Mexico Visitors Shaken as Cartel Death Fuels Travel Chaos

Stranded travelers line up at Guadalajara Airport in Tlajomulco, Jalisco, Mexico, on Feb. 23.

Photographer: Ulises Ruiz/AFP/Getty Images

Despite assurances from President Claudia Sheinbaum and her security minister Monday that Mexico was returning to normal after a weekend of cartel violence, many vacationers to Puerto Vallarta and other cities still faced canceled flights and shelter-in-place warnings.

The travel disruptions began Sunday as criminal groups set up blockades, burned vehicles and attacked businesses in retaliation for the capture and killing of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, Mexico’s most wanted drug kingpin. Foreign governments including Canada and the US issued travel advisories and shelter-in-place recommendations for citizens traveling in the country, and dozens of flights were canceled to parts of Mexico.