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Without a doubt my favorite place in the world to travel to is Cozumel, Mexico. I'd been to Mexico several times before but Cozumel and its people captured my heart.
Cozumel (Spanish pronunciation: [kosuˈmel]; Yucatec Maya: Kùutsmil) is an island and municipality in the Caribbean Sea off the eastern coast of Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, opposite Playa del Carmen. It is separated from the mainland by the Cozumel Channel and is close to the Yucatán Channel. The municipality is part of the state of Quintana Roo, Mexico.
The name Cozumel was derived from the Mayan "Cuzamil" (also spelled "Cutzmil") or "Ah Cuzamil Peten" in full, which means "the island of swallows".
Hi, I'm Pat and welcome to my blog, Life's A Trip!
I love traveling, food and getting a great deal on anything - which is what this blog is about.
I'll share not only my travel destinations including accommodations, dining hot spots, and top (and weird!) travel attractions with you - but how to make any trip more budget friendly.
the airport
Before we even get to the airport, I'll give you a head's up as to when to visit Cozumel. It's hurricane season there virtually 365 days a year, so just go and purchase travel insurance before you do. Our trip was Sept. 28th through Oct. 5th, 2011. We had beautiful sunny if not very hot weather for 9 of the 10 days there. The morning we were to fly out, one heck of a tropical storm hit the island and we just barely got off the ground.
So I wouldn't worry as much about hurricane season as I would heatstroke in Cozumel.
That being said, Cozumel has its own airport. And while it has at least 5 booths to get incoming passengers from other countries flying through their Customs and paperwork, the day we arrived only one of those booths were open and manned for not just our plane, but several other incoming planes as well. Plan on spending some time waiting in line once you hit the Cozumel Airport and have your Passport ready.
When you arrive at the airport, you will be given your FMM form.
This is essentially a visa that allows you to be vacationing as a tourist in Mexico.
You must carry it with you at all times in case you are asked to present it.
DO NOT LOSE IT!
My niece and I put ours in Ziploc bags to make sure they didn't get wet, etc. and carried them in our travel backpack.
GETTING TO YOUR ACCOMMODATIONS
There is a booth inside the airport where you can pay for a transport to your accommodations. Do not book transport ahead of time. I made that mistake and our driver never showed up. So we ended up buying transport inside the airport anyway.
Walk right outside the airport door and you'll see a bunch of transport vans that go to all of the various hotels, resorts, etc.
Just find your appropriate van and show your ticket to the van driver.
One other thing I'll mention: There are 3 different police forces on Cozumel - federal or Federales, Cozumel city police and Cozumel tourist police. Don't let this scare you and don't be surprised if you see the Federales in military uniforms tooling around the island in a military
jeep with a machine gun mounted on it. This isn't because Cozumel isn't safe. It's done to keep the drug cartels out of Cozumel. If you're a woman, you can safely walk around Cozumel at any hour of the day or night, as my niece and I did. Never once were we bothered by anyone in doing this nor did we ever feel unsafe at any time.
other tips
*Take a stack of newly printed $1 bills with you. For some reason, the residents of Cozumel believe that if a dollar bill is wrinkled and worn it's devalues and isn't worth the face value of the bill. This isn't true of course...but they believe it is. So bring some new looking singles with you.
We never ran into anywhere on the island that didn't accept American money and Cozumel was very inexpensive to visit. A cab ride nearly anywhere will cost you $3.
*Most of the residents speak English so we never had a problem communicating. We both knew enough Spanish to get by if we did encounter someone who didn't speak English (mainly store clerks on the fringes of the tourist area) but most residents speak English.
We found that if we asked residents like cab drivers, etc. how to say something in Spanish they really appreciated it that we were making an effort to speak their language.
*When planning your trip, try to plan your activities when cruise ships won't be in port.
Many cruise lines dock in Cozumel for shore trips and you'll end up fighting all those cruise line passenger crowds to participate in your planned activities.
accommodations
While there are hotels and resorts all over Cozumel, there's only one place I will ever stay when visiting Cozumel - the all inclusive resort, Cozumel Palace. (It's also a diving resort for you fellow scuba divers)
It is not brand new but you wouldn't know it as everything is immaculate. It is a 4 star inclusive resort and the staff becomes like family members to you. Never have I walked into any resort or hotel and immediately had a cool towel wrapped around me neck to cool me down and a drink handed to me.
The resort features 4 different restaurants you have your choice of eating at, 3 swimming pools including a large infinity pool with swim up bar and outdoor eating area poolside, a full service spa, a diving dock with scuba diving excursions, a sandy area with lounge chairs, and more.
But here's the best part...
