Last week we had a housewarming party! Our longtime RVing friends Jim and Patti stopped by Fountain of Youth (FOY). They’re on their way to two months of RVing in Mexico! It was our first get-together with friends inside the rig. But the weather was so nice we sat outside until the wind kicked up.
We had a great time reconnecting with this fun roadtripping duo. The first time we met was at FOY, way back in the before times, 2017. Since then we’ve met up on the road, even all the way north at Chena Hot Springs in Alaska with our friend Larry.
So Why am I Still Nervous About RVing in Mexico?
As first-timer RVers south of the border, our friends are getting their feet wet by going with Caravanas de Mexico to Baja California for a month. Then they’ll come back, resupply and head to Copper Canyon for another leisurely month of RVing to Mexico. Now that’s a destination that’s been on my bucket list for decades.
I’m told that going to Mexico with a group is the best and easiest way to get a feel for Mexico if you’ve never been. And Caravanas de Mexico is one of the best group tours out there, which I learned after writing this article for RV LIFE, “What’s it Like RVing in Mexico?“
I interviewed Paul Beddows, a representative of the company and he attempted to put a lot of my fears about RVing to Mexico to rest. He reassured me that the odds of having an encounter with criminals is about the same if not lower than traveling anywhere in the USA. And if you ask the thousands of Canadians who go winter RVing in Mexico they will tell you the same thing!
“Usually when you look more closely at it, you’ll find they (the victims) were involved in the drug trade. Do that and you’re just asking to come home in a body bag. If you’re just going down as an RVer, drug cartels aren’t interested in hassling you.”
Surprisingly, he says that the biggest risk for RVers in Mexico isn’t crime, but damage to your rig. “It is hard on your RV driving down there,” he says.
-Paul Beddows, Caravanas de Mexico
Yet I still admit to being a little nervous about RVing South of the Border
I’ve heard too many stories about Bad Things Happening to tourists in Mexico. And although I’m a Mexican-American myself and even have relatives near Guadalajara, I’m not 100% comfortable with our skills at getting out of tricky situations in a country where we aren’t fluent (my Gringo husband knows more Spanish than I do!).
Since we will be working full-time for at least a few more years, taking a ton of time off to travel in a group caravan isn’t practical for us. We have to work, and would miss out on too much if we tried to juggle that ball while sightseeing.
So Mexico will wait for us, for a little while anyways. I’m pretty sure we’ll get brave enough to RV to Mexico someday. Maybe the incoming administration will push us out of the States much sooner than I expect. I do know that whenver we leave the country, it will be in our low-key Project M. Till then I’ll live vicariously through other brave enough to try RVing in Mexico.
Have you done any RVing in Mexico recently? I’d love to know more about your experience.
¡Si, se puede!
Tomorrow we walk across to get permits etc then Saturday it gets real! I’m still a little nervous but ready to go.
We will keep you updated😁