Tijuana Safety Tips
Created | Updated Mar 20, 2007
This is truly incredible that no one has written a separate article about Tijuana, because from what I have experienced, it's quite separate from the rest of Mexico. I just spun by there, so if anyone has some extra info, please let me know. I just wanted to get a few key tips down for all those heading down there.
-Tijuana, if you don't know, is right on the border of Mexico, south of San Diego. Getting in is no problem; you can park your car a block away from the border for a few bucks, and literally walk over the border with no real checks. Getting back IN is a different story, though, as I'll explain later...
-From the moment you step in there, don't believe ANYTHING that ANYONE says to you, unless he/she looks like a tourist or fellow American. THIS IS CRUCIAL!! I'm not saying specifically who or who not to trust, but be very careful about trusting anyone, ESPECIALLY if they want to sell you something. The only trustworthy things I found were the taxi drivers, but be careful about that too. It's almost always a flat rate of $5 into Tijuana, which is only a few minutes away.
-There is no industry in Tijuana. There are mostly just shops selling overpriced junk, the owners of which are exceptionally talented at luring tourists into bargaining traps. If you feel unsure, just say "No thanks," or walk away. The other 50% or so of stores there are bars, restaurants, and clubs (night clubs, strip clubs, etc.) Explore with caution, but as long as you stay near the center of things, not on any side alleys, you should be okay.
-Try your best not to eat or drink anything not sealed. If you feel the urge to get some "real" Mexican food, just go back to San Diego. They have plenty of very friendly Mexicans there who will cook up an authentic, tasty, sanitary meal for you.
-Getting in might be a breeze, but getting out is by far the most challenging ordeal you will go through in your trip there. If you take a car, which I seriously DON'T recommment, you will be stuck in solid traffic for many hours while, what d'ya know, more people trying to sell you stuff! If you walked in, which most people do, you will have to deal with a line that is not very difficult to find (a taxi will take you quickly from Tijuana to the border, for 5 or 6 dollars). This line looks painfully long, and there will be many, MANY people working about there to lure you into "faster" route out of the border. IGNORE THEM AND GET IN LINE!!! This is one of the most crucial parts of your trip! My family and I were almost hijacked by one of these "services"; all they do is take you to a completely different town, cross the border, and, if you're lucky, take you all the way back to where you started. Waste of money and time. They all say it'll take 3 to 4 hours to get over the border, but we rolled through the horrendous-looking line in 45 minutes.
You may think I sound a little critical about the city of Tijuana, and you yourself may have found the place much more entertaining, but hey! I've only been there once, and very briefly. I'm just here to get those few safety tips out, and if anyone has a slightly sweeter story to tell, get it out there, because regardless of your viewpoint, this is definately not a town you can go into uninformed.
-Tijuana, if you don't know, is right on the border of Mexico, south of San Diego. Getting in is no problem; you can park your car a block away from the border for a few bucks, and literally walk over the border with no real checks. Getting back IN is a different story, though, as I'll explain later...
-From the moment you step in there, don't believe ANYTHING that ANYONE says to you, unless he/she looks like a tourist or fellow American. THIS IS CRUCIAL!! I'm not saying specifically who or who not to trust, but be very careful about trusting anyone, ESPECIALLY if they want to sell you something. The only trustworthy things I found were the taxi drivers, but be careful about that too. It's almost always a flat rate of $5 into Tijuana, which is only a few minutes away.
-There is no industry in Tijuana. There are mostly just shops selling overpriced junk, the owners of which are exceptionally talented at luring tourists into bargaining traps. If you feel unsure, just say "No thanks," or walk away. The other 50% or so of stores there are bars, restaurants, and clubs (night clubs, strip clubs, etc.) Explore with caution, but as long as you stay near the center of things, not on any side alleys, you should be okay.
-Try your best not to eat or drink anything not sealed. If you feel the urge to get some "real" Mexican food, just go back to San Diego. They have plenty of very friendly Mexicans there who will cook up an authentic, tasty, sanitary meal for you.
-Getting in might be a breeze, but getting out is by far the most challenging ordeal you will go through in your trip there. If you take a car, which I seriously DON'T recommment, you will be stuck in solid traffic for many hours while, what d'ya know, more people trying to sell you stuff! If you walked in, which most people do, you will have to deal with a line that is not very difficult to find (a taxi will take you quickly from Tijuana to the border, for 5 or 6 dollars). This line looks painfully long, and there will be many, MANY people working about there to lure you into "faster" route out of the border. IGNORE THEM AND GET IN LINE!!! This is one of the most crucial parts of your trip! My family and I were almost hijacked by one of these "services"; all they do is take you to a completely different town, cross the border, and, if you're lucky, take you all the way back to where you started. Waste of money and time. They all say it'll take 3 to 4 hours to get over the border, but we rolled through the horrendous-looking line in 45 minutes.
You may think I sound a little critical about the city of Tijuana, and you yourself may have found the place much more entertaining, but hey! I've only been there once, and very briefly. I'm just here to get those few safety tips out, and if anyone has a slightly sweeter story to tell, get it out there, because regardless of your viewpoint, this is definately not a town you can go into uninformed.
