My FI is temporarily living in Mexico right now for work and so I visit there regularly - in fact, I just got back from Mexico yesterday. There are alot of drug and police issues there for sure, but they are mostly isolated to certain areas (the boarder cities, Mexico City, etc.). Of course you are going to have bad places anywhere you go. We even drove 8 hours (some of it at night) in the backwoods of Mexico away from the city he lives in to Veracruz for the weekend and while the military inspections are unsettling (especially if you don’t speak Spanish really well), we were safe the entire time. Tourism is a huge economic contributor so most Mexicans bend over backwards to ensure you are safe and are having a great time. The media hype is insane. While it’s great to be cautious, don’t let this spoil your good time.