Governor Carlos Joaquín on May 3 communicated that the state of Quintana Too, home to tourism hotspot, Cancun, would move from medium-risk yellow to high-risk orange colour on the state government’s four-tier Traffic Light Monitoring System.

As a response to the recent rise in COVID-19 cases, in a video posted May 18 on his Twitter account, he announced five additional measures to be implemented at the local level to prevent further increases, including opening and closing hours, as well as strict monitoring of capacity.

Events such as conferences, exhibits and others should take place in the context of a sanitary bubble with limited capacity, each participant should present a negative antigen test of no more than 24 hours, comply with the measures in place, and once inside the bubble the person should remain in the premises until the event has concluded. Street closures and mobility restrictions in non-touristic areas in the Cancun downtown area will be enforced. Public and private transport will be monitored to ensure that the number of passengers allowed is not exceeded.

Large social public gatherings that fail to comply with sanitary measures will be sanctioned to avoid the spread of the virus.

“We are at a crucial moment, and we all need to comply and follow procedures to protect our loved ones and our entire community,” said Joaquin in his video message.

Travelers visiting Quintana Roo should be aware of these preventive measures and continue to follow protocols such as the use of face masks, social distancing, and hygiene measures, but should not change travel plans as airports, critical highways and attractions in the destination remain fully open.

“Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis the coordinated work between the private and public sectors at the local level and our travel partners across the World has been critical to ensure the safe and secure reopening of the destination,” said Dario Flota, executive director of the Quintana Roo Tourism Board.