The first time I went to EPM in 2017, I had researched EVERY SINGLE THING about the resort. I spent hours on Trip Advisor and every fan page and knew exactly what to expect. Still, it exceeded my expectations.

I had been to Hyatt Zilara, Live Aqua, and Grand Park Royal Cancun Caribe before Excellence. I really liked all of them. I have been to El Dorado Maroma and Valentin Imperial after… I like those, too… But every time I go back to Excellence I realize that, for me, it checks all of the boxes.

In the past, I’ve done a complete day by day… I did them for trips 2, 3, and 4… This time, since so much of my time there repeats… I’m going to do one blog for the TRAVEL part and the second blog for the trip itself…

Travel in the Time of COVID: Preparation and Printing

I bring damp rid, a champagne stopper, a small, soft sided cooler (the fridges are a little warm), Amazon fire stick, a power strip, all of my prescription bottles, and I get a Zofran prescription from my PCP just in case…I usually one bring one “daytime” outfit, and I rarely wear it. I’m generally in a bathing suit all day. Other than that, I bring all of the “normal” stuff.

I bring a pocket folder with me, and I print all the things I could need. I noticed in the airport for our departure the MOST time was taken up by people trying to scan through their phones to find the things they needed. I just had mine in order in my folder to take out for the people to scan. It was so much quicker and easier and didn’t hold anyone up (especially me.)

Entering Mexico:
I didn’t end up needing all of the following things, but I did print all of them just in case… *The links are active for things where I had to go to websites*

• 1. Hotel confirmation and payment confirmation
• 2. Transfer confirmation (I used Kalido even though Seasons was included with my hotel only confirmation. I’m comfortable with them, and they were wonderful as usual. Seasons is good, too.)
• 3. Geoblue medical insurance. I have really good trip insurance with my Chase Sapphire Reserve card, but I also like to have some extra “just in case.” It is VERY reasonable and provides a million dollars of coverage. I actually get it for about 10 days beyond our actual trip. I’ve never had to use it, but I like having it there.
• 4. Tourism card. You can print this up to 30 days before your trip. Everyone in the group needs one.
• 5. All of my confirmations (spa appointment, mixology, wine cellar reserve room)
• 6. Vaccination cards
• 7. Boarding passes
• 8. Visitax payment confirmation. This was instituted in April 2021 and is just Quintana Roo. It had not really been enforced until recently. Now, they stand at the bottom of the escalator and check to see if you have it, and if you don’t, ask you to scan a QR code and pay at the airport. The wifi is terrible. You can pay this for all of the people in your group. It’s only $11 per person and can be paid in advance. DON’T go to a scam site. Make sure you’re in the official spot. I think you can do it up to 6 months in advance. You could PROBABLY skirt the people at the bottom of the stairs, but it was very clear they were trying to get to everyone. This is NOT the same as the tax that is on your airline tickets. You can read about it here.
• 9. The Vuelo Segura health declaration. They will not look at this when you enter Cancun, but some airlines will tell you that you have to do it and will check. (It’s not worth arguing with them, but the website itself says that you don’t need it to enter Cancun.) You can only do it 12 hours before you land. It will give you a QR code. You MUST fill it out before you depart from Cancun. You can fill it out on the same website both times and get a new QR code when you leave. (You’ll see a lot of people struggling at the security line to get wifi and fill it out. They won’t let you through without it. They will pass out tiny pieces of paper where you can fill it out if the wifi isn’t working.
• 10. Scanned copy of my passport (just in case…)

Getting to Mexico hasn’t really changed at all except that you wear a mask. None of the terminals need a customs form as they had in the past… You still need to fill out the tourism card. Yes, they MIGHT have copies for you to fill out on the airplane, but the last four times I’ve been on a flight, they have run out, and that leaves people standing against the windows, fumbling for their pens and passports. It’s just so much easier to have it printed.

When you go through immigration, when you come down the stairs, don’t stay in the lines right in front of you, If you go to the far ends on the left or the right, those lines are generally shorter if you have a choice. (We were through in under five minutes at 12 PM on a Friday.)

Picking up checked luggage is taking a little longer than usual. It took 20 minutes for our luggage to come off the plane. Mexico, like everywhere else, is short staffed right now. Still, I prefer to check a bag. I want to have my “weird” things with me (damp rid, power strip, TONS of sunscreen, etc.) It’s worth it to me to wait.

