Cozumel Shore Excursions

[mayflower57]

My husband and I are taking a cruise on the Navigator OTS for X-mas. We like to snorkel. Can anyone recommend what would be the best snorkel tour to take?

[clackey]

My husband and I are taking a cruise on the Navigator OTS for X-mas. We like to snorkel. Can anyone recommend what would be the best snorkel tour to take?

If you want to shore snorkel, take a taxi to Dzul Ha. Many of the excursions go there. For a reef snorkel, there are several good companies. Mystic Snorkel and Eagle Ray both get rave reviews and there are others. Do a google and see what you come up with. The only reef snorkel that we have taken was at Playa Palancar. Their boat trip was $30 and there were only 8 people on it.

[Stevesan]

My husband and I are taking a cruise on the Navigator OTS for X-mas. We like to snorkel. Can anyone recommend what would be the best snorkel tour to take?

 

snorkeling in Cozumel is world class. You'll love it.

There are a number of first rate independent operators. I use Eagle Ray, but if your schedule doesn't match up with theirs, check with some of the other snorkel tours.

 

http://cozumelinsider.com/

 

http://www.eagleraydivers.com/

 

http://www.xaac.com/mantaray/id20.htm

 

If you decide to gpt with eagle Ray, try to fit into their Three Reef trip. They visit both Columbia and Palancar reef. The third reef varies. Last time I went, April 2007, it was to the fantastic Punta Sur reef.

 

I should have included this overview of my last trip with Eagle Ray Divers:

 

Cozumel: A six hour, three reef snorkel with Eagle Ray Divers ($65 including lunch). We were a grand total of two divers, two snorkelers and two guides on the boat. First stop was Punta Sur Reef, which is at the very tip end of the island, beyond both Palancar and Columbia. This was fantastic. Believe it or not, Punta Sur outshines Palancar. We did two snorkel entries there (this reef deserves a minimum of two). We then went to Columbia Shallows and finally Palancar Reef. We had lunch at Palancar Beach before returning to the home dock. I strongly recommend this trip. Let me know if you ever plan to book ERD. They’re easy to locate at Caleta Marina, next to El Presidente.

 

Their boat is slow, which is perfect for a leisurely boat trip and great snorkeling. Our snorkel guide was outstanding. He knows where the best spots are, and he always entered first to make sure conditions were good before getting us wet. He vetoed two spots because they weren't quite right. ERD customizes each trip for the best conditions. Punta Sur is not normally included. It is quite a bit further south from Palancar/Columbia, but the snorkeling was definitely worth the extra boat time. I truncated my part of the trip at Palancar Beach, following lunch of course. By then we had completed the dive/snorkel stops and I was worn out (we actually did at least five entries, and it was getting late). There's a taxi rank at the beach restaurant. The fare back to town was $20.