I watched the website specials and by booking on Black Friday, I got reservations for half price PLUS a $1500 resort credit that was the same as cash both inside and outside of the resort. I booked an interior room and when I checked in, used some of that credit to upgrade to a seaside suite with in room hot tub, 24/7 concierge service, a bar that was stocked daily, a seaside balcony with patio furniture with hammock.
My niece giving the thumbs up on our suite and the balcony hammock
Our seaside suite
The staff truly bent over backwards to provide us with absolutely phenomenal service. Never have I gotten service like that before - anywhere I've traveled and stayed, even in 5 star hotels.
We spent the remainder of our $1500 resort credit on a full spa day and a chef-prepared gourmet dinner on the beach at sunset. And we still had money left over that we never spent because we ran out of time to spend it.
Because I got the deal I did with Cozumel Palace, our entire trip for 2 including airfare cost less than $5000 for 10 days.
Cozumel Palace is only an 8 minute ride from the airport and is located at Rafael E. Melgar Km 1.5, 77600 Cozumel
dining
Although we ate most of our meals at the resort, we did check out a few of Cozumel's other dining options while out and about exploring. Authentic Mexican is my fave food!
1x KOOL
Situated right in the heart of Cozumel at Avenida Rafael E. Melgar Local 53, Royal Village Shopping Center, Chef Karla Enciso passes down generations of culinary traditions with her authentic Mayan cuisine.
Great food and a welcoming atmosphere only enhance the meals at 1x Kool - which has been featured in Food & Travel Magazine. (Karla is 1 of the top 10 chefs in Quintana Roo)
My personal favorite is 1x Kool's Ceviche that has a Mayan twist to it as compared to the Ceviche one typically thinks of when they think of Ceviche.
Lime juice combined with with delicate basil, hoja santa, coriander, mint, and coconut water sauce. Crisp jicama cubes and finely chopped onions enhance the texture with a refreshing crunch, with a touch of habanero for a little heat.
Truly mouth watering! (Then again if I could make a meal of Ceviche I would...)
See the menu here
(Don't faint when you see the prices, note they're in Mexican currency!)
Use this converter to convert Mexican pesos to U.S. dollars
BUCCANOS AT NIGHT
Mayan Ceviche
Buccanos At Night is a trendy hot spot for locals and foodies alike. A family run restaurant on the beaches of Cozumel. Buccanos at night is a multi-ethnic, multi-sensory dining experience where flavors clash on purpose. Contemporary seafood, fresh fish & premium quality ingredients that change with the season.
Their open air dining area is beautiful, especially at night and it's what makes Buccanos a favorite of locals and visitors alike.
Indoor dining is also available.
Av. Rafael E. Melgar, Costera Norte km 4.5, 77600 Cozumel
LOBSTER SHACK
Stumbled on this little gem quite accidentally and boy, am I glad I did! If you want really good lobster, super generous portions at a reasonable price, all prepared fresh as you order, then visit the Lobster Shack.
The cosy atmosphere of this spot makes guests feel relaxed and have a good time. The success of this restaurant wouldn't be possible without the appealing staff. Nice service is something that visitors note in their comments and I understand why.
If you stop in, try the coconut Margharita to accompany
your lobster!
3rd St South between Rafael Melgar and 5th Avenue
Just a couple feet From the Waterfront, Cozumel
TAKE A FOOD TOUR
If you really want to sample Cozumel cuisine consider taking a food tour where you visit several different venues with different culinary offerings.
attractions
There's so much to see and do on Cozumel that we couldn't nearly cover everything we wanted to do in the 10 days we were there - which is surprising given it's such a small island.
The highlight of our trip was our swim with dolphins at Dolphinaris, a 2 block walk from our resort. Normally, these swims last an hour and you do with swim with about a dozen other people. We went on my birthday (although they didn't know it was my birthday until about halfway through the swim). Yet our guide took us to the nursery pool where guests aren't normally allowed to swim and we had a private swim that lasted 2 hours instead of 1 with mama dolphins and their babies.
The dolphins even sang Happy Birthday to me!
Usually I don't go in for animals being kept in captivity simply to amuse people. But at Dolphinaris this wasn't the case at all. Dolphinaris rehabilitates sick and injured dolphins and those who can be successfully re-released back into the wild are. They only keep the dolphins that would die in the wild if they were re-released. They also take EXCELLENT care of their dolphins and the trainers are uber protective of them, especially when people are swimming with them. So you don't have to worry about swimming with the Dolphinaris dolphins, they aren't harmed in any way whatsoever and they even seem to enjoy interacting with the people who swim with them.
You'll also learn a lot about them during your swim. For instance, did you know a dolphin sheds its skin every 15 minutes? Yep, they lose all dead skin cells that are replaced with new cells every 15 minutes.
Nor do you realize how truly strong they are until they tow you through the water! They're extremely strong!
