First trip to Mexico...need recommendations for a family destination!

I would try and stay out of Mexico for now. They are having too much trouble with drug cartels. You would be looking over your shoulder all the time. If you still would like to, Cancun and Cabo San Lucas are more for drinking and singles. This link is The United Staes travel warnings to Mexico. http://travel.state.gov/travel/ci..._5665.html Also, try this U.S. link where you can search different countries and warnings. http://travel.state.gov/travel/ci..._1168.html Good Luck

Playa del Carmen is what you're looking for.

http://www.xcaret.com/
avoid Chichen Itza tours unless you can get a tour with a really small group otherwise they are going stop in every market and try to sell you items

Quote from eighta2 : I would try and stay out of Mexico for now. They are having too much trouble with drug cartels. You would be looking over your shoulder all the time. If you still would like to, Cancun and Cabo San Lucas are more for drinking and singles. This link is The United Staes travel warnings to Mexico. http://travel.state.gov/travel/ci..._5665.html Also, try this U.S. link where you can search different countries and warnings. http://travel.state.gov/travel/ci..._1168.html Good Luck

OMG, enough of this please. Unless people are vacationing in the slums of TJ then the risk they're experiencing is equal to that of many foreign countries.

As long as they stay in a group and don't wander off in to some dark alley in a seedy place of town they're fine!

I'm personally a fan of Puerto Vallarta and Cabo. Nice mega resorts relatively close to town so you can kick it at the resort all day and go in to town for the touristy things should you so desire.

Also, just to add, I think a lot of people overlook Florida because they don't want to do the whole Disney thing. Florida has some very nice beaches, hotels, etc.. The flights are generally cheaper and you can get good package deals. 5-6 hr flight to Florida from LAX frequently runs $200-$300 (or less). 5-6 hr flights to Maui/Kauai frequently run $500 to $800 and if you're getting 4 tickets that can be a big expense. Just throwing it out there.

the state department doesn't know what thell they are talkin about

Quote from ryguy : Playa del Carmen is what you're looking for.

^^ There. Puerto Vallarta is also "kid-friendly" with a lot to see and do; however, Playa del Carmen is just as nice...and with plenty of tours to the Mayan ruins (Chichen Itza, Tulum, etc.), a Mayan village and even cenotes. There are also shopping trips to Cancun for the day. I've visited both cities more than once but prefer Playa del Carmen as it offers far more excursions and better beaches.

Quote from dude2000 : http://www.xcaret.com/ avoid Chichen Itza tours unless you can get a tour with a really small group otherwise they are going stop in every market and try to sell you items

Our tour stop at the on-site markets after the ruins tour was done. It was our option if we wanted to browse the markets, see more of the sites or just rest our feet until the bus was ready to depart. Most vendors were selling similar items (good prices but it's expected to haggle).

Both places were very safe. In 10+ trips to Mexico (over the last 7 years), I've never once felt any threat no matter which place I'd stayed.

Tijuana is great for the young ones.

Quote from kenosha : ^^ There. Puerto Vallarta is also "kid-friendly" with a lot to see and do; however, Playa del Carmen is just as nice...and with plenty of tours to the Mayan ruins (Chichen Itza, Tulum, etc.), a Mayan village and even cenotes. There are also shopping trips to Cancun for the day. I've visited both cities more than once but prefer Playa del Carmen as it offers far more excursions and better beaches. Our tour stop at the on-site markets after the ruins tour was done. It was our option if we wanted to browse the markets, see more of the sites or just rest our feet until the bus was ready to depart. Most vendors were selling similar items (good prices but it's expected to haggle). Both places were very safe. In 10+ trips to Mexico (over the last 7 years), I've never once felt any threat no matter which place I'd stayed.

Did your bus have bathrooms in it? Ours didn't. :/

Actually, my DH works for Homeland Security and would NEVER EVER take me and our children to Mexico! not anywhere in Mexico. It is an extremely dangerous place. There are lots of cheap warm places to travel to that are not as dangerous.

