Covid testing in Cozumel

[dmaziuk]

Good to know. Never fly AA. We always fly United and last flew Dec 12, for the 4th since testing is required. No such Verifly crap, just one short line to check bags (we did get there 2 hours before flight) and less than ten people in security line. Time from getting out of cab to having a beer inside the secured area was about 15 minutes.

You probably just got through before the current round of sh*t-hitting-the-fan started. We flew AA to Curacao and back over the Xmas/New Year break and it was all smooth sailing (no VeriFly either) until one the engines on our return flight wouldn't spin up at pre-flight check. This was Monday after O'Hare (our destination) just opened after the weekend blizzard. Neither the engine nor the blizzard were AA's fault, but once you find yourself ears-deep in that crap in a major hub (Miami in our case), well, there are many more poor schmucks like you than there are agents. So... a lot of fun was had by all, but once we got out of Miami it turned back to smooth and uneventful.

Whereas when we flew back from Roatan in spring 2020, one day before the first round of sh*t-hitting-the-fan, Miami was deserted. We walked through everything without stopping in line even once.

@jfcl01 nobody cares about your vaccination status. You need the test and if your flight gets cancelled, the test is good for extra 24 hours, or was as of Tuesday. (Your airline desk agent may or may not know about that.)

 

[DandyDon]

Being fully vaccinated helps on some routes, I think it made getting into Roatan easier, but does not make returning to the US easier. They should add that.

It also helps if you still get infected...

 

[dmaziuk]

It also helps if you still get infected...

That's whether you travel or not; the issue when you travel is testing positive for your return flight .

 

[ReefHound]

You probably just got through before the current round of sh*t-hitting-the-fan started. We flew AA to Curacao and back over the Xmas/New Year break and it was all smooth sailing (no VeriFly either)

The latest updated requirements began Nov 6. We flew Dec 12. Less than 4 weeks ago. The person to whom I responded flew 3 weeks ago. Pretty close to the same time. In four CZM departures under testing requirements, we've never found United to have separate lines. There are big signs upon entering CZM say you need to fill out the health questionnaire before getting in line. So you have people huddled around doing this before getting into line to check bags. But the airline agent doesn't scan it or even look at it, just advises that if you haven't done it yet you need to do it and show security. So in reality, you could skip that first 15 minutes wasted time and just fill it out while moving through the security line.

 

[dberry]

The latest updated requirements began Nov 6. We flew Dec 12. Less than 4 weeks ago. The person to whom I responded flew 3 weeks ago. Pretty close to the same time. In four CZM departures under testing requirements, we've never found United to have separate lines. There are big signs upon entering CZM say you need to fill out the health questionnaire before getting in line. So you have people huddled around doing this before getting into line to check bags. But the airline agent doesn't scan it or even look at it, just advises that if you haven't done it yet you need to do it and show security. So in reality, you could skip that first 15 minutes wasted time and just fill it out while moving through the security line.

Exactly which health questionnaire do you mean? The Vuelaseguro (Mexican gov) form, or something else?


I'm still a bit confused about what paperwork / apps are needed and for which direction. Sorry for being slow about these things, but bear with me.

I've been to this site: Vuela Seguro and downloaded the form and printed a couple of copies to carry with me.

Arrival at Cancun Airport from the USA:
I have the Vuelaseguro form printed already; I suppose I can fill it out on-line before leaving the US as long as it's 12 hours in advance. Is that correct?

Return to USA from Cancun:
(1) to check-in at airport with airlines: I'll have email (and maybe printed) form with negative COVID test within 24h of flight.
(2) I *think* I'll need a fresh Vuelaseguro form; I'll print another copy now, but should be able to enter info on-line before leaving Cozumel. (Is that the form @ReefHound is talking about?)

I'll have my vax info on my phone (scans of card, QR code), in the event someone asks, but it seems no one will ask.

I am missing anything? Anything else I can do to avoid long lines in the airport?
We're leaving a week from tomorrow - yay!

Many thanks.
Don

 

[Lorenzoid]

Arrival at Cancun Airport from the USA:
I have the Vuelaseguro form printed already; I suppose I can fill it out on-line before leaving the US as long as it's 12 hours in advance. Is that correct?

You can just do the vuelaseguro on your phone; hard copy isn't required. Yes, 12 hours in advance. When I checked in in Atlanta for the flight to Cancun, the agent asked to see it, and I showed her the copy on my phone. Arriving in CUN, no Mexican official asked for it. I haven't been following the discussions here on SB closely, but perhaps when you fill it out online it gets recorded in their database, and they don't ask you for it on arrival because they already have it? I don't know.

Return to USA from Cancun:
(1) to check-in at airport with airlines: I'll have email (and maybe printed) form with negative COVID test within 24h of flight.
(2) I *think* I'll need a fresh Vuelaseguro form; I'll print another copy now, but should be able to enter info on-line before leaving Cozumel. (Is that the form @ReefHound is talking about?)

I'll have my vax info on my phone (scans of card, QR code), in the event someone asks, but it seems no one will ask.

