We appreciate it when our guests share their stories with us and allow us to post them on our blog. Last month, Stan and Elizabeth Williams, from Calgary, Alberta, traveled with us to Copper Canyon. Before returning home they sent us an e-mail which we posted two weeks ago. In a followup e-mail they discussed the state of tourism in Mexico and the issue of security:
Hi Laurie:
Attached is our evaluation form for our Copper Canyon Tour from February 6 to February 15, 2011. Overall, you get straight “A’s”!! You can read the details but we couldn’t have enjoyed ourselves more and the tour ran like clockwork! We are already looking forward to our next California Native tour.
I just have a comment about the state of Mexico tourism in general. Prior to our trip, when people found out we were traveling to Mexico they said “isn’t that dangerous?” (in reference to the recent media reports). We responded by saying that it is no more dangerous than some parts of Calgary and we that were traveling with an experienced tour company called “California Native.”
We love Mexico. We find the people to be very friendly, helpful even with our broken Spanish, and curious about us. But the tourism situation in Mexico is in very sad condition. Despite being in the low tourism season, we expected there to be more foreign tourists than were there. We often had individual service at hotels restaurants, on tours and on the train because there were very few other travelers. The Mexicans we encountered depend on tourism for their livelihood.
If tourists have concerns about traveling in Mexico, then it is all the more reason to hire a tour company, like California Native, who knows the lay of the land and local customs, have dealt with service providers for years and can “put all the pieces” of a tour puzzle together so very well.
Thanks very much!
Senior Geologist, CBM
Nexen Inc.
Calgary, AB, Canada