Beach approriate for family with small children?

[JessLCH]

Travelling with a 1 and 4 year old. Looking for a nice beach with chairs, umbrellas or other shade, and clean, easily accessible rest rooms. What do you suggest? Also, what about transportation? I have read abotlong taxi lines. Are we best off just booking Uvero through RCCL?

[jmrfamily]

We traveled to Costa Maya last fall with our 5 year old daughter and booked the $25 beach break party at Pez Quadro through costamayacruiseexcursions.com. We had a WONDERFUL time. This is not a big touristy type beach. It is a clean, simple place to play at the beach (and have a few good drinks too!)

 

The small beach area is clean and there is a shallow, sandy, roped-off swimming area where you can play with the kids. With your reservation you get a nice lounge chair and unlimited drinks. There is an OK bathroom across the street. Pez Quadro is at the end of Mahahual -- it is about a 5 minute walk from where the shuttle ends. I have also heard a lot about the lines for the shuttles, but we did not any trouble (I think we waited about 15 minutes). We easily caught a taxi back to the dock.

[JessLCH]

We traveled to Costa Maya last fall with our 5 year old daughter and booked the $25 beach break party at Pez Quadro through costamayacruiseexcursions.com. We had a WONDERFUL time. This is not a big touristy type beach. It is a clean, simple place to play at the beach (and have a few good drinks too!)

 

The small beach area is clean and there is a shallow, sandy, roped-off swimming area where you can play with the kids. With your reservation you get a nice lounge chair and unlimited drinks. There is an OK bathroom across the street. Pez Quadro is at the end of Mahahual -- it is about a 5 minute walk from where the shuttle ends. I have also heard a lot about the lines for the shuttles, but we did not any trouble (I think we waited about 15 minutes). We easily caught a taxi back to the dock.

 

Thanks, tell me more abotu the shuttle. Was transportation included with the excursion? How long did it take to get to the beach from the pier? Were umbreallas available? We need shade for the kids.

[corky14]

my kids are 7 and 11 and we went to tequila beach club. we paid 30.00 for me and my husband which included open bar, transportation, and an appetizer, plus use of the chairs and umbrellas. they did not charge but 6.00 for the transportation for my kids since they do not drink but yet let them have free cokes with us. they loved it there was the highlight of thier trip. it has decent bathrooms right there on the beach along with a pavillion you can use to get out of the sun if needed. we booked this at a booth at the pier.

[jmrfamily]

The "shuttle" is the same as the "taxis" referred to that you get at the end of the pier. However, some are shuttle buses (taking several people at one time into town) and other are just normal taxis. (Sorry for the confusion). Therefore, it was not included in the excursion price. I believe we paid about $3.00 a person each way. And as I stated, we did not have any trouble getting into town. When we first got off the ship, we watched some of the dance performances on the stage in Costa Maya (my daughter loved the dancers) and did a little shopping before trying to get into Mayahaual. By the time we took the trip into town, the lines were not really an issue. However, as you have seen, others have had long waits....

 

We have been on several cruises and in the past we have always done organized excursions with the cruise ship. This is one of the few times we just set out on our own and we had a great time. One thing I really liked was that we were not so far away that we could not have walked back if necessary. It would be a LONG walk, but at least we knew we could get back to the ship if necessary. I have always been a little nervous about going somewhere and not been able to get a taxi to take us back on time.

We also did buy the lunches they offer from the restaurant accross the street($15 for lobster, $10 for shrimp, $5 for burrito) and the food quality was excellent. However, one trick we also use is to bring Ziploc bags with you on the cruise ship, order up sandwiches from room service or get some muffins from the buffet and pack a lunch. Mayahaual is a very small town (dirt roads and they just got electricity in the last year or so), so there are not a lot of places to get lunch.

If you look through the postings or search for "Pez Quadro" in Costa Maya, you will find a ton about this beach. That may give you some more opinions and insight. Enjoy your cruise!

[jwlane]

The bar is the square palapa at right center, the clear kayaks go from the round palapa next to it. Unfortunately, there's not a lot of shade in the area. The massage tables are set up under the trees at top center. Seemed like we could've hung out under the kayak place, but wasn't that hot the day we were there. Would highly recommend this deal, though. We had a blast! Shuttle not included, just use the $3 pp cab/bus (our 4 yr-old was free) that drops you off (less than 10 minute ride) in the north part of town, then a 5-7 minute walk to Pez Quadro. No umbrellas, just a couple of small palapas by the bar.

[jmrfamily]

Thanks jwlane -- I just started chatting on about things in general and forgot to answer their questions!

 

jwlane is correct. There are no umbrellas and not much shade. However, we just coated the kid with sunblock 50 and spent most of the time in the water.

[disneygirl2]

Just back from the EOS and went to Pez Quadro. There were plenty of umbrellas to be had. I don't know if it was because we booked the Beach Party Break or what, but we received our chairs, they brought over an umbrella on my request, and there was a big sitting area that was under a thatched roof that had tables and chairs. I have to say that we had a great time here, the food was very good and the water was the perfect temp. and low waves which was perfect for our 4 y.o. son to swim and snorkle. We stayed all day.

[lisaland15]

We rented a golf cart for $15/hr by the pier and went to the beach. Our kids were 9 yrs. old and 14 mos. old.

 

Here's some pics:

 

http://community.webshots.com/photo/212146923/212158780fbdNbN

 

http://community.webshots.com/photo/212146923/212152648BBNYMN

 

http://community.webshots.com/photo/212146923/212158637HZfqKo

 

Pool at the pier:

 

http://community.webshots.com/photo/212146923/212152878rBGWtM