San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
What’s the latest with visiting Baja?
The No. 1 question I’ve gotten from readers about Baja California this past week has been a fairly innocent one: Can I go get some tacos now or what?
The simple answer is, yes. Officially, restrictions on nonessential travel were imposed at the onset of the pandemic by both governments; they remain in effect in both directions, and they will continue through at least April 21.
However, tourists from north of the border won’t be asked to provide any documentation that they are either COVID-FREE or vaccinated to enter Baja California, according to the state’s Tourism Secretary Mario Escobedo Carignan. And in reality, no one has been stopping people traveling south to ask them if their trip is essential and turning people around if they don’t have a valid reason to enter Mexico.
The better question to ask yourself is: Should I travel to an area where a very small percentage of the population has been vaccinated and many people face barriers to quality health care — even if it means you’ll be contributing positively to a struggling economy? Just last week, Mexico’s government acknowledged the nation’s COVID-19 death toll has topped 320,000, behind only Brazil and the United States.
With warmer weather coinciding with a drop in coronavirus infections, state officials say they aren’t actively encouraging nonessential travel. But they wouldn’t be heartbroken either if U.S. tourists provide a much-needed boost to the region’s battered industry.
“It’s important that whoever does visit, we ask them to follow safety protocols and to be respectful, and they can have fun on their vacations,” said Escobedo. “We as Baja Californians are ready and waiting for them. It’s do-or-die time for many small businesses.”
The next few weeks is an especially crucial time for restaurants in Baja; about 12 percent of the restaurants in the state have already had to close because of a lack of tourists, according to Miguel Ángel Badiola, the president of Canirac, a restaurant association.
If you walk across the border on foot, a Mexican border agent may ask you the purpose of your trip, but they’re not going to stop you if that trip sounds nonessential, according to state officials. Pedestrians crossing into Tijuana at the San Ysidro crossing will need to present a passport and complete a Mexico Visitor’s Permit, which is called an FMM. They are free for short trips and agents have them on hand at the port of entry for visitors to fill out.
If you cross in a car, it’s highly unlikely anyone will ask you anything at all. I’ve actually had more trouble getting into Costco lately than entering Mexico. But don’t forget your Mexican auto insurance because that document is a must.
As a San Diegan who works in Tijuana, I rarely see traffic going into Mexico, until recently when Americans began visiting again. After I went to a doctor’s appointment midday on Tuesday in Chula Vista, I waited about an hour to return to my office in Tijuana later that afternoon.
In Tijuana, almost everything has reopened, with businesses operating at limited capacity. Use of masks and social distancing is widespread and most businesses check people’s temperature upon entry, along with providing hand sanitizer.
Baja California initially took a firm stance against nonessential activities, with the governor even threatening in March 2020 to use military force to restrict citizens’ movements, if necessary. But the state lacked resources to ensure businesses remained closed and many did not. Does that sound like a contradiction? Pues, Bienvenido a México.