And while those who went north were embraced - it wasn't quite the same situation out west. Many Benquenos who wanted to skip across to Melchor were quite surprised to find that they were being processed as regular tourists - and that meant they had to pay 600 quetzales - about 160 Belize dollars for a Guatemalan COVID test - which, of course, has to be negative - or the traveler has to return to Belize.
Facebook commentary from the border this morning indicated that the price of testing on both sides caused many who planned to cross, either to work or to make small sales, to cancel their trips altogether realizing that their profit margins disappeared right into the price of testing.
We note that Mexico does not impose any such condition on Belizean travelers. But, those who stay more than 24 hours in Chetumal have to pay $100.00 to a private contractor on the Belize side to have a test done.
