Welcome to our Book of Adventures

Thinking of booking a trip to Cancun? I sat down with a recent traveler to Cancun for a short-and-sweet interview. I myself have been thinking of visiting Mexico and was curious as to how the experience went. I hope that this interview provides some insight into current travels to Mexico!

Why did you pick Cancun and how long did you stay there?

“We picked Cancun because we love the weather there and it’s not too long of a flight. I found a really great deal on an all-inclusive that we have stayed at in the past which made it very enticing to book again. We stayed 6 days at the Hyatt Ziva Riviera.“

What was the process for leaving the U.S. and entering Mexico?

“There was nothing in regards to leaving the U.S. We didn’t have to take a test before flying to Mexico, which was nice. It relieves a tremendous amount of stress knowing we can just go. To enter Mexico, you have to fill out a customs form and a health form asking if you had been around anyone with Covid. To then leave Mexico, you had to have a Covid test 24 hours prior to departure, which our resort offered for free. This is ideal, we did NOT want to have to find a local clinic and deal with the hassle. You also had to fill out the health form again asking the same questions about possible Covid exposure. I’ll be honest, we were on pins and needles the day before we had to do our testing. We didn’t sleep well, what if we had Covid and didn’t know it?? We were speaking to one of the staff and she said that a couple from the UK tested positive and couldn’t leave. They were moved to a different room and had to quarantine for 10 days. All of their meals had to be brought to them, they could not leave the room. All of these things go through your head right up until you get your negative test results. We’re not sure we will do this again… it was emotionally hard.

Once you received your negative test results, you had to print them out and upload them into an app called VeriFly. The airline required this or we couldn’t check in for our flight. Once the airline has the test results from VeriFly (the are connected), you are able to check in with the airline. We received notification from the app that we were now able to check in, it did not come from the airline.”

Was it easy to get around there?

“We actually chose not to leave the resort to minimize possible Covid exposure”

Any mentionable trip highlights for other travelers?

“The resort we stayed at, the Hyatt Ziva Rivera, has excellent food which we find rare for all-inclusives. Usually food is sub-par, very average. But the food here is exceptional and the highlight of our stay there. The grounds are beautiful, too. They had free cooking classes which we signed up for. Specifically, we did the Guacamole class! Loved it. We love Cancun because of the perfect weather, so if you are looking for warm temperatures, beautiful sunsets, and a very clean resort with delicious food, this place has all of that.”

At the resort, how was the staff culture?

“Excellent service and friendly staff…in fact, every time you pass a staff member on property, they put their hand over their heart and they say ‘hello’ or ‘good morning’ or ‘good night’…. this meant ‘from the heart’ and I have to say, it made us feel so very welcome there.”

How was the pandemic experience there?

“Well, the resort did feel empty….there are 7 buildings on property and only 3 of them were open. Regardless, it made for a wonderful and relaxing 6 days. We did have to wear masks any time we were indoors, but outdoors was not required.”

Last but not least, is there a travel tip you can share with the readers?

“Yes, I suggest you arrange your airport transport in advance of arriving there. Be sure to book a reputable transport from the airport to your hotel. I booked the Cancun Shuttle Service, I read that they have been in business for 50 years, so this made me think that they were reliable and wouldn’t scam us in any way. We are leary of things like that. You can book them in advance online, it was $29 for two people each way, which we thought was very reasonable”

Thank you Traveler Yvonne S. for sharing your experience with us!