Best Mexico Border Crossing: Columbia (Laredo)
Bringing Pets to Mexico
City in Mexico
Columbia Bridge is 20 miles NW of downtown Laredo.
Laredo is considered a “safe” border crossing these days. The Columbia Bridge is considered the safest choice. Most tourists, especially RVers, prefer the Columbia Bridge to the downtown Laredo bridges, even though it is way to heck and gone. It is an easy crossing to Mexico with little traffic. The officials are used to dealing with foreigners, and are friendly. The highway from the bridge to the Monterrey Highway is divided multi-lane all the way. Columbia has a lot going for it.
My roadlogs and Trip-plans can start at Columbia to take you just about anywhere in Mexico. It is a good jumping off point for San Miguel de Allende, Mexico City, Veracruz (surprisingly), Guatemala, Belize, Yucatan, Guadalajara, Pto. Vallarta, Mazatlan, Oaxaca. That pretty well covers mainland Mexico.
| Category | Columbia Bridge | Downtown Laredo |
|---|---|---|
| Hours | 8-Midnight M-F, 10-4 Sat, Sunday Noon-4 | 24 Hrs Every Day |
| Distance from Laredo | 20 Miles in USA, 35 in Mex. Adds 1 hour to trip | None. Cars can negotiate city street turns to Aduana. RVs will have difficulty. Drive time 1/2 hour shorter than Columbia due to congestion. |
| Advantage | No Traffic, Easy drive to Monterrey Hwy. | Hotels, RV park, Change Pesos, Restaurants |
If you are coming directly from San Antonio, TX, the Columbia Bridge is actually closer for you than the downtown bridge. If you time it right, you could cross here and arrive in Saltillo or Matehuala by sunset.
Rebekah’s Experience Crossing at Columbia
Crossing the border, the most daunting part of my trip. I had already packed my possessions and rented out my house. There was no turning back. The only thing between me and my new life was the border.
I chose to cross the border at Colombia which is just south of Laredo, Texas, and feeds into Nuevo Leon, Mexico. I chose this crossing because it was one of the closest borders on my drive, but also because it was a very popular suggestion by other tourists including Mexico Mike. I was told it was also one of the easiest borders to cross for tourists, especially ones traveling by RV. I will only speak about this specific border in this article.
Mexico Border Crossing Columbia: What to Expect
I stayed in San Antonio the night before crossing. It was only two hours to Laredo and I would be able to cross the border around noon, as suggested by other travelers. I arrived at the border around 11 am. I came up to four or five lanes, each with a gate arm at the end. I waited for the car in front of me to go through the gate, then I entered the lane. I waited for a red or green light. If you receive a green light, the arm will raise and you may go on your way. If you receive a red light, an alarm will sound, the arm will raise, and you will be directed to veer right over to an officer. The officer will then search your vehicle and may ask some questions. The lights seem to be random and automated. If you do receive a red light no need to worry. I received a green light as I went through, but the car in front of me received a red light. I observed his search, which consisted of the officer opening the door to do a quick visual search. He inevitably did not see anything suspicious as he let the man pass. As I watched other cars pass through the terminal, I was expecting a red light to be a rare occasion but that was not the case. As I said, I believe it is on an automated system, so if you receive a red light do not panic, you have done nothing wrong. Answer the officer’s questions and you will be waived on.
Click here to see a complete checklist of Mexico border crossing requirements
Paperwork at the Colombia Border Crossing
After, I went through the gate and parked on the right-hand side in a small parking lot, and entered the building to apply for my Forma Migratoria Múltiple (FMM), and Temporary Import Permit (TIP). To obtain my FMM, I went to the door furthest from the parking lot. I entered and found a very empty room. I considered myself lucky for not having to experience a long line and the predicted wait time of 2 hours. I found the man responsible for issuing the FMM. I filled out the form and it was stamped; a fairly simple process. Then I was directed to the TIP line. This line took about 30 minutes with 5 people ahead of me. It is incredibly important that you have all your documents in order before getting in the line. I had proof of insurance, copies of my passport, license, original registration, and original title. I also needed a copy of my FMM, which I didn’t have because I had just received it. Luckily there is a copy store inside the building and it can be copied for very little money (around 5 pesos per page), however, you do need to have pesos to pay for the copy. Once I got to the front of the line, I gave the officer all of my documents. He issued the TIP and I paid him in dollars, although they do accept credit cards. Once I received my TIP, I was ready to hit the road!
