What's the crime rate against Americans and other expats in Yucatan: Riviera Maya, Playa del Carmen, Cancun, Merida, etc?
Alfonso Galindo - I Go Yucatan
There’s petty crime here in Merida and in other places in the Yucatan like Cancun like anywhere else. But since 2008 Merida has been constantly rated, not only the safest state in Mexico, but it continually comes up as one of the safest cities in the world. In Cancun, there are a lot more petty crimes. And there might be some physical altercations in that area but when you read the report it’s usually not mugging or carjacking or anything...
There’s petty crime here in Merida and in other places in the Yucatan like Cancun like anywhere else. But since 2008 Merida has been constantly rated, not only the safest state in Mexico, but it continually comes up as one of the safest cities in the world. In Cancun, there are a lot more petty crimes. And there might be some physical altercations in that area but when you read the report it’s usually not mugging or carjacking or anything like that. It’s usually some in fighting of drunken students that are partying and take on the wrong person, especially if it’s a local.
Americans and other expats are definitely not targeted for crime. If you look at the news here, anywhere in the region, and you might even say throughout Mexico, the Gringos are not targeted more so than the local population. I think it’s just the opposite. A professional thief or criminal would probably go out his way not to get involved with a Gringo just because of the repercussions that entails of not just having the police go after him for hurting a tourist. And if a Mexican kills a tourist, God forbid, not only you have the local police but you’re going to have the American FBI after you and they know that. Any potential criminal here knows they will hunt you down until they find you. So most professional criminals avoid tourists completely. If you are a foreign national, they avoid you because it’s not worth the hassle to them.
I was born and raised in Santa Barbara, California, and I’ve lived all over the place. I feel completely safe here in Merida. I have walked around many times in Merida and in some of the beach communities, late at night, after a get together, and I’ve never ever felt unsafe, not once. I know many of my friends and neighbors and fellow Gringos will say the same thing. Where else can you leave the bar at 2 in the morning and walk 5 or 10 blocks and not have to worry whatsoever that you’re going to be attacked or robbed?
(Merida, Mexico at night, pictured.)
Posted September 12, 2015
Doug Willey - Doug Willey, Independent Real Estate Consultant
The crime rate against Americans and other expats in the state of Yucatan is pretty much zero. The Yucatan is the safest state in all of Mexico. We have virtually problems at all. For all of 2014, there was something in the area of one murder in all of Merida, which has about a million inhabitants, and is the largest city in the state of Yucatan. The only crime problems we have here are petty theft and most of those are because the person didn’t...
The crime rate against Americans and other expats in the state of Yucatan is pretty much zero. The Yucatan is the safest state in all of Mexico. We have virtually problems at all. For all of 2014, there was something in the area of one murder in all of Merida, which has about a million inhabitants, and is the largest city in the state of Yucatan. The only crime problems we have here are petty theft and most of those are because the person didn’t use common sense. For example, some people may be sitting in their yard, having a beer or a glass of wine and all of a sudden, they need to run to the store and get six more beers or a bottle of wine. They hop in their car and go to town, leaving their phones or a laptop on a lawn table, which would be gone when they return. That happens in the US or anywhere in the world. You just have to use a little common sense.
One of the reasons why the crime rate is so incredibly low in the state of Yucatan is there’s a very strong police force there. So for example, when you go to the bank, more than likely there’s going to be a policemen standing out in front with their machine guns. They don’t harass anyone or bother anyone but they have a presence there so if someone is thinking of robbing a bank and escaping through to the front door and they see two police officers with Uzis, they would probably decide it’s not a good idea. Merida has a large city police force that patrols the area. In the course of a normal day in Merida, you will probably see 30 to 40 police officers. They don’t harass people. If you need something, they help you. But on the other hand, if someone wants to cause a problem, they’re there immediately to resolve the problem, which has a big bearing on the fact that there’s not a lot of criminal activity because the chances of getting away with it are pretty slim with that kind of police force.
When I first moved here, I thought that the very visible police force meant that there was a lot of crime here, which is what a lot of my clients think as well, when they first come here. But once you understand the mentality here, that the police are present in order to let everyone know, “We’re here and we’re watching out for you,” you can appreciate it, see that it works, and it makes sense. As far as violence or police shooting people, that’s unheard of here.
