Cartel violence near Mazatlan didn't stop beers by the pool: Albertans

Some Canadian tourists in Mexico returned home Saturday night after a wave of cartel violence erupted in the country this week, shuttering airports and prompting an advisory to shelter in place.

However, the message the sun-splashed Albertans delivered was that there's way worse places to shelter in place than an all-inclusive resort in Mexico.

"Our resort slipped a piece of paper under our door," said Scott Parkin of Calgary, recalling how he discovered the news.

"Military helicopters flying by was kind of odd," he added.

"We could see some smoke on the roads, but whatever they did for the city, was great," said Robyn Hollemans, who rented a house with her family in Mazatlan.

"We felt fine," she said. "We felt safe."

Ottawa is asking Canadians travelling south to exercise a high degree of caution due to violence in Sinaloa - while warning against non-essential travel to some regions, although Mazatlan was not on that list.

SHELTER IN PLACE

Friday, Edmonton resident Sandra Forscutt spoke to CTV News about heeding the advice of Global Affairs Canada that tourists in Mazatlan should shelter in place.

"I think it's scary to know that it's kind of in your backyard," said Forscutt.

One former Edmonton resident who operates a café in Mazatlan said the region became quiet throughout Friday, as businesses closed and many people decided against venturing into the city or travelling the highways.

"A lot of what's going on isn't directed at citizens or tourists or locals," said Amber Milligan.

Global Affairs Canada has recommended Canadians in Mazatlan shelter in place.

Edmonton resident Graham McKeen heard a few stories that made him wonder.

"It was kind of scary there the first day when the cartel started blowing stuff up," said McKeen. "Just a couple of kilometers down the road from the resort there was a bus caught on fire and then about four kilometers away there was two other buses. We were talking to a few people that were down in Mazatlan and they said there was gunfire.

"We never left the resort after that," he said. "We stayed right until we left today."

While most Albertans CTV News spoke to said they felt distant from the danger, travelling home concerned some.

"I think the bigger concern is being able to come home," said Forscutt.

RETURN TO NORMAL

However, by Saturday night, things appeared to have returned to normal in Mazatlan. Two airports in the area reopened and flights departed for a number of Canadian cities, including Calgary and Edmonton.

"It wasn't the worst thing, sitting poolside with beers," said Parkin. "The whole ordeal was kind of overblown, as far as I'm concerned. It was worse in Culiacan from what I hear, but Mazatlan was fine."

The capture of the son of one of the world's most notorious drug kingpins sparked the wave of violence in the Sinaloa region.

After one day of fear and uncertainty, life quickly returned to normal said another tourist.

"The one day stores were closed, the shops were closed and we were told that we should basically stay in the resort area, which we did. And then the next day, we were told that things were pretty much back to normal."

WestJet said its operations in the region had resumed but that it continued to monitor the situation.

With files from CTV Edmonton