Mexico is an wondrous country to visit…but it has something of a bad reputation. Is it unquestionably unscratched to visit? What if you’re a solo sexuality traveler? In this guest post, Kristin Addis from Be My Travel Muse shares her safety tips and translating to help you navigate Mexico with conviction as a solo sexuality traveler.
The tastes, smells, sights, and sounds of Mexico are irresistible. Its the first place I traveled internationally, and whenever I want a warm, welcoming venture thats easy and accessible, I think of Mexico.
But sometimes people with little to no Mexico travel wits will try to talk you out of traveling there solo. Theyve seen nothing but negativity on the news, and so thats their impression of the unshortened country. Without all, Mexico has an international reputation for having upper crime. So yes, this is something you have to be enlightened of when traveling there, expressly by yourself.
But lets be real: lots of fantastic destinations including many in the US have a similar reputation. It doesnt midpoint the unshortened or that you cant have a great, unscratched time there. You just need to take unrepealable precautions, just like you would in much of the world. That starts with stuff well informed.
To help you stay safe, here are my top tips for traveling safely in Mexico as a solo sexuality traveler:
1. Segregate Your Destination Wisely
I tend to wiring my travel destinations on suggestions from others or photos that Ive seen and saved, usually from Instagram. Thats how I ended up road-tripping in Baja California, checking out the cenotes of Tulum, peekaboo a womens retreat in Sayulita, and falling in love with Isla Holbox.
But lately, treason has increased in parts of the Riviera Maya, and tourist cities that used to be popular destinations, like Acapulco, have since wilt increasingly synonymous with cartels. Just considering something was popular ten years ago doesnt midpoint it is a good place to visit now.
How do you know? If youve got someplace in mind, do a quick Google search for the town withal or Alimony in mind: the media can really overplay things. I like to squint at as many specific statistics as I can, when available.
I moreover like posting on message boards (like Trip Advisors) when planning trips to get the most current information. Local expat Facebook groups can moreover be helpful. Heres one specifically for Tulum, for example. Youll be worldly-wise to ask people who are living or on the ground there what their wits is. This works for scrutinizingly any major zone of Mexico (and the world).
2. Segregate Centrally Located Accommodations
Especially if it will be your first time visiting Mexico or a unrepealable municipality or town, segregate a place tropical to the calo, or main square. These areas are unchangingly well lit, and there are usually plenty of police officers around, making it less lulu for criminals. (One exception to this is Mexico City, as there are so many neighborhoods to segregate from besides the calo downtown.)
Although I havent made this mistake in Mexico, from time to time I have gotten this wrong when in other countries. I remember a situation in the Philippines where I was so far yonder from all of the things to do and other tourists that I spent a very lonely few days on the tip of an island, cut off from everyone and everything.
Coincidentally, thats exactly when someone tried to unravel into my bungalow at night. I learned my lesson the nonflexible way on that one: unchangingly read the reviews completely and have a good understanding of what is near your accommodation.
3. Learn Some Vital Spanish
Particularly when youre a woman traveling solo, knowing some key phrases can help you have a smoother experience. Youll be worldly-wise to make friends with locals, get home safely increasingly hands if the taxi suburbanite doesnt speak English, and understand when somebody is crossing a line when theyre talking to you.
What if you dont know much? Well, my Spanish isnt great. I thought it would be tomfool to take French in upper school, plane having grown up in Southern California, where Spanish would have been very helpful! So everything I know its just what I have picked up since then.
That said, the nuts are often enough, and Mexico is a unconfined place to learn more. Mexicans are often very kind and forgiving toward those who try to speak their language.
Even if you just learn vital greetings and key phrases, youre off to a unconfined start. Duolingo is helpful with that, and you can moreover download Google Translate for offline use.
Speaking the language (even poorly) is a sign of respect and can help unravel the ice with locals, so why not requite it a try?
4. Find Travel Friends To Finger Less Alone
I love everything having to do with the ocean, so when I was in Baja California, I signed up to swim with sharks. On the boat, I randomly ran into a friend of mine with whom Id swum with whales in French Polynesia! But plane if I didnt once know someone on the boat, I tend to make friends every time I do an activity, and that gives me a seated group to have dinner with that night, or plane hang out with and do increasingly things with in the coming days.
