Costa Maya & Cozumel Our 2 Port stops

[travelscrapper]

We we're there last week on our 5 day "Fund Cruise". Dh and I we're not impressed with Costa Maya at all---we would have been much happier just having the day at sea. We went into port about 11:00am and got back on the ship about an hour or so later. Just enough time to walk around the circle -duck into a few shops and see Nicole in action. The comedians on board really hit it on the head when they called it COSTA-MY- A$$....this port is such a joke...Princess should be ashamed for helping to finance it.

 

There's just not alot to share about it...you get off the boat walk down a long pier---or talk the trolley car---arrive in an area with about 20 shops surrounding a "public bathing hole" oops I meant swimming pool --as well as a stage where I guess they have Mayan shows. The vendors are a joke they grab at you to come in their shops. I was afraid to eat or drink there in fear that we'd get sick...after all they cleared away the jungle to to build this mecca for cruise ships---God only knows how the plumbing is. Once you do you're lap around the shops you're back where the entrance to the "resort" is. This makes me laugh just thinking how Nicole called it a resort...it's not like any of the resorts I've ever been to.

What really killed me was the way that everyone on the ship tried to make this out to be a "Big Deal" when in reality it was "No Big Deal". I tried to keep an open mind about what it had to offer before we got off the ship. However once we got off the boat and I realized it was a shopping trap I was quite disappointed. We should have gone into town but by that point DH was so aggrivated that he just wanted to go back to the boat...which we did.

 

 

Cozumel was kind of ok.

 

Dh & I knew that we wanted to snorkel here as it's some of the best in the world. So we booked a early morning trip so that we could have the most ideal conditions as then spend the rest of the day in town poking around and checking out a few hotels in the area. So we booked our snorkel excursion and about an hour later received a letter from the tour desk that the boat had broken down and that we we're rescheduled on a 3 hour tour that meet at 11:50am. Needless to say we we're quite disappointed as:

 

1-the best water conditions are in the early am as well as less cloud cover.

 

2- The shops dont open until 9:00am and that would only give us 2 hours to see and do what we wanted instead of the 5 hours that we planned.

 

We did do the snorkel trip and enjoyed it as it was a "reef float" tour. The boat was a good size and the crew was nice. The only thing that bothered me was they went down and grabbed a hunk of coral for us to see, which didnt think was so cool. Once we got done with our trip we only had an hour to mull around the "port shops" and get back on board. The boat got back in late which caused us to have less time than we anticipated. So I can't share anything other than that becuase again not enough time to see and do everything.

[spongerob]

It's really too bad that you didn't know about this change soon enough to read the Costa Maya board here. I agree, the "port" area is kind of overdone, but if you'd been able to go into Majahual you might have had a much more pleasing day there. Corona Beer commercials (well, at least one of them) have been filmed there. It is still very primitive since they've only had electricity in the town for about a little over a year, but is a refreshing change from all those places that are overrun by Whatever-You-Want International.

 

I'm looking forward to returning there in December.

[bobbie0253]

You know....every time I see those Corona commercials, in my mind, I am back in Majahaul.

 

Funny that you say they were filmed there. :)

 

Cozumel has grown on us. We always rent a car there and spend the day seeing the island on our own. I have come to really enjoy it there.

 

The first time we went to Costa Maya we did the "port-resort" at the pier. For us it was BORING. The second time we walked to 20 minutes or so into town and had a great day. I'll never forget this little girl riding on the handle bars of her dads bicycle smiling and saying "Hello" to everyone she saw. I got the feeling it was her "new word". She was so proud of herself.

 

It's really hard to get a good feel for a new place in a couple of hours. There is always way too much to see and do, and not enough time. I guess that's why we keep on cruising.....

 

:) Bobbie

[GloriaF]

I think going into town is the way to go at Costa Maya. Or just lay out on the beach at the pier. The shopping is ho-hum and not what I travel for.

[DrivesLikeMario]

From what I've heard about Costa Maya, the best thing to do there is go to the beach through Princess. "Coral" has the most incredibly beautiful pictures of that beach and I'm dying to go there.

 

On our first trip to Coz, we didn't like it either. On our second trip, we had the time of our lives!!! We did the big catamaran sail & snorkel thru Princess. It was VERY well run, the crew had us laughing and were so much fun. After snorkeling, they took us to a beach area complete with a bar, sand volleyball court, kayaks, etc. We kayaked, swam and enjoyed the sun. Then, we all joined in on an impromptu volleyball game and had a blast. We were hot, sweaty, stinky and having so much fun. When the game was over, we all ran into the ocean to cool off. Everyone was friendly and it appeared to be only cruise passengers there. This was the highlight of our entire 11 day cruise. I can't wait to go back to do the same exact shore excursion again!

