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Cozumel Island
Island Guides
Mayan Ruins
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Cozumel Trip Report Trip report 1/13 to 1/20 Just returned last night from our (my wife and I) first trip to Cozumel. Below is a summary of the trip.Travel The trip from Baltimore to Coz was very smooth. Landed in Cancun at 9:45 and was through customs by 10:30. We then found an Apple rep and were told that we were suppsed to fly out on the 12:45 flight to Cozumel. No problem we thought, only 2 hours to kill. The Apple rep took us up to the desk and was talking with the person at the desk for quite a while. I was beginning to think something was wrong when the Apple rep told us that he had managed to get us on the 11:20 flight. Even better! The return trip was not as smooth as our flight from Cancun to Baltimore was delayed over 2 hours. Add to that the 3 and a half hour layover we were originally scheduled for, and you'll understand while I'm not too anxious to see the Cancun airport again anytime soon. Accomodations We stayed at the El Cozumeleno and quickly decided that we wouldn't be staying AI next time. This has absolutely nothing to do with the El Coz, as the hotel was beatiful and the service excellent; there is just so much to do in Coz that we felt we didn't get the full benefit of an all inclusive resort. The service in the hotel was excellent and was nothing like some of the negative reports I had read on here. Absolutely zero complaints about the service in any respect. The food was good but certainly not great, with one exception. The fish that was served just about every night was excellent. I do a lot of fishing and know enough to say that the fish that was served was very, very fresh. In general, there was enough variety to find something you like. The pool (as has been mentioned before) is beautiful but cold. The beach was nice, and I was pleasantly suprised by the amount and variety of fish we saw while snorkeling at the hotel. Our overall impression of El Coz was that it was a beautiful well-run resort. If you are sure you want to stay all inclusive, I would recommend it in a heartbeat. Activities Chankanaab A very nice park. Definitely take the time to walk though the archeological and botanical gardens. They obviously spend a great deal of time with the landscaping. The lagoon was great for watching fish and is also a great place to see some iguanas. There were plenty of them in the trees around the lagoon. The snorkeling was good, but if I only had one chance to go snorkeling, I would look elsewhere (specifically, Dzul Ha). Overall, I think it was well worth the $10.00 per person admission. Dzul Ha As we aren't certified for diving (something we will rectify by the time we make our next trip!), Dzul Ha was the highlight of our snorkeling tour. It was everything I expected when I went to Coz. If you were there early in the morning or later in the afternoon, you pretty much have the whole area to yourself. At mid-day, the water is loaded with cruise-ship snorkerlers and tour boats. Even when it was crowded, the area is big enough that you can get away from the crowds. I definite "must do" for any non-divers. Minigolf I won't be telling you anything new here. A GREAT time. Extremely nice folks running a very entertaining golf course. Not only is the course beautifully landscaped, the holes are quite challenging. The radios and drink service just add to the overall package. This is something we would have missed if not for this board, so I'd like to thank everyone for that. Sunday night at the Plaza Again, nothing new to tell here. A definite "must do." The atmosphere of the square on Sunday night and every other night we were there were worlds apart. The only thing I didn't enjoy about the plaza (and this was true throughout the week) was that the people in and outside the shops are extremely pushy, more so than any other places we've travled (or maybe I just noticed it more this time for some reason). After the first day or two, we never even bothered to go into any of the shops. We found this to be true in all areas of Coz and Playa del Carmen, but it was only a minor inconvenience. East Side of Island Rented a car for the day and headed over to the east side. Stopped at Punta Sur park first and took the bus to the lighthouse where we then rented bikes. We seemed to see much more than the people who stayed on the bus for the length of the park. One hint for anyone going to the park. If you go out on the pier marked as the alligator pier and don't see any alligators, whistle as loud as you can. We didn't see any when we walked out and were returning to our bikes when someone that looked like a park employee asked if we saw the alligators. We said that we hadn't, and he told us he that would show them to us. He walked out onto the pier and whistled. Within seconds, 4 alligators popped up and swam right up to the pier. Apparently, they feed them raw fish and chicken and are prompted to come and get a free meal by whisteling. Can't say that I think feeding wild animnals in a wildlife refuge is a good idea, but it was still fun to see them. Stopped at all of the beach clubs for at least one beer and enjoyed them all. Had some great guacamole at Playa Bonita and some great shrimp fajitas at Coconuts. At the place just south of Coconuts (the name is escaping me right now), they were shooting what looked like a television interview of some type. The staff seemed much more interested in that than us, and we finally left after sitting at a table for 20 minutes without anyone asking us if we wanted anything. We were pretty much there just to take in the sights for a short period, so it didn't bother us. The folks at Mescalita's were very friendly and entertaining. I even get my picture taken with Elvis, a sombrero-wearing iguana with a guitar. Playa del Carmen Took the ferry over to Playa del Carmen for a day and enjoyed the beaches. Much more the typical beaches than what you find on Coz. I even sat on the beach all day without complaining (a rarity, as a tend to get a little anxious after sitting still for too long), as I had plenty to keep my eyes occupied, if you know what I mean. Overall, we had an incredible time, and have even started discussing where we might want to stay for our next trip. Thanks again to all on this board for giving us such great information. It really made our trip much more enjoyable. Lodging Reviews
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