A Bad Situation Gets Worse in Tijuana

Travel Blog • Jim Benning • 02.20.08 | 1:13 PM ET

Tijuana should be a safe and thriving border city packed with happy day-tripping tourists savoring a taste of Mexican culture. But a recent front page story in the Los Angeles Times paints a grim picture of violence and plunging tourism in the city: Murders and kidnappings are way up—more than 50 people have been killed this year alone—and according to a local merchants association, only 150 tourists trickle in daily now.

Hoping the Times story was overblown, I e-mailed a friend who works in Tijuana to ask her take on it. Sadly, she thought it was on the mark. Businesses are really suffering.

I was in Tijuana not long ago to have a cup of coffee at Starbucks, but I bypassed the seedy strip —I mean “heart of the tourist district”—that is Avenida Revolución, so I didn’t notice a sharp decline in visitors.

I wish I were optimistic that efforts to crack down on the drug cartels behind the violence would be successful, but stories like this make that difficult.

Come on, Tijuana. !Si se puede!

Photo by Jim Benning.