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It's Official - Cozumel to Re-open Nov. 14th!

azuregazr

By azuregazr,
in Cozumel

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prime9time

prime9time

Posted
Posted
i personally would love to go to cozumelon our thanksgiving cruise even if not 100 percent ready.

 

But the funny thing is all those people complaining about missing the port will still complain that they should not have been taken there because it is not 100 percent ready.

 

The cruise lines are in a lose lose situation in regards to cozumel this year

 

The funny thing to me is that you would think the cruise lines are in a "lose lose situation". I have some great beachfront property in NM for you. They are not going to Cozumel out of some altruistic feeling for the people of Cozumel they are going there because it fits there schedules better and they don't have to make alternative arrangements. They would rather "tender" you to a port than try to figure out something that would be better for the clientele. If people spend more time on the ship because they are avoiding the royal pain of a making a pier port into a tender port, the people spend more money on the ship with drinks, spas etc. I selected this cruise because of some specific activities I wanted to do there and the fact that it isn't a tender port. Sure Belize and Cayman are tender ports but they know how to do it and the customers are prepared for waiting in a big herd of people to get off the ship and the same to get back on. It's going to cause a big mess on the ferry pier to for those planning an exursion to the mainland. Did you book a cruise to the caribbean or to a recovering disaster area? The outpouring of prayers and expression of altruism are noble expressions by many of the writers here, but the cruise lines are the winners however you look at it and the clientele are the losers. Be sure you all baah like sheep when you wait in the flock to get off the ship and back on the ship.

 

They seem to feature the loss of that shopping center and the Dennis restaruant...so you think Carnival and its subsidiaries aren't insure up to the eyebrows? Sure the loss of that as well as Carlos n Charlies and Senor Frogs, which does mean increased business downtown for the business owners trying to hang on by their fingernails competing with those multinational corprations, and the dive shops that had the forthought to secure their boats safely should make for some excellent experiences if you book the right company. I will be glad to see them make some money but believe me that isn't the REASON Carnival is going back to Cozumel so soon.

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suzepoo

suzepoo

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Exactly how do you know that RCCL won't sail back to Cozumel before 2006??? As it stands right now, we were told that we WOULD be anchoring in Cozumel on November 17 on the Legend of the Seas, and have confirmation of the excursion that we booked, so if you know something we don't, please share!

 

Also....if you don't want to be "herded like sheep" to get onto a tender boat, just wait an hour after tendering begins....it's not a big deal unless you have no patience....and WELL worth the wait anyway....IMHO:D :D

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Charles4515

Charles4515

Posted
Posted
Exactly how do you know that RCCL won't sail back to Cozumel before 2006??? As it stands right now, we were told that we WOULD be anchoring in Cozumel on November 17 on the Legend of the Seas, and have confirmation of the excursion that we booked, so if you know something we don't, please share!

 

Also....if you don't want to be "herded like sheep" to get onto a tender boat, just wait an hour after tendering begins....it's not a big deal unless you have no patience....and WELL worth the wait anyway....IMHO:D :D

 

Confirmation of an excursion means nothing. Neither does what you were told about November 17. The fact is not one ship with passengers has stopped there since Wilma hit. Until a ship stops there I would not count on it being a sure thing. And even after. After ships start going there agian because of the damaged docks all the ships schedualed won't be able to stop. The only sure thing is that sooner or later ships will stop there agian.

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suzepoo

suzepoo

Posted
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that we DO stop in Cozumel as it's my FAVORITE island in the whole world, and since I enjoy diving/snorkeling while there, along with a visit to Carlos & Charlies, plus some shopping.....all is well as far as I'm concerned and I can't WAIT to help out the economy with my $$$$....keeping fingers and toes crossed!!!:D

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Cozumel-Ian

Cozumel-Ian

Posted
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Hi all

 

The news in Cozumel is that RCCL will be sending ships w/c 14 November - nealthedeal, I'm not sure why you think otherwise, but please check your information, it is wrong and people are confused enough as it is! :)

 

I think that the suggestion that Cozumel isn't accustomed to tenders is a little unfair too, before the big piers were constructed that's how passengers always got to shore in Cozumel. We have plenty of modern ferries for tendering and some shore excursions will be able to pick up directly from the ships too - e.g. Fury Catamarans.

