OK…Yes, most folks who follow the Mexico forums are aware but you would not know otherwise. Short story, cartels have been a problem for decades throughout Mexico, they do control many small businesses. Since the drug trade routes go through central Mexico (the Riviera Maya is in the Yucatán Peninsula) this area had been less impacted by this major violence. There have been instances of cartel enforcement as well as turf wars in the larger metro areas over the years (Cancun, PDC, etc), but on a much smaller scale. Cancun has had many instances of cartel-related killings recently, and there have been a couple innocent bystanders killed. But the vast majority of instances have not involved innocent bystanders. Playa has been relatively quiet. You can find good (accurate) information on some of the better travel sites.

The events in Tulum are now worldwide news…Last year Marines were sent in to regain control, that effort largely failed. Now the governor is sending in the National Guard, hopefully that helps to curb the extreme violence and protect not only business owners but visitors. This reminds us of the crime syndicates (cartels) that have extorted businesses and corrupted politicians in many US cities…

And I had asked George what his point was since he didn’t leave a comment, and I had already established the cartels were indeed entrenched in the metro areas here.