Mexico— Traveling During COVID-19 Pandemic
Ándale, we did! And the experience was something different, but we would never forget
There is nothing I would want more than to have the freedom to feel safe moving around the world again. With that said, there is a certain situation where you find it worth the risk to go traveling during a pandemic.
I am an Italian citizen based out of Sicily and my boyfriend is an American living in California. As you may know, couples separated by travel bans had to be creative to see their loved ones.
Why did we travel during the pandemic?
Because of an exemption allowing couples to reunite by the Italian government, my boyfriend was finally allowed to come to visit me in my hometown Modica, Sicily. After spending three months together in Italy, the maximum amount of time he was allowed to stay in the country, we started our adventure to go back to his hometown, San Francisco. With the European travel ban still in place, we reached out to Facebook groups filled with couples in our same conundrum and learned of a loophole for European Citizens attempting to enter the United States. We had to find a “buffer” country to quarantine 14 days before stepping foot on US soil.
Searching on the internet we decided the best place to spend our quarantine would be Mexico. At that time, Mexico was accepting any kind of citizenship and doesn’t require proof of a negative swab test. There was also no self-isolation protocol mandated in place. Perfect!
We didn’t have much of a travel itinerary. But we did make sure to buy a flight from Mexico City to Cancún to split our time in the beautiful metropolis of Mexico City and the Caribbean coastlines of Cancun.
Traveling to Mexico City
After arriving in Mexico City, we quickly realized how bad the coronavirus situation was in the Capital. Unfortunately, Coronavirus has hit Mexico very hard. Mexico has one of the highest mortality rates for the virus. The president of Mexico was often downplaying the virus when speaking publicly.
However, once we were settled it surprised us how strict the restriction was in the city. It was very rare to see someone without a mask. As opposed to Italy where you would frequently see groups of mask-less people in the streets.
Fine Arts Palace
For the most part, they had closed all non-essential businesses in the city. Museum, certain parks, even their main square The Zocalo were closed! You could only get a glimpse of its beauty behind several armed police officers and military personnel. Restaurants were only providing take-out and delivery options. If we wanted to pick up groceries at the supermarkets one of us had to wait outside because they were only allowing one person per family. The City was desperately trying to lower the infection rate.
Moving around the City was super easy and affordable with Uber. Every car was provided with hand sanitizer and lots of them were equipped with a plastic shield between the driver and us. We would zip from one end of the City to the other rarely paying more than $5 per ride. We even took an Uber to the “Desierto de Los Leones“, about a 40-minute drive, to take an early morning walk in nature.
Desierto de los Leones
Even with all the restrictions in place and the pandemic still crippling the country, I found my time in Mexico City very enjoyable. It made me feel like I was living more like a local instead of a tourist separated from the locals. I also felt surprisingly safe because it seemed everyone was making a true effort to battle the virus.
Traveling to Cancún
The winter months are the busiest for Cancun. Although you could notice a slow down in certain parts of Cancun, we were surprised to see so many people from around the world having a vacation. The restrictions and safety precautions were much less severe than in Mexico City.
While catching a ride with a local resident, she told me that in Cancun there aren’t as many cases as there are in Mexico City, and people follow the rules more strictly. From what I could see, that didn’t seem accurate.
We took a quick day trip to nearby Tulum and stopped for breakfast. It was so packed with people at “Ki’bok Coffee” that I almost forgot there was a pandemic! We couldn’t check out the beautiful beaches in Tulum because there was not a single parking spot for the car. We spent almost 40 minutes going back and forth being flagged down every 2 minutes by tour guides. Eventually, we gave up and came back to the less hectic Cancun.
Rosca de Reyes
It was possible to eat inside restaurants and to go everywhere. The beaches among the ‘zona hotelera‘ were crowded as they always are in winter and who’s gonna wear a mask at the seaside?
I didn’t feel safe. Even though we appreciated and enjoyed the beauty of Cancun we both felt it just wasn’t the right time to be there.
Valladolid & Chichén-Itzá
Luckily we decided to have a two-day escape from Cancún. I wanted to check out one of the “New Seven Wonders of the World” and so we took a car and drove to the Yucatán peninsula, to spend a couple of days closer to the archeological site of “Chichén-Itzá“.
We slept in this little village called “Valladolid“ and to my surprise, everything there was amazing! It was too far away from Cancun to be crowded and the sunsets that we saw there were magical.
It sounds insane, but we were the only guests in a very beautiful and cheap hotel in the village. I’m always against booking in a hotel. Usually, I prefer to stay in an apartment or a hostel, but this time it was worth it.
Visiting the ruins was so astonishing in every single way you can imagine. They were crowded, for sure. However, being in an open-air environment made me feel more comfortable and everybody was minding their personal space.
Teotihuacan
On our way back to Cancun, we took the opportunity to stop and take a swim in a beautiful underground cave called “cenotes” that are abundant in the regions of Yucatán and Quintana Roo. You pay around $5 to those locals that take care of that cenote and you can go swim in the most amazing and beautiful cave. It is truly a unique experience.
All things considered, I mostly had fun traveling during the pandemic in Mexico. I loooved the food and the locals were adorable with us. I will for sure be coming back when the pandemic ends.
Written by traveler Chiara Alicata.
Published on the TravelWiser website last February 12, 2021
Note: Please be aware that during the pandemic, protocols are constantly changing. Follow all country, local, and territorial travel restrictions.
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