The airport was CRAZY. It was a madhouse going through and finding the transfers, but since I use the same people all of the time, I knew were they would be and was able to push through the crowd to get to them. Don’t talk to anyone until you get outside. If you talk to people in the car rental center they may try to scam you. (They’re not dangerous, BUT you may get stuck in a time share presentation.) Once you’re outside, you can ask others where your transfer is. They’ll tell you.

You will NEED the following to EXIT Mexico:

You can print everything from the business office on the lobby level. You can ask the concierge to do it, but I did it myself. If you go to the stairs that lead up to the club lounge, there are a few computers at the base of the stairs and a free printer. The keyboard is a little different, but hopefully you can get the hang of it.

I download the pdf’s of everything into a Google drive file and make them available offline. That way, when I went to the computers to print, everything was in one spot and easy to get to.

1. The other half of your tourism card (The immigration agents will rip it in half and stamp it when you enter. Be sure the stamp is clear. I’ve had to go to the “naughty line” before upon returning when it wasn’t. If you have to replace it, they charge you right there in pesos. This is VERY unlikely. Still, I check every time. You need to give it to the airlines when you leave. Our plane was actually held for a few minutes upon departure because they were missing two of them.)

2. Your negative COVID results. You don’t currently need a vaccination record, but I brought mine just in case. Many airlines have a portal where you can scan these in. I have PDF’s of them in my Google drive, so I uploaded those from there…No one at the airport asked to actually see our vaccination records or our COVID results since they were already uploaded, but I had them available if they had. The people at the lines around us were having to try to pull up emails in their phones and it was taking awhile. The resort pays for necessary COVID tests for US guests. You schedule with your concierge. They are SUPER easy. It took less than ten minutes. The longest part was walking over to building one. Wear a mask, bring your passport, check in on the ground floor. Go up to the first floor. Get your nose swabbed. Done.

3. The Vuelo Segura health declaration. There are QR codes all over the airport to do this, but you can do it at the resort before you leave. It will give you an “approved” page with a QR code. I just printed the page at the business center so that I didn’t have to mess with my phone at the airport. Once person can do them for all members of your group, but each person will need one.

4. Most airlines also have a health attestation. I think American’s is in Verifly, United is in their “Travel Ready” center.

5. Visitax payment confirmation. I was asked for it on November 9. They were standing at the bottom of the escalators. I’m sure I could have avoided them if I wanted to, but I’m not against paying it.

Final Travel Tips:

I am a big fan of the lounges. We flew business class on United this time, so we had access to their lounges. It’s just a nice place to go to the restroom, grab a drink, and wait away from the crazy hustle and bustle. I also have “Priority Pass” with my credit card, so that gets us some lounge access as well.

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Coming into Cancun, I try to sit on the right side of the plane… It seems like I get the best views of the water that way.

When we’re leaving, we go with the transfer time that the transfer company suggests. Yes, you do get to the airport very early – usually. But people are having a lot of trouble with all of the paperwork currently needed/suggested, so it’s just easier not to fret.

We also let one of those blue shirted porters outside handle our luggage and walk us through the process. They are “free.” (We do usually tip them about $2 per bag), but they always go to the fastest people, the shortest lines, and they can make sure that you have all of your documents in order.

There is PLENTY of shopping available at the airport. The souvenirs there are the same as you’d see if you went into town or over to Isla Mujeres. It may be easier to wait to shop until you’re there.

While in the airport, we pay for the Mera Business lounge There is one in terminal 3 and one in terminal 4. The lounges are $29 per person BUT they include a pretty good menu and alcohol if you want it. If you’re likely to eat a meal at the airport the cost is about the same, we feel it’s worth it for the private, quiet space, good wifi, and relaxing atmosphere.

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When re-entering the country, I have Global Entry. My credit card paid for it as a benefit. It also includes TSA precheck, which is great for any other traveling. It’s nice to bypass all of those lines in the US. If you DON’T have that, some cities include Mobile Passport which ALSO can make the immigration process much faster. You have to do that one just a few hours before you land.

I am aware that I am an over-the-top planner. Still, I hope some of this is helpful for anyone who is new to the Mexico experience or nervous about traveling during the times of COVID. If you have other questions, I’m happy to help.