How to find a dentist in Mexico

I had a very positive experience finding low cost dental care in Mexico.

In these very tough economic times, one has to be very careful with their money, and try to look for good deals.  If you need to get some dental work done, you may be putting it off longer than you should simply because you can’t afford what it is going to cost. I am writing this article to tell you about a high quality, low cost alternative.  Simply, go to a dentist in Mexico! Below, I tell you about my experience, and give you my recommendations. 

Dentists scare me. It’s not the drilling, nor the shots of Novocain, but its the price they want to charge. While living in Denver, back in 1995, I had a molar break in half. I went in to see a dentist about it and was told that it would require a root canal, and a crown. I about fainted when I learned that the root canal alone was going to cost me 0 and the crown was 0. (Today, in 2009, the root canal would cost me about 00 and the crown would be around 0). I had a friend who was living in Chihuahua, Mexico, and as I had already planned to go and see him, I decided to see if I could get my tooth fixed in Mexico. During my vacation time that year, I had the dental work done on my tooth at a great savings. The root canal cost me 0 and the crown cost 5 for a total of 5. Compare 5 to the price in Denver of ,300 and you find that I saved over 00. The savings more than paid for my vacation!! That was 13 years ago, and my crown is still holding up great with no problems.

Through the years I have had a lot of dental work done in Mexico. I have also had some work done in the USA. The truth is, I have had fewer problems with the Mexican work than I have with the American work. The American dentists have commented very favorably to the many Mexican dentists crowns they have seen in my mouth. I have decided to share a few of my experiences with my fellow Americans who might read this to help them to take advantage of the great savings and high quality dental work available just across the line.

Personally, when I am looking for information on the internet, I hate to have to read on and on to find the vital information that I am looking for, so right now let me say that I think I have found the perfect place to get dental work done in Mexico. It is in Tijuana, just South of San Diego, CA. Airfares to San Diego are cheap, (I just booked a flight from Orlando, Florida to San Diego for 0 one way, including tax), and transportation to the border is very easy via the Old Town Trolley, (light rail). My Tijuana dentist, SAM Dental, actually has a website that you can access to find out about prices, contact information, and how to find the clinic. It’s found at http://www.goodsamdental.org  The website is very informative and is worth checking it out.

6 BASIC TIPS on dental care in Mexico.

1. Price.

Be careful what you pay for dental care. You can get ripped off by dentists who charge Americans a lot more than the going rate. The quality of the dental work done in Mexico is very comparable to that in the USA, and the price is much cheaper. The reason for this is because the price of University training is subsidized by the government, and the costs of education are not so bloated, compared to the USA. A dentist in Mexico will come out of school and will not be head over heals in debt, like an American. Also, the costs of doing business, and the cost of living is a fraction of that in the USA. The result is, there are a lot of great dentists who simply don’t have to charge so much in order to make a good living. Besides that, the local Mexican people are very limited in their income and ability to pay for services. Although there are many dentists near the boarder who cater only to Americans, their prices are still affected by the cheaper dentists just a little further in. But don’t get excited over the lower prices and just use any dentists. If they have a big fancy office, it’s because they are catering only to Americans and are charging a lot more than the competition. If you look around, you can find an equally competent dentist who will charge you less for the same work. I have found that often there are two prices. What they charge a American can be much more than what a regular Mexican pays. That is why I fell in love with Sam Dental. They actually post the prices for the work they do on their website. I recently checked out the cost of having a porcelain over metal crown at a couple of other dentists. They wanted to charge 0 for a root canal, 5 for the crown, and $ 75 for a post, for a total of 0. Sam Dental Tijuana dentist clinic charged me 5 for everything.

