How to Travel Internationally during COVID
What to Know before you Go
This was really our first time traveling internationally during COVID, so we weren’t quite sure what to expect. Between research and the help of our travel agent, we learned some important info prior to taking off for Mexico. Here are a couple things to know before you go:
1) Make sure that you know when to get a COVID test. It’s likely that it’ll be required for at least one leg of your trip. We got a test done prior to leaving the U.S. as an extra precaution, which was recommended by our travel agent. This gave us peace of mind knowing that we were boarding a plane with negative results.
2) We did bring our vaccine cards with us just in case, although we didn’t need them. The vaccine cards almost felt like an extension of our passport – the thing you check over and over again to make sure you have. At this point, we didn’t need to show them at any airports or our resort, but it’s likely that will change in the near future – hello vaccine passports!
What Airports are Like
The airport atmosphere is pretty similar to pre-COVID times. Now that more people are vaccinated and feel comfortable traveling, traffic has definitely picked up. Airports are no longer ghost towns like they were a year ago, so account for that when deciding how soon to get to the airport.
You’re still required to wear your masks 24/7 unless eating or drinking. But aside from every other seat being blocked off at the gate to practice social distancing, COVID precautions are pretty nonexistent. When standing in line to check in for flights or wait for TSA, everyone is on top of each other per usual.
When covid cases were higher, many airlines also booked only 50% of the seats so there was space between each flyer. That is no longer the case; all of our flights for Mexico were fully booked. Airlines do still give out sanitation wipes and spray a cleansing mist, or as we think of it “the magic anti-COVID fog” to disinfect the plane.
Important: In addition to your negative test results, it’s likely that many international airports may take extra COVID measures to ensure that you are healthy. At the Cancun airport, we had to fill out a health questionnaire after checking in to our flight…it was chaos. Everyone was running around looking for forms, trying to find pencils or quickly connecting to wi-fi to fill out the form on their phones. The purpose of this form? Unknown. We just flashed it to the airline workers prior to getting in line for TSA.
TSA has also adapted its practices in relation to COVID. While instructions varied from airport to airport, no one asked us to remove our liquids and limited the amount of time they touched our bags.
How COVID is handled at your Destination
We made our way to a tropical resort ready for warm weather and lots of pool time. The question was whether we were going to end up with mask tan lines or not. But we knew going in that this vacation would be a combo of relaxation and safety. Luckily, the resort had thought of everything and taken all COVID precautions.
Mask Regulations
Like most places, mask requirements vary based on whether you are indoors and outdoors and the ability to socially distance within the area. Here’s what we noticed about mask rules for our resort in Mexico: 1) We had to wear a mask while in our transport van to/from the airport. 2) Since most of our resort was outdoors (pool, beach, open air concept), they weren’t necessary in most locations. However, the workers were wearing masks at all times – much like when you’re at a restaurant back home.
Safety Adaptations at the Resort
Resorts took a huge hit by closing for months during COVID. Since tourism is the main industry in Cancun, they were eager to make sure that didn’t happen again any time soon. One of the most interesting parts of our trip was to see how the resort had adapted to COVID needs. Here are some specific measures our resort took:
- Upon arrival, we had to pause in front of a camera that scanned our body temperatures to make sure we weren’t running a fever.
- There was plenty of sanitation available everywhere. We got hand wipes as soon as we stepped out of our van from the airport. Workers squirted our hands with sanitizer every time we entered a restaurant. There was also a bottle of hand sanitizer in our bathroom that we could use throughout the trip .
- Along with our brochure of amenities and a map of the resort, we got a pamphlet about the sanitization and cleaning procedures that are used to keep guests safe.
- It’s likely your resort (if staying at one) will book an onsite test for you. To get back into the U.S., you need to have a negative COVID test within 3 days of your return flight. Our resort did rapid tests & we got our printed results within 15 min. This was great because we didn’t have to think or worry about it throughout the trip. Just remember, you have to show your negative test at the airport on the way home, so make sure to keep these papers tucked away somewhere safe.
If this is not done for you by your accommodation, be mindful that it’s on you to do the math on how long you’re there & when the appropriate time to get a test is. Don’t want to get stuck in Mexico 😉
After 2 years of not traveling internationally, it was quite the process to acclimate to all of the changes in place. We hope our experiences and tips help as you plan your next trip!
*Disclaimer: The above information was written specifically about our experience traveling to Mexico in May of 2021. The rules and regulations outlined above are subject to change at any time and may or may not apply to your destination.
Comments (1)
Dell
May 25, 2021 at 1:43 am
That is very interesting
Thank you for sharing.
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