Ferry Boat Explosion Sparks Mexico Travel Warning Ahead of Spring Break

The American government is issuing a travel warning for Playa del Carmen after an explosion rocked the area. 

The city, which is about an hour south of Cancun, was shaken to its core after a bomb went off last month on a passenger ferry boat. Two dozen people were injured, including five Americans. 

Less than two weeks later, undetonated bombs were found on another ferry owned by the same company. 

The security alert bans all U.S. government employees from visiting the town, while tourists are urged to use "increased caution."

The timing couldn't be worse as spring break festivities kick off — with more than 100,000 Americans flocking to Mexican beaches in the coming weeks. 

Over the past year, there has been a dramatic increase in violence around Playa del Carmen. 

In January 2017, a gunman opened fire in a nightclub during a popular music festival, killing five people including an American teenager who was trampled to death while trying to escape. 

Despite the travel advisory, CBS News' Travel Editor Peter Greenberg doesn't think anyone should cancel their plans.

"I have never felt unsafe or threatened in Mexico," he told Inside Edition. "I was just there last week. Tourism is the No. 1 industry in Mexico. It is in their best interest to make the environment safe and they've done it. Last year, like 35 million visited and nobody had a problem, so think about it. Now, if you're talking about drug violence and gang violence over the last six years, 60,000 people killed that's Mexican gangs vs Mexican gangs. American travelers [and] tourists have never been targeted."

"All tourism and economic activity in Playa del Carmen continues in a normal manner," the state government wrote in a statement, noting that hotel occupancy at the resort was 80 percent. "We do not know why the U.S. government decided to emit this alert."

The U.S. Embassy has not said whether the explosions were part of a specific plot targeting Americans in Mexico. 

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