Hi,
Planning on a visit to Mexico to let me put my USA Visa on hold prior to heading North.
I prob am taking insurance with Motorcycle Express on line, but wonder can I do all the Visa and bike stuff at the border?
Anyone tried this recently.

Currently crossing top of Gulf, prob to head down the west side.

William.

Why go all the way to the west side when there is some of the best riding in Mexico on the east side?

I am getting lots of advice thrown t me at the lack of care and wisdom I have in trying to enter Mexico on my own; lots of bandits etc.
This has given me to think maybe the Baja peninsula would be better.
Need to decide soon, as just leaving New Orleans.
Also, really trying to find out how quick and/or easy, it is to roll up to the border and get in.

William.

William, the first thing about Mexico is that the international news that covers Mexico is mostly overhyped and total BS.
I have ridden here since 1978, lived here permanently since 1993 and ridden hundreds of thousands of trouble free kms both on and off road. The people giving you advice are spoiling your trip. How? Because these people have never been to Mexico or ridden a bike in Mexico, if they had they would be saying the exact same thing I am telling you.
Yes, there is narco violence here. Within a 1.5 kilometer radius of my house there have been 4 shootouts and one body dump of 35 corpses in front of a shopping mall. I feel totally safe because I am not a criminal and am not involved with narcos. Simple as that.
Ask the gringo "experts" who are giving you advice how do Mexican motorcyclists ride? Are we supposed to stay in our homes and cower in fear of what is reported on CNN, MSNBC, BBC, et al?
The good thing is you still want to ride Mexico, the Baja is beautiful and you will find to your own satisfaction and knowledge, that Mexico is safe and you will find it a place you will want to return to and will likely laugh at the bandito BS offered to you by people who have no clue about Mexico.
PM me and I will send you a ride guide for one particular section of the east coast that most people have never ridden and you could find very worthwhile to ride. Trust me, I think you'll at least find reading about and looking at the photos to be worthwhile.
Don't listen to what people are telling you, it is like getting advice about Ireland from someone in England in the 1970's and early '80's.

+1 to al Mike Mike just said.

You can indeed do all the paperwork for Mexico at any of the major border crossings from the USA.
I do not know if you can do all such things as may required for you as an Ulsterman to checkingOUT of the USA, if such is needed on the USA side..

At a number of crossings into Mexico you do not even need to do these migratory formalities at the border itself but you can do them at a special terminal located at a distance into the country far away from the city where you crossed , for example south of Nogales, south of Cd Juarez and south of Cd Acuna and Piedras Negras . At other large crossings such as Tijuana,Douglas ( well ,sort of large that one) Laredo,Reynosa and Matamoros the customs f acilities you will seek are right at the border crossing in the city.
I too have travelled the length and breadth of Mexico for over thirty years , doing trips of up to 7 weeks at a time . In that time I have never experienced actual narco violence.Although there were two roadside incidents of, in retrospect,interesting nature, I remain of the opinion that travel in Mexico as a tourist is safe and worthwhile .As long as you keep in mind the potential risks and behave in a manner to limit them , ride only during daylight, stay sober, avoid illegal activities and shady persons ,... you have little to fear.
Pick your border crossing town and I can probably give you a name of a good place to stay the first night. Hotels on the Mexican side of the border are hurting for clients since all the gringos are so paranoid they refuse to cross the line.Meanwhile the American side hotels are charging double to host the trembling hordes of snow chickens.... er.. snowbirds who want to see Mexico only on a 2 hour walk across the border to view the chintzy displays they have read about in the brochures.
The real, the friendly Mexico awaits , but you must travel beyond the frontier zone.

__________________
http://advrider.com/index.php?thread....207964/page-5 then scroll down to post #93

Hey man. Let me help you out. Listen to none of the bullshit from the US about Mexico.

I landed in Houston at the beginnng of November and crossed into Mex a few weeks ago at McAllen/Reynosa Andalzuas Bridge. I drove to Monterray, Saltillo, Zacatecas and then Guadalajara lastnight, alone. From what I was listening to from everyone and i mean everyone (cops, waitresses, military, bikers, mex americans etc etc etc) i thought that i would be gunned down before i crossed the bridge.

If you keep your wits about you, leave the bling in the USA, know some Spanish and show common courtesy and decency, perhaps more than you would at home, keep a smile on and stay away from dark neighbourhoods and strip joints/brothels etc you wont have a problem.

You need your reg docs for the bike and licence, passport etc at the customs and you will pay a tourist visa fee and a deposit on your bike for when you leave the country.

Thats it!

Besides Mexico is extremely beautiful, 99% of people are nice but you must be proactively nice to them first (esp if they look at u funny u are a novelty here) roads are both good and very bad and driving style reminds me of when i was a kid in Ireland. I love it.

Rock on bro.

Ditto on the BS from Canada and USA news channels. It's safer in Mexico than both the USA and Canada. Check the stats on a per capita basis, you will see.

Hi Mikemike, I am planning on going from Canada to Panama (driving my yukon w/bike to San Antonio TX) and was intrigued by an earlier post you made of a scenic route on the east side of Mexico? Could you please elaborate on where this route would be?
Thanks.

Bubba, send me a PM with your email and I will send you the ride guide.

MikeMike, PM sent

Cheers
Pete

__________________
Vietnam, Cambodia & Thailand 2016
Buenos Aires to NYC 2012-2013: www.facebook.com/curryhunt
India and back 2009-2010:

Hi,
Bit late but better than never.
Yes, you folks are right. Stopped at the US border post, and indeed my Embassy was wrong. The border guys said no difference if I was in Mexico or USA; Visa kept running.
Thy also said my insert giving me 6 months would be taken out of my passport, and I would then be reassessed as to how long I could stay in the USA if I came back into the USA from Mexico. They said I may or may not even get back in, it was up to the officer on the day.

Re-grouping at the moment and trying to get a plan; looks like Alaska will not be possible.

William.