With the great prices and fun things to do, Cozumel is an ideal getaway! Cozumel is renowned for being a great diving spot. If you want to experience scuba diving or you are an avid snorkeler then you’ll enjoy the amazing marine life. A more relaxed venue for tourists, Cozumel is a small but memorable destination in the Mexican Riviera.

Located close to the bustling spring break destination of Cancun (though you wouldn’t think it), Cozumel Island has become famous for the 40-seater plane that sits on its ocean floor. Destroyed in 1977 as part of a disaster movie that nobody ever saw, in and around the Corsair plane has become a hugely popular dive site. The pygmy raccoon Procyon pygmaeus and dwarf coati Nasua nelsoni, both endemic to Cozumel Island, Mexico, are two of the most endangered carnivores in the world, and their persistence requires active management. However, the taxonomic status of these populations remains unclear. As beautiful and modern as Cozumel is, visitors must remember that it is a foreign country is not part of America, although it caters quite well to American tourists. Everybody on Cozumel speaks English, some with little or no detectable accent.

In addition, the range of operators means Cozumel is a great place for you to try scuba diving for the first time or to get certified during a vacation. Novice divers can complete some certification work in advance or simply do everything once you get there (about 30-40 hours total time).

With an incredible low of only 66 degrees Fahrenheit to a modest high of 93, even the worst of what we would call “winter” is still quite wonderful. Most of the time, the temperature hovers around the mid to high eighties and, incredibly, so do the surrounding ocean waters of the island. Summertime highs occasionally approach 100 degrees Fahrenheit, but this is rare. The humidity, however, can make things quite wet.

Concrete steps provide easy access to the ocean. Beginning in 10 feet of water, there are large schools of tame grunts and snappers that are found under ledges within a few yards of the steps. The area just offshore has tall patch reefs separated by sand channels. The east side of the island is mostly undeveloped, but there are beautiful beaches, big waves, and rocky outcrops over the ocean. If the waves are sufficient you can find a few small blow holes. Are you longing to wake up to a beautiful sunrise pouring over the ocean, the beaches and directly into your room? Or are you a night owl, looking to party at any of many local discos and watering holes until you crawl into your bed and draw the curtains shut?

Chankanaab is the island’s natural landmark; in addition to dive and snorkeling, it offers a lagoon, a beach, a botanical garden and refreshments. The island is surrounded by incredible reefs of varying depths. The marine life is just now recovering from two devastating hurricanes in 2005. Some tours will take you through areas of poverty where it is obvious the islanders depend greatly on cruise ship passengers for income.

The Maya are believed to have first settled Cozumel by the early part of the 1st millennium AD, and older Preclassic Olmec artifacts have been found on the island as well. The island was sacred to Ix Chel, the Maya Moon Goddess, and the temples here were a place of pilgrimage, especially by women desiring fertility. You can snorkel, take a jeep ride, or visit ruins on the island. Or you can take a day trip to the mainland to visit famous Mayan ruins at Tulum, Coba or Chichen Itza.

Tagged with: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •