# driving from philly to Tulum



## tulumchef (Sep 9, 2010)

My husband is driving this week from Philly to Tulum. Any ideas on the safest border crossing where he can legalize his old pickup. He is a native mexican citizen and now a us citizen as well traveling with my our toddler. Thanks for your help !!


----------



## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Everyone wants to know the "safest" of everything; crossing points, hotels, restaurants, etc. That puzzles me, but I understand how the media hysteria must be affecting those who aren't actually here. I guess we are expected to know the date, time and place of the next law enforcement raid, inter-gang battle, etc. The truth is, they don't happen at the border crossings.
So, your husband may cross wherever it is convenient. I do hope that he has the proper paperwork for the child.


----------



## tulumchef (Sep 9, 2010)

*Philly to Tulum*



RVGRINGO said:


> Everyone wants to know the "safest" of everything; crossing points, hotels, restaurants, etc. That puzzles me, but I understand how the media hysteria must be affecting those who aren't actually here. I guess we are expected to know the date, time and place of the next law enforcement raid, inter-gang battle, etc. The truth is, they don't happen at the border crossings.
> So, your husband may cross wherever it is convenient. I do hope that he has the proper paperwork for the child.



Thanks for your cynical answer. No, violent eopisodes don't happen at border crossings but the towns surrounding them.We are moving to Mexico because we love the country. I am not posing the question from a myopic perspective. Whether we like it or not, 8,000 people have died this year alone in drug violence. This is not a fairy tale or media hype, it is reality. I am not afraid of anything, I just try and protect my child as any mother would. Like any "war", there are hot spots. This is reality also. I guess I'll do my own homework. Thanks anyway. My child is a dual citizen with 2 passports.


----------



## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

You really do need to do further research and hopefully before your husband embarks on his trip else he is likely to find himself stuck at the border or being a renegade in Mexico.

Your child's passports are not the issue. Are you aware that one parent bringing a child across the border is required to have a notarized letter of permission from the other parent? They may or may not check this documentation but if they do you had better have it. There is a big problem with parents taking kids out of the country over custody disputes and Mexico is bound by treaties governing this. Yeah, yeah, you're gonna say there is no custody dispute here but nobody can read your minds. 

I also think you're in for a big surprise with the truck as you cannot just "legalize" a U.S. vehicle into Mexico. A Mexican national is not even allowed to get a temporary import permit but he may be able to get one as a U.S. citizen. It is good for 180 days.

As for the hot spots, they range all along the border and coast. No amount of research or asking around is going to give you any better idea of what route will be safest next week.


----------



## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Calmate amiga. The point is, as you mention, that there are incidents in border towns; but also in others, and my suggestion is that there is no way to predict where you might encounter problems. Frankly, the odds are that you won't encounter any difficulties at all, since the vast majority of the problems occur between people involved with drugs, authorities, military, etc.; certainly not a major concern for uninvolved travelers. Normal precautions against simple robbery are to avoid driving at night or making yourself an obvious target by flashing money, etc. We, and many friends, travel frequently and others cross the border often. You should not expect to run into trouble. Naturally, your husband will have to cross at one of the larger points, in order to take care of his truck importation, and he should probably plan to do that early in the morning.


----------



## tulumchef (Sep 9, 2010)

*philly to tulum*



RVGRINGO said:


> Calmate amiga. The point is, as you mention, that there are incidents in border towns; but also in others, and my suggestion is that there is no way to predict where you might encounter problems. Frankly, the odds are that you won't encounter any difficulties at all, since the vast majority of the problems occur between people involved with drugs, authorities, military, etc.; certainly not a major concern for uninvolved travelers. Normal precautions against simple robbery are to avoid driving at night or making yourself an obvious target by flashing money, etc. We, and many friends, travel frequently and others cross the border often. You should not expect to run into trouble. Naturally, your husband will have to cross at one of the larger points, in order to take care of his truck importation, and he should probably plan to do that early in the morning.


Thank you very much to all. This information is most helpful.
We are looking forward to beginning our new life back in Mexico.
Muchisimas Gracias


----------



## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

Let us know how it turns out, for the benefit of those coming along after you.