2. Location.

You will want to find a dentist that is fairly close to the border crossing. What I recommend is to take the Trolley to the border. If you fly into San Diego, it is not necessary to rent a car. By asking at the info desk in the lobby at the baggage claim, they will direct you to where you can catch the 992 bus that takes you into down town. Tell the shuttle bus driver that you want to get off to take the Trolley, (light rail train). He’ll drop you off in front of the American Plaza train platform. (From Airport to Trolley it takes 15 minutes). There you’ll buy a ticket at the machine for .50 to go on the blue line to San Ysidro, Mexican Border. You just go to the end of the line. When you get off, you’ll see a pedestrian bridge that you walk over until you enter Mexico. Once there, you’ll find dozens of Taxi drivers who are clamoring for you attention. Just grab one. They’ll have someone standing out front, who speaks English, who’ll be asking you where you want to go. Just give them the address. My dentist is just 5 minutes away. The website can give you the exact address to copy down to hand over to the taxi driver. When you call ahead of time to set up your appointment, they’ll walk you through it. The first time I went, they actually sent someone to pick me up.

3. Transportation & Lodging.

If you want to stay in San Diego, and rent a car, I still recommend that you park in the parking lot for the trolley and take it down to Tijuana. I don’t recommend driving a car into Tijuana. All the traffic can make you nervous. If you want to stay in San Diego, there are a lot of inexpensive hotels in Chula Vista off of E Street, which also has access to where you can catch the trolley. If you are a little more adventurous, you might want to simply stay in Tijuana. There are a lot of nice hotels, that are a lot less expensive than in San Diego. In fact, there is a descent hotel, clean but not too many frills, right across the street from my dentist. However, I kind of like to stay about 15 minutes away, over in Playas de Tijuana, by the beach. There is a cool walkway with stores and restaurants right on the beach, and I found a coffee shop that I like to sit at and read a book while drinking a frapechino and listening to the breakers. In any case, my dentists office helped me to find a hotel and took care of booking arrangements. I just had to tell them what I wanted.

4. Time frame required.

I have made several trips to Mexico and had root canals and crowns done in just 5 days. I have had crowns, with no root canal required, done in 2 days. It costs a little more to have the lab expedite the work, and it is tiring to sit for a long time in the chair having everything done at once, but it is possible and worth it. However, I have to say that in order to figure out how long it will take, the dentist has to check out what needs to be done. If you have a tooth that is infected, you have to get the infection cleared up before a root canal can be performed. Nevertheless, the dentist can get give you a good idea of how much time you need to budget when she talks to you on the phone. If you live in the San Diego or L.A. area, it is a lot easier to go across the border for multiple visits. But if you are flying in, you’ll want to budget enough time to get it all done. There are many US citizens who are going on medical vacations to Mexico today. Last time I was in Tijuana, we had a couple of days to spare and so we went down to Ensenada. I’d like to go down and do some fishing in the ocean off a boat next time.

To Enter Mexico: USA Visitors to the northern part of Baja California do not need US passports or tourist cards if staying in the country for a short time. If you plan to stay for an extended period, or if you plan to travel beyond Ensenada, You will need to obtain a tourist card.  Proof of US citizenship would then be required.

To return back into the USA: To return back into the USA: As of June 1, 2009, US customs will  begin asking for a passport.  While the truth is, if you have your drivers lisc. and birth certificate, they will definitely allow you back into the country. Nevertheless it is best to go ahead and get your passport to avoid being hasseled by customs.  you If you have any doubts, by all means go to the government website to check it out. Click here to link to the Department of Homeland Security. If you have time, it is good to get a U.S. passport, but don’t be overly concerned. If you live in San Diego or L.A., you’re good to go, with your California Drivers license and your birth certificate, for at least 2 or three years.

6. Funds.

This is an important point that I don’t want to forget. It is no necessary to travel with a lot of cash to Mexico. I only take a couple of hundred dollars in my wallet. Dollars are as accepted as Mexican pesos for the purposes of purchasing things. However, sometimes you’ll get a better exchange rate changing some of your money at a “Cambio” store front. But what I do is simply bring my ATM card and get cash at any banks ATM machine. The exchange rate at the ATM is usually pretty good. You can use your VISA or MASTERCARD to pay for hotels, and most restaurants. I use cash just to pay for small things like taxis, or food at a taco stand or a hamburger joint. Some dentists will even accept your credit card for payment. I know mine does. I have found that the amount charged to my card has been at a good exchange rate in dollars.

Again, click here:Mexico Dentist in Tijuana for the website of Sam Dental in Tijuana