I'll be moving to Isla Mujeres for a year in August, and I was wondering about getting mail forwarded from the US. Somehow, I have a feeling that simply filling out a mail forwarding card here won't work. Can anyone here give me any info? Is the Mexican mail system reliable? Does a forwarding service make sense? Does anyone have any good recommendations? Thanks for the help...nice forum, by the way...looking forward to the coming year and this big adventure. Tom
Tom - Some people on this forum have sorted this out and should have details. But basically you will have to find someone, or a business, that will collect your mail in the US and then send it here via FedEx (or another reliable method) at some regular interval. The rule of thumb is if you didn't get a Tracking Number then kiss your package goodbye. The postal system is unreliable. Estafeta (has tracking numbers) and so far for me has been reliable for sending things inside Mexico (nationally). I use FedEx when I send anything to the US. DHL still operates here but I think has shut down in the US. UPS is here but seem to be nowhere near as good as FedEx is here (I've had terrible luck with UPS here).
In Cancun itself there are 2 locations, owned by the same people, who rent mailboxes. You get a US address in Laredo, Texas and the mail is courriered to Cancun twice a week. It runs about 270 USD per year. You can also mail envelopes to the US for 40 pesos per envelope. They are reliable as rain, but don't even try to send or receive packages, other than magazines. The surcharge for a package is outrageous. Of course none of this applies, as far as I know, to Isla Mujeres. You'd have to look around for a similar service, or resign yourself to a trip to Cancun every once in a while. Good luck in your new home!
My friend uses the service from Laredo and he lives in San Miguel de Allende. I just emailed him for their contact info. He finds it cheap and reliable. I will post it when he replies.
