The Riviera Maya
Chatters Central
Reports & Reviews
Travelers Info
Air Travelers
Mainland Travelers
Cruise Ship Passengers
Cozumel Island
About
Cozumel
Holidays
& Events
Getting There
Cancun to Cozumel
Weather
Exchange Rates
Accommodations
Hotels
Vacation
Properties
Bed & Breakfast
Vacation
Rentals Online
Dive/Hotel Packages
Water Activities
Scuba Diving
Scuba Dive Shops
Snorkeling
Deep Sea Fishing
Reefs
Beaches
Marine Park Rules
Adventure Tours
All Adventure Tours
Jungle Jeep Tours
Horseback Riding Tours
Snorkel Tours
Scuba Diving Tours
Deep Sea Fishing
Jungle Bike Tours
Jungle Trek Tours
Tarzan Tours
Tours/Sight Seeing
Special Attractions
Tours/Excursions
Island Tours
Day Excursions
Island Guides
Beaches
Nightlife
Restaurants
Shopping
Food
Mayan Ruins
Chichen Itza
Tulum
Coba
Ecological Parks
Chankanaab
Crococun Crocodile Park
Tres
Rios
Xcaret
Xel-Ha
Cenotes
Xpu-Ha
Sian
Ka'an Biosphere
Punta
Laguna
Garrafon
More Services
Specialty Services
Car/Vehicle Rentals
Getting Married
Real Estate
Travel Agencies
Tour Operators
Emergency
Info
Great Links
Travel Essentials
Travel Tips
Packing List
Taxi
Fares
Ferry
Schedule
Spanish Lessons
Photo Gallery
Consulates
Cozumel Trip Report
Posted by DiJo on
02/14/02
COZUMEL TRIP JANUARY 26 TO FEBRUARY 2, 2002
Saturday, January 26, about 7:00 a.m..
photos: http://www.imagestation.com/album/?id=4292063941
Arrive at Detroit airport, find MLT booth and pick up tickets. Take your choice of where to check in. One half hour later, have our boarding passes and luggage is checked. Great.
Wander around downstairs area not much to do so check in to departure area. Pass through check point no problem. Get a Starbucks coffee, get out our banana muffins and get out our local newspaper to pass the time. A rep from NorthWest came over and asks are we flying to Cozumel, yes. Takes our tickets with Dick right on his tail. We've been moved to first class. Oh, can we really take this. Yes!
Boarding time. We are selected for the thorough search. Baggage again, shoes off, wand all over your body but what the heck we're going first class.
Actually it was a real treat to fly first class. Have never done this in all the years we have travelled (well over 25) so we sat back and enjoyed. It certainly is a lot different than the tourist section. One big problem, what am I going to do with my turkey sandwich I brought from home because I hate airline food. We manaaged!
Arrive Cozumel almost on time. Can't taxi into the terminal so walk. No big deal. Everything in order, breeze through immigration with our friends Debbie and Ron Odette waving and waiting for us. Got the green light we are off!
What a treat. We don't have to take those damn suburbans. Debbie and Ron take us to their place for a beer in frosted mugs. What more could you ask for? Check out their place and are dropped off at Summer Place. Henny is waiting for us and we get "our room." The room now has it's own TV and there are laundry facilities just off the outside palapa. This place still is wonderfully clean and inviting and everyone seems to mix so well.
Chedraui to check out to see if our ATM card works, it does. Shopping! Wine because we've been invited to dinner at Debbie and Rons. Haven't really gotten into the peso thing just yet so buy wine and other staples. Get home, get out the calculator and the wine was $2.86 Cdn. dollars. No way can we take that with us. Beer will have to do.
Walked to Debbie and Rons and had a great Mexican dinner and met their
friend Jim from Seattle. Many laughs and pics later walked home.
Isn't this what it's all about?
Sunday, January 27.
Walk through the neighbourhood and check things out. Make ourselves some breakfast. There are bacon and eggs, waffle mix, cereal, all kinds of fruit, coffee, fruit juices, peanut butter, jam, etc. Fresh bread.
Get the bikes and off to Dzul Ha for the day. The road isn't busy and neither is Dzul Ha. Still great snorkelling here and a very relaxing day. $4.00 U.S. for quesadilla, $6.00 for club sandwich, $3.00 a beer and $1.25 for a coke. The water is very calm with hardly any current and very enjoyable.
El Moro for dinner. Walk to 20th and catch a cab. Establish the amount and get ripped off anyway as he misunderstood the amount. Duh! Dick had the grouper in paper and I had Shrimp Barcelona. Super food. The grouper in paper was $10. and the Shrimp $13. Our Xtabentune as after dinner drink. It was not very busy, in fact there were two other tables with 3-4 at each. The waiter calls us a cab and we get dropped at the square for the pre-carnaval celebrations.