For my covid test, I used a mobile service that came to my hotel, and they emailed me my result. Before leaving my hotel for the airport, I filled out the CDC Attestation Form through a link my airline sent me. Apparently, the airline receives it through that portal, so I did not need to print a hard copy or retain a copy on my phone. Since my flight was direct to the US (not through another Mexican city) I did not fill out another vuelaseguro form. Checking in for the return flight, the agent at the check-in counter asked to see my test result, and I showed her the emailed copy I had on my phone. They did not ask for anything else. This was yesterday.

 

[ReefHound]

Exactly which health questionnaire do you mean? The Vuelaseguro (Mexican gov) form, or something else?


I'm still a bit confused about what paperwork / apps are needed and for which direction. Sorry for being slow about these things, but bear with me.

I've been to this site: Vuela Seguro and downloaded the form and printed a couple of copies to carry with me.

That's the only health questionnaire I know about. The airlines give a link and say it's needed before the flight but it hasn't been in my experience. You can only do it within 12 hours of less of flight. United Airlines has never asked for it in Houston. CZM immigration hasn't asked and once time I had it printed and handed it over with my passport and FMM he just pushed it back to me without even looking at it. United gate agent leaving CZM will ask if you have it but doesn't want to see it, just making sure you have it for security. At security, they check passport and collect the paper forms or scan the QR code, for every person every time. Filling out online may be slightly easier for data entry but handing them paper moves the line faster than scanning the code, especially if you have all the codes for your group on one phone and have to navigate to them one by one.

 

[gopbroek]

Exactly which health questionnaire do you mean? The Vuelaseguro (Mexican gov) form, or something else?


I'm still a bit confused about what paperwork / apps are needed and for which direction. Sorry for being slow about these things, but bear with me.

I've been to this site: Vuela Seguro and downloaded the form and printed a couple of copies to carry with me.

Arrival at Cancun Airport from the USA:
I have the Vuelaseguro form printed already; I suppose I can fill it out on-line before leaving the US as long as it's 12 hours in advance. Is that correct?

Return to USA from Cancun:
(1) to check-in at airport with airlines: I'll have email (and maybe printed) form with negative COVID test within 24h of flight.
(2) I *think* I'll need a fresh Vuelaseguro form; I'll print another copy now, but should be able to enter info on-line before leaving Cozumel. (Is that the form @ReefHound is talking about?)

I'll have my vax info on my phone (scans of card, QR code), in the event someone asks, but it seems no one will ask.

I am missing anything? Anything else I can do to avoid long lines in the airport?
We're leaving a week from tomorrow - yay!

Many thanks.
Don

Covid test within 1 day, not 24 hours. If you have a 6PM flight a test at 7AM the previous day it is still valid. The CDC also makes allowances for a delayed flight, as long the delayed flight is by midnight the following day. Theoretically you could get a test at the IH at 7 AM (prior to diving) on a Tuesday then have your flight at 6 PM on Wednesday cancelled and then re-booked on Thursday and the test would still be valid. Remember the gate keepers are the airlines counter staff, no one in the US government is actually deciding whether you can fly or not. While the government makes the rules they are above actually being involved in the implementation.
From the CDC site:
"If the first flight in your trip is delayed past the 1-day limit of testing due to a situation outside of your control (e.g., delays because of severe weather or aircraft mechanical problem), and that delay is 24 hours or less past the 1-day limit for testing, you do not need to be retested. If the delay is more than 24 hours past the 1- day limit, then you will need to be retested."
EDIT; no seems to be looking at the entry health questionnaires either. The one to be done prior entry into Mexico is still on the books but I stopped filling it out in the fall of 2000 (about a dozen trips back). The airline in DFW stopped informing the departing passengers of it around the same time. No one has ever asked me about it on entry into Mexico. In November the US CDC started an online entry form requirement that is basically contact tracing form. I have been filling it out but know others who have skipped it lately. With close to a Million cases a day last week reported (actual # estimates at 5-10X due to testing shortages) the CDC is well past the contact tracing stage.

 

[DandyDon]

I've been to this site: Vuela Seguro and downloaded the form and printed a couple of copies to carry with me.

It's easier to do online in the 12-hour window before the flight.

Arrival at Cancun Airport from the USA:
I have the Vuelaseguro form printed already; I suppose I can fill it out on-line before leaving the US as long as it's 12 hours in advance. Is that correct?

Yep.

(1) to check-in at airport with airlines: I'll have email (and maybe printed) form with negative COVID test within 24h of flight.

One calendar day, as already mentioned. On United, load it online when you do advance check-in in the 24-hour window before departure.

(2) I *think* I'll need a fresh Vuelaseguro form; I'll print another copy now, but should be able to enter info on-line before leaving Cozumel. (Is that the form @ReefHound is talking about?)

Do it online and save a screenshot of the code on your phone.

I'll have my vax info on my phone (scans of card, QR code), in the event someone asks, but it seems no one will ask.

I showed a photo of my vaxxed card at my local Krispy Kream the other day and got a free donut.

I am missing anything? Anything else I can do to avoid long lines in the airport?

Not likely in this decade.

perhaps when you fill it out online it gets recorded in their database, and they don't ask you for it on arrival because they already have it? I don't know.

I don't either, but I think so.

 

[cvchief]

I have NEVER done the Vuelaseguro going into Mexico. No one ever asked for it.

I do it going out and show it at security in MX.