Heads up if you layover in CUN
 

One of our guys managed to shake off an attempted kidnapping two days ago in CUN. This is what he has told us:

I believed Cancun was "safe" as I had never been there before OE the week before. Seemed like a regular tourist trap. It was very brazen, 12:30am walking back to hotel in a dark patch on the 1km walk 200 yards from hotel. It was the jerks in the pickup truck not sure if it was the tourista police as they were driving the new dodges. This was a crappy pickup with the rack in the back and 2 corrupt police officers. I figured they were federales. I made it very clear I was not getting in the truck for the life of me (literally) and when the other goon got out I figured it was gonna get ugly. They decided the crazy gringo was not worth it and I managed to take off. If they wanted to press the issue I figured a nightstick beating or a gun in the ribs but it wasn't quite isolated enough I guess. Obvious shakedown attempt as the first thing they asked was if I had "drugs". I can post my event report which has some more details. I believe they guys selling drugs in the tourist zone (I had half a dozen offers) are in cahoots with the cops. Think about it: an easy mark for sure. They picked me for some reason, probably because I was alone.

From the Event Report:

While on a RON in Cancun, Mexico, while returning to hotel after eating dinner I was a victim of an attempted abduction by 2 apparent members of the police force, in anycase they were in some sort of uniforms and were driving a dilapidated pickup truck. While walking the 5-10 minute walk to the Hyatt Cancun crew hotel, during a dark and somewhat isolated patch of sidewalk the truck pulled up next to me and a short mexican officer jumped out and was pushing me towards the open truck door. He said in broken english that I must get into the truck. This was a standard cab truck with a driver and I would have been sandwiched between the two. I refused multiple times. He asked me if I had any "drugs" on me. At this time I knew it was a setup and flately refused to get in the truck. The other officer got out and I figured I was going to have to fight for my life and I made that clear. I was about to take off running to the hotel which I figured I could make before they drove me down when they started to back off and realized I would not go quietly. I figured if this was a real arrest of somesort they would use proper police protocals, and in anycase would detain me. They did not do any of that and I knew it was a abduction attempt that would have resulted in extorsion of some sort by the officers with a bogus "drug" charge. I assume as I had seen their truck or one like it on the edge of the "strip" in Cancun that they marked me and others and intercepted them on the isolated path with no witnesses. This occurred several hundred yards from the hotel entrance. The security situation in Mexico is dire and completely unsafe. When you have the "cops" perpetrating the crimes there is no option available for personal safety.
I will be following up with this matter to ensure the safety of US Airways crews while in foreign countries

I have filed most of the reports still one or two left

Thanks for posting this info...could have been bad.:eek:

Still safer than downtown Philly or Houston.

Due to family ties, I travel to Mexico frequently. My rule in Mexico, since about 2007 (when things drastically got worse), is "nighttime = at home or at hotel". Period, the end.

Some "FYI"

I also carry a large amount of cash ($300) and ONLY cash and my Passport and DL as "walking around" documents. Wallet and credit cards is 1) Home or 2) Hotel safe deposit box.

Your hotel key, you know the little envelope it comes in with your room number? leave it in the room, write your room number on your palm and put key in another pocket not with money. Don't break out the wallet with your Hotel card and room number in plain view to the world unless you want some night visitors.

Most all express kidnappings are done to force you to drain all your ATM cards to the limit, then do it again the next day, to the limit, then maybe one more day.

If they kidnap me with the above items, hey, here is my $300, here, take it, yep I am American, here is my ID if I need it, sorry I can't sh1t an ATM card, have a nice day. They are a little less (a little) likely to harm a gringo.

Do not, repeat, do NOT, carry your fat wallet, stuffed with your five Gold AMEX cards and Platinum mastercard, around the streets nor reach for it when you pay for dinner and the waiter can advise his buddies. No watches either, of any kind.