[jennat]

One of the major problems with Porta Maya was it was incredibly hot, I mean surface of the sun, out of this world, hot. I, too, wish I had had time to research it. as I met people on the beach something (the one on the tape, for those on board) who had a blast. Oh well, it was no ones fault. On the bright side, it ended up being our favorite ship day!

I loved Cozumel. I have been there before. This time we went to Chankanaab and it was beautiful. you get in and can't touch. I was slightly treading, as you are so boyant, and I kept hitting something. I look around and there are these enormous fish (like a foot long). I look over and this boy is feeding the fish. Have to say, kindof freaking me out. Ever slow to process I say, "Are you feeding the fish?'' He says, "Yeah, cool huh." and preceeds to throw the food in front of me. I swear to you it was worse that the buffet on the first day of the cruise. I saw one fish actually punch another. They were coming out of the water, I swear. Well, being as this FREAKED ME OUT I'm sorry to say, I fed the kid to the still hungry fish, layed back and had a great, relatively fish free day.

I swear if someone starts on about don't get into the water if you don't like fish or children's rights I will scream. It's all in fun. Except the part about the scary fish :eek:

jen

[beachlovergirl]

When we went to Costa Maya we did the "Jungle Beach tour" thru the ship. You take air-conditioned buses (at least 1/2 hour away) to a gorgeous sandy beach with palm trees, lots of lounge chairs. They had a big pavillion with tables and a bar (good margaritas and beer) and a snack bar. We had a great day and would go back there. It got us back in enough time to walk thru the shops at the pier. I thought the shops were expensive here though so we didn't buy anything.

[ToplessPony]

We've been to Costa Maya twice and loved it both times. First time we took an excursion to some ruins that would have been to far a drive (and Ferry) from Cozumel and then shopped a bit. 2nd time we had the best fish taco's I have ever had right at the little place by the pool. 2nd best meal of the whole week!!! After that we walked around a bit and explored as far as we could in the time we had. Would welcome another port stop there. :) :)

 

Scott

[Flacrusrs]

Too funny, Jen. There will probably be a pool on whether you should feed annoying kiddies to the fish or not.

[Coral]

The key to Costa Maya is to "do something there". If you just go to the port, you will be disappointed (as I was the first year). Last time, we did the Jungle Beach break at Uvero beach and it was incredible - here are the pics (marked Uvero Beach):

 

pics

 

I would definitely go here again! We have friends who have done the ruins and they had a lot of fun. You just need to get out of the port area to enjoy the port.

[beachlovergirl]

Coral - Wonderful pictures....brought back nice memories. We also loved our day at Uvero Beach.

[hstrybuf]

Funny, we refer to our day in Mahahual as our own Corona commercial. It's our new favorite stop. :) Yes, the port area takes little time to see and the vendors can be pushy, but I've seen that in other ports as well. Thanks to the forum here on CC, we headed to Mahahual. Ate, drank, had a massage on the beach, dug our toes into the sand, let the breeze play over us as we sat at a thatch shaded table and shopped. Prices were much better in Mahahual than in Costa Maya and I understand there is much more to see and do there than our little bit of paradise. It was a perfect day for us!

[faithpath]

Coral~Thanks for posting your pictures. They are beautiful!!! It is so pretty down there. The water is so blue and clear. Ahhhhhhh..............

 

Thanks again...

~Kathi~

[OCruisers]

You know....every time I see those Corona commercials, in my mind, I am back in Majahaul.

 

So agree! :p One of our best ever cruise days was in Costa Maya! :)

 

Review: Majahaul (the little fishing village) "OnOurOwn" (click here*)

 

* This thread is in the ports of call section.

 

Happy Sailing! OCruisers :)

[Coral]

Coral~Thanks for posting your pictures. They are beautiful!!! It is so pretty down there. The water is so blue and clear. Ahhhhhhh..............

~Kathi~

 

Thanks Faith. The first time we went - we didn't do anything special but we noticed how clear the water was. We figured it was because the port was new and hadn't been a victim of the pollution that many cruise ports have. My friend and I decided the next time we went - we would go to the beach (which we did the following year). We loved our day there - on our cruise, that was probably our favorite day.