 

My understanding is that they won't all tender to the downtown Ferry Pier, but to the 3 cruise ships piers too - these were damaged, but will be usable for tenders. This will make the whole process much faster for everybody and hopefully "baah-ing" won't be necessary!

 

I plan to write a reoprt on the state of the piers for my website next week: www.wilmacozumel.com - you can register to receive updates.

 

I do agree with prime9time that the cruiselines decisions for returning will be based on financial considerations - they are commercial companies not charities afterall. That said, from what I have heard about meetings with cruise line representatives here, they do hold a special place in their heart for Cozumel and want to return here to show their support too. It's amazing how Mother Nature can help even the hardest-nosed business people to co-operate sometimes..! :)

 

By the way, Casa Dennis downtown was damaged but has been open again for almost a week now and Carlos'n'Charlies/Sr Frogs downtown also looks like it'll be open again by 14 November.

 

I'm not sure about Carlos'n'Charlies on the Puerta Maya pier, but Fat Tuesdays hope to be open on the pier my 14 November and their downtown bar should be open too (I spoke to one of their managers Hugo Herrera a couple of days ago).

 

Hope that helps clarify things a little..!?

 

All the best

 

Ian in Cozumel

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prime9time

prime9time

Posted
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It is good to have someone with updates on what is ACTUALLY going on in Cozumel. The Carnival Triumph is sceduled to arrive there on the nov. 28th. This "group" I often cruise with really like the Carlos n Charlies and Senor Frogs, and Fat Tuesday, so those places are really a feature on the cruise. In fact several of them indicated they were staying on the ship without those places and weren't and won't go on any excursions anyway. It is still a mystery to me why anyone would want to spend four or five bucks for a Corona when a lot of the downtown Cantina's kind of let you feel like you ARE actually IN Mexico without being "clipped" by multinational Corportations.

 

Ian, what is the name of that one bar on the corner of the plaza that features that great posting board about all the uses of the word "pendejo" in phrases and actually has live music? I was thinking that would be a good gathering place should the corporate bars be still closed, and was going to call them and see how they were doing but I can't remember the name of it. too many Cervezas Superior or something. Are the ferries to Playa del Carmen running pretty much on schedule? I was planning to go to the Mayan City of Coba on the mainland using the ferry and then a small group in a hired mini van to get to the ruins and Cenotes and a photo stop at Tulum.

 

Cozumel hasn't been a tender port for quite a few years and we will see how Carnival deals with it. Carnival landed us in Cayman shortly after Ivan last year and it was for nothing other than their own convenience OMHO. The turtles weren't back from Cayman Brac, the stingrays were in some kind of state of recovery, the museum was closed etc.

 

I will "tune in" to your website (if its ok), because what I am getting is largely from the Mexican press, and then a "run around" from Carnival.

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Karen Lynn

Karen Lynn

Posted
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prime9time?

 

How come you are also on the Triumph like myself and 3 other cruise agents but we have been told it is highly likely that we will NOT be docking in Cozumel and we are there after you??? Our cruise sails Dec 10 and I spoke to Carnival again today??

 

Just wondering....

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prime9time

prime9time

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It beats me what Carnival is going to do. You could probably be a fly on the wall and the Carnival/Dilbert table and then still not know what was going on. I imagine they are still trying to figure it out. Ian said it USED to be a tender port but a number of the larger boats were destroyed according to reports. This summer NCL used some of their larger life boats to tender us into a port whose piers were all occupied to to a delay. Costa Maya is fine, Cozumel and it was stated that what is the "big deal" about waiting an hour to get off a ship via tenders at a port....well you get to double that and its two hours lost. Then if you figure that into some of the longer excursions such as Chichen Itza, or deep sea fishing, it becomes important. If you just planned to sit around in a bar or shop for trinkets then its "who cares". The Triumph Nov 26 cruise that stops in Cozumel is the only port where the ship was scheduled there long enough to do a long excursion and THEN sit around in a bar. lol Yes I don't have two grand to just throw around on traveling and say "poor cruise lines" but it will be fun no matter what happens. But it doesn't mean I can't be annoyed somewhat about them not being able to figure out what they are doing or the courtesy to tell the clientele about it.

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Cozumel-Ian

Cozumel-Ian

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Hi prime9time

 

I thinkyou mean the Baby Reef Bar? I'll try to pop by today and see how it's doing... they had just put a new roof on after Emily, hopefully Wilma was a little kinder to them..!

 

It's a while since Cozumel used tenders, but there are still plