Safety and crime in Vallarta

Since May 1, 2015, there’s been a lot of media interest and misinformation regarding Puerto Vallarta, violence, safety and if it’s safe to travel to Puerto Vallarta.

On May 1st, a coordinated group of criminals burned vehicles and stores/banks around town and in other places around the state of Jalisco, mostly in the periphery of the tourist areas, as protest and warning to officials that are cracking down on their mafia activities.

The state and local police responded quickly and the problems were quickly resolved in a matter of hours. Neither local civilians nor visiting tourists were harmed. There were no disturbances or restrictions affecting tourists in the area. Peace was restored and since then there have not been any further incidents.

All services and infrastructure related to tourism, including the cruise ship terminal area, Marina, airport, hotels, and resorts, tours and transportation services were all completely operational and unaffected.

Carnival representatives stated: “Given Mexican law enforcement’s comprehensive security plans currently in place in Puerto Vallarta, we will continue with our scheduled calls to the destination. However, in an abundance of caution, since earlier clashes between local groups and law enforcement occurred outside of Puerto Vallarta, we have temporarily suspended a small number of shore excursions that require travel outside the main city.”

Puerto Vallarta’s hotel occupation has been running at an average of 80% since October 2014. Occupancy was at 95% during the long holiday weekend between May 1–4, 2015.

A travel advisory cautioning tourists on the U.S. Embassy in Mexico website last week has been removed.

Apple Vacations, in daily contact with Amstar, its destination management company in Mexico, as well as with resort partners in Puerto Vallarta, have confirmed that the resort areas of Puerto Vallarta have not been affected.

“Our customers are enjoying their vacations without incident,” Apple Vacations wrote in an email to travel agents.

The North American Travel Journalist Association (NATJA) Annual Conference was held in Puerto Vallarta from May 4th to 9th and the city hosted over 140 American and Canadian travel writers, editors, bloggers, photographers, and videographers.

All delegates enjoyed lots of tours and activities all around Puerto Vallarta and surrounding locations south and north on their own, as well as in group outings, during their week-long visit and have been posting blogs, live tweets, photos and videos of their experience:

Anyway, the conclusion is that despite some scary hours starting the month of May, things are fine and well in town, authorities are working diligently to keep everything safe for locals and tourists and we are sure it will continue that way. Puerto Vallarta is known for the kind and helpful locals and they intend to keep it that way.

More on what to do in Puerto Vallarta.

Resources

  • Travel Weekly PR1 PR2
  • US Department of State Travel Warnings for Mexico: http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/english/alertswarnings/mexico-travel-warning.html
  • Various New Sites and PRs
  • VisitPuertoVallarta.com

More information:

Last Updated on 22/07/2022 by Puerto Vallarta Net