hkrause Posted August 7, 2012 Report Posted August 7, 2012 We are crossing tomorrow at Laredo with two cars full of household belongings and two cats. Any thoghts or suggestions? We crossed before, but only on vacation and never stuffed to the gills. Are there some useful phrases to have on hand if we get stopped for an inspection anywhere along the way? We're hoping for an early start... what time do the offices open in Nuevo Laredo for getting our car papers and such? Do lots of people cross early to "avoid the rush" or is that a good tactic? We'll each want to go in separately to handle our own paperwork so the other cat sit in the car and keep kitties cooled, so we'd really like to minimize time standing in line! Look forward to being in Ajijic soon and having our previously shipped stuff in the new house! Heather
Ajijic Posted August 7, 2012 Report Posted August 7, 2012 Heather ... Laredo Bridge 2 is open 24/7. I personally would go at daylight to get an early start and just smile and enjoy the journey.
hkrause Posted August 7, 2012 Author Report Posted August 7, 2012 Is Bridge 2 the one at the end of I-35? I think we were trying to find that one last time, but somehow ended up on a smaller bridge instead... not sure which it was. Yes, we will wait until it's light, but wanted to be there fairly early. Thanks. HK
Bodi Posted August 9, 2012 Report Posted August 9, 2012 We crossed two weeks ago from the U.S. at Bridge 1 in Laredo with nothing to declare but had to register a car at the Migracion office in Nuevo Laredo. We imagined that Sunday morning early would be a good strategy. Not really. The parking lot was 2/3rds full with a long line inside that took two hours to go through. There were only four or five agents processing paperwork. We also watched out the window with some dismay at the clogged line of cars and especially busses crossing into the U.S. from Mexico at that time in the morning (8 to 10 a.m.). In this regard, can anyone advise as to which days and the time of day is best to enter into the U.S. and which bridge to use. Or direct us to another posting with this info. Thanks!
Ajijic Posted August 9, 2012 Report Posted August 9, 2012 Heather please share with us your experiences and suggestions when you get settled. I suspect you arrived in Ajijic today. Welcome home.
econ man Posted August 9, 2012 Report Posted August 9, 2012 We crossed two weeks ago from the U.S. at Bridge 1 in Laredo with nothing to declare but had to register a car at the Migracion office in Nuevo Laredo. We imagined that Sunday morning early would be a good strategy. Not really. The parking lot was 2/3rds full with a long line inside that took two hours to go through. There were only four or five agents processing paperwork. We also watched out the window with some dismay at the clogged line of cars and especially busses crossing into the U.S. from Mexico at that time in the morning (8 to 10 a.m.). In this regard, can anyone advise as to which days and the time of day is best to enter into the U.S. and which bridge to use. Or direct us to another posting with this info. Thanks! I can't speak to Laredo specifically, but Sunday is normally the WORST day for border crossings as it's common for bordertown Mexican extended families to live on both sides of the border and Sunday is a traditional family meal day. It is also a big shopping day for many who work 6 days a week and again, depending on their needs/wants, it will create backups both Northbound and Southbound. Sundays are when I have seen the longest lines in Nogales MX/AZ and Tijuana/San Diego, both directions.
Arroyo Grande Posted August 10, 2012 Report Posted August 10, 2012 I can't speak to Laredo specifically, but Sunday is normally the WORST day for border crossings as it's common for bordertown Mexican extended families to live on both sides of the border and Sunday is a traditional family meal day. It is also a big shopping day for many who work 6 days a week and again, depending on their needs/wants, it will create backups both Northbound and Southbound. Sundays are when I have seen the longest lines in Nogales MX/AZ and Tijuana/San Diego, both directions. That is not the case in Nuevo Laredo. Early Saturday mornings are usually the only time there is any line at all crossing from the US to Mexico at Bridge II, other than of course at the end of the year. The lines are Paisanos from the interior crossing with goods and furniture for family in the interior. That usually lasts only till about 10:30 am. Traffic usually backs up beyond the toll booths (and sometimes much farther) on weekends crossing to the US but those are shoppers from Monterrey.
