Second, and last excursion to Costa Maya

We were on the Getaway this month, and arrived in Costa Maya for a beach excursion on March 1st. We got to the beach, and....you guessed it...seaweed was everywhere. I know that it’s ‘caveat emptor’ when taking any excursion. What bothered me the most is that some of the tour operators (not ours!) were telling people about the poor beach conditions, and were letting them cancel and get their money back. NCL should have taken the initiative on this. Aside from the seaweed, the beach in most cases is extremely rocky. Oh, well, never again!

Sorry to hear this.

We just enjoy the area near the cruise port.

Keith

Did you followup with NCL about this?

Keith

We were on the Getaway this month, and arrived in Costa Maya for a beach excursion on March 1st. We got to the beach, and....you guessed it...seaweed was everywhere. I know that it’s ‘caveat emptor’ when taking any excursion. What bothered me the most is that some of the tour operators (not ours!) were telling people about the poor beach conditions, and were letting them cancel and get their money back. NCL should have taken the initiative on this. Aside from the seaweed, the beach in most cases is extremely rocky. Oh, well, never again!

We were also in Costa Maya that week and agree the seaweed situation was quite bad. That said, it was not nearly as bad, or smelly, as we had had it at Rasta’s on Cozumel a few years ago when the sargassum situation was really bad.

We went to Maya Chan and they were continually raking. It did not particularly affect our day and I don’t recall being given the option of pre-cancelling because of it before we got in the taxi. We did discuss the situation with the manager of Maya Chan, during the day, as we had been in Costa Maya a month earlier and there had been little to no seaweed then. She said it had started up like that in the last two to three weeks.

It is Mother Nature. I wouldn’t be so quick to write off Costa Maya just on this count. If the situation gets out of control again there will be a lot more places affected than just Costa Maya in the Caribbean.

We were also in Costa Maya that week and agree the seaweed situation was quite bad. That said, it was not nearly as bad, or smelly, as we had had it at Rasta’s on Cozumel a few years ago when the sargassum situation was really bad.

 

We went to Maya Chan and they were continually raking. It did not particularly affect our day and I don’t recall being given the option of pre-cancelling because of it before we got in the taxi. We did discuss the situation with the manager of Maya Chan, during the day, as we had been in Costa Maya a month earlier and there had been little to no seaweed then. She said it had started up like that in the last two to three weeks.

 

It is Mother Nature. I wouldn’t be so quick to write off Costa Maya just on this count. If the situation gets out of control again there will be a lot more places affected than just Costa Maya in the Caribbean.

We were at Maya Chan last week and they not only warned us about the sea grass and offered a refund, they had us sign a paper that we had been warned. We had to decide before we got on the bus. Thankfully we went, and we loved it. They were constantly raking the beach.

My husband and sons played in the water a lot. My daughter and I opted for sun and shore. It was such an excellent day, terrific service, food, drinks, perfect sand above the water line.

I would take another cruise just to go to Maya Chan.

We were at Maya Chan last week and they not only warned us about the sea grass and offered a refund, they had us sign a paper that we had been warned. We had to decide before we got on the bus. Thankfully we went, and we loved it. They were constantly raking the beach.

 

My husband and sons played in the water a lot. My daughter and I opted for sun and shore. It was such an excellent day, terrific service, food, drinks, perfect sand above the water line.

 

I would take another cruise just to go to Maya Chan.

Don’t know if it is worse now, or if a lot of people have complained when they found the seaweed.

They have offered something like that previously when we went and it had rained a lot and the road was really bad but they didn’t mention anything to us this time before we left.

Sea Grass is a natural occurrence in the area. Clubs along the malecon try to control it. The Mexican Government has in the past spent millions of pesos in dredging and grading the beach are along the malecon. Currents and weather bring it back. Nothing NCL or any cruise line can do about it.

Sea Grass is a natural occurrence in the area. Clubs along the malecon try to control it. The Mexican Government has in the past spent millions of pesos in dredging and grading the beach are along the malecon. Currents and weather bring it back. Nothing NCL or any cruise line can do about it.

I am not an expert but I believe this was a seaweed, not a sea grass, problem. As I said the beaches were mainly clear at the end of January and quite bad at the end of February.

As you say it depends on currents and weather. I am not sure where the OP went, or what they expected NCL to do. I was out on the floating chairs at Maya Chan and the seaweed wasn’t a problem. It certainly wasn’t bad enough to cancel ALL beach excursions.

I don’t know if the OP took the excursion to Uvero- I have never been there so I don’t know how rocky it is, or how well it is maintained. If they went to the malecon, I am sure some locations were probably addressing the problem better than others, easy enough to move on to somewhere else.

 

I don’t know if the OP took the excursion to Uvero- I have never been there so I don’t know how rocky it is, or how well it is maintained. If they went to the malecon, I am sure some locations were probably addressing the problem better than others, easy enough to move on to somewhere else.

I missed the rocky beach part. So you could be correct if the excursion was a ship excursion and offered snorkeling tour of some fashion. That's where they go and the shore up there is a bit more iron shore. But then the OP didn't say so it's speculation on our parts.