Also, tone down any associations to big American corporate companies, as they may have kidnap-insurance and thus pay out to the kidnappers. Don't tell the waiter you are a "Piloto" or "Engineer at Exxon" or similar. Blue jeans, low key, low profile. You are on church mission or you are a tourist. Etc.

To the OP, Glad you are ok.

** Mexico has a lot of great things to offer, just "being a secure country" is not high on the list. I feel safer there than I do pumping gas into my car at night near Hobby, however.

FWIW I had an FAA inspector on my flight from CUN to FLL last November. He does repair station inspections or some such. He told me to be extremely careful in cancun that it was not safe at all. He further claimed that as a result of a drug bust at the airport that ended with a lot of drugs confiscated from an airplane the drug cartels had kidnapped and beheaded the airport manager and his replacement is now being guarded by a platoon of Mexican army soldiers.

CUN is about a safe a layover as we do. Done it dozens of times in the past 2 years. Never a worry. I worry much more in a lot of our domestic layovers.

The trend vector for Mexico, everywhere, is pegged to the bottom of the tape. Its not a matter of if but when. Everywhere there. The whole place is a rapidly collapsing narco state. Once safe areas are rapidly degrading. Its eazy to "feel safe" when nothing's happend, up until the second it happens and then its too late to feel safe. I'd do what satpak said with strong emphasis on self imposed lockdown as soon as the sun goes down if not sooner.

"Must be safe. Nothing ever happened to me!" Maybe you should nominate yourself as tool of the day.

I don't get it. Why carry so much cash? My rule of thumb in an iffy city is to carry $40 and a credit card. I don't know the pin to withdraw cash from my credit card. I could lose or give up all in my pocket without great loss.

All of us SOCAL surfers who used to go down to Baja....don't anymore.

To hell with mexico, not worth the risk.

Crime is almost non existent in the hotel zone. Cancun is very dependent on tourism and there are extreme punishments for even petty crimes. The local thugs know it and it's a huge deterrent that very effectively minimizes and prevents crime. Are there isolated incidents? Of course, but overall I find CUN to be an extremely safe layover and I have adventured all over that place at all hours of the night including downtown. Never a worry or nervous moment.

Agreed....makes me sad every time I get cleared direct PPE...those WERE some GREAT times!!

Baja.

Doesn't effect airline crews, but my last family vacation to CUN the Hotel manager said the price we PAID in the US was not enough and we would have to pay more to him, or the Hotel would not honor our reservation. After my wife drank two $8 bottles of water and fed our kid a third, I jumped on the next flight out of there, gave her $500 and told her to go vacation in the mall, I was done with Mexico.

The guy who claims he was almost abducted was also walking by himself in an unlit area at 12:30am. I wouldn't do that in ANY city in the US. Have some f@#$#ing street smarts.

I have done that layover dozens of times. The area he was talking about is not as well lit as some of the surrounding areas and it is the only way back to our hotel. It is between hotels and there are some trees and other vegetation that reduces light from the streetlights. We are talking the main road here, not some back alley.

Streetsmarts are important. But walking around in a major tourist area that is supposed to be locked down and secure by the federales should not be an issue. However, it appears that CUN is no longer the safe(ish) tourist haven it was touted as being.

Sure, but his point wasn't just the criminal act but that the thugs were in the open, dressed and pretending to be cops...or worse....were cops.

All the fun touristy towns there have been rapidly degrading and even if CUN is as safe as anywhere else right now, its still in Mexico and Mexico is collapsing big time. Its not if but when. As an added bonus, if anything does happen, you get to deal with Mexican police and justice system as an outsider that in most cases doesn't speak the language and stands out like a strobe in the clouds, even if you don't wear a watch.

To me its just a beach, and really its not even that cheap anymore. High risk, low reward. Oh and bonus: violent diarrhea if you drink the water. I'm glad someone wants to go there though.

On my last CUN layover the van driver warned us of escalating violence. He said it was really bad outside of the tourist zone. The narco guys were moving in and some of it was starting to spill over to the tourist zone.

It's too bad. There are a lot of very nice people in Mexico. I'll fly in. But, all Mexico layovers are on my avoid list.

