Ask Lonely Planet: Stay safe from crime while south of the border

Mexico has plenty of sights to offer the traveller, such as the Pyramid of the Sun in Teotihuacan. Photo / Thinkstock

My friend and I are planning to travel to Mexico and we've bought Auckland-Los Angeles return tickets. The plan is to see a bit of California as we make our way down to Mexico. But will it be okay to travel through the Mexico-US border by bus? If things sound dangerous we would consider flying over the border to Mexico City. We both speak Spanish relatively fluently.
- Emily Oakley

Lonely Planet's Sarah Bennett and Lee Slater write:

Getting across the border isn't difficult - there are numerous bus companies that will take you. The challenges lie south of the border.

Mexico has a high crime rate. According to the New Zealand and Australian travel advisories there has been a significant increase in drug-related violence over the past two years, particularly in the northern states and along the Pacific coast. Tourist destinations and beach resorts are also targets for criminal activity.

If the north of the country is not on your itinerary, then you will probably be safer flying straight to Mexico City. The bonus of this decision is that you will avoid a fiendishly long bus journey and can focus instead on the places you really want to see.

Mexico has a great deal to offer the traveller, and with your grasp of the language you are well placed to make the most of it.

For more advice and travel tips on visiting Mexico see:

* safetravel.govt.nz

* smartraveller.gov.au

* lonelyplanet.com.

Adventure in Americas

My husband and I and our two daughters, aged 9 and 6, are going backpacking for eight months around the world. First stop Santiago, Chile, and we're flying out of Lima, Peru, two months later. We'd love to visit Bolivia too. How do you suggest we spend the two months in the three countries, making our way from Santiago to Lima?
- Carolyn Carr

Two months should be ample time to get from Santiago to Lima with a detour into Bolivia, although there is a mind-boggling array of attractions on any number of routes.

Chile has many spectacular sights, so planning an itinerary can be difficult. Fortunately it has excellent transport infrastructure, allowing plenty of scope for changing tack.

Santiago itself is courteous and orderly, and a great place to find your feet. From there a visit to the bohemian port city of Valparaiso is a must. Considered Chile's cultural capital, it's also a Unesco World Heritage Site.

Travelling northwards, the coast boasts plenty of beaches and neo-colonial cities such as La Serena. Inland is the funky oasis of Valle del Elqui with a high number of astronomical observatories.

The Atacama Desert is a refuge for flamingos, and offers vistas of cacti, sculpted moonscapes, geysers and snowtipped volcanos. National parks and reserves abound throughout the north.

On the way into Peru, Bolivia can be factored readily into your plans. It is, however, a poor, raw and undeveloped country, so you may wish to stick to the well-worn visitor paths of the Altiplano plains, a popular byway between Chile and Peru.

Highlights include the world's largest salt flat, Salar de Uyuni, and sapphire-blue Lake Titicaca.

Presumably you will be exploring southern Peru on your way to Lima, which puts you in the vicinity of Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley. Brace yourself for lofty Inca citadels galore.

You'll probably be lured into Cuzco, the undisputed archaeological capital of the Americas.

Needless to say, Lonely Planet's South America on a Shoestring is an invaluable planning tool.

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* For her letter, Emily Oakley will receive a copy of Lonely Planet Mexico ($59.99).