric]

I was in Mexico a few months ago, in Cancun, Playa del Carmen, and Tulum. While I was there I went to a club in Playa that ended up having a shooting a week or two after I left. I stayed with a local who told me there are always gang rivalries, but that they try to keep it hushed up for the tourism industry. Obviously where there are tourists who want drugs, there will be people to sell them, and competition for their business. As with any kind of travel, there are always risks, and the specific risks vary depending on the country/area. I wouldn't not travel because of it, but of course it's smart to do some research beforehand and take precautions.

How do you take precautions against being served illegal alcohol? Especially when 30% of all the alcohol that is served in a certain country is illegal. They fake the bottles and the seals.  How do you prevent the bartender or server from slipping something in your drink?

Where'd you come up with that number?  And did you have to bend over to get it?

[PoutineLover]

I was in Mexico a few months ago, in Cancun, Playa del Carmen, and Tulum. While I was there I went to a club in Playa that ended up having a shooting a week or two after I left. I stayed with a local who told me there are always gang rivalries, but that they try to keep it hushed up for the tourism industry. Obviously where there are tourists who want drugs, there will be people to sell them, and competition for their business. As with any kind of travel, there are always risks, and the specific risks vary depending on the country/area. I wouldn't not travel because of it, but of course it's smart to do some research beforehand and take precautions.

How do you take precautions against being served illegal alcohol? Especially when 30% of all the alcohol that is served in a certain country is illegal.  They fake the bottles and the seals.  How do you prevent the bartender or server from slipping something in your drink? 

You obviously can't prevent 100% of unfortunate situations, and I agree that if they are really good fakes, you won't be able to tell, but in general it's a good idea to watch your drinks get made and to not drink too much. Also, of the millions of people who travel to Mexico, only a small number of them have experienced this situation. As unfortunate as it is, there are always going to be some risks and it's up to your individual risk tolerance to determine if you can accept that particular one. When I hear about a plane crash, I don't react by saying all plane travel is too dangerous. There's also not much I can do as a passenger to prevent a crash, but I don't stop flying because of the tiny risk that my plane might crash. I don't want to go about my life expecting that every scary news story will happen to me.

[Duke03]

I was in Mexico a few months ago, in Cancun, Playa del Carmen, and Tulum. While I was there I went to a club in Playa that ended up having a shooting a week or two after I left. I stayed with a local who told me there are always gang rivalries, but that they try to keep it hushed up for the tourism industry. Obviously where there are tourists who want drugs, there will be people to sell them, and competition for their business. As with any kind of travel, there are always risks, and the specific risks vary depending on the country/area. I wouldn't not travel because of it, but of course it's smart to do some research beforehand and take precautions.

How do you take precautions against being served illegal alcohol? Especially when 30% of all the alcohol that is served in a certain country is illegal. They fake the bottles and the seals.  How do you prevent the bartender or server from slipping something in your drink?

Where'd you come up with that number?  And did you have to bend over to get it?

A 2015 report from Mexico’s Tax Administration Service found that 43% of all the alcohol consumed in the nation is illegal, produced under unregulated circumstances resulting in potentially dangerous concoctions.

  It's actually higher than 30%.  Just use google.  Mexico went down to Cancun and Playa Del Carmen last week and seized over 10,000 gallons of illegal alcohol from plenty of name brand resorts and bars.

[KBecks]

Where'd you come up with that number?

Here is a recent article from Time magazine
http://time.com/4900991/mexican-resort-alcohol-unsanitary/

[limeandpepper]

Thanks for sharing the article, interesting read and very scary. I am keen to visit Mexico someday and while this won't entirely deter me, it will certainly encourage me to be more cautious. In this case it seems like not going to resorts and/or not drinking alcohol will greatly reduce the risk? Works for me and I won't even have to change my habits as I'm more likely to stay in cheap guesthouses anyway, and alcohol isn't a prominent part of my life either.

While I'm in this thread I will say that there have been some unsettling mysterious incidents in Thailand as well, so just a heads-up... however I've been there twice and felt pretty safe, and I'll be going back again soon.

[Eric]

Where'd you come up with that number?

Here is a recent article from Time magazine
http://time.com/4900991/mexican-resort-alcohol-unsanitary/

I've heard of the recent crack down and seizure of illegal alcohol.  I see this article claims "up to 36% of alcohol consumed in Mexico is illegal", but the linked report doesn't say that at all.  In fact, it says that "Peru has the highest share of illicit alcohol with 30.6%"  So I'm still a little unclear on the actual risk.  Especially because some of what's considered illegal alcohol is simply alcohol that was imported into the country without having taxes paid on it.

I agree that getting tainted alcohol is a bit scary, but I'm not sure if it's enough to deter my visiting.  Can people really not taste the difference?  The original article you linked had one quote about someone drinking it even though they said it tasted terrible.  And of course there's always beer.

I feel bad for your friends.  I really do.  But I think anecdotal stories of bad things happening to people, especially in Mexico, get huge disproportionate attention in the US media for some reason, even though bad things happen to a small number of people everywhere people travel.  There were 35,000,000 tourists to Mexico last year.  Which was an increase of 9% from the year before.  It's a pretty safe assumption that 99%+ of these tourists had a great time and that anyone who travels there is very unlikely to encounter anything bad.