Thanks for sharing I knew there was a reason I haven't been a Mexico in about 10 years. And don't plan on going there to spend my money. I'll sit in coach for 17 hours and go some place 'safe'.

Tourist's should be boycotting Mexico until they get their drug/cartel problem under-control. Unfortunately, I don't see that happening as its so close and so cheap.

If any of you are mil guys and have access to an intel section, swing by and get a travel brief on Mexico. It was rather eye opening...you all can have Mexico.

Civvies can use the Department of State web site.

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_p...70.html#safety

Yucatan: Merida and Chichen Itza are the major cities/travel destinations in Yucatan -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify its exact location: No advisory is in effec

:eek:

It's sad what Mexico has become. When I worked at Continental Express we went all over Mexico. It was nice to overnight in Leon, Oaxaca, Torreon, Nuevo, etc. You could enjoy authentic Mexican food and beer at cheap prices, with little fear of danger. Heck, even in 2008 I could head to the non tourist area of Cancun for good food. You could take the bus from the hotel strip downtown for 50 cents. But that ended once the drug cartels started tossing maltov cocktails into local nightclubs and bars, just before they'd barricade the doors shut. It's sad.......... :(

I live in Downtown Philly, and you don't know what the hell you are talking about...

Philly ranks 6th most dangerous city in the US for cities over 500,000 population. Even Houston is safer than Philly and ranks 9th most dangerous.

Through the tunnels and into that downtown area...that place was awesome!!

Agreed! I really enjoyed that layover. Always looked forward to some tacos and Negro Modelo. :)

The big difference is you can run to the cops in the U.S. and they are on your side not like Mexico where they are aligned with the criminals.

probably the best post on this thread. also the reason Mexico is Mexico and will always be Mexico

Other sources available to non military folks. May not be as up to date, but back in the day, I've gotten briefings from customs guys in FLL at Jet Center.

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_p...s/cis_970.html

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_p...s/cis_970.html

Exactly. Mexico is corrupt dump. Everywhere.

Lived in Houston for 5 years from 2005-2010. Still do student X/C and stay downtown. Never a problem. Bums ask for money at worst. There are bad neighborhoods in all cities. Certainly sometimes things spill into the nicer areas. But as far as cities are concerned, Houston was not even close to the northeastern cities I lived near as far as day to day problems.

Philly is full of scumbags.....

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Do any of you have much experience in the Playa del Carmen area? I'm planning on staying there with a friend for a few nights at the end of next month.

I was under the impression that it was the "safer-ish" place to go in Mexico, but was unaware of the escalations you guys are talking about. I don't think we will really go into the Cancun area much, if at all.

Any other thoughts?

I've stayed in Playa del Carmen several times and have never seen any problems (but that doesn't mean they're not there). I'd venture to say if you're going to one of the resorts, and stay in the resort, you'll have zero problems, aside from petty theft of your things while you're swimming (ask me how I know that).

Oh Boy!
 

Even though GDL is on my avoid list I'll get to spend my first overnight there next month. NOT looking forward to it. Any advice?

Don't drink the water.

Stick with the tequila or cervesa.:D

ReCALcitrant,

Downtown Houston is a nice area of Houston. Some of the areas around it and even more suburban are not. I would never go to Fifth Ward (never go to a neighborhood c that has the word "ward" in it) or Acres Homes at night.

AP

Haven't done it, but there apparently is a really interesting tequila tour. No, seriously. They take you out and show you how it goes from the agave plantation to your shot glass. I've flown with several guys that have done it and said it really was pretty interesting.

I swore off tequila years ago, and again last weekend :D but it might be worth it if you get one of the 24-30 hour layovers.

Still Mexico though, so I wouldn't venture out alone or much after dark. Don't drink too much tequila and keep your wits about you, and you should be fine. Have fun!

Always
 

Always good advice!:D

I'll have to keep the tour in mind. This particular layover is too short though. Thanks.