In my opinion, the crime situation is totally different in the state of Yucatan than it is in the other large state in Yucatan, Quintana Roo. (Quintana Roo is the state in the Yucatan Peninsula that has Cancun, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Tulum, and other areas generally called “Riveria Maya.”) One of the biggest problems with the Cancun and Playa del Carmen areas is that that’s where many of the cartels are and where the drug trade is big. So when you get involved with the cartel and the drug trade, and there are millions of dollars involved, that’s a whole different ball game. And of course with the cartel, they’re pretty ruthless people, they have their business going and they don’t want anyone to interrupt it, which is a completely different story here in the state of the Yucatan, because we don’t have that drug problem here at all, and therefore, we don’t have the cartel problem here.
In the state of Yucatan, we have the big police force and they have been trained to spot something that doesn’t look like it belongs here. If you’re in Merida in your new BMW or new Mercedes, and you have Quintana Roo plates on your car, more than likely you might get pulled over for a road check and the police are going to ask you where you’re from, why are you here, are you here to visit someone, and so forth. While they’re doing this, they’re looking at your vehicle, they’re looking inside of it, and they’ll look in your trunk. What they’re doing is making sure that you’re not trying to bring drugs to Yucatan.
Another thing that is hard to verify and may or may not be true (but seems plausible) is one of the reasons that people don’t have a drug or crime problem here in the state of Yucatan is because the families of the cartel live here in Yucatan because they feel so safe and feel there’s not going to be any problems in Yucatan
I feel much safer in the state of Yucatan than in the state of Quintana Roo. In Quintana Roo, there’s the influence of the drug cartel, and everything revolves around the tourist industry so there’s all kinds of street hustlers. As opposed to this, I like a nice laid back lifestyle where I don’t have people harassing me. In my opinion, the states of Yucatan and Quintana Roo are totally different worlds even though they border each other and the main population areas are just hours away.
(Suburban street in Merida, Mexico pictured.)
Posted December 11, 2015
Thomas Lloyd - Top Mexico Real Estate
In order to discuss crime against foreigners in the Yucatan Peninsula, let’s talk first about the state of Quintana Roo, where you will find Tulum, Playa del Carmen and Cancun (all of which are on the Riviera Maya), etc. The number one source of revenue in these areas are tourism, so the Mexican government needs to protect this industry to the maximum. In the recent past, the number one source of revenue has been the oil industry. At this time, the oil industry is getting beat up...In order to discuss crime against foreigners in the Yucatan Peninsula, let’s talk first about the state of Quintana Roo, where you will find Tulum, Playa del Carmen and Cancun (all of which are on the Riviera Maya), etc. The number one source of revenue in these areas are tourism, so the Mexican government needs to protect this industry to the maximum. In the recent past, the number one source of revenue has been the oil industry. At this time, the oil industry is getting beat up very much because of the low cost of petroleum so now, even more than before, Mexico has to depend on what has been their number two or number three revenue source, which is tourism, which makes protecting the tourism industry more important. As a result, you’re going to see a lot more police, even police dedicated only to tourism. The government spends a lot of resources towards insuring the safety of visitors – Americans, Canadians, Europeans, and everybody who comes to town.I’ve been living here in Mexico for 20 years. I’ve lived in Mexico City and then out here on the coast in Quintana Roo, and just like anywhere in the world, there are sections where you have to be on guard and be smart. Here in Quintana Roo, my own direct experience is that I’ve never been worried at all for my family’s safety and I have two kids that are 10 years old, who were born here in Mexico. We’ve helped a lot of expats move here to Mexico, specifically here in Yucatan; Merida, and Quintana Roo. I’ve seen situations where there has been a car accident and an expat has call me up for assistance on an issue but it was nothing serious. It was a fender bender so it could be a little stressful, but apart from that, I can’t remember any life-threatening situation in the 10 years that I’ve lived in Quintana Roo and the other 10 years in Mexico City.
What’s interesting about Merida (the largest city in the state of Yucatan) is that it kind of encompasses all of the Yucatan. Merida has the least amount of crime in all of Mexico. The population in Merida has really grown. Over the past 5 years, you may have read some news from the news sources in the States and in Canada that there has been a cartel war that happened four years ago and there was a lot of violence in the northern states like Monterey, and places closer to the border of Texas. There were a lot of people who moved out of Monterey and went south, including many who went to Merida, aiding in the increase of population in Merida. People choose Merida because of its control of security. In the Yucatan Peninsula, the security is kind of a repeat of what you will see in Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas, where Mexico does a good job in protecting the tourism industry.
