Global Investigative and Security Firm Confirms What We Already Knew: Puerto Vallarta is Safe

Following a recent study commissioned by thePuerto Vallarta Tourism Board, San Diego investigative and security firm Thomas Dale & Associates (TDA) concluded that “Puerto Vallarta is one of the safest tourist destinations for international and national tourists.”

This is exactly what a small but growing group of writers and media outlets have been saying for some time.

Investigators from Thomas Dale & Associates visited Puerto Vallarta for a week in early April to carry out a thorough safety and security risk assessment.

According to a press releaseissued by the Puerto Vallarta Tourism Board on May 26, 2011, as part of the survey, TDA representatives conducted interviews with the Canadian and American consuls, international tourists, expatriate residents, part-time residents, business owners, and gay community business representatives, among others.

In addition, they collected crime statistic data from local police forces, and consulted the Civil Protection Department (FIMA) to assess the danger from natural disasters.

According to a document supplied by the Puerto Vallarta Tourism Board, the interviews focused on the following three areas: safety in Puerto Vallarta and the perception of its visitors; personal experiences; and the US travel warning about Mexico. The firm concluded that Puerto Vallarta is one of the safest tourist destinations for both national and international tourists.

Of the need for an inquiry, Director of the Fideicomiso de Turismo Puerto Vallarta Salvador Pena Chavez said in a phone call with PV Pulse, “There’s so much bad press about Mexico.”

There is no doubt that the country has seen an increase in drug-related violence since the 2006 implementation of Mexican President Felipe Calderon’s war-on-drugs strategy. However, the coverage of these stories has, with a few exceptions, been politically and geographically imprecise, suggesting that the entire country is embroiled in a bloody turf war.

This idea, however erroneous, has been adopted by the Bureau of Consular Affairs (CA), a branch of the U.S. State Department whose mission is to “protect the lives and interests of American citizens abroad and to strengthen the security of United States borders through the vigilant adjudication of visas and passports.” The CA issued its most recent Mexico travel warning on April 22, 2011.

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