Destination Review: Cozumel, Mexico

Cozumel is a popular stop for cruises. We have been four times so far. Each time was a little bit the same, but at the same time, quite different.


Our first visit we docked at Punta Langosta, which is the pier located in downtown Cozumel.This made exploring the town very easy. The street with all of the main shopping went right along the ocean. It was a gorgeous setting for spending money. lol

We didn't go any further into town then the shops along the main road. There were plenty of options to keep us busy for most of the day. After shopping we had a late lunch at Señor Frogs.

Scott and I had never been to Señor Frogs before and had no idea that it was such a party place. If you like the loud, party, type of atmosphere then this is the place to go. We had a great table with a view of the ship by an open window, and we had some delicious nachos, but for us, that's where the enjoyment ended.

We couldn't hold a conversation because it was so loud. Again, if we had expected this it may not have been an issue. It could be a very fun place to hang out. We got back on the ship after lunch.


The next time was when we went on our first seven day cruise. We had plans for an excursion that got cancelled, but after looking at the other options Isla Pasion by Twister sounded fun, fit the price range we were refunded, and included food. We were sold! The ship docked at the Puerta Maya Pier this time, which is a little over 5 miles from Punta Langosta. Our excursion group didn't meet for about an hour or so after we arrived so Scott and I did a little shopping at the pier before going to our meeting place.

To get to Passion Island we boarded a speed boat and were instructed to put our lifejackets on and buckle up with the harnesses on our seats. That should have been a clue as to just how thrilling this ride was going to be.

Our guide, Pepe', and Captain Willy took us on a 50mph boat ride along the coast. Once we got to the little island on the north side of Cozumel, Captain Willy made the boat do 360's. It was insane, and fun, and exciting. It left us breathless and shouting for more. :) We were soaked by the time we pulled up next to the dock.

A different guide led our group to the small open air restaurant where there was a delicious, authentic, Mexican buffet all set up. There was also a limited open bar for anyone who wanted something besides water or Pepsi to drink.

We spent our time on the island doing anything that we wanted. Or nothing at all. There were kayaks available, hammocks for shaded relaxing, plenty of beach chairs, even a few beach beds! ...Our own little slice of Heaven. All done with only about 20 other people! At least, that's what it seemed like. It really felt like we had the island to ourselves.

We spent a couple hours snorkeling along the beach. Passion Island isn't rocky. We saw sand colored fish but not the colorful ones you would see at a rocky beach. It's still fun and we did have a small run in with a barracuda!

Four fast hours later, it was time to get back to our ship. Captain Willy gave us a few more 360's before leaving the cove and with that, our Best Day Ever was coming to a close.


We didn't know if there would be a way to top Passion Island, but when we took our kids on their first cruise we knew we had to do something that they would never experience back home.
I had done quite a bit of research on the different beaches in the area. Taking into consideration taxi rates, the cost to get in, and the proximity to the pier, and also comparing those totals with how much a Carnival Excursion would cost, we had decided to go to Chankanaab National Park. I found a coupon online which helped. It wasn't much of a discount, but any amount is better than nothing. :) Once off the ship, we walked through the Puerta Maya Cruise Center to the place where taxis line up. The drive to Chankanaab was less than 10 minutes and before we knew it we were walking into paradise.

There is so much to do at Chankanaab, we hardly had time to do it all! When we first walked in we saw the area that is used for the dolphin experience. It was neat because we were able to watch the dolphins do their tricks, but we didn't have to pay to see them. If you wanted to do a dolphin experience, you can do an excursion through Carnival, or you can do it through the park directly.

After watching the dolphins for a little bit we continued walking a short ways until we reached a little inlet swimming area. It was the perfect place for us to set up for the day. The kids could go in the water safely as it was mostly shallow and there was not a drop off. Plus there was a fantastic playground right next to us. If we wanted to snorkel we could go across the inlet, it's not far- less than 100 feet, and cross some rocks.

On the other side of the rocks is the reef that Chankanaab Park sits on. We later found out that we can access the reef from multiple places along the beach if we had walked further down. The whole park sits on the reef and is covered in sand. To get in the water there are sets of stairs every so often along the beach that lead into the water.

Our whole day was pretty much spent at this little inlet or on the reef side of the inlet. We had a blast! I took some time before we left to go on a little walk to find the botanical gardens. While I was out for a walk I came across the end of the sea lion show. There were people lined up to get hugs from the sea lion. I decided I would do something outside my comfort zone, and surprise my family, by getting a picture of me being hugged by the sea lion. Little did I know that when it was my turn, they gave him the command to kiss me instead! The wonderful person who was using my camera to get the picture didn't quite get the kiss, but I still ended up with a fun picture of myself with a sea lion.