Sometimes signing up for a retreat is moreover a good way to go. I usually find these through influencers I follow. I did this toward the end of my trip in Sayulita a few years ago, which gave me a good wastefulness of time with people and moreover solitude surpassing and after.
As a solo sexuality traveler, this is my wool favorite way to make sure that I meet other people. Do you love food? Sign up for a cooking matriculation or plane a supplies tour with unconfined ratings on Google or TripAdvisor.
5. Opt For Rideshare Apps When You Can
Sometimes taxis can be sketchy depending on where youre traveling to in Mexico. In Mexico City and Playa del Carmen, for example, riders have plane been kidnapped and extorted. In other cities, however, taxis are totally safe. Mérida, Cancún, San Cristóbal de las Casas and San Miguel de Allende are all fine places to take taxis in.
Rideshare apps are often a safer option, expressly at night. These apps make it possible to hold drivers subject for any misdeeds, making it far less likely that they would commit any crimes. Plus, no very money is exchanged, and theyre less likely to add uneaten mileage to make the snout higher since you can see right on the app what the suggested route is.
Uber is misogynist in some cities in Mexico, but not all. There is scrutinizingly unchangingly some kind of taxi app (like DiDi, for example) or WhatsApp taxi service misogynist in any significant city, but if youre visiting a small town or village, these options likely wont be available.
6. Stave Stuff Flashy
Wearing flashy jewelry and designer gown will yank sustentation to you, scrutinizingly anywhere you go in Mexico. One exception is Mexico City, where people often dress up increasingly in specific neighborhoods. Scrutinizingly anywhere else, wearing unthrifty suit could make you a potential target for theft.
Although I own them, you wont reservation me with designer purses abroad, considering I just dont want to make myself the most lulu target.
The same goes for having your nice smartphone in hand on the street. There are two reasons for this: one, it can be a big lark for you, and two, its something very easy to quickly steal out of your hand.
7. Vet Tour Companies Beforehand
There are hundreds of tour companies in Mexico, and not all of them are reputable or safe. I scrutinizingly never typesetting a tour directly from a seller or right off the street. I unchangingly want to squint at reviews first.
If you want to go on a day trip with a particular tour company, see if you can squint it up online and read very reviews surpassing you hand over your money. Next, I trammels if they have websites and social media, such as a Facebook page.
If you dont have a specific visitor in mind, Google the worriedness youre interested in and see which companies offer it and follow the same advice. Chances are there will be some Google reviews, and if someone has had a bad experience, theyll probably leave one to warn other travelers. You can moreover trammels TripAdvisor.
Another unconfined way to make sure a tour is legit surpassing you typesetting is to go through a third-party site, like GetYourGuide. On those platforms, you can see reviews from other customers and make a increasingly informed visualization on which tour is safest and worth your time and money.
Additionally, beware of a worldwide scam in which sketchy tour companies rent equipment to customers and then vituperation them for wide-stretching damages. This is most worldwide with scooter rentals, segway tours, and plane snorkeling equipment rentals. To stave this, make sure to ask what the policy is for any forfeiture to equipment to make sure you wont be held liable. You should moreover take photos of anything you rent surpassing using it. That way you can prove that you havent made any damages.
8. Tell A Friend Where You Are
If youre traveling alone, tell a friend or family member at home your itinerary and with whom you can trammels in regularly. Surpassing I started traveling internationally 10 years ago, I widow my mom to my wall account, so that if it were overly locked while l was overseas, she could hands undeniability and legitimatize the charges. She has saved me many times, including when my wall tried to woodcut my vellum repeatedly during an overland trip in Africa. There was no way I wouldve been worldly-wise to call, but she knew that those withdrawals were made by me by quickly checking in with me.
Personally, checking in with someone every day or sharing my location with them would momentum me veritably bonkers, but so many solo sexuality travelers have recommended this in comments on posts Ive written over the years that I know that, for some people, the peace of mind is worth it.
