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Cozumel Trip Report
Posted by Mary on 03/09/01

Reef Club Isla

AIRPORT - We arrived with a group of 6 on Feb 24. It took more than hour to process through customs...people with passports got through quick, while tourist card people had to have their info keyed in. Anyway we are here! For the way home stock up on snacks incase of delays. Pringles $6 usd, cup of beer $4usd, however the duty free had the best price for tequila $11.50 and about $14 in town.
PARADE - What perfect timing! as it was the weekend of Carnaval. We only found out about it by talking to other guests, I think that the hotel should have promoted it with a timetable of events...anyway it was a wonderful surprise to see the parade on Sunday. It began around 7pm and went up and down the main street. Hundreds of people came in from the mainland and it was a wonderful party atmosphere. Everyone takes part - babies, young people and grandmas! For a great time try Fat Tuesdays - open air bar right on the square, party tunes, limbo, dancing on the bar!
REEF CLUB - We had been to the Reef Club 3 years previous and enjoyed the location on the beach, the layout of the resort (everything is close and near the beach) and it has matured with awesome flowered trees and plants everywhere. The swim up bar is a great spot to chat with guests and the service was very good. Even thought they cleaned the pool, I think it need a good shock as it was not as clean as the main pool. The activities group worked like slaves to make sure everyone was having a great time!
The buffet restaurant is 7/10 for food, the staff very efficient and friendly. The Italian Restaurant was very good - 8.5/10 and the strawberry desert a 10! The grille (outdoor) restaurant food was also good. Drinks were generally good, you can get margaritas 2 ways - shaken (like a martini) or blended - which was thicker & better. Banana mama is still my favourite. It will cost 10 USD to taxi to town (for 3 people)
The rooms were clean and we lucked out with a balcony overlooking the quiet pool! One major complaint was mid week - staff from a cruise ship invaded the swim up bar, drank all the tequila and most everything else, harassed the poor bartenders, one young fellow drove into the (NO DIVING) shallow pool and nearly broke his neck (we nicknamed him Poolface). It was an episode from Animal House to say the least. 
Guests from the ship also arrived with day passes later in the week and that was no problem... in fact we met some great people!
Chankanaab - 3 years really makes a difference. In 1998 this park was quaint and beautiful, now it just reminded me of Marineland - It is still beautiful but far more commercial with a sea lion show & dolphin swimming...just depends on what you're after. They are really catering to the cruise ship crowd. If you want unspoiled true Mexican beauty - check out the East side of the island. However, the snorkelling was fairly good with lots to see.
El Zorro Catamaran - This was the highlight of the trip, perfect calm seas, turquoise water, excellent visibility. My hubby and I have done this before but our 4 friends had not so it was a breathtaking experience for them. Besides the incredible coral reefs we saw a manta ray, sting ray, school of barracuda, star fish, crab, moray eel and I spotted a nurse shark hiding in the shallow rocky reef...The guide did his best to pry him out but he was stubborn. The staff were fun, very extremely safety conscious and the glasses of beer were never empty. What a fabulous experience! $40 USD per person & $55 if you wanted lunch afterward at a beach club.
Shopping - Buyer beware, make sure the silver has 3 stamps on it including 925. We found the the backstreet vendors will try for 2 or 3 times the value and tell you everything is handmade etc. Ball caps went from $18 usd to $8 (in the back of the store for the identical hat) I purchase a $10 pendant with the stamp on the clasp but it turned out to be paste. Make sure the stamp is on the back. A good rule of thumb - weigh the silver and use $1 oz. as a guideline. If the piece is intricate it may be more expensive. The best buy was the bottles of corona for a buck at the little convenience store, nothing like window shopping with a beer!
This is our 4th trip to Mexico & 3rd to Cozumel... till next year!

Posted by Mary