During your swim a photographer will take photos of your swim and a video on CD will also be made of your swim that you can purchase. I recommend you spend the money to do this! However, I'd ask them NOT to dub in music on the video. They did on mine and dubbed out the dolphins singing Happy Birthday to me.
Nonetheless, our dolphin swim was the highlight of our trip.
PIRATE SHIP DINNER CRUISE
Ruth and I had an absolute BLAST on this Jean Lafitte pirate ship dinner cruise! All of the 'pirates' were in costume and in character and really knew how to play to an audience and get them involved.
Games, prizes, live band, entertainment and dancing will make for a night of romance and fun - although I recommend the cruise more for adults than kids. Put it this way...the booze flows so freely there was enough to float the ship itself and the humor (although not out of line) was geared more toward adults. If you get my drift...
(There were some children aboard and they did have a great time.)
Indulge yourself in great grub with a delicious choice of: lobster and steak (surf'n'turf); lobster only; steak and chicken; steak only; chicken only; or vegetarian dinner, while sailing through the Caribbean waters of Cozumel. The food was scrumptious and perfectly prepared.
Soft drinks, beer, domestic cocktails, dinner, live music and show, all included.
Check this website for current pricing. Reservations are required.
SWIM WITH STINGRAYS AT STINGRAY BEACH
Stingray Beach offers a phenomenal guided experience swimming with stingrays and nurse sharks (harmless). You interact with them directly, can hold one and even kiss one if you want!
The session lasts about 1.5 hours and you can swim/snorkel around them after the session as they move freely around you. They're pretty friendly creatures! Price per session starts around $50 per person, additional charges for snorkeling tours/feeding sessions.
Children under 5 are not allowed in the encounters.
Stingray Beach is located at Av. General. Rafael E. Melgar Km. 2.8, San Miguel on the western coast of Cozumel.
CHANKANAAB
Chankanaab is an absolutely beautiful park in Cozumel. It's a great way to spend half a day touring the park and the other half relaxing on one of its many beaches while doing some snorkeling, swimming or sunbathing.
There are three places to eat, including live Mexican music. They're all seaside.
There's a manatee and a seal show (at which my niece kissed a seal), a dolphin experience, SNUBA and SeaTrek tours are available, there's a tequila tour, a TEMAZCAL official Mayan ceremony, a natural spa and plenty of great places to swim and snorkel or just relax and soak up the rays.
This is the #1 most popular attraction in Cozumel but the park is so large we didn't find it at all overcrowded. We enjoyed it so much we would've spent more than 1 day there if we could have.
Parking, bathrooms, dressing rooms, showers, Hammocks, beach chairs, life vest, ghostwriter underwater statues, inlet swimming area, prehispanic replicas, tropical garden, tequila experience, agave landscape, mayan hut, playground for kids.
Check the website for more details and pricing.
DISCOVER MEXICO
Mexico has a variety of cultures and nowhere is this showcased better than Discover Mexico Park.
This park is one of the largest attractions on the island and one of the busiest, here the different stages of the country's history are presented, from the pre-Hispanic era to the present day; all this through large models with the most representative archaeological sites and buildings of the country.
There are also changing cultural exhibits on display in the museum where you first enter the building. We saw some beautiful artwork from all over Mexico.
Most of the tour is exhibits of Mexican history and landmarks done in miniature. Our only criticism of this was that portion of the tour was a bit too long and it's in a somewhat wooded area and the mosquitos were eating us alive.
The tour ended with seeing a Mayan dance (dancer at right) which was quite interesting and very colorful. Their native dress was exquisite.
Worth seeing but bring bug spray!
The Discover Mexico park is located on the West Coast of Cozumel, about 11 kilometers (7 miles) South of San Miguel, specifically on the South Coastal Highway Km. 5.5, of the South Hotel Zone.
You'll have to book a tour of Discover Mexico through one of the Cozumel tour companies.
THE AMAZING COZUMEL RACE
The Amazing Cozumel Race is a BLAST! It's a combination of a scavenger hunt and sightseeing tour of places tourists don't usually see.
You're given clues you must solve to get to the next step of the scavenger hunt, until you've completed the scavenger hunt. You're competing against other teams of 2 or more people to be the first to finish and the winner.
You can also participate in non competition mode as well if that's your choice.
The race guides always check with each team before they leave for the next point just to make sure we were heading in the right direction.
Enjoy a post-race race awards ceremony at a local waterfront restaurant with prizes for top finishers plus two complimentary beverages for all participants!! It was the perfect way to end the race...and also the best way to see non touristy parts of Cozumel.
You want to book WAY in advance to participate in the race if you're in Cozumel during peak season. It sells out fast because it's that popular.
DIVE THE PALANCAR REEF
Cozumel is renowned for its snorkeling and scuba diving sites.