[The Fake Cheap]

My wife and I decided about 10 years ago that we would never go to Mexico.  We don't know anyone personally who have had any issues there, and everyone who has been have only said good things.  We feel that we just can't support the level of crime and corruption there, and you are doing that even by staying in the safe touristy areas.  Also We feel if something were to ever happen then odds of the police arresting someone and getting a charge seem incredibly low.  I'm  sure things are similar in other Caribbean countries, however we will travel to those areas, I don't have sources to back any of this up, sorry.  I guess this is just a way for us to make our own small statement on what we believe is ok.

[forumname123]

I feel bad for your friends.  I really do.  But I think anecdotal stories of bad things happening to people, especially in Mexico, get huge disproportionate attention in the US media for some reason, even though bad things happen to a small number of people everywhere people travel.  There were 35,000,000 tourists to Mexico last year. Which was an increase of 9% from the year before.  It's a pretty safe assumption that 99%+ of these tourists had a great time and that anyone who travels there is very unlikely to encounter anything bad.

I came here to post something very similar.

Don't let anecdotal evidence and media hype make your decisions for you. It always blows my mind how little international travel Americans do, and I think a lot of that is due to unwarranted fear.

[powskier]

I love going to Mexico, I don't go to any of the resorts popular with Americans.
People are nice, climate is nice, food and lodging are cheap.

Years ago when people were talking about how dangerous Nicaragua was we were enjoying $10 rooms and empty beaches there.

If you lived anywhere other than the USA and read the news about the USA you would never come visit here either.

I know this couple personally, their kids go to school with my kids and the parents do a lot of volunteering.  They are wonderful, and responsible people, and their anniversary trip was a total nightmare.   I think they are brave to share their devastating story to try to help others, and that's why I'm helping to spread the word.

A lot of people from the area where we live, with harsher winters, like to travel to beaches, and perhaps, many are a little naive or first time travelers.  At the same time, the growing group of evidence in these multiple stories, from multiple resorts and lack of medical response, is very very concerning.

It's good for people to be aware of some of the risks of international travel and to be careful.   At the same time, travel is wonderful and all of life is a risk.

I am heartbroken for what happened to Heidi and Corey and I'm so glad they are home safe, but no doubt their lives are changed forever by what happened on what was supposed to be a joyful celebration trip.

Ummmmm, no you don't know me, and we don't have kids, or you misquoted the wrong post?

[KBecks]

I'm referencing the couple in the news story.

[FindingFI]

We just came back from a group trip to Cancun for a wedding and two of the people I was travelling with got served bad alcohol or drugged drinks.  Fortunately both of them fully recovered, but it's safe to say we are done with all inclusive resorts.  Not worth the risk or the money.

[TimmyTightWad]

Hmmm I've been to Mexico several times over the last 5 years, no problems. I blacked out and lost 10lbs throwing up in one day after drinking but I was going really hard the night before. I'll look into this more, I tend to lean toward Americans being overly cautious when it comes to traveling in none Europe countries so I take criticism with a grain of salt understanding that. 

[stein79]

Headed to Cabo with my fiancee Monday for the week, staying at an all inclusive.  Hoping for the best!  I was debating taking a bottle of my own liquor with me as a safeguard...
Wish us luck!  I'll be sure to report any issues upon our return. 

Cheers

[Kansas Beachbum]

Have been to Cozumel several times to dive, the diving is extraordinary there, but it has been 7 - 8 years.  We were thinking of heading back this fall, but started reading all these stories.  We had always stayed at one of the resorts mentioned in the article, although in Cozumel not Playa...close enough though.  It's a 5 star resort, not some cheap dump, which is what makes is surprising to me.  I also did see the article about the audit in which over 40% of the alcohol they checked was bootleg.  That was really the scary part for me, as that tells me it's not really isolated.  Too bad, people have always been nice, warm, diving was wonderful.  Probably go to Cayman instead.

[Stachless]

We to a spendypants all-inclusive in Playa Del Carmen a few weeks ago - it was stunning and I can not wait to go back!

For what its worth, the exceptionally warm and friendly workers at this resort were terrified for me when I told them that we were going to Chicago next.

[pachnik]

For what its worth, the exceptionally warm and friendly workers at this resort were terrified for me when I told them that we were going to Chicago next.

This made me LOL! 

[Prairie Gal]

My son has been living in Mexico for the past three years and working as a photo-journalist. There is lots of crime that goes unreported and unresolved. The first story he worked on was the 43 students that went missing. They have never been found.

Whenever he asks me when I am coming to visit I always say the same thing. Probably never!

[aperture]

This thread seems a bit misplaced.  This is a forum for people pursuing "financial freedom through badassity". 

My $0.02 - do the math.  There were 26 million US visitors to Mexico in 2014.  I hate this fear-driven xenophobic bullshit. Consider that you understand risk and diversification when applied to greenbacks, but cannot divide 1, 10 100 or 1000 by 26 million when it comes to evaluating the risk of what you don't know about a foreign culture.

Sorry - Charlottesville has sensitized me to intolerance. 

[KBecks]

It's not bullshit, my friend almost died because someone messed with her while she was on vacation.   And she's telling her story so that people have awareness of a potential risk.

When you are aware of a risk, you can figure out how to minimize it.  That is all.

[aperture]

It's not bullshit, my friend almost died because someone messed with her while she was on vacation.   And she's telling her story so that people have awareness of a potential risk.

When you are aware of a risk, you can figure out how to minimize it.  That is all.

Do the math.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Mexican_sentiment