----------



## thehoosier (Sep 10, 2010)

*Driving from Indy to Merida*



tulumchef said:


> My husband is driving this week from Philly to Tulum. Any ideas on the safest border crossing where he can legalize his old pickup. He is a native mexican citizen and now a us citizen as well traveling with my our toddler. Thanks for your help !!


We are driving to Merida in May from Indianapolis. I have found alot of great info on Yolisto. But we plan to cross at Brownsville. We are following the directions we got from a website. Several of the members on Yolisto used this site to drive to Merida.

I was going to add the link for you, but it says I am not an active member or whatever.... So I cannot.


Please let us know how your border crossing and drive goes. Good Luck!


----------



## heyjood (Nov 22, 2009)

Mexicomike has all the answers for driving throughout mexico. ..jude.


----------



## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

If you are driving down this week I would worry less about border crossings and worry more about the flooding in the states of Veracruz and Tabasco, seems likeparts of the Rio Papaloapan are flooded as are parts of 145 between Minatitlan and Villahermosa.....be careful








tulumchef said:


> My husband is driving this week from Philly to Tulum. Any ideas on the safest border crossing where he can legalize his old pickup. He is a native mexican citizen and now a us citizen as well traveling with my our toddler. Thanks for your help !!


----------



## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

heyjood said:


> Mexicomike has all the answers for driving throughout mexico. ..jude.


And he often charges for those answers. 

Still, no one person can ever have ALL the answers because there simply isn't that much consistency with regards to Mexico. The way it works at one border crossing may not be how it works at some other crossing, regardless of what some consulate official or website says is the correct way. The way it worked yesterday may not be how it works today. 

I'm not knocking MexicoMike, just saying that it is best to cull information from a variety of sources which is why forums like this are so helpful.


----------



## conklinwh (Dec 19, 2009)

I don't want to minimize any ones concerns at the border but Chicois8 raises a good point. We drove from the state of Guanjuato to San Cristobal last Sunday and back yesterday, Friday. 145 was closed in Veracruz on the way down and the route that we were sent was both long and tricky as water very close to road height and a lot of people were basically living on the road as chased from there homes. Even though it rained everyday in San Cristobal, the flooding in Vera Cruz was noticeably lower and the road open on the return trip. You will also need more time as the flooding and rain has torn up the road in a lot of places. Even the trip back took 1.5 hours longer and that with the road open as a lot of potholes and single lanes.


----------



## tcreek (Sep 13, 2010)

ReefHound said:


> I also think you're in for a big surprise with the truck as you cannot just "legalize" a U.S. vehicle into Mexico.


Why not?




ReefHound said:


> A Mexican national is not even allowed to get a temporary import permit but he may be able to get one as a U.S. citizen. It is good for 180 days.


Not true. If they have immigration documents indicating they are US residents, they sure can.


----------



## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

tcreek said:


> Not true. If they have immigration documents indicating they are US residents, they sure can.


Sorry, that's what I meant. I should have included permanent residents along with citizens.

As for why you cannot legalize a sued car in Mexico, that's what I have heard from numerous sources. I tried to do it awhile back. I hope I'm wrong. Please, anyone, prove me wrong. But I have not been able to get an answer from consulate officials, customs officials at the border, or online. I have not heard from one person anywhere who has done it legally within recent years (there was an amnesty program a few years back) and can document it in a credible manner.

Looking at your other thread, it might be possible if one is persistent enough but it appears they are doing their best to deter it by hiding the process from the public eye and killing it with obtuse and vague documentation requirements.


----------



## gringainparadise (Sep 16, 2010)

Tulumchef - My husband just came down from Austin, TX via Brownsville with a US vehicle. I am aware that things change daily (hourly?) at the border crossings and every encounter is different but if you would like to get his take on the experience let me know and he can send you an email. I am new to this site (today) and I was trying to find a way to PM you but could not figure it out. I am not even sure I am doing this correctly  We would also love to meet you when you all get down here.


----------



## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

The PM feature will become available to you when you have been on the forum for a while longer and have made more postings.


----------



## conklinwh (Dec 19, 2009)

I just drove up to the border today via San Luis Potosi, around Ciudad Victoria, 101/180 toward Matamoros and the cut off via Valle Hermosa to the Los Indios crossing and Harlingen, TX. Other than a dozen people doing transmigration towing cars to central America backing up Banjercito, the drive was great and very quick. More military checkpoints but all friendly.


----------