There were many other animals at the park. Lots of lizards made their appearance known. We didn't want to get too close, but it was kind of cool. There were also lots of pelicans that had no fear of sitting close to the park guests, and also little crabs all over the rocks.

We had a blast at Chankanaab. We knew we would definitely be returning some day. There was so much more to explore and enjoy. One of the nice things about doing this one our own, rather than a planned excursion with Carnival, was that we didn't have a time limit. We could stay longer than most excursions are scheduled to stay and leave whenever we wanted. There is also the risk that you lost track of time and don't make it back though. We wanted to make sure we had plenty of time to get a cab back to the pier and still have some time to shop. Missing the ship was definitely not an option for us. Although, getting "stuck" in Cozumel wouldn't be the worst thing to happen. ;)


Our next time in Cozumel was with my brother and sister in law. Our day in Cozumel fell on Krista's birthday and I knew exactly the place to celebrate. I told her about our past visit to Chankanaab to see what she thought, and that's where we found ourselves for the day. Once we arrived and paid our entry fee, we decided to walk all the way to the end of the park. We passed the little swimming inlet area that Scott and I had stopped at with the kids, and then kept walking. It's about a 1/4 mile walk from the entrance to the other end of the park. It's not too bad of a walk if you don't mind doing it. It's well worth it though. I felt like we had the beach to ourselves.

I don't remember seeing another person most of the day (portions of snorkeling aside), unless it was the waiter who served us. Oh yes. We'd be sitting under our talapa in a lounge chair, and a wonderful man showed up with a menu. He took our order and a little while later I was served fajitas on the beach. Can we say spoiled??

Surrounding that was a lot of time spent in the water. It was awesome! It seemed like we could see under water for miles. The fish would swim right by our faces... sometimes startling us pretty good! There are also some pretty neat sunken treasures at Chankanaab. We had drifted a ways from our places on the beach and found a neat statue in the water. There were also sea urchins, huge schools of fish, and other smaller schools of colorful fish that we saw.

It was such an amazing day! When we finally decided that we should start to head back to the port, we got held up by a sea lion show. The sea lion was adorable and I'm so glad we were able to see the whole show.

In the spring of 2016 we took our kids on a cruise that stopped in Cozumel. For this visit we were trying something new. Once off the ship and through security we quickly got to the taxi area. If you make your way to the far left corner of the shopping area at Puerta Maya, there is an exit. You can walk out onto the main street and walk either direction. This is also where you can catch a taxi.

We were barely there 1 minute before a taxi pulled up and we were on our way to Nachi Cocom. It's a short drive, 10-15 minutes maybe, with no traffic. It cost $17 for the ride for us 4 (one way). The drivers do appreciate tips.
After paying our driver we were greeted by a friendly lady who stopped us at the entrance for a picture which we would later have the option to buy. There was no pressure and when we told her no thank you she didn't ask again. From there she said to go to the podium just a little ways away to check in. We paid the final amount due (Nachi only takes 100 guests per day and you reserve your place online prior to arriving. You can pay in full or just pay the deposit when reserving.) and the hostess at the podium said to follow one guy, who led us past the pool to another guy who led us to our chairs and palapa. From the time we left the ship at 10am to our chairs on the beach was no more than 40 minutes.

Carlos was our waiter and we were completely spoiled all day. Lots of food and drinks were served whenever we wanted with non alcoholic options. We were handed a menu and asked for drink orders and then left to our day in paradise. We did it all, and nothing at the same time. We swam in the pool and ocean, we snorkeled (we saw colorful fish, lobsters, and an OCTOPUS! It looks like a rock-see pic- but I watched it move. It was exciting!), we laid in the lounge chairs admiring the view. Scott and I walked around while kids played. It was wonderful.

Then there's the time vortex of the beach... 4 ½ hours felt like barely 1 and it was time to go. We wanted to do a little souvenir shopping before we had to get back on the ship. The taxi ride back to pier was longer because there was a lot of traffic. The short ride took about 30 minutes. It's not terrible, but still, it took time out of what we had available. There is no one to blame in this circumstance. We knew with the timing that there would be a lot of people trying to get back for last minute shopping before having to get back on the ship. We could have avoided traffic by leaving sooner, or later. However, since this was not a ship sponsored excursion, if we left later, we risked being too late, and the ship would not wait for us. I love Cozumel, but not enough to get left behind. :)


With all that there is to do and see in Cozumel, who knows what we have to look forward to next?!?