Updated November 2026 · By Terry Barkhuizen, NOM-08 certified tour guide (credential N012608). Airport procedures and terminal assignments change; check your airline and the airport’s official information before you fly.
Part of our Plan Your Trip guide.
Cancun International Airport (CUN) is Mexico’s busiest airport for international tourists, and almost every visitor to the Riviera Maya passes through it. It’s modern and efficient, but the arrivals experience can be overwhelming if you don’t know what to expect. Here’s how to get through it smoothly – in both directions.
Terminals
Cancun has several terminals (2, 3 and 4 handle most international flights). They’re not connected by walkways – a free shuttle bus links them. Check your terminal with your airline before you fly, especially on departure.
Arriving: step by step
- Immigration: have your passport ready. At Cancun the paper tourist form has been replaced by a digital process; officers may ask where you’re staying and when you leave, so have your accommodation and return-flight details handy.
- Baggage claim.
- Customs: bags are scanned. You may be asked to press a button or be directed for inspection.
- The “shark tank”: after customs you’ll walk past desks and people offering transport, tours, phones and “information”. Many sell timeshare presentations. Keep walking until you’re outside.
- Outside: find your pre-booked driver or the ADO bus booth.
Getting from the airport
- To Playa del Carmen: ADO bus or transfer – see Cancun airport to Playa del Carmen.
- To Tulum: ADO, Tren Maya or transfer – see Cancun airport to Tulum.
- To the Hotel Zone or downtown Cancun: ADO buses run to downtown and the Hotel Zone; taxis and transfers are also available.
- Tren Maya: the airport station is reached by a free shuttle from the terminals – see the Tren Maya guide.
- Rental cars: rental shuttles collect you outside. Read renting a car first.
Thinking of Uber? Read taxis, Uber and ride-hailing first – airport pickups are unreliable. Heading to Isla Mujeres? See the Isla Mujeres ferry guide.
Money and SIM cards
- Airport exchange rates are poor – change only a little, or use a bank ATM. See money and ATMs.
- Local SIM cards and eSIMs are available, but often cheaper in town.
Departing
- Arrive early: about 3 hours before an international flight, more in peak season. From Playa del Carmen, allow 1–1.5 hours to the airport; from Tulum, 2–3 hours.
- Visitax: have your QR code ready – checks are increasingly common. See our Visitax guide.
- Check your terminal – a wrong drop-off costs time.
- Security queues can be long at peak times.
Common mistakes
- Stopping at the desks in the arrivals hall.
- Booking a transfer without written confirmation of the total price.
- Arriving at the airport too late in high season.
- Not paying Visitax before departure day.