Group of 5 (50+ agile, ladies) , not secure in driving our own vehicle. We hope to use Taxis Interested in shipping in "town" not shops near port, visiting the Museum, local catholic church and relax on beach. We are use to walking, so I think we could manage the walk into "town" we are seeing 3 - 5 block walk.
1. Should we taxi to beach first, then back to ship to clean up, and then shop?
I imagine knowing the hours of shops and park would help!
2. If brochure states 7:00 am - 6:00 pm is that Cozumel time or "ship time".
Thanks in advance for suggestions, hints, or even a must see!
There is little to do in Cozumel except swim, snorkel, and sun.
They have a few ruins to visit, but nothing like the ones found in Mexico, Guatemala.
The island measures 22 miles X 85 miles. the name is Ah-Cuzamil-Peten which means Island of Swallows.
the shopping is bad too. My advice..stay on the ship and relax.
Carole
if you do want to swim, hire a taxi or take the ships tour to the Chankanaab Park. It very nice and has clean rest rooms, snack bar. There is a small museum with Mayan artifacts. Admission is $7.00
i agree that Cozumel is not a dynamic shopping port. The streets downtown are narrow and crowded and their are hawkers on all of the sidewalks who will try to lure you into the jewlery stores, they can be very persistant. About the only deals in Cozumel would be on silver, loose jemstones and Mexican Vanilla.
Cozumel is all about the beaches, there are lots to choose from, all can be reached very easily by taxi.
Yep, not much on Cozumel. I would vote for Chankanaab or the new park at the south eastern tip (don't recall, but maybe Punta Sur). It is more of a naturalist site, whereas Chankanaab is more developed.
My family and I have always enjoyed Cozumel. We've never been, but Chakaanaab seems to be a favorite. There are several good websites on Cozumel that list the beaches and the amenities they have to offer. We've always gone past Chakanaab and snorkeled or sunned at one of the beaches further down. Taxies are plentiful, sometimes scary, but usually easy to find.
Walk into town depends which pier you dock at. If you're at the pier downtown, you can easily walk into town. We're not big shoppers, but it's fun to look at all the different shops. I find it fairly easy to smile, say no thanks and keep walking when the vendors come. We like to go a few blocks past the very busiest streets and I have a picture of a beautiful catholic church that we went into. Sorry I can't tell you exactly where it is, but it was not far from downtown.
The order that you do things might depend on how long your ship is in port. On our first trip we were there from early morning until midnight. We did our snorkeling and beaching, back to ship for clean up, then back into town for shopping, then back to ship for sweaters and we ate a restaurant off the beaten path that evening that we really enjoyed. Sorry can't tell you the name or where it was, either, except that it was on the 2nd floor, had open windows, not jammed with tourists and very good food.
THe last time we were there, our ship left much earlier and it was a little harder to get everything in & go back to ship in between to change, etc. Again, it kind of depends where you're docked, too.
I think if you relax on the beach, take in the local shops, get off the beaten path a tad, you'll really enjoy Cozumel.
Oh, we did take the time to visit San Gervasio ruins last visit and wouldn't really recommend them. And if you do go, I wouldn't "employ" a guide. He talked a lot, slowed us down and we could barely understand him. Our daughter, who really, really wanted to go, ended up not liking them at all.
Thanks for the info everyone. We will go with the advice of beach in the morning and then back to ship to clean up and go from there. We may decide to stay at the beach all day. Please continue the suggestions/advice. These message boards are full of great information.
That woul be a VERY VERY long walk into the town in the hot sun & there's not much sidewalk room at all--take a shared taxi if going into town--mostly there are shops....& ot much more in the direction of the town...we shopped & enjoyed a semi submersible to Palancar reef that left from the dock...Overall it was not the cute little spot we had imagined. Next time we'd do CHanakaab
We have just recently booked a cruise to go back to the Western Carribean, and the stop in Cozumel is one of the ones we are looking forward to the most. We went there 2 years ago and have been dying to get back ever since. The water and the beaches are beautiful. They have moved a lot of the stores that you can shop in up to the plaza near the port. Mr Sancho's Beach was really good too. The food was amazing!!!!
Bob
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Cozumel is a beautiful port. I recommend that you get off the ship right after breakfast, walk to the taxi stand area and ask a driver (4 people for $15) to take all of you to Paradise Beach Club. Mr. Sancho's is nice too, but Paradise is fairly new. The is no entry fee. Lounges, tables & umbrellas, floating mats, a climbing iceberg and other water craft are available for use like snorkeling equipment - all free. Tom is the manager and would appreciate it if you bought drinks and food. There will be beach side service too. Once you have had enough time in the sun, take a taxi back to the ship, grab some lunch if you wish and then take a taxi to visit your other sites and do some shopping. Don't miss Poncho's Back Yard at the end of the shopping area in side of Los Cincos del Sol.
Bon Voyage
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Cozumel in a Day
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