hkrause Posted August 11, 2012 Author Report Posted August 11, 2012 Heather please share with us your experiences and suggestions when you get settled. I suspect you arrived in Ajijic today. Welcome home. Sure, happy to. We ended up crossing Laredo Bridge #2, Tuesday, Aug.7th, about 9 am (took longer than expected to load the cars). There was no line going south, but looked like a huge wait going north at that point in time. We were in two cars, loaded to the gills with household stuff. I had two cats in my car. We went to the line for nothing to declare. I got a green light, hubby got a red light, so I pulled ahead and stopped just past the search point to wait for him. Hubby got out of the car and they asked him if everything was unlocked, which he said it was. He explained that there was lots of stuff because we were moving. They looked around the car, checked briefly inside a few boxes, and sent him on. Since we had cats in the car, we each went inside the car permit / immigration office separately while the other kept kitties cool. Each of us took a potty break, got our tourist visa, exchanged cash for Pesos, then got our car import paperwork and sticker. For the two of us in sequence, it took about 3 hours, 1.5 hrs each. Longest wait was in the car line. When we hit the second check point, we both got green lights and went straight through. We stayed overnight at Las Palmas in Matehuala, about halfway through. We'd been there before and like the place. It's reassuring being able to park right outside the room, especially with lots of stuff in the car. Some general observations... we drove down via the same route at the first of April this year, the week before Easter. I don't know if holiday travel had anything to do with it, but there was LOTS more military visible last April over the first half of the trip. We saw almost none this time, and not a lot of Federal Police either. There was one large contingent of military vehicles just past a toll both before we got to Guadalajara, but they didn't seem to be hunkered down in bunkers - more like they were just passing through and had stopped there? We were using a Garmin Nuvi for navigation, in addition to using the Strom White driving directions like we did last time. With nobody in the car to help with map reading, the Nuvi was a great help. After Matehuala, we put away the printed directions and went strictly with the Nuvi. Somehow we ended up driving through the middle of someplace... I think it was Lago de Moreno? I didn't catch where we went wrong, but it was a slow and tedious detour. Nuvi did get us through town, however. I also made a wrong turn partway through Guad trying to follow the Nuvi - my mistake. We did better in April just following the signs to Chapala and the airport. We drove through a fair amount of rain between Saltillo and Matehuala, most of it light with a few downpours. Not sure if that was normal, or the aftermath of Ernesto. It didn't cause any travel problems, however. That's a good overview... hope it's helpful to somebody else making the journey! Heather
Ajijic Posted August 11, 2012 Report Posted August 11, 2012 Heather, thanks for sharing. I think part of the message here is to enjoy the journey and do not worry too much. Welcome home.
suzanjo Posted August 13, 2012 Report Posted August 13, 2012 good to read; TY. I am 100 miles from Laredo, staying at Royal Inn in Pearsall, TX: room is $145, as much for one night as I spent in three nights across USA, but given yucko room experiences, I am almost pleased to spend it. The desk Matron reports it is so high due to the high oil prices..(.what?) some rooms reported at $199 a night. It is good to feel a head start on the border in the morning, or no doubt San Antonio would be 1/3 - 1/2 the price. Plan on crossing tomorrow AM, early, meaning about 9 AM given various odds, like availability of sleep and then coffee. I have to drive 2 hours first. Plan to also stay Las Palmas, Matehuala. I think this means 400 odd miles tomorrow. This is about my 6th time of crossing, but for some reason feel more nervous this time. Nice to read others reports. The plan to organize the car from hillbilly chaos is thwarted by over 100 degree heat. But what luxury! Maybe I should just take another day here. NOT! I have two of the best dogs in the world. Hope we have clear sailing across the border.
Arroyo Grande Posted August 13, 2012 Report Posted August 13, 2012 good to read; TY. I am 100 miles from Laredo, staying at Royal Inn in Pearsall, TX: room is $145, as much for one night as I spent in three nights across USA, but given yucko room experiences, I am almost pleased to spend it. The desk Matron reports it is so high due to the high oil prices..(.what?) some rooms reported at $199 a night. . What the desk matron meant is that there has been a boom in drilling in the Eagle Ford Shale formation which extends over much of South Texas southwest and southeast of San Antonio. There is a severe shortage of hotel/motel rooms and temporary housing all over the area because of the drilling activity. Don't get too down on Pearsall as an overnight stop. I doubt an armed gang is going to gun down Pearsall's mayor-elect and his wife in the street which is what happened Sunday in the place you plan to stop tomorrow night.
Ajijic Posted August 13, 2012 Report Posted August 13, 2012 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/12/edgar-morales-perez-dead_n_1770703.html?utm_hp_ref=email_share
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