I missed the rocky beach part. So you could be correct if the excursion was a ship excursion and offered snorkeling tour of some fashion. That's where they go and the shore up there is a bit more iron shore. But then the OP didn't say so it's speculation on our parts.

Hi crew! Yes purely speculation as I have never been north of the port. It was the only place that came to mind.

Not really familiar with many places in Costa Maya but the Reef is off shore and I don’t think the malecon beach is generally considered rocky is it?

Just an update on my original post. We had been to Costa Maya on a previous cruise, and was well aware of the presence of seaweed/sea grass on the beaches. Previously, we had also gone to the beach on the malecon. To me, the beach was rocky in a number of places, and water shoes helped. I was mostly posting about the fact that some of the cruise operators on shore were quietly telling cruisers that it was OK to cancel because of the beach conditions. I didn’t learn this until a few days later. In terms of ports, Costa Maya isn’t at the top of my list, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I can certainly appreciate people that enjoy this stop.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Just an update on my original post. We had been to Costa Maya on a previous cruise, and was well aware of the presence of seaweed/sea grass on the beaches. Previously, we had also gone to the beach on the malecon. To me, the beach was rocky in a number of places, and water shoes helped. I was mostly posting about the fact that some of the cruise operators on shore were quietly telling cruisers that it was OK to cancel because of the beach conditions. I didn’t learn this until a few days later. In terms of ports, Costa Maya isn’t at the top of my list, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I can certainly appreciate people that enjoy this stop.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Thanks for the update.

Which beach/ Beach Club did you go to this time? I was trying to determine if you went to uvero since that is typically a ship only excursion and I have never read many reviews about it?

Most people that go to the malecon don’t use a tour operator and just go independently. Turns out we were in Costa Maya on the same day (March 1st) and as I said we weren’t offered a refund from Maya Chan, although they have a blanket policy that if you don’t like it when you get there they will refund your money less taxi fare.

I agree Costa Maya isn’t top of my list either but I do prefer it to Belize which is often an alternative on that itinerary.

We were at Maya Chan last week and they not only warned us about the sea grass and offered a refund, they had us sign a paper that we had been warned. We had to decide before we got on the bus. Thankfully we went, and we loved it. They were constantly raking the beach.

 

My husband and sons played in the water a lot. My daughter and I opted for sun and shore. It was such an excellent day, terrific service, food, drinks, perfect sand above the water line.

 

I would take another cruise just to go to Maya Chan.

Another vote for Maya Chan! And they warn their incoming guests about the seaweed ahead of time. One of our best excursions! Seaweed is a natural occurrence in that area, and yes - it can be worse sometimes more than others. But it’s nature - the cruise line has no control over it.

We have just been to the beach at Mahahual - we went to an area where the seaweed was constantly being raked up and carted away - but this was no issue at all. The seaweed itself is not of the slimy type and is not sea grass, it is fine! No drama at all - does not affect swimming or getting in the sea. All good :)

We have just been to the beach at Mahahual - we went to an area where the seaweed was constantly being raked up and carted away - but this was no issue at all. The seaweed itself is not of the slimy type and is not sea grass, it is fine! No drama at all - does not affect swimming or getting in the sea. All good :)

Any particular beach bar recommendations or did you move around?

No bar to recommend - the beds we rented were not part of a bar, so sorry can't recommend!

No bar to recommend - the beds we rented were not part of a bar, so sorry can't recommend!

Are you saying you had to rent the loungers in addition to paying for food and drinks from a separate vendor?

I realize the bars and hotels are across the road/malecon from the beach area but I didn't realize there were individuals who just rented loungers in Costa Maya. Do you remember which bars were to the side of you so I can get some idea of the location?

Sorry, I didn't notice the bars nearby! Yes we "had to" rent the chairs in addition to the food we purchased later but they only cost us a few pesos and our food was local fish tacos and homemade lemonade in a low key place. We only spend pesos, never dollars, and only pay local prices! Look for the places the Mexicans or locals are in and speak Spanish (if you are able):). Our beach area only had Mexicans on it, the place we ate at had ex pats in it.

Sorry, I didn't notice the bars nearby! Yes we "had to" rent the chairs in addition to the food we purchased later but they only cost us a few pesos and our food was local fish tacos and homemade lemonade in a low key place. We only spend pesos, never dollars, and only pay local prices! Look for the places the Mexicans or locals are in and speak Spanish (if you are able):). Our beach area only had Mexicans on it, the place we ate at had ex pats in it.

Thanks, was just interested to locate where you were on the malecon.

On a recent trip we started far south, (on the dirt road beyond the paved malecon) and walked the whole length up to Blue Kay. There was a definite difference in the quality of sand, maintenance of the beach and ambience of the beach clubs along the way but I wasn’t aware of any vendors just renting loungers. However the weather wasn’t particularly good on the day and I was mainly checking out names listed on Crewsweepers list in his signature link so I could easily have missed them.

I agree, we always pay in pesos and get a better rate. But probably not worth the hassle for day visitors who only visit occasionally.