Mexico City’s US embassy has issued a travel warning that bans US government employees from visiting the ever-popular Playa del Carmen, in the state of Quintana Roo.
The reasons for the sudden travel warning, that was issued late on Wednesday, remain somewhat vague although there was talk of a security threat. It has not been announced for how long the warning will remain in place for.
Some speculate that the travel warning may have something to do with the explosion that occurred on the ferry that runs from Playa del Carmen to Cozumel. In these explosions, 2 Americans were injured alongside 23 other people. The explosion took place not even a month ago on 21 February this year.
Following the explosion, undetonated explosives were discovered on another tourist ferry by Mexican law enforcement. The incidents are suspected to be somehow linked, but how exactly is still under investigation.
Although US citizens have not been prohibited from visiting Playa del Carmen, they have been warned by government officials to take extra care and take note of the information that was issued in the original travel warning.
Mexico has already been deemed as unsafe as it was put on a Level 2 alert status by the US earlier in the year, which urges travellers to practice extreme caution when travelling through Mexico. This Level 2 alert was announced because of the high rates of carjacking, kidnapping, homicide and robbery happening in certain areas of Mexico. 5 Mexico states have already been listed as ‘to be avoided’ and they are Michoacan, Colima, Guerrero, Sinaloa and Tamaulipus.
Last year there was also the unfortunate incident of a US tourist that died after a night of drinking in Mexico. Many other tourists reported blacking out after drinking and the US warned travellers about the dangers of drinking in Mexico.
While it all sounds quite morbid for Mexico, there are still some beautiful places to travel to in Mexico that do not have any travel warnings. These destinations include the likes of Mexico City, Los Cabos and Cancun.