The square is packed with people. Music playing, dancers on stage, costumes just fabulous. Can't get close enough to get a picture no how. The children are all dressed up and I get a picture of a little girl with a huge Mickey Mouse blow up balloon. Debbie had told me there are free Carnaval calendars so check out the office, but it's closed. A nice young waiter tells me the hours. After much hand motion 10:00 a.m. to 6 :00 p.m.
Monday, January 28
Lazy day. Walked downtown. Tons of people. Get money at Bital bank. The rate is the same as Chedraui plus a $2.00 Cdn. transaction fee. Walk 20th home as you can't move on Rafael Melgar. Make friends with other guests at Summer Place and get a nice shady spot around the pool. Decide we would like to eat in so hop on bikes and ride to Asadero a Pollo on 30th. Avenue across from the Ace Hardware. Get a whole chicken barbecued, bags of rice, salsa, red onions and tortillas. 60 pesos. Super meal at super price.
Tuesday, January 29
Up early and walk 55th, take pictures of Debbie and Ron's home early a.m. and continue on to LaMission. What beautiful grounds. We certainly are out early and meet lots of people on their way to work and school. Go to Cinco Sol and talk to a knowledgeable clerk and get Xtabentune and Kahluah. Xtabentune is $8.95 U.S. and Kahluah $9.50. Go to Casa Denis and sit where we can observe door to office to get Carnaval calendar. After a cold drink each the young man arrives and he gives me two posters, one for our newly made friends at Summer Place. Casa Denis is the only restaurant we ate in that was busy the whole time we were in Cozumel. I mean they were full.
Decide to go to Plaza Los Glorias with Mary and Gerry and do some snorkelling. What a disappointment. Most of the coral is gone and some huge pieces I have pictures of from 5 years ago have deteriorated almost beyond belief.
Go back at night to get a sunset picture. They do have great sunsets there. Stop at Chedraui for rolls, pickles, wine and dessert. We'll finish off that great chicken.
Wednesday, January 30
Up very early and bike out to Dzul Ha and the cruise ships are just on their way in to dock as we breeze by. Are in the water by 8 a.m. and the underwater sea life is entirely different than later in the day. Dicks spots some huge and I mean huge parrot fish close in. We can't believe it. We follow them and I try to get pictures. They don't seem to be bothered by us. We've been out about an hour or so and the boats start coming in and the huge fish disappear and the little ones swarm you. They are expecting to get fed and they will, as soon as the snorkellers are dropped off.
By 9:30 cruise ship people start arriving and the orientation for snuba starts. They arrive in groups, get their orientation and approx. half an hour in the water and then the next group arrives. We notice that there is a $1.00 U.S. charge for any one with a Carnival towel (or other cruise ship one). We've never paid or been asked. Must be some kind of a deal they have with the cruise ships. Have lunch and decided enough. There are at least three snorkel boats out in front and two snuba groups at a time.
Get our bikes to head out and an employee says, "Here comes another
donkey train". Like a dummy I look before crossing the road to
check for donkeys and it's another group of cruisers arriving. On the
way home notice 4 carnaval ships in at the pier. Also a huge billboard
advertising. "Sea and sun aren't for everyone"
"Cool people visit a cool place Punta Lagusta Mall"(sp?)
Get cleaned up and head out for Susan and Jim Ewings. Have a cold
beer at their place and off to Mezcalitos. What a riot! Met some
young women on scooters that were over for the day from Playa del Carman.
They were having a ball. Soon the Nakid Beach scene starts with some
young couples that were out there in jeeps.. Took some pics, don't know
if Walmart with print them. These people were enjoying
themselves and it certainly wasn't a place for young children.
An older couple had a flat tire on their scooter that Jim tried to fix for them. Didn't work. Found them a ride with somone else into town. What a nice guy. Susan and I caught up on a years info and next thing it was time to go home. Back to Ewing's for a BBQ. We had an absolute ball and of course have the pics in our tartan hats and "bad hair" to prove it. As I get the pics scanned will put them up on Image Station.
Thursday, January 31
This is going to be a day of rest and recuperation! Planning on going
to the Chatters Meeting in the evening. Oops change in plans.
Debbie calls and they can't meet us for dinner on Friday evening as that's the
night of the costume competition. No problem, we'll go this evening.
Henny comes down with tortilla chips and salsa as a snack.
We have new tenants at Summer Place, Frankie and Ray from Regina. Debbie, Ron and a young boy named Fernando arrive, we make introductions and have a drink in the palapa area.
