Medical Tourism In Mexico
What is medical tourism exactly?
Well, it’s traveling to a certain place for medical procedures.
Many times you can save 50-85% by traveling outside the U.S. to have procedures done. We know people who have done this in Brazil and in Mexico, and we’ve done it ourselves in Mexico, and wanted to share our experience!
Going to the dentist in Mexico
Before You cross the border
In order to cross the border by land into Mexico, anyone over 16 must have a passport or passport card. Passport cards are only good for travel via foot, car or boat and work for US citizens coming and going from Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean and Bermuda. Cards are cheaper than a passport and don’t work for air travel.
If you have children under the age of 16, a birth certificate is sufficient to get them over the Mexico border by foot or car at SOME border crossings, but not all.
***Always do your due diligence and check into the most current rules before heading to Mexico, as they do change from time to time! Based on our experience, different entry points can enforce different rules as well.***
There are many different border crossings from the US into Mexico, and all of them are different. You’ll need to research the crossing you intend on taking and read up on details. Some of them are open 24 hours, some are not. Some crossings allow you to walk right across from the US and you never even see a person who checks any documentation. At others, you have to show the proper documents to cross on both sides.
Parking and walking across the border
Our friends recommended a dentist in Tijuana, so we called, made appointments for cleanings and x rays and drove as close as we could to the border. The parking lot (LAZ Parking location) was secure and only .3 miles from the border, with a security guard. The cost was $6 for the first hour and only $2 more for the rest of the day ($8 total).
When we went through this border crossing, San Ysidro land port of entry, they did a thorough check of our passports and issued us a form/paper/card, which is for tourists and known as an FMM. Evidently, tourists are always supposed to have one when in Mexico. However, we have recently gone on several other trips to Mexico by car and by foot and never got one! We just never had to check in anywhere with anyone and simply didn’t know.
It is important to note that if you’re driving across, you do need to get car insurance for Mexico. We recommend Lewis & Lewis.
Getting to the dentist office
After we parked and as we were walking toward the border crossing, we called the dentist office and let them know we were about to walk across the border. They told us to look out for a black Mercedez-Benz Van, and that our driver would be Jesús.
Once we walked across the border and over to the main taxi pick up area (about a 1/2 mile long walk total from our parking lot) we found Jesús in the black van. Jesús was so nice! We enjoyed getting to know him a little bit during our 7 minute ride to the office.
The Dentist Office Experience
The dental office we used is called Trust Dental Care. Once we walked in, we noticed that ALL of the staff spoke great English and the office was the nicest and prettiest dentist office we’ve ever been to!
They were very efficient, friendly and made us feel right at home. There was a coffee and juice bar and a tv playing movies. They did several waiting room cleanings while we were there. I’ve never seen a cleaner office!
We were all super impressed with the knowledge, care and professionalism we experienced. We worked directly with Deny Kies, Trust Dental Care’s CEO, and she was awesome.
How Much Did It Cost?
I had called the dentist we had seen before in California to schedule cleanings and x-rays and it was going to be $165 for each person! At Trust Dental, it was only $60 per person for cleanings and xrays! That’s a $420 savings for a family of four!!! I can only imagine how much you could save on more extensive dental work!
I cannot recommend Trust Dental enough. If you pay them a visit, be sure and let them know that Aaron and Lauren G. (the traveling RVers) sent you! Their number is 844-848-7878.
From Trust Dental’s Website
Closing Advice
Don’t be so quick to jump on a cheap price that you neglect doing your research. Make sure you’re seeing licensed doctors and make sure that have good reviews in various places online. While in Mexico about two months ago I got lured in by a $15 dental cleaning when I was walking around on the street. It was a very young girl who seemed pretty inexperienced. She was very nice but it was rough and a little painful. I left with clean teeth, but it wasn’t someone who I would bring my kids to!
Many doctors in Mexico come to the United States for medical school (Aaron’s grandfather did this! He left Mexico to go to medical school in Texas, graduated and brought a wife back home with him to Mexico. He was a surgeon in Mexico for 40+ years!)
Some people have an unhealthy fear of Mexico. While it’s important to do your research use good judgment, we have always had a great time and felt very safe in Mexico. Many areas of Mexico thrive off tourism, so they make sure you feel safe and leave happy. Like any place, there are good areas and bad areas. I’ve seen scarier places in the US than I have in Mexico!
If you have any questions about our experience,
drop them in the comments below.
Also, check out this little video we made of our dental visit HERE!