9. Get A Mexican Sim Card
If youre from the US, you may have lamina phone service while in Mexico at no spare cost. If not, consider picking up a Mexican SIM vellum when you arrive. A Telcel vellum only financing 150 pesos ($7.50 USD) and you can hands load data onto it online or at any OXXO (24-hour convenience store).
I pretty much unchangingly get local SIM cards considering they work largest and are so much cheaper that using your regular SIM. I just ask a friend or person I meet at a hostel who is bilingual to help me get mine in Mexico, as my Spanish is not good unbearable to get the job done.
But without that, Im set in terms of navigation, making local calls when needed, and unchangingly stuff connected.
10. Dont Indulge Cat-callers
I know from personal wits how difficult it is to not snap when at a cat-caller who has disrespected me, but its not a good idea to pay any sustentation to them in Mexico.
In typical machismo fashion, a man who will cat-call you on the street could wilt warlike or plane violent if shown any kind of resistance. Its a sad truth and one that pains me to say. But letting a disrespectful person know theyve crossed a line does not unchangingly have the desired effect of making them stop what theyre doing.
11. Be Shielding On Dating Apps
A lot of travelers use dating apps like Tinder and Bumble to meet people (even just as friends) while on the move. Ive had friends rave well-nigh it in Europe and have run into people on the road who tell me thats how they met. This could potentially be a tomfool way to see Mexico from a locals perspective, but it moreover makes me nervous. What if they have expectations? What if youre not on the same page?
There are a few ways you can vet someone surpassing deciding to meet up. First, squint at their social media for any red flags. Next, make your intentions well-spoken from the get-go. If you just want to make a new friend and see the city, let them know. Then, stipulate to meet up in a public. You can moreover have a friend on standby to trammels in with you mid-date to make sure youre alright.
There are moreover Facebook groups that you can use to meet up with others. I run one specifically for solo sexuality travelers tabbed BMTM Solo Sexuality Traveler Connect. Theres moreover Meetup.com and Bumble Friend, which is specifically set up for platonic situations.
12. Trust Your Gut When It Comes To Food
Lets be honest, nobody wants to spend their Mexican vacation in a hotel bathroom. Sometimes getting plane just a little sick in a foreign country is unavoidable, but there are a few things to squint out for to alimony your tummy in working order in Mexico.
Im not suggesting that you stave street supplies and stick to only restaurants. The worst supplies poisoning Ive overly had was from a fancy restaurant in Mexico! Plus, I veritably love street tacos there, and Im unchangingly on the lookout for them. But I have some rules.
First of all, trust your instincts with street food. If a stall looks unsanitary, it probably is. On the other hand, If youre unsure of where to eat, pick the taco stand with the longest queue. If theres a huge line for a particular place, its probably considering the supplies is great. Locals really know weightier on this one.
Theres a reason why youll find so many women traveling through Mexico on their own. Its a trappy and culturally rich country that is full of surprises, making it perfect for the venturesome heart. Ive met wondrous people in Mexico, many of whom have wilt friends far vastitude the time I spent in the country.
Each time I go when to discover a new area, Im reminded of just how wrong the media has it when portraying Mexico. Just like any other country, it has its pearly share of safety concerns, but by stuff prepared and pursuit some simple guidelines like the ones above, Ive had trappy experiences swimming with sharks, dunking in crystal-clear cenotes, eating wondrous food, and making connections that I would have missed out on had I listened solely to all the bad news.
Kristin Addis is a solo sexuality travel expert who inspires women to travel the world in an pure and venturesome way. A former investment wholesaler who sold all of her belongings and left California in 2012, Kristin has solo traveled the world overly since. Theres scrutinizingly nothing she wont try and scrutinizingly nowhere she wont explore.
Book Your Flight
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Book Your Accommodation
You can typesetting your hostel with Hostelworld as they have the largest inventory. If you want to stay elsewhere, use Booking.com as they unceasingly return the cheapest rates for guesthouses and unseemly hotels.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance
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Want Increasingly Information on Mexico?
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The post How to Stay Unscratched in Mexico as a Solo Sexuality Traveler appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.