Ryan O’Hare has been busy at work the last few days.
The owner of Voyage Geeks travel agency is a professional travel advisor based in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood. The recent unrest due to widespread cartel violence and travel advisory level warnings in Mexico has had a lot of clients reaching out.
“I have been navigating this with very nervous clients,” O’Hare said. “Their nervousness is certainly justified, but we like to work with the facts we have at hand.”
The U.S. Embassy website reported Wednesday that all restrictions have been lifted and public transportation and businesses returned to normal operations following a law enforcement operation on Feb. 22 in Tijuana, Baja, California and Monterrey (Nuevo Leon).
U.S. citizens no longer need to shelter in place.
The operation included the Mexican Army killing of Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” an international drug trafficker and cartel boss of Jalisco New Generation Cartel, as reported by the Associated Press.
Flight schedules have returned to normal in Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta, with airports reported as secure and with amenities, according to the latest U.S. Embassy security alert issued Wednesday.
But that news isn’t quelling the nerves of some Pittsburgh-area travelers.
On Tuesday, O’Hare rebooked a large family group from a resort in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, on the Yucatan Peninsula, to an alternative resort in the Dominican Republic.
“While the Riviera Maya on the east coast of Mexico is not in the crosshairs of the unrest, it was still concerning to them given the number of children in their group,” O’Hare said.
He said the recent violence spilling into tourist areas of Puerto Vallarta has resulted in a change to some cruise ship itineraries.
O’Hare said many cruise lines have cancelled scheduled calls on Puerto Vallarta in the coming days and weeks and are opting instead for other popular ports such as Cabo San Lucas or Mazatlan.
Fielding calls and texts from clients booked on cruises scheduled to stop in Cozumel, Mexico, has been on O’Hare’s radar this week.
“Some clients are many months away from sailing. In that situation, I’ve been recommending that they still plan their stop there as many cruise ships and local government officials have deemed that area safe,” O’Hare said. “Cruise lines have teams of security professionals watching the developing situation and they will never put the cruise ship or their passengers in danger. They will cancel a port of call or redirect to a different port if necessary.”
State Rep. Abby Major, R-Leechburg, said Wednesday she had not received any calls from constituents about travel to Mexico.
Messages seeking comment from the U.S. State Department, U.S. Reps. Chris Deluzio, Summer Lee, Mike Kelly and Guy Reschenthaler, and U.S. Senators John Fetterman and Dave McCormick were not immediately returned.
Any U.S. citizen in Mexico requiring assistance can call the Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs at 1-202-501-4444 or 1-888-407-4747 from the U.S. or Canada.
To check the latest travel warning level alerts for Mexico, click here.
Staff writer Alexis Papalia contributed to this story.