Most fun I had there was renting snorkeling gear and going with my girlfriend to Akumal (between Playa Del Carmen and Tulum) at 6am to swim with turtles before the tourists arrived. I recommend you do the same if you’re up to it. The turtles are always there so you won’t be disappointed. Afterwards, go to the nearby Cenote Cristalino and swim with the freshwater fish.

Regarding transportation, ask somebody at your hotel about the collectivo service. Collectivos are transport vans you find in Mexico that run along busy roads. They are reliable, cheap, and safe. You just stand on the highway in the direction you want to go and you should see a van within no more than 2 minutes. Flag it down, tell the driver where you want to go, and pay the driver once you get off. Intimidating at first but you’ll feel comfortable after your first ride. They start at 5am, so we tried to catch the earliest one possible to see the turtles.

I have relatives near chicago and some of them thought I was crazy for going to mexico w/o reflecting on or acknowledging that they live 30 minutes from areas with drug/gang problems where people are murdered everyday.

The way our tour guide explained it, this is a dispute between the govt and a cartel, and while it’s bad it doesn’t really have anything to do with tourists. Tourists aren’t being targeted.

I see it similar to my town, Chicago. 5 people were shot just this weekend. We rode past a two person shooting on our bus ride home from O’Hare. It sucks, but its violence between gangs and people like me aren’t the targets.

So, I guess what I’m saying is I don’t think it’s worth canceling a trip over. Maybe be a little more cautious and stick to the very touristy areas, and you’ll be fine.

If you want any tips of cool places to check out, I’ll be happy to give you some input in the morning when I have a real keyboard to use.

I’ve got numerous friends and family down there. There is zero panic or worry amongst any them and they’re mostly just frustrated at the lopsided media attention. I go to many parts of Mexico regularly, even Mexico City, which if you believe all the media you must be shocked I haven’t been decapitated yet. 🙂 In reality, it’s a wonderful city.

But, look, serious time — if you and your wife are the nervous types, don’t go to PV. But do NOT just give up your first vacation in 14 years! What a crime that would be. Switch to Cancun (Cabo is not much better in terms of number of minor cartel incidents). Quintana Roo has basically had zero incidents, and I think it’s more beautiful there anyway. There certainly more culture in PV, and Jalisco in general, but if you’re going for a relaxing vacation, I don’t know why you would turn down the white sand beaches and blue Caribbean water of that area.

It sounds like you may be limited to certain resorts, but if it’s an option, go one hour south of Cancun (a taxi is about $60, or the ADO bus is really nice and really inexpensive) to Playa Del Carmen. It’s a super cute little city and is less “spring break”-y than Cancun.

Every large hotel I’ve stayed at in Mexico will have those cards that say “water is safe to drink” near the sink but will also offer a complimentary bottle of water (500ml) but be careful some will also want to feel you a liter of Evian for 70 pesos. Getting water at Oxxo or another corner store is the best idea.

Smaller family hotels will sometimes have bottled water like a 10 litre bottle in a dispenser like an office. Others will have nothing. My favorite places to stay are these smaller places.

Mexican tap water is generally labeled as “safe to drink” in big chain hotels, all inclusive resorts and so on (ask the concierge about that) but us Mexicans have symbiotic relationships with our kind of bacterial life that you don’t, so as adviced from OP, DON’T take chances and drink bottled water. I know bottled water could be expensive in some big hotels so, bring your bottles from convenience stores like (oxxo, 7 Eleven) or drink beer instead.

If you like to party and clubbing, ask the animation team of your hotel for directions about the better/safest clubs. They can take you with them and hook your herb for you. Tip is excepected in this kind of thing.

A wise move is to make friends with the hotel bartenders / waiters, they appreciate cool, non despotic clients that doesn’t behave like morons. Treat them as people, learn their names, and you will surely enjoy the benefits of not being fooled with cheapo, toxic alcohol and spitted food. If you think that because you are paying you have control regarding what you eat/drink, remember that you have not. That pedro looking guy has.