Snorkeling in Cozumel

[Jenns Grandma]

Going on 1/15 on RCL out of Tampa. Grand Caymans, Belize, Costa Maya and Cozumel. Any suggestions on snorkeling these locations. We have done a lot in Maui for years, so we are not new snorkelers. Advise please. Seems like lots of good things said about Blue Ha in Costa Maya. Not sure what to choose in Cozumel. We are active 61 & 64 year olds from St. Louis MO, 1st time on RCL. Did Mexican Riviera with Holland America, loved it!:)

[Murphy]

The Shark Ray Alley snorkel tour in Belize was by far the best snorkeling we've ever done. We booked it thru the ship because of the tendering at this port, but if you check the Ports of Call boards there are local agencies that take you to this area if you don't book thru the ship.

In Cozumel the snorkeling at Chaakanab Park is great right off shore and the facilities are nice. Bathrooms, restaurant, dolphin swim and show and sea lion show are all included in the entrance price.

[Jenns Grandma]

Thanks for the info. Our cruise is NOT showning an option for Shark Ray Alley in Belize. There is a Barrier Reef Snorkel and Beach at Rendevous Caye which is a 65 ft cat departing directly from the ship. I am about to book that one. There is nothing else offered departing directly from ship. Any advice appreciated! How about those Rams!!

[Jenns Grandma]

RCL not showing a Shark Ray alley in Belize option. We are about to book a 65 ft cat directly from ship to Barrier Reef snorkel and Rach at Rendevous Caye. Possibly the same as you are referring to??? Any advice appreciated.

[harry0]

Here is a link for a great Shark Ray snorkel tour in Belize I did it a month ago. Alot cheaper than the ship and probably better.

http://www.ecotoursbelize.com/tours.html

In Cozomel I reccomend Chaakanaub Park-just grab a cab to the park and pay $12 admission-the snorkeling is awesome and the beach is one of my favorites-make sure you do a hike around the gardens-watch out for all the Iguanas.

How bout those Jets! (they lost but are still in play-offs)

Have a great trip

Harry

[natesfirewife]

Try http://www.eagleraydivers.com for Cozumel. We just went with them about two weeks ago and had a great time. Our family of 15 had the boat all to ourselves, which was really nice because there was 9 ships in port that day!!

 

Misty

[jamiedego]

in cozumel, i would suggest the dzul ha beach club. it is about a mile or so from the international pier. they have a pool, and plenty of chairs, and also equipment rental. not sure the prices of rental... we brought our own. the place does not look that fancy, but it has the best snorkeling we have seen in cozumel (on our own). you will notice alot of snorkel tour boats around there, so to me that means great snorkeling!!!! they also have lockers you can use, and there is a bar. hope this helps!!! have a wonderful time.

[Murphy]

No the Barrier Reef and Rendevous Caye is not the same as the Shark Ray Alley. I just checked the RCCL website and the Shark Ray Alley is still list for Belize. This is the general view, not specific to your sailing. I do not have any experience with the Barrier Reef/Rendezous Caye option, but I know someone who was on that a couple weeks before us and she wasn't impressed.

[Jenns Grandma]

Thanks......as you can see someone else gave me a link to the shark ray alley trip.....we we going with the Barrier Reef option because it was straight from the ship, not tendered! Same thinking you had on the tenders...trying to make it as simple as possible. We are not crowd or line people. thanks again for imput

[lindnet]

Hi, just got back from those same ports. We did the Rendevous Cay snorkel and thought it was great! Also, Dzul Ha in Cozumel was great snorkeling and not crowded. The rental cost was $10, more if you needed a vest. Some people we were with said the best snorkeling they saw the whole trip was in Mahahaul(Costa Maya). They were down by the Pez Quadro bar and went pretty far out there, but said it was amazing.

[EscapeFromConnecticut]

Pelicanos in Cozumel provided an outstanding bike-snorkel tour when we there on the Dec. 4 sailing of Grandeur. Details are in the link below. (A handy way to get plenty of tips on each of the ports you asked about ... just scroll down on the CruiseCritic "boards" home page, and you'll find a category for port reviews & info).

We booked our bike-snorkel excursion through RCI, but would go direct to Pelicanos next time ... and that's exactly our plan for May, when we're back to Cozumel on Grandeur's repositioner. In your case, you could probably negotiate a good excursion (without the bikes, if you prefer) directly with the tour company. Good luck!

 

 

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=112466

[Jenns Grandma]

We are about to make decision on Belize...the Shark Ray Alley offered by RCL (not in our printed cruise info, but I found it online) is 7 1/2 hours. Ever heard of Wet N Wild Cave tours, ecotoursbelize.com? They have 5 hour departing 9:30am to shark ray alley and Caye Caulker beach. Do you think too risky to book other than RCL offering in Belize? Advice appreciated.

[harry0]

When I did it a month ago we were back in plenty of time. They are reputable and many people have used them from this board.-Harry

[Jenns Grandma]

We Are Booked In Costa Maya With Blue Ha.....many Good Comments About Them On This Site. We Are Booked With Ecotours In Belize, Thank You!!! We Are Not Pre Booking Anything In Cozumel, Seems Like Lots To Do Just From Shore, Even Good Snorkeling If We Haven't Had Our Fix By Then. In First Stop Grand Cayman, We Are Doing A Ray And Beach Snorkel....it Will Give Us Time To Do A Trolly Look Around If We Want To Snoop Some More. Thanks For The Advice. Much Appreciated....all Of You!

[Jenns Grandma]

Thanks Murphy, we are doing a shark ray alley/caulker cay thru ecotours in Belize. Sounds like the same tour as RCL offers but only $69 and 5 hours instead of 7 1/2. Thanks so much for the advice. Very much appreciated!!! Sure did not want to make a mistake on snorkeling the reef in Belize. My daughter did it over 20 years ago, and I have been wanting to go ever since. Next desire....the reef in Australia!