June 18 – June 28      Total Cost: $250

*Airfare not included in the cost above.

The cost includes lodgings, meals, excursions, and transportation. If arriving or leaving earlier or later than the group during the set times, participants will need to make their own arrangements from and to the airport or church. The church is approximately a 1.5 hour drive from the airport. All attendees must arrive on Monday June 18, 2012, Benito Juarez International (MEX), and be checked out of Customs before 5:30 PM. The bus from Mexico City to Tlayacapan will leave at 6:00 PM on Monday evening. On the return, all attendees will be driven via bus from Tlayacapan to Mexico City and will arrive at the airport at approximately 10:00 AM on June 28, 2012. It is important that you consider these critical times and book your flights accordingly otherwise you will need to pay the additional costs and make arrangements for your individual plans. Please remember that check-in for international flights generally require 2 hours in advance of flight time. Purchasing flight insurance is highly recommended. The Mexican currency is in pesos. Padre Zakaria Al Bramousy will help the group to exchange money as needed.

Preparing for Your Trip to Mexico

Before visiting Mexico, you may need to get the following vaccinations and medications for vaccine-preventable diseases and other diseases you might be at risk for at your destination: (Note: Your doctor or health-care provider will determine what you will need, depending on factors such as your health and immunization history, areas of the country you will be visiting, and planned activities.)

To have the most benefit, see a health-care provider at least 4–6 weeks before your trip to allow time for your vaccines to take effect and to start taking medicine to prevent malaria, if you need it.

Even if you have less than 4 weeks before you leave, you should still see a health-care provider for needed vaccines, anti-malaria drugs and other medications and information about how to protect yourself from illness and injury while traveling.

CDC recommends that you see a health-care provider who specializes in Travel Medicine. Find a travel medicine clinic near you. If you have a medical condition, you should also share your travel plans with any doctors you are currently seeing for other medical reasons.

If your travel plans will take you to more than one country during a single trip, be sure to let your health-care provider know so that you can receive the appropriate vaccinations and information for all of your destinations. Long-term travelers, such as those who plan to work or study abroad, may also need additional vaccinations as required by their employer or school.

Be sure your routine vaccinations are up-to-date . Check the links below to see which vaccinations adults and children should get.

Routine vaccines , as they are often called, such as for influenza, chickenpox (or varicella), polio, measles/mumps/rubella (MMR), and diphtheria/pertussis/tetanus (DPT) are given at all stages of life; see the childhood and adolescent immunization schedule and routine adult immunization schedule .

Routine vaccines are recommended even if you do not travel. Although childhood diseases, such as measles, rarely occur in the United States, they are still common in many parts of the world. A traveler who is not vaccinated would be at risk for infection.

Vaccine-Preventable Diseases

Vaccine recommendations are based on the best available risk information. Please note that the level of risk for vaccine-preventable diseases can change at any time.

Malaria

Areas of Mexico with Malaria: Present in Chiapas and in rural areas in the states of Nayarit, Oaxaca, and Sinaloa; also present in an area between 24°N and 28°N latitude and 106°W and 110°W longitude, which lies in parts of Chihuahua, Durango, and Sonora. Rare cases in Quintana Roo and Tabasco. No malaria along the United States-Mexico border. ( more information )

If you will be visiting an area of Mexico with malaria, you will need to discuss with your doctor the best ways for you to avoid getting sick with malaria. Ways to prevent malaria include the following:

• Taking a prescription antimalarial drug
• Using insect repellent and wearing long pants and sleeves to prevent mosquito bites
• Sleeping in air-conditioned or well-screened rooms or using bednets

It is particularly important when traveling to Mexico that you have detailed information of where you are going within this country, because malaria prevention recommendations vary depending on where you go within the country.

There are some areas in Mexico where the risk of malaria is low, and taking an antimalarial drug is not recommended. For areas in Mexico where an antimalarial is recommended, primaquine is a good option for an antimalarial drug (only after G6PD testing). Atovaquone-proguanil, chloroquine, doxycycline, or mefloquine can also be used instead. For detailed information about each of these drugs, see Table 3-11: Drugs used in the prophylaxis of malaria . For information that can help you and your doctor decide which of these drugs would be best for you, please see Choosing a Drug to Prevent Malaria .

To find out more information on malaria throughout the world, you can use the interactive CDC malaria map . You can search or browse countries, cities, and place names for more specific malaria risk information and the recommended prevention medicines for that area.

Malaria Contact for Health-Care Providers

For assistance with the diagnosis or management of suspected cases of malaria, call the CDC Malaria Hotline: 770-488-7788 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 770-488-7788 end_of_the_skype_highlighting or toll-free 1-855-856-4713 (M-F, 9 am-5 pm, Eastern time). For clinicians needing emergency consultation after hours, call 770-488-7100 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 770-488-7100 end_of_the_skype_highlighting and ask to speak with a CDC Malaria Branch clinician.