my experience trying to fly out & leave RV behind

[Tequila]

We arrived at Guad airport at 4 AM FOR A 6 AM flight with a connection in Mexico city. The place was a zoo and it tool almost an hour to get to the counter to check our baggage with they tagged right through to Bogota. They told us to go to immigration to get our tourist cards stamped as we had driven in (I did bring my 10 year permit for my motorhome with me). We walked over there and the lineup was huge so we thought we would miss our plane, so decided to get them stamped in Mexico City where we had a 1.5 hour layover.


After getting to the boarding gate, they delayed our flight by 1 hour. Too hard to get back to immigration, and now only just over 30 min in MC, so we sweated about not being able to get them stamped in MC and them not letting us on the plane for the whole flight.

As it turned out our flight to Bogota was going to be the same plane at the same gate so our luggage stayed on and we did not have to change terminals or anything like that. Never had that happen before. It turned out there was an immigration booth at the next gate so we went there and no lineup. She told us our tourist cards did not need to be stamped so we went back to our gate, they took them and did not even look. Go figure.

Last year in Guadalajara we flew home. That time they DID stamp them. I had both my 180 day truck and 10 year trailer permit, I just showed them the 10 year trailer one. They stamped it and I went on my way. Theoretically you are not aloowed to fly out and leave a vehicle with a 180 day permit behind. This year I just have a motorhome.

[Talleyho69]

At least it was resolved.

I guess the message is to actually heed the travel advice of a minimum of 2 hours for international flights.

My sweetie will be making a flight to the US and back, probably in May, and I plan to give him at LEAST 3 hours for each leg. Why? The last thing he needs is stress, and traveling without me is stressful enough!!!

Glad it worked for you eventually.

[Wm_Elliot]

A few years ago we drove into Mexico, then a week or so later put the daughter on a plane in GDL to fly home for college. What a nightmare! There was some sort of problem with the daughter's passport which didn't get stamped at the border when we entered. (they never stamp passports there for us)... At the GDL airport we were sent back and forth between two conflicting offices repeatedly. We could not get the two conflicting officers to speak to each other. Finally the impasse was broken and the daughter was allowed to board the plane.

[Lwiddis]

Might be a good part time gig...stamping papers at airports.