(Beachfront condos in Akumal, south of Cancun, Mexico, popular with expat residents and tourist, pictured.)
Posted February 29, 2016
Jesus Celis - RH Fiscalis
The crime rate in Yucatan is very low, and especially low against foreigners.There were two foreigners who died here recently because each one had a heart attack. One of them was doing some job in the north of the city and died in the hotel in the centro. The foreigners who have died here generally die from natural causes.
I have heard about some houses on the beaches around Merida being robbed because they were not protected, but not around Merida...
The crime rate in Yucatan is very low, and especially low against foreigners.There were two foreigners who died here recently because each one had a heart attack. One of them was doing some job in the north of the city and died in the hotel in the centro. The foreigners who have died here generally die from natural causes.
I have heard about some houses on the beaches around Merida being robbed because they were not protected, but not around Merida itself. (Merida is a city of about a million people that is the capital of the state of Yucatan, in the Yucatan Peninsula.)
The people in Merida do have burglar bars on their windows. I just finished building my home and I installed alarms, an electric fence, and strong windows, just in case because I suffered two robberies in the last 5 years, so I don’t want to get robbed to again. That's my personal experience. However, I know many people who have lived here for many years who have never suffered a robbery. But in my case and in my home, I suffered twice in the last 5 years.
Feeling safe walking the streets in Merida is not a problem. There is no crime on the street at night. No, that doesn’t happen. I am not afraid to walk the streets at night in Merida by myself and I am not afraid to have my wife or children walk the streets, either.
Cancun is different because Cancun is an area where the drug dealers are fighting. In Cancun and Playa del Carmen there’s a lot of prostitution, drugs and alcoholism, so it’s different. That’s why the government here in the state of Yucatan is always checking the vehicles getting in and going out of the state. There is only two roads to access our state of Yucatan. The access from the state of Campeche and you can access from the state of Quintana Roo, which has Cancun, Playa Blanca and Tulum. The government always has police people on those roads checking all vehicles arriving to Merida, just to make sure that it stays safe.
(Home in Cancun, Mexico, pictured.)
Posted April 6, 2016
Paulina Almeida - Tao Real Estate
Even with the most recent issues, the state of Quintana Roo (which includes Cancun, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Tulum, and here in Akumal) is a really secure place with a lot of tourists and expats. The security systems here in Quintana Roo take care of that. Mexico has a slightly bad reputation when it comes to security and crime. Tulum and Quintana Roo don’t have crime rates as high as other cities in Mexico, so Quintana Roo and Tulum are secure for foreigners. ...
Even with the most recent issues, the state of Quintana Roo (which includes Cancun, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Tulum, and here in Akumal) is a really secure place with a lot of tourists and expats. The security systems here in Quintana Roo take care of that. Mexico has a slightly bad reputation when it comes to security and crime. Tulum and Quintana Roo don’t have crime rates as high as other cities in Mexico, so Quintana Roo and Tulum are secure for foreigners. Quintana Roo is more secure for Americans and expats because this place lives off tourism, so if they don’t take care of the tourists’ security, the state will not be able to keep producing.
(Entrance to Gran Bahia Principle, Tulum, Mexico, pictured.)
Posted April 13, 2017
Roddrigo Sidney Whalesharkdaddy - Cancun Whale Shark Tours
Yes, there are problems in the Yucatan, but probably as much or less than in the crime centers in USA like Chicago, New York City, Baltimore, Philadelphia, etc. Most is directed within the cartel drug dealers, etc., but very, very rare involving tourists. As with everywhere, always be aware of your surroundings, be careful always keep your credit card in sight don’t let anyone take it out of your sight, especially at restaurants. Always have the waiter bring the machine to...
Yes, there are problems in the Yucatan, but probably as much or less than in the crime centers in USA like Chicago, New York City, Baltimore, Philadelphia, etc. Most is directed within the cartel drug dealers, etc., but very, very rare involving tourists. As with everywhere, always be aware of your surroundings, be careful always keep your credit card in sight don’t let anyone take it out of your sight, especially at restaurants. Always have the waiter bring the machine to your table avoid cloning.
Posted March 19, 2018