Undocumented Immigrant for a Day: ‘La Caminata’ Gives Tourists A Simulated Illegal Border-Crossing Experience

Will wonders never cease? 

Sara Gates on the Huffington Post In the small town of El Alberto, Mexico, tourists can get the “illegal” experience. More than 100 residents are employed by the Caminata Nocturna, a simulated experience that allows tourists to act as migrants attempting to cross the border. During the four-hour Saturday night trek, participants must evade U.S. border agents, while jorneying through the dark wilderness. Since opening in 2004, the border-crossing “theme park” has been visited  by thousands of people.

Filmmaker Jamie Meltzer documented the hike in his film “La Caminata,” (Spanish for ‘the hike’) speaking to El Alberto residents who act as border patrol guards or smugglers and tourists.

KJ