Safety

Beyond the standard precautions you take when you travel to any foreign destination, a visit to this part of the country is reasonably safe. Chiapas and Tabasco states get clean bills of health in the U.S. State Department lists of Mexico travel advisories. The cartel violence that plagues certain pockets of the country is not found here. While the root causes of Chiapas’s Zapatista uprisings in the 1990s still very much exist, the disturbances themselves can be relegated to the history books and need not concern you as a traveler. Review the information on the State Department Web site at https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en.html for updates. Always carry your passport even on day trips throughout the region. If you're a first-time visitor, you may be more comfortable taking tours of this region—especially if you don't speak Spanish (English is not as common in this area.) Both states use Mexico’s nationwide 066 emergency telephone number for police, fire, and ambulance calls. Ask for an operator who speaks English.