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In spite of the fact that the governor of the state of Quintana Roo, where Cancun is located, has removed the mask mandate in both open and closed spaces within the state, the Cancun airport is still running on the previous guidelines. Security guards stationed at all of the airport’s terminals continue to remind tourists to wear their masks. In fact, people aren’t allowed into the immigration area without a mask upon arrival. For departures, travelers will not be allowed access to the gates without a mask.
The Asur group that runs the Cancun Airport mentioned that they would keep the mandate in effect due to the nature of their facility. With people arriving to the region from all over the world they feel the mask mandate is still appropriate within the Cancun airport. On Wednesday, the first full day of no masks around Cancun, but forceful mask wearing throughout the airport, multiple travelers got into arguments over the conflicting instructions. Asur, though, seems adamant to uphold the mask mandate within the airport.
Do Masks Need To Be Worn Around Cancun or Not?
On Tuesday night the governor of the state of Quintana Roo, Carlos Joaquin Gonzalez took to Twitter to announce that the use of masks in the state went from being mandatory to voluntary. He mentioned that mask wearing was still encouraged on public transport, and large crowd gatherings. While also, saying that people with certain negative preexisting health conditions may want to consider wearing a mask particularly in closed spaces.
The big problem with the announcement is that the new “voluntary” designation of mask wearing is rather ambiguous. Apparently as things stand, owners of different facilities are going to be at liberty to decide if they want to impose a mask wearing policy or not. This can include places like restaurants, hotels, shopping centers, and super markets. Again the regulations are ambiguous at best.
An hour after the governor’s official Twitter account published his speech where he announced mask wearing as voluntary, an infographic was posted by state health authorities to clear up the issue of mask wearing throughout the state. Although it’s labeled as voluntary the fact is some spots are still mandating that visitors wear masks. It’s a good idea then, to bring one along if you’re planning on visiting Cancun just in case.
Cancun Boasts No COVID Related Deaths Over The Last 5 Weeks
The Governor mentioned that the decision to make mask wearing “optional” was made thanks in large part to the positive data regarding COVID related deaths in the state. There hasn’t been a single COVID related death in the state over the last 5 weeks. At the same time the official COVID case tracker in the state shows that less than 20 new COVID cases are being reported on a daily basis.
While he reiterated in his statement that in fact wearing the mask was optional he did not address what would happen if specific companies or facilities decided to enforce mask mandates. What he did mention was that it was recommended that people whose jobs require direct contact with the public keep using masks during their working hours.
Therefore, it’s very likely to see waiters, cashiers, and even clerks at the front desk of hotels continuing to wear a mask through their working hours. The fact though, that the Cancun is being allowed to enforce a mask mandate essentially indicates as we’ve mentioned that each facility will be able to set their own guidelines regarding this issue. Mask mandates may very well fall under that gray area that allows places like golf courses not allow people to play without a collared shirt.
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