One of the best spots to dive is the Palancar Reef, rising from depths of up to 80 meters to shallows just beneath the surface of the sea at the southwest end of the island. A popular dive includes a large bronze figure of Christ placed some 17 meters (almost 56') underwater.
Other good diving spots are on the San Francisco, Paraíso, Columbia, and Maracaibo reefs, as well as the Santa Rosa Wall. And pretty much wherever you dive, you're certain to see such exotic species as angelfish, nurse sharks, sunfish, and sea turtles.
The best 9 dive shops in Cozumel:
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Blue Magic Scuba Calle 4 Nte 71, Centro, 77600 San Miguel de Cozumel, Q.R. 🌐 bluemagicscuba.com ...
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Blue Angel Resort and Dive Shop Carretera Costera Sur Km. 2.2, Zona Hotelera Nte., 77600 San Miguel de Cozumel, Q.R. 🌐 Blueangel.com ...
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Ocean Nomads Underwater Photography 📸 IG ...
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Aldora Divers C. 5 Sur #37, Centro, 77600 San Miguel de Cozumel, Q.R. ...
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Deep Xposure ...
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Punta Sur Divers ...
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Scuba Tony ...
Palancar Reef is a large coral reef on the western coast of the island and is part of the Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park. It's about 11 miles from the main town of San Miguel.
Don't despair if you're not a PADI certified diver, you can still see all of the underwater gems Cozumel has to offer.
DIVE THE DEPTHS IN A SUBMARINE TOUR
Take a trip deep under the surface of the translucent waters. With this Cozumel Submarine Experience, travelers climb aboard a real-life, state-of-the-art submarine.
The vessel plunges to depths of 30 meters, where a world of marine life is waiting within the protected park, Chankanaab. This is a great tour for travelers who aren't PADI-certified, but still want to see the miraculous creatures that live on the ocean floor. It's also great for divers who want to stay dry that day.
Feast your eyes on swirls of tropical fish and coral as your onboard guide tells you about what you see. The dive lasts about 45 minutes.
BE SURE TO CHECK THEIR WEBSITE FOR RULES. RESTRICTIONS & REGULATIONS!!!
Address: Chankanab Km 4, Sur, Zona Hotelera Nte., 77600 San Miguel de Cozumel, Q.R., Mexico
TRY SNUBA
SNUBA is a cross between snorkeling and scuba and it doesn't require certification. Rather than wearing a tank, the diver is attached to the surface by an air hose. Your air tank floats in a raft so your air hose just follows you wherever you go.
No, there's nothing to be afraid of. My brother-in-law was terrified to try it but I talked him into it.
He surfaced LOVING IT! And you're accompanied by a PADI certified divemaster the entire time and won't go any deeper than 25 feet.
It's a great way to view all of the sea life that inhabits the coral reefs, without the long hours of certification and wearing clunky scuba gear.
Contact Cozumel Snuba Tours to give it a try!
SCOPE OUT THE SAN MIGUEL SHOPS
Ruth and I spent an entire afternoon just browsing the shops in San Miguel because everything is so inexpensive. And the shop owners expect you to bargain with them on the price...
I got Ruth the cutest red and white sundress for only $8 - and she still wears it all these years later.
You can find just about anything in San Miguel and it's a great place to pick up souvenirs.
Hit the town square and you're likely to see and hear a band playing. The town square is particularly festive at night and pretty when it's all lit up.
RIDE THE FERRY OVER TO PLAYA DEL CARMEN
The Cozumel-Playa del Carmen ferry connects...well...Mexico with Mexico. It's just Playa del Carmen is on the mainland of Mexico whereas Cozumel is an island. Playa del Carmen is much bigger and more populated than Cozumel so there's even more to explore in Playa del Carmen.
The ferry crossing between the 2 locations takes about 1 hour and the boat makes about 8 trips between Playa del Carmen and Cozumel daily.
The cost of a 1 way ticket is $12 to $13. Double that for a 2 way ticket.
uso's and all that...
There was an extraterrestrial aspect to our trip to Cozumel that you can read here.
Ruth and I were relaxing on our balcony when she said "Aunt Pat, look at that flock of birds..."
"That's no flock of birds," I informed her.
A USO drifted slowly toward us, stopping right in front of our balcony, so close that if we'd climbed over the railing we could have reached out and touched it.
Being an experiencer I was used to this kind of stuff. Ruth? Not so much. She never said a word, never moved, just stared at it transfixed.
It hovered in front of us for a good two minutes before slowly moving off to the west, then seemingly disappearing into thin air.
Ruth still talks about seeing that USO to this day.
All too soon for our liking it was time to say adios to Cozumel. To date, it's been the #1 trip I've taken and I even considered becoming an ex-pat and moving there at one point. We still recall that trip with fond memories.