We crossed yesterday 02/23/23. Not many people but only one agent. Very slow and had to redo paperwork because she made an error. We were not ten minutes on our way when we were pulled over for “speeding. I don’t think we were. Traffic was congested and moving slow in general. We did not contest until Claud fine was $500 US if we paid him. $675 if we followed him to the station. I protested the amount. He reduced it to $300 which we paid to get away from him and on our way. He would not give us a copy of the ticket. Not surprising. I thought if recording it all on my phone but it would have escalated things I fear. Advice. Carry small bills and small amount in your wallet. Hide rest in car or on your person. I y
Think if I had showed him that I only had $100 bucks in my wallet he would have taken it and been happy. Lesson learned
Where were you when this happened? What road was it?
Before you leave the USA, go to the DMV in your state and tell them that you need to replace a lost driver’s license. Then, create a “False Wallet” which contains your “lost” driver’s license, and very little money $20-40 in USD or Pesos. Hide the rest of your money and your new driver’s license. Also, never speak Spanish to the police. Never try to rush the process. The police want to quickly get money from you and move on to the next victim. So, only speak English, don’t rush, ask a lot of questions (that they cannot understand, so they will get frustrated and move you along). If you have a built-in GPS, use it instead of your phone. Keep your phone hidden as much as possible and do not walk around with it. A dash-cam is also a good idea. A final piece of advice is to exchange USD to Pesos before you leave the USA. Criminals are watching you at the ATM, so don’t wait until the last minute. Happy Trails!!
Haha – good thinking Deanna I love it.
Mike,
Thanks for this great post. I plan on crossing at the Columbia Bridge in August as I am driving my two dogs down. Couple quick question for you
1. What day/time do you think is best to cross at the Columbia bridge crossing? I was thinking about crossing when it opens on a Monday morning, but concerned that might be a busy day/time and wondering if a Tuesday or post-rush hour time would be more idea. Any suggestions?
2. I have my temporary residency and plan to pre-purchase my TIP online. If I have all of that squared away prior to crossing, I shouldn’t need to do anything other than to pull in to the vehicle inspection location if prompted after crossing, correct?
Thanks again
Pull over and get your sticker/cards, it’s better to take care of it and get your FMM stamped, etc. Come prepared saves time, but you still have to stop. Enjoy the journey! ps: regarding #1. great idea.
Beware of the hefty young fellow who speaks perfect English. He was determined not to let us get through at CC. After traveling through thus border for years, he made us take a photo of the dry weight sticker on our truck? If I wasn’t mistaken, this wasn’t a rule we ever had to deal with. He was to send the sticker off to someone to review it & told us to wait an hour to get approval. Nothing was good enough for this border agent. Hie was acting like a Queen who didn’t want us in his country. BTW, my husband & I are both residents. We ended up leaving after he was pulling wrenches out of every part of our paperwork which was all done correctly. I must reiterate that we have been crossing here at CC for years. Funny how when we went to briidge # 2 in Laredo, we were out of there in 10 minutes, no questions asked? Beware of this Agent!
Well, my husband and I just crossed at Columbia crossing. We had to get a TIP here, because our vehicle is rated for over the allowed 7713lbs. It is a 1 ton 2002 Chevy 3500 cargo va, and has a max GVW of 10,000 lbs. Banjercito in Houston could not issue a TIP because of that weight capacity. It took about an hour for permission allowing the exception to the rule. In the meantime, I got my FMM for $717 mxn, good for 6 months. In the meantime, a navy blue clad gentleman approached us he did not speak any English and we gave him a copy of our menaje de casa. A list about 100 items long including many woodworking tools. He acted as if he had never seen a Menaje de Casa in his life! After several phone calls and the declaration that we needed a customs agent to support the list, he said we needed to go to the commercial side of the crossing if we had a Menaje de Casa. So I snatched the MDC from his hands and we maneuvered our van and cargo trailer, against traffic to the commercial side of the crossing. On that side we were denied entry and once again maneuvered the rig against traffic to the 1 open lane we had originally been turned from. We drove through, stopped next to the Guarde National where we were waived on as if no one cared one bit about the contents of our cargo van and trailer! No sign of the little man who was adamant about our having a customs agent submit our paperwork and pay import taxes, It was surreal!
He was probably hoping for some cash. I’m sorry you had that experience. 🙁