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Cozumel Trip Report
Posted by Bruce on 12/19/00

Trip Report from Bruce in Denver

El Cozumeleno Hotel & Resort

Click for more info & SECURED reservations online

Please forgive me if I ramble too much or get too detailed (hey, I'm a software tester and I have to be detail-oriented), but I received so much good info. from this board before we left for our first time in Cozumel, that I want to give as much info. as I can to other 1st timers.

Got a package deal through SunTrips for myself and wife for 7 days at all-inclusive El Cozumeleno for $1,558.

Sunday (12/3) : Up at 4:30 so we can be at DIA by 06:00.  Used ALL of the runway to get the Allegro 727 up in the air around 8:30.  Arrived in Cozumel around 13:45.  RED light at immigration - of course. 

Arrived at El Cozumeleno around 15:30.  Was given room 107 which was on the 1st floor in the old section of the hotel.  2 little problems - no King-size bed that I had requested and the sliding glass door would not lock.  Went to the front desk and was told to come back at 17:00.  Walked the beach a little (was cloudy, windy and pretty big waves hitting the beach) and played a round of their free putt-putt course. Went back later to front desk and was moved to room 1103 in the new part of the hotel - much nicer than the old part.  Ate dinner at the hotel - had bacon covered shrimp which wasn't' too bad.

Monday (12/4) : Breakfast at El Coz.  Like some people have said, the food at El Coz isn't great - but they always had enough of a variety of food to please everyone that I saw there.  Omelets made to order, good French toast, yogurt, muffins - hey, not too bad.  Coffee - hey, not too good - opt for the 6 different types of juices that they have.  Around 8:45 took a taxi ($8) to Dzul-Ha to snorkel.  Went in a couple of times, but today was still very windy and waves were pounding in.  Kinda bummed about that, but it gives me a reason to go back there again someday.  Ate dinner at La Choza.  I had the shrimp kabobs and wife had the shrimp
fajitas ($13.50 ea), and both drank pops.  Paid 269 pesos.

Tuesday (12/5) : Took a taxi to Chankanaab ($10) to snorkel.  Too windy and waves too rough, so left at 11:30 to go back to hotel (people at the pay booth were nice enough to validate our tickets and said we could come back any day and not have to pay again).  Had lunch at El Coz - a chicken breast stuffed with Philly cream cheese and chili poblanas - muy bien! Also had a lime soup which was very good.  In the afternoon took a taxi to THE Cozumel Putting Course.  Met the very charming Sally and gave her a few school items for the children and also met Sunshine who seemed very laid back that day (sorry I forgot to bring you some goodies Sunshine - I won't forget my next trip!).  Sally and Scott's course was like an oasis
in the desert - what a beautiful course - had a great time.  Cashed a $50 travelers check at BanCrecer, a bank we came upon walking around the shopping area and got 464 pesos - 9.28 exchange rate.  Went back to the hotel for dinner.  Ate at the buffet and it was Italian night.

Wednesday (12/6) : Rented a Geo Tracker right at our hotel.  $50 for the car and $17 for total coverage insurance.  Started on our journey to the east side of the island and gassed up at the new Pemex station (no problems with them not re-setting the pump).  East side is beautiful, stopped and walked on nice beaches. Had lunch at Playa Bonita.  Got the seafood platter (shrimp, calamari, mahi-mahi, crab salad) and 2 pops for 250 pesos.  Went to Punta Sur park and was pretty disappointed.  They take you in a rickety old truck to the lighthouse where you can walk up MANY stairs to the top (nice view though).  Then they take you back
towards the entrance to the crocodile area (sorry, no crocs around today).  Then they take you back to the entrance and that was basically it.  NO motorized bikes or electric cars as stated in the Can-Do Cozumel map.  Drove over to Lobster Cove where my wife and I shared the Seafood platter (lobster, shrimp, fish fillet & Octopus - $38).  Found out I really don't like el pulpo (octopus).

Thursday (12/7) : Up at 5:30 to go to Chichen Itza.  We were to be at the airport by 6:40 to leave by 7:00. This is the first day that when we woke up, there was hardly any wind, but unfortunately there was fog over Chichen Itza.  Finally took off at 8:45 after the fog lifted.  Chichen Itza was a wonderful, mystical experience. I just wish we had more time to explore.  The tour is only for 3 hours and you are supposed to be with your guide for 2 hours and have 1 hour on your own.  Our guide took 2 1/2 hours, so we only had 1/2 hour on our own - and Chichen Itza is so big you can't do much in 1/2 hour.  But what a glorious place- I am really glad I got to experience it.

Friday (12/8) : Rented a Geo Metro at the hotel ($35 for car and $17 for insurance).  Drove down to Chankanaab again and had a great day of snorkeling.  Saw many fish, even a couple of barracudas.  Around 1:30 around 7 or 8 iguanas came up from the fresh-water pond - cool.  Drove over to El Moro for dinner.  Someone on this board had posted that the Shrimp on wire was to die for or something like that - and that person was right on!  You get 8 large butterflied shrimp, onions, green pepper, bacon, tomatoes and the taste is just downright heaven.  My wife had the shrimp fajitas and liked it too.  For both dinners and 2 pops - 300 pesos. 

Saturday (12/9) :  Snorkeled right at El Cozumeleno's beach and wasn't too bad.  Found some large conch shells not too far from shore.  Walked down to Sol Cabanas Del Caribe to the south of El Coz and was glad we did.  Around a little pier that couldn't jut out more than 25-30 ft. in the water, there were hundreds of fish.  Out of all the places we snorkeled, this was the greatest concentration of fish in one area.  Had to really watch around you though, because there were some jellyfish in the water.

Sunday (12/10) : Enjoyed a few more hours basking in the warm sun before getting packed to go back to Denver.  Thanked members of the staff for an enjoyable stay at the hotel.  Went from 80 degrees in Cozumel to about 10 degrees and snow back in Denver - bah!

Lessons learned : rent a vehicle for the whole week.  We easily ran up enough taxi fares to have paid for a weeks rental of a car.  Driving in Cozumel is no worse than driving here in Denver, except for the taxi drivers, who for some reason use a left turn signal to turn left AND
right (at least they signal - no one in Colorado does anymore). Ask for prices in both pesos and U.S. dollars.  Sometimes you get a better deal using pesos and other times it was better to use dollars. Don't cash travelers checks at the hotel - only got an exchange rate of 9.0 at El Cozumeleno.

I lastly want to mention something about staying at an all-inclusive hotel like El Cozumeleno.  For the most part, most of the staff at the hotel were very accommodating.  These people work very hard to make your stay enjoyable.  At least 3 times a day, I saw a couple of guys raking the beach to haul away sea weeds in a wheelbarrow.  The restaurant captains (in the white outfits) and the waiters were very attentive and amiable. I was very much in the minority when it came to leaving tips. These people do not make much money.  They work 6, sometimes 7 days a week, and we even saw some of them working downtown at night, working a 2nd job as waiters or working in the shops.  We in the U.S. are so much better off than most of these people, so a small tip to them means a lot.