Quote from LivninSC : OMG, enough of this please. Unless people are vacationing in the slums of TJ then the risk they're experiencing is equal to that of many foreign countries. As long as they stay in a group and don't wander off in to some dark alley in a seedy place of town they're fine! I'm personally a fan of Puerto Vallarta and Cabo. Nice mega resorts relatively close to town so you can kick it at the resort all day and go in to town for the touristy things should you so desire. Also, just to add, I think a lot of people overlook Florida because they don't want to do the whole Disney thing. Florida has some very nice beaches, hotels, etc.. The flights are generally cheaper and you can get good package deals. 5-6 hr flight to Florida from LAX frequently runs $200-$300 (or less). 5-6 hr flights to Maui/Kauai frequently run $500 to $800 and if you're getting 4 tickets that can be a big expense. Just throwing it out there.

Quote from ryguy : Did your bus have bathrooms in it? Ours didn't. :/

Yes. With all that beer being served, it'd have been mayhem if there was none. We typically use Apple Vacations flying out of O'Hare rather than any other site or airport (best deals overall for my area). The transportation Apple contracts with is very reliable and has all the amenities/comforts.

Quote from lmsmith67 : Actually, my DH works for Homeland Security and would NEVER EVER take me and our children to Mexico! not anywhere in Mexico. It is an extremely dangerous place. There are lots of cheap warm places to travel to that are not as dangerous.

Where you go in Mexico and what you do is no different than when I go to Chicago most weekends. The same goes for any major city in the USA; only real difference in the usual dozen murders in a weekend (Chicago) vs. the many in Mexico is that the victims here are rarely beheaded. Crime is everywhere; it's just more sensationalized on our news here when it comes to Mexico's drugs, beheadings, etc. than some gangbangers on Chicago's southside.


http://playazone.wordpress.com/20...xico-2012/

"Quintana Roo (where Playa del Carmen and the all of the Riviera Maya is located) had fewer murders per 100,000 people than many US cities including Atlanta, Baltimore, Buffalo, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit, Kansas City, Memphis, Miami, Newark, Oakland, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Tulsa and Washington DC.(based on FBI Uniform Crime Report statistics for the US and the statistics of the National System for Public Security of Mexico.)"

http://travel.state.gov/travel/ci..._5665.html

"47,515 people were killed in narcotics-related violence in Mexico between December 1, 2006 and September 30, 2011...The number of U.S. citizens reported to the Department of State as murdered in Mexico increased from 35 in 2007 to 120 in 2011."

http://isitsafetotraveltomexico.com/

"Mexico is roughly the size of Western Europe, and of Mexico’s 2,500 municipalities, only 18 have been deemed a security problem ... noting that most popular tourist destinations have no travel advisory at all, including Cancun, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Riviera Maya and Tulum, the Riviera Nayarit, Cabo San Lucas, Puerto Vallarta, Guadalajara and San Miguel de Allende, Leon and Mexico City."


From 2006-2010, the USA had over 80,000 murders; Mexico had far less, even with adding in their 2011 stats. Take what you want from the above...

Quote from lmsmith67 : Actually, my DH works for Homeland Security and would NEVER EVER take me and our children to Mexico! not anywhere in Mexico. It is an extremely dangerous place. There are lots of cheap warm places to travel to that are not as dangerous.

Shit can happen anywhere. It's a simple fact. What is also widely known down in MX is that the drug cartels don't want to harm your average run of the mill American. Why? Because then the US gov't gets even more involved. There have been cases of the cartels going after and killing people who F'ed with Americans just to reinforce that you don't mess with Americans. It's bad for business...

I was born in Mexico so my say is buy a weapon. Can't have guns in Mexico so you probably should invest in a Tazer or something. Have fun and watch out for strange people coming up to you for money. Always be surrounded by people

Quote from Fragster : Hi all Planning a trip to Mexico for next summer with my family (me/wife, 6 yr son and 10 yr daughter). Initially we were looking at Hawaiian deals but friends tell us Mexico packages are usually cheaper so we took the suggestion. What city/area would be 'kid-friendly'? Looking for places which are more geared for family fun rather than singles drinking/partying out. Also, apart from the beaches, is there anything else to do in Mexico? My daughter is very interested in history so we are trying to get her to visit some ancient tribal sites, etc but have no clue to what and where to even begin this with. I've been checking out via Kayak, etc but need to know the destination. Any help will be appreciated and *repped* :-). Thanks!

How was your trip i am also planning one to Tijuana, Mexico. Any input would be appreciated, especially plan and airfare wise going from boston.