[frostola]

I loved Costa Maya because it didn't feel so commerical. I went on this cruise for beaches, not shopping, so I was pleased. Sitting on the beach over looking that beautiful water was magic. We paid $20 to go snorkling and that included the gear.

[melissa_bel]

At first, I didn't know what to do with Costa Maya but looking back, I thought it was great. If you leave that awfuly commerciall Pier-Mall area, it's really a nice experience. Finally a place that's still relatively untouched. We walked to Majahual along the sea and it was very relaxing. I sort of wanted to see the Mayan ruins but DH is not into ols stones so... we compromised. Majahual is small and poor but the few street vendors are not pushy like in Cozumel *ugh* I know some cruisers bring supplies for the schools there. It's awesome! If I go back, I'll bring some stuff too.

[SaylorGirl]

We will be in those two ports next month on the Grand. I have been visiting over on the "ports of call" and in Costa Maya it seems that the little town of Mahahual and the beaches there will be perfect. We are hoping for a great beach day and maybe the $20.00 massages on the beach. We are also planning on taking some school supplies to drop off at the local school.

 

I'm glad you posted your review as I was afraid we might miss something in the port area and now I'm glad we will be skipping it.

[melissa_bel]

SaylorGirl

Good for you! I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Don't forget the bug spray though. I was quite humid when we got there (clouds dissipated after a bit) and the mosquitoes were fierce! But that's because we chose to walk to Majahual, which was great by-the-way, it's a leasurely 20-30 minutes walk along the beach. It's quite awesome when you see Costa Maya from the ship because it's in th middle of nowhere! You have a narrow strech of sand and then a sea of green! And here's a preview of what you will find: the beach at Majahual and the path along the beach and the jungle to got to town.

Enjoy!

[SaylorGirl]

Melissa - thanks for the pictures those are great. And thanks for the heads up on the bug spray, I never thought about mosquitos! Oh no!!

[joyride]

First, Cozumel. Well, my first time there was in the mid-80's way before the cruise ships went there. I still love it now and totally recommend a jeep and a fun ride around the island with good friends. Always fun!

 

Costa Maya. Wow - the water there is the most beautiful TOPAZ BLUE I have seen in all of my travels. Take a cab to Majahual and walk around the little town and beach there. Great food and beer on the beach - very relaxing and beautiful. In 2003 we had our CC group all bring crayons, pencils, coloring books, etc. for the kids and we had our taxi driver take us to the elementary school to drop the supplies off. It was so neat - the school is pretty much a one-room shack with some desks and not much else. The kids were so cute and the teacher really appreciated our gift. It was really rewarding for us - and I think maybe we each spent about $10 each to do it.

These people are poor and yes- so of them are in your face begging for the $$$, but many of them are just trying to get by.

 

Bottom line, Costa Maya is what you make of it. I LOVED it!

 

You can check out my pictures from my 4/03 Grand cruise on my webshots link below. Coral and I were on the same cruise!

 

I have never had a bad experience with the people in the Yucatan. They are so warm and friendly.

[jennat]

NOw I want to go back and do it right! Thanks for making me excited to go back, I never would have been when my experience was limited to the port.

Jen

[travelscrapper]

Jen ~

 

I have to agree I'd be willing to go into town and check it out. I guess the beauty however sometimes can be in the eye of the beholder. Maybe the disappointment of not going to where we had planned just kind of put a damper on where we did go. I can't say I'd go out of my way to book a cruise going there but I'd keep an open mind if one did stop there.

 

I also think that "Nicole" should have spent a little more time talking about the area and not just "Diamonds International" maybe we would have felt differently about the stop. If not her than someone from the tour desk.

[AmyinGA]

In Costa Maya we did the Unimog tour and it was great. We took a sandy bumpy road to a private beach where we had a fajita lunch on the beach with all you can drink beer, water and soft drinks. The beach had a volleyball net, rafts and sea kayaks that we could use. Near the end of the afternoon one of the guides chopped down some coconuts and we each got fresh coconut milk to drink. On the way back to the ship we got to see the areas that were being developed - hotels, resorts and spas. If we hadn't done this tour we would have had no clue as to how much was going on in the area. And to be on a beach where you didn't see any other people was great.

[Coral]

As Joyride said - I was on the same cruise with her.

 

We had a great CC group on our sailing and we all got together in someone's suite after being at Costa Maya. I went to Uvero Beach, Joyride and several others went to town (and to the school to donate items) and others went to the ruins. When we all got together for sail away - we all had such a good time and we were sharing our stories with each other. Most (if not all) had decided that our Costa Maya day was our favorite day on that cruise.