Travel Destination: Ciudad Juárez & El Paso

Downtown Ciudad Juarez, Mexico: The Cathedral

If you’re looking for a Mexican vacation spot where getting across the border is relatively easy, and, for your own comfort level, you’re unsure as to whether you really want to stay in Mexico or not, Ciudad Juárez just might be a place for you to visit. Right on the border of Mexico and Texas, it’s the sister city of El Paso, and actually was combined with El Paso until 1848 and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

Why might you worry about staying in Ciudad Juárez? Right now, portions of the city are violent, as there have been border skirmishes between authorities and drug dealers. Last year there were over 1,600 deaths in the area. However, when you consider that this is a city of more than 1.5 million people, and know that around 60,000 people cross the border between the two cities each day, you gain a lot of comfort in knowing that the odds are in your favor that you’ll be safe. However, if you want to feel more secure, you can easily stay in El Paso and cross the border at will.

And what would you do in either city? Let’s start with Ciudad Juárez. There’s the Natural Museum of Anthropology, considered one of the best natural history museums in the world. It has over 23 exhibit halls, so you’ll have plenty to see. There’s Chapultepec Park, an amusement park that has lots of activities for both adults and children. There’s Mision de Guadalupe, one of the oldest buildings in the city that’s still in use, having been built in the 17th century. And if you care anything about Russian history, there’s the home of Leon Trotsky, who was exiled from Russia and lived the last three years of his life in Ciudad Juárez, having his home turned into a museum.

If you want to check out sites in El Paso, you can visit the Centennial Museum and Chihuahuan Desert Gardens, which focuses on the geologic and cultural history of the area. You can stop by the Gene Roddenberry Planetarium, named for the creator of Star Trek. And there’s the El Paso Zoo, which has more than 1,700 animals, including some endangered species you won’t see anywhere else.

And just how close are these two cities? If you don’t want to drive, you can walk across the bridge that connects the two cities, which also spans the Rio Grande River and offers a spectacular site. Though it’s easy to cross the border, don’t forget your passport.

Hotels in El Paso, Texas

Marriott El Paso

La Quinta Inn El Paso West

Hampton Inn Suites El Paso

Hotels in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico

City Express Ciudad Juarez

Holiday Inn Express Juarez

Hotel Maria Bonita

See Also:

Ciudad Juarez – Wikipedia.org

El Paso, Texas – www.elpasotexas.gov