Border Intelligence Center
Official CBP Wait Times • Updated Automatically Throughout the Day
- San Ysidro 110 min SENTRI 10 min Heavy delay
- Otay Mesa 170 min SENTRI 25 min Heavy delay
- Tecate 60 min Current wait Heavy delay
- Pedestrian 30 min at San Ysidro Moderate delay
- USD / MXN 17.0260 Exchange rate
- Best crossing Tecate 60 min
- Updated 6:51 pm Official CBP feed
Detailed Border Wait Times (CBP)
| Port of Entry | General | Sentri | Pedestrian |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Ysidro | 110 min | 10 min | 30 min |
| Otay Mesa | 170 min | 25 min | 90 min |
| Tecate | 60 min | — | 5 min |
Estimated Total Travel Time
- From
- Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas, Tijuana
- Drive
- 10 minutes
- Border wait
- 110 min
- Total estimate
- 120 min
Drive time is an estimate; the border wait is live and changes through the day. Check again before you travel.
Mexico Customs Official government resource
Returning to Mexico with purchases? Check Mexico's current traveller allowance (franquicia), declaration requirements and customs guidance before you cross.
U.S. Border Wait Times Official government resource
Check live northbound passenger vehicle and pedestrian wait times at San Ysidro and Otay Mesa before you leave Tijuana.
Trusted Traveler Programs Official government resource
SENTRI and Global Entry members use dedicated lanes at San Ysidro and Otay Mesa. Apply or renew through the official DHS portal.
Electronic I-94 Official government resource
Travellers entering the United States can obtain or review their electronic I-94 arrival record before crossing.
Vehicle Permits Official government resource
Driving beyond the Baja California free zone requires a temporary vehicle import permit, issued by Banjercito.
Medical FastLane Official government resource
Patients attending medical appointments across the border may use the Cruce Agil / Medical FastLane northbound lane.
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Start typing and go straight to your colonia — accents optional.
No page for that neighborhood yet. Todavía no tenemos una página para esa colonia. Ask us about your area
Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas Quick Facts
- Drive to San Ysidro 10 minutes
- Major Shopping Mercado Cárdenas
- Hospitals Centro de Salud Communitaria
- Parks & Recreation Parque de la Sierra Gorda
Welcome to Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas, Tijuana
- Distance
- 7.5 miles
- Typical drive
- 10 minutes
- Closest crossing
- San Ysidro
San Ysidro P.O. Box N Ship gives Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas a real U.S. street address for the parcels American retailers will not send across the border — with notification on arrival and holding until you collect.
Map
About Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas, Tijuana
Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas runs along the Cañón Rubén Amaya inland of the Playas coast, a hundred and eight hectares of housing built around its own market. Mercado Cárdenas is the colonia's centre in practice as well as name, with a community health centre a few streets away.
Calle 18 de Marzo and Calle Cañón Rubén Amaya carry the length of the colonia; Boulevard la Cúspide climbs out of it. The schools are named for the same history as the colonia — General Lázaro Cárdenas del Río, Cinco de Febrero, Frida Kahlo Calderón, Ma Luisa Arce — and there is a parish, sports courts and the Parque de la Sierra Gorda just outside.
Market-centred colonias buy fresh and daily food locally and almost everything durable elsewhere. That is the gap a border address fills: appliances, tools, electronics and clothing from sellers who will not put a Mexican address on a label.
Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas covers 108 hectares in the Playas de Tijuana delegación, bordered by La Cuspide, Laderas del Mar, Los Laureles and Rancho Las Flores 1a Sección. Calle 18 de Marzo and Calle Cañón Rubén Amaya carry the colonia, and the routed drive to the store is 7.5 miles — about 10 minutes of driving, with the border wait separate and reported live on this site.
- Mercado Cárdenas at the centre of the colonia
- Community health centre
- Cañón Rubén Amaya street pattern
- Parque de la Sierra Gorda 500 m away
- Playas de Tijuana delegación
- Ten routed minutes to the store
Neighbourhood insights
What makes Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas, Tijuana distinctive?
Lázaro Cárdenas is built around its own mercado rather than a supermarket, which keeps daily trade in the colonia and pushes durable goods across the border.
Why do people here use a U.S. mailbox?