Off we go to Tacos La Mission on 30th between Calle 2 and 4. Great food with great prices. Anything you order comes with a complimentary salad/salsa/vegetable bar. Good job Debbie knows spanish and the foods. I thought I was getting a green bean salad that turned out to be a cactus salad that was very good. We had a great variety of food, beers, pop for Fernando and with tip the bill comes to $30.00. By the way I ordered pork chops and ended up with three of them. Dick had to help to finish them.
Friday, February 1
Our last full day. Off to Dzul Ha and after unloading our snorkel gear notice a man that I think looks familiar, but I can't remember from where. Four of them are under a palapa having coffee. The guys gather up their gear and go sit on the end of the pier obviously waiting to be picked up to go diving. As the boat pulls in to pick them up one of the guys starts running back to the palapa. Hear a voice from the boat yell, "It's OK Terry we've got all day". Now it clicks in, its Tut. Never did get to meet him and his wife.
In the water early. Thank goodness. We found the parrot fish again, only a lot further out. We floated and watched them for about 20 minutes. There were seven "large" parrots and all kinds of other species feeding. Found a lonely star fish and got a picture. Started back in taking pics along the way and by 9:30 the place is packed with snorkel boats, cruisers lining up for the snuba.
Frankie and Ray come along in their rental car, have a drink with them, pack up our gear and head home. It's just too crowded and you can hardly get in and out of the water. This is the busiest day this week for Dzul Ha.
Get my book and spot by our pool and relax. We're meeting Jim and Susan at Ninos (10th. Avenida between Salas and Calle 3) for pizza around 7:00 p.m.
Leave for town early and deliver pens and art supplies to Golfito. Say hi to Sunshine and Sally. Walk around the square, which they have all dug up on the north side and it is a mess. What a time to be doing this. Go to our favourite shop and I purchase some ceramic fish to bring home.
Get to Ninos early so have a beer and people watch. Had a great pizza and go back to Susan and Jims to shoot some pool. Hear all their renovation plans and share lots of laughs.
Saturday, Feb 2
Damn this is the last half day. I walk the neighbourhood one last time and stop in to say hi to my lady friend at El Turix. Have a look at Casa Tina which the owners would like to rent. Also checked out Casa Martillo. The cleaning ladies showed me two of their apartments. They seem really nice. Still can't beat Summer Place Inn.
Henny is making us a special breakfast of waffles, fruit and whipped cream before we leave for the airport. Great food. Ron and Debbie pick us up and we say our goodbyes. What great friends.
This trip was not long enough. There were so many things we didn't get to do. Eat at El Turix, attend a Chatter's Meeting, ride out to the golf course to be nosey, eat at Costa Brava, take a look at the new Carlos and Charlies. We didn't even go inside either the new mall at Chedraui or Punta Lagusta. (I'm not a shopper..)
Our plane was about 45 minutes late leaving. The prices inside the airport for food and drink were outrageous. I saw an older gentleman buy his grandson a small bag of Doritos (the size you give out at Halloween) and pay $1.75 for them. He turned to his grandson and said, "Enjoy your filet mignon". It was funny to watch people go up to the cart and when they went to pay, the look of shock on their faces. As well the duty free section was still under construction, so the merchandise available was limited. Prices at Cinco Sol and Chedraui for Kaluha were the same.
General Impressions
Price of food in the grocery stores remains basically the same. Restaurant food has really gone up in and around the square. Almost as if charging more will make up for the lack of clients. We left the Museum restaurant without eating because the prices were ridiculous. There were only 4 people up there at a time when they should have been busy.
I'm not a cruise ship fan, but some businesses are certainly profiting from them. With the building of the new mall out at the Carnival terminal I'm sure the downtown businesses will be hurting in the future.
Using American dollars is probably the best way to go. Only Cinco Sol was giving an exact exchange rate for pesos. Everyone else all over the island was using 10 pesos to $1. U.S. when the rate fluctuated while we were there from 8.9 to 9.3 pesos/dollar.
We'd go back in a heart beat. We'll certainly use MLT vacations again as it is quicker for us to drive to Detroit than Toronto. As long as the prices remain competitive.
For a look at some of our pictures copy and paste the link below. I'll update as soon as I get the rest of my pics scanned.
Lodging
Reviews
Mayan
Tour Reviews
Scuba
Dive Shop Reviews
Things
to Do Reviews
Restaurant
Reviews
Email us to have your review listed or removed. Thanks!
"Say you saw it on TravelNotes.cc!"
Questions, comments? Contact the webmaster.
Copyright 1998-2002 TravelNotes.