Travel to/from Juarez through US or Mexico?

[moronikos 2]

The petition for my fiancee has been granted and now she has to schedule the date and travel to/from Juarez.

The interview will be in December after her daughter finishes the semester and she has the second half of December off for vacation--she is an employee (paralegal) of the federal judiciary.

I have a 4 part question

1) Do we have to worry about the embassy shutting down in December for vacations of their employees?

My fiancee lives in Nuevo Laredo and has a border crossing card as does her daughter. They travel back and forth weekly. The trip from Nuevo Laredo to Juarez through Mexico is a major pain in the butt. There are no direct flights. However, there are direct flights between Laredo and El Paso which would be a much simpler trip.

So, part 2...

2) Will she be able to travel through the US (Laredo) to get to her interview in Juarez? It's cheaper, faster, and safer.

3) Will she be able to travel back through the US (El Paso) to return to Laredo / Nuevo Laredo? Again, it's faster, cheaper, and safer. I have heard that at the interview they will confiscate passports and/or visas. Will they confiscate her border crossing card at the interview?

4) If they do confiscate the border crossing card, is it safe to plan outbound leg through the US, but have to return through Mexico?

[Pitaya 2,577]

~Moved from K1 Process to MLSA Regional Forum~

~Inquiry is country-specific~

[TBoneTX 45,222]

The consulate almost certainly won't shut down completely; however, some staff might be taking leave. Consider also the routine closures for all Mexican and U.S. holidays.

Regarding your travel plans, I'd definitely call the CBP port in Laredo and ask what will happen. It makes sense that the border-crossing card would be confiscated or deactivated (or flagged). You do NOT want for her to get the K-1, then try to use the b-c card to visit Mexico and return to the U.S. before she at least gets Advance Parole.

What flights run between Laredo & El Paso?? If there are any, it's news to me. It probably wouldn't be feasible to drive to San Antonio to fly to El Paso. If she flew within Mexico, wouldn't the route be Nvo. Laredo - Mexico City - Juarez?

Long drive in Texas, too -- U.S. 83 to U.S. 90 to I-10, with the inland CBP checkpoint just east of El Paso on I-10 and (heaven forbid) perhaps the checkpoint just south of Alpine. If she drove solely in Texas from Laredo to El Paso, would she park there, or drive across to Juarez?

[Boiler 45,434]

Getting there should not be a problem, no entry is guaranteed, coming back could be, especially as she will have a K1. I assumed a BCC does not need a Passport?

[manuelrdz84mx 0]

Hi, i took a plane on Monterrey to ciudad Juarez, left my car on airport on a long stay parking lot. Payed something like $150 pesos daily.

From Laredo to Monterrey is just a couple hour drive.

[maspas 10]

I'm not 100% sure, but I would assume that you can't travel too far into the state on a BCC. Like manuel said, you could always drive to Monterrey from Nuevo Laredo and fly from there. I've made that trip a few times myself and the drive is about 2-3 hours depending on road work and traffic, and you can get flights from Monterrey to CDJ for fairly cheap if you fly Vivaaerobus.

If you drive to Monterrey, I would suggest taking the toll road. It's $200 pesos for a car each way, but it's definitely much safer, especially if she will be traveling with her daughter. Another option is to take a bus from Nuevo Laredo to Monterrey, as so you don't have to pay for parking at the airport. My fiance has made that bus trip a few times and it hasn't been too bad.

Good luck!

[moronikos 2]

Thanks for the suggestion about flying direct from Monterrey. I will suggest that to my prometida. Her car is not so great and so she would probably take the bus. When I visited in April, we took the bus for a day trip to Monterrey from Nuevo Laredo. She has a sister near Monterrey so it would also be a chance to visit with her sister whom she does not get to see very often.

I had thought there was a direct flight to El Paso from Laredo, but they are all indirect flights--albeit much shorter than the flights from Nuevo Laredo to Juarez which connect through Mexico City.

My fiancee is nervous about travelling to Juarez--she hears horror stories--yet she lives in Nuevo Laredo... Is Juarez less safe than Nuevo Laredo? (Right now she would be travelling with her 16 year old daughter)

[maspas 10]

I'm from El Paso originally and before I moved to Monterrey with my fiance, he would visit me through CDJ numerous times (before he had a tourist visa) and I often fly home to see my family through CDJ as well.

It definitely has the reputation of being an extremely dangerous, but things have gotten better. Not completely safe, walk around at night with your best jewelry on-safe, but better. If you check on the consulate review page, you'll see that many people have been pleasantly surprised with their visit by staying in the consulate area. Highly secured, many hotels and restaurants within walking distance, etc. When we stayed in CDJ together, we stayed at the Hampton Inn and that area was fairly secure as well. Just like many cities in Mexico, CDJ did have a lot of problems but the city is working on cleaning it up because they've been trying to get back the tourism they once had a decade ago. They even completely remodeled the shopping area at the border!

If she flies to Juarez with her daughter and stays in the area close to the consulate, I wouldn't be too concerned. Just as how she is vigilant in Nuevo Laredo, practice that same vigilance in Juarez, too.

[moronikos 2]

Is the clinic for the medical examinations in the same area?

[maspas 10]

Yeah, if I've read the reviews correctly, I believe one of the clinics, the biometrics and the consulate is in the same area.

Here's a really helpful link through the Mexico VJ portal.

Hope it helps!