U.S. sellers deliver to a U.S. address without surcharge, and consolidating a month of orders into one collection makes the seven-mile trip worth making.
Who uses the service most from this area?
Households ordering appliances and tools, market traders sourcing equipment, and families buying for school.
Nearby landmarks
The mercado is the colonia's landmark, with the health centre and the schools arranged around it along the canyon.
Shopping
-
Mercado Cárdenas
The colonia's own supermarket trade, inside the colonia.
Residents compare its shelves against U.S. sellers and order the difference to a border address.
Government Services
-
Delegación Playas
Public administration for the surrounding colonias, about 1.7 km outside the colonia.
Administrative errands and a border collection are commonly combined into one trip.
Healthcare
-
Centro de Salud Communitaria
Medical provision serving Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas, inside the colonia.
Practices order instruments and consumables from U.S. distributors who ship domestically only.
Education
-
Cinco de Febrero
Teaching provision for the colonia, inside the colonia.
School and course equipment is ordered to a U.S. address and collected at the border.
-
Ma Luisa Arce
One of the colonia's school campuses, inside the colonia.
Course materials and devices are cheapest from U.S. sellers, and those sellers need a U.S. address.
Parks & Recreation
-
Parque de la Sierra Gorda
Recreation ground used by the colonia, about 521 m outside the colonia.
Kit and equipment for the clubs that use it come from U.S. retailers who will not ship south.
Transportation
-
San Ysidro Port of Entry
The crossing most collections from Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas use; the store is on the San Ysidro side.
Routed drive only — border wait is separate, and the Border Intelligence Center reports it live.
Border crossing
The nearest crossing for Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas, Tijuana is San Ysidro. Wait times vary considerably by hour and by day, and both pedestrian and vehicle lanes are worth checking before you travel — the pedestrian lane is often much faster when you are collecting a parcel rather than moving goods by car.
Bring the documents the crossing requires of you. A mailbox adds no further requirement of its own: collecting mail is an ordinary errand on the U.S. side.
Driving directions
Toward the San Ysidro crossing, then a short distance to the store.
- Parking
- Free parking directly outside the store. Around Mercado Cárdenas street parking is tight on market mornings.
- Public transport
- Calle 18 de Marzo and Boulevard la Cúspide connect the colonia to the Playas coast road and the route to the crossing.
Travel times
- Distance
- about 7.5 miles
- Estimated driving time
- 10 minutes
- Plus border wait
- Varies at San Ysidro, often by hours. Check current wait times before travelling.
Frequently Asked Questions
There are several colonias with this name.
It is the most repeated colonia name in Mexico, and there is also an Ejido Lázaro Cárdenas in San Antonio de los Buenos. This page covers the colonia in the Playas de Tijuana delegación, on the Cañón Rubén Amaya.
Can a market trader receive stock at the box?
Yes. Name the business on the agreement and U.S. suppliers deliver to it as a domestic address.
What do I need to open a mailbox?
Identification and a completed mailbox agreement. The store will tell you exactly what to bring.
Do you accept UPS, USPS, FedEx and DHL?
All four, plus most regional carriers.
Is this a real street address or a PO box number?
A real street address in San Ysidro, which is what U.S. retailers and carriers require.
Why customers from Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas, Tijuana choose us
-
A real U.S. mailing address
A street address rather than a PO Box number, so retailers and carriers that refuse PO Boxes will still deliver.
-
Secure package receiving
Parcels are signed for, logged and held securely until you collect them.
-
Border convenience
Positioned for the San Ysidro crossing, so collecting a parcel is an errand rather than an expedition.
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Mail forwarding
Have mail and parcels sent onward when collecting in person is not practical.
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Digital mailbox
See what has arrived without making the trip, and decide what to do with it.
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Bilingual support
Staff who work in English and Spanish, every day, for customers on both sides of the border.
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Business services
Notary, printing and a registered address businesses can use for supplier deliveries.
Why customers trust us
- Secure & Reliable Locked mailboxes and monitored premises
- Bilingual Team English and Spanish, every day
- Every Major Carrier UPS, FedEx, USPS and DHL accepted
We Also Serve
Other places we serve in Baja California
Get a U.S. address for Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas, Tijuana
San Ysidro P.O. Box N Ship gives you a real street address minutes from the border, with package receiving from every major carrier and bilingual support.