By Katia Lopez-Hodoyan 
Derrik Chinn is not your average American. He may be blond and blue eyed, but the Ohio native has a Mexican heart. About nine years ago, when most tourists were avoiding Tijuana, Chinn left his San Diego apartment behind and made Tijuana his new home.
“I loved the randomness of everything,” says Chinn. “The textures, the colors, the aromas. A lot of the things locals don’t even see were the things I was stuck by the most.”
In time, Derrik became completely fluent in Spanish. However, there was a problem, Chinn was working as a San Diego journalist at the time. He would cross the border every day to go to work, but he was surprised at how fearful his American friends were of Tijuana. Few were willing to cross the border to go visit him. It seemed everyone had heard a story of something gone amiss in the notorious city. Violence was a problem and fear was its consequence. Instead of shrugging his shoulders, Chinn saw an opportunity.
He decided to show his friends, and eventually complete strangers, a side of Tijuana visitors rarely get to see. He launched Turista Libre, a set of atypical tours that go far beyond the visit to Avenida Revolucion and the usual photograph with a black and white striped donkey.
“Tijuana may be one of the world’s most infamous tourist traps and that discredits the city in a lot of ways,” says the 34 year old. “With Turista Libre, we show the real city more than 2 million people call home. We have culinary tours, craft beer tours, water park visits, the local flea market and street art tours. We also take groups to lucha libre or Mexican wrestling shows as often as possible. I tell guys that the lucha show is like a soap opera that’s socially acceptable for men to love.”
What started as an impromptu tour with a few friends back in 2009, has turned into a local tourism force in Tijuana. Visitors sign up online for a tour they are interested in. They meet Chinn at the border and then hop on a Tijuana bus, which makes the experience that much more original. For some Americans, a Turista Libre tour the is first time they have stepped foot outside the United States.
The tours have garnered so much attention, that even the State of Baja California is taking notice. Government leaders have invited Chinn to tourism meetings on both sides of the border, inviting him to weigh in on what locals sometimes overlook. Even San Diego State University has invited him to talk about the dynamics of the San Diego/Tijuana border. In the last seven years, Chinn has led over 10,000 tourists to Tijuana, showing them a side of the city only locals experience.
“The demographic of our tours is all over the place,” says Chinn as he sips on his coffee. “There are senior citizens, people from different ethnicities, and even some Mexicans. The only thing that’s constant is that nothing is constant.”
Even National Geographic Traveler listed Turista Libre as the “go to” tour for an authentic experience south of the border.
With wineries along Baja California’s Valle de Guadalupe region gaining international attention, local leaders want to tap into the region’s appeal even further. As a foreigner himself, Chinn understands the type of experience visitors are looking for.
“One of the biggest challenges is finding people to fill in for me,” says Chinn. “They have to be bilingual and know the city well, but they have to see Tijuana through fresh eyes. A lot of the locals will ask me, ‘why would you take people to such and such place?’ The ability to see beyond the bubble they grew up in and see why something is interesting to visitors, is key.”
Now Chinn is taking his idea beyond the border zone. He is designing tours in Mexico City, which he hopes to launch before the end of the year. Mexico City is another untapped niche geared toward American tourists who want to travel abroad but don’t really know where to start. Chinn hopes that Americans will want to experience the real Mexico: A neighboring country that, ironically, has always seemed distant to millions of Americans.
“Mexico City never really suffered the image problem that Tijuana did,” explains Chinn. “Maybe Americans are just now opening up to the idea of visiting the capital, but Europeans have been flocking there for the longest time to experience the food, history, and culture.”
Turista Libre has turned into Chinn’s full time job. What used to be a monthly tour, evolved into a weekly thing. Tours range from $25 to $55 dollars depending on the activity. Even though the business is his baby, he understands it is based on a market that is unstable by nature. Violence comes and goes in cycles and tourism responds accordingly. Chinn understands that it can all be gone at a moment’s notice.
“When I started, the challenge was getting people to come across the border,” says Chinn. “Now the focus is on making our tours special and defining who we are and what separates us from the rest.”
After years of living in Tijuana, Chinn now has a Mexican residency card, a SENTRI border pass, and a group of close friends. He’s often referred to as ‘guero’ or ‘blond guy’ while strolling in his adopted city. Chinn says he knows he stands out, yet he doesn’t feel out of place at all. It’s when he visits San Diego, he says, that he surprises himself.
“When I come to San Diego I think ‘oh wow, there are so many Americans here,’” says Chinn, laughing at his own reaction. “That’s when it hits me that I live in a country that’s 10 minutes away, but nonetheless it is a different country.’”
That unique border dynamic that locals often ignore, was the very element Chinn fell in love with years ago. He says Turista Libre is about more than just showing people a different side of Tijuana, it is also about shedding light on a different country, culture, and way of life.