Dear muskox37,

Hope you're well. Mexico's northern states, i.e., those that adjoin the US frontier, are locus of a war between drug traffickers and the Mexican authorities. Travel in/through such states necessarily involves death danger risk. It takes only a few milliseconds for any place to go from tranquil to warzone.

See the US State Department's travel advisory - updated as of 9 January 2014 - at: http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/english/alertswarnings/mexico-travel-warning.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ca%2Ftravelwarnings+%28%24{TravelWarnings}%29 .

A key paragraph in the State Department's advisory: "Carjacking and highway robbery are serious problems in many parts of the border region, and U.S. citizens have been murdered in such incidents. Most victims who complied with carjackers' demands have reported that they were not physically harmed. Carjackers have shot at vehicles that have attempted to flee. Incidents have occurred during the day and at night, and carjackers have used a variety of techniques, including roadblocks, bumping/moving vehicles to force them to stop, and running vehicles off the road at high speeds. There are indications that criminals target newer and larger vehicles, especially dark-colored SUVs. However, even drivers of old sedans and buses coming from the United States have been targeted. While violent incidents can occur anywhere and at any time, they most frequently occur at night and on isolated roads. To reduce risk when traveling by road, we strongly urge you to travel between cities throughout Mexico only during daylight hours, to avoid isolated roads, and to use toll roads ("cuotas") whenever possible."

I believe that foreigners, with rare exceptions, may not lawfully take firearms into Mexico: to do so without authority is a criminal offense. Even if foreigners could lawfully be armed in Mexico, narco-traffickers routinely commit multiple murders. I'd guess that narco-traffickers are equipped with top-notch weapons.

The bottom line: if You must travel to Puerto Vallarta, arrive by plane and minimize your time there.

Hope this helps.

Yours faithfully,

Spook