'They're freaking out.' Should travelers cancel their Cancun trips?

• A military operation against a cartel leader in Puerto Vallarta has raised safety concerns for tourists traveling to Mexico.
• Security experts and locals state that tourist areas like Cancun, over 1,000 miles away, remain largely unaffected and calm.
• The U.S. State Department advises travelers to "exercise increased caution" in Mexico, with a specific warning for the state of Quintana Roo.

Elizabeth Urraza works for destination wedding planning company Paradise Weddings and is based in Playa del Carmen, Mexico – about 45 minutes south of Cancun in Quintana Roo. After hearing about the military operation in Puerto Vallarta, many of her clients with weddings in Cancun over the next year have been calling to see what they should do.

"They're freaking out because the news in their homes is fresh," Urraza told USA TODAY. "And then people are looking at the news, or ... maybe they just sent out their save the dates, and they're like, 'Oh my gosh, we're having a wedding in Mexico,' but they're like a year and a half out or a year out."

On Feb. 22, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, who led the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación and was known as El Mencho, was killed, along with six other cartel members. His death sparked civil unrest in Puerto Vallarta and more than a dozen Mexican states, including Quintana Roo, with cars set on fire and blockades obstructing highways.

Tourists were sheltering in place and scrambling at airports. Now, shaken by the incident, some are reconsidering their Mexican vacations beyond Puerto Vallarta, including the country's most visited destination: Cancun.

By Feb. 24, airport operations have returned to normal, with extra flights added out of Puerto Vallarta. The U.S. State Department advisory also lifted the shelter-in-place guidance, and there are no further reports of road closures. Nevertheless, security experts have warned against the risks of traveling to Puerto Vallarta and the surrounding area.

Cancun is located over 1,187 miles from Puerto Vallarta – a distance similar to that between Los Angeles and Chicago.

A drop in visitors to Mexico's top tourist hub could have far-reaching impacts. Tourism is a major part of Mexico's economy, bringing in $36.7 billion in revenue last year, with over half of travel being concentrated in Quintana Roo.

Many locals in Cancun are emphasizing that the situation portrayed in the news does not fully reflect what is actually happening on the ground. They’re encouraging travelers to look beyond the headlines and social media, and instead seek out reliable and up-to-date information to make informed decisions – potentially continuing with their travel plans if they feel comfortable doing so.

"Everything is super controlled [in Cancun]," Urraza said. "So, like, you get on your van, you head to your resort, you have a great time at the resort and go back. I would say, obviously, be mindful as anywhere in the world when you travel."

Is it safe to visit Cancun?

Mexico is under a level 2 travel advisory by the State Department, urging travelers to "exercise increased caution" due to terrorism, crime and kidnapping. Some states have a higher risk for travelers, up to a level 4 that denotes "do not travel." Quintana Roo has a level 2 advisory for "a risk of violence."

Fears about visiting Mexico aren't necessarily new. Many travelers are aware of the cartel's presence in many parts of the country, but violence in tourist areas, like what happened in Puerto Vallarta, is typically rare. "Because it's so tourist-heavy, the organized crimes tend to leave it alone; they don’t want to poke the bear," Mike Ballard, director of intelligence at security firm Global Guardian, previously told USA TODAY. "But folks are going to have to reconsider the totality of the security landscape in those places."

Quintana Roo was minimally impacted by Feb. 22's civil unrest, with several cars and stores ignited on fire, reported local media outlet Riviera Maya News.

According to Jason Wright, who founded Paradise Weddings and is mainly based in Montreal, most travelers to Cancun don't leave their resorts, which are protected with security guards and often considered safe. "You go from bubble, which is the airport, to another bubble, which is the resort. If you want to go on excursions and stuff, that's a different story, or go into the city and walk the streets."

Wright doesn't expect to see a significant number of travelers steering away from Cancun for long. "Incidents can temporarily raise questions, but Cancun has decades of experience hosting millions of international visitors every year," he said. "That familiarity creates confidence, so we don't anticipate any lasting or meaningful drop in demand."

'One incident in one city'

As of the afternoon of Feb. 23, life in Cancun is business as usual. Mariana Lange, a Cancun resident since 2019, said the city feels "completely calm." People are at the beach, public transport is up and running, kids are attending school and businesses are open, said Lange, who helps people relocate to Mexico with her company Mexico Relocation Guide.

She added that while the event was "scary" and some may wonder if the Riviera Maya is "next," most don't need to worry about security. "Unfortunately, all of Mexico is being deemed as a war zone right now," she added. "But nothing could be further from the truth. One incident in one city doesn't mean the whole country is in shambles."

She urges travelers to stay informed via government websites, like the State Department's advisories, rather than only considering the videos and images of burning cars on social media.

Jeff Natale, an American who moved to Playa del Carmen six years ago and is working toward Mexican citizenship, said he's never experienced a cartel-related event like this before. "I think that the biggest impression people have here is that the cartels are running everything and that it's not safe," Natale told USA TODAY. "Believe me, they're not interested in you. They have their own issues, cartel versus cartel. ... The only time that it really makes the news is when there are foreigners involved or in a big resort where there are visitors and travelers. But for the most part, we don't see any of that that goes on and it is very, very few and far between."

Urraza echoed that sentiment, saying that while some Quintana Roo residents were panicked upon first seeing the news, authorities and officials have reassured everyone is safe – and it feels like any other day in Cancun. "We're telling [clients] that things are running as normal in Cancun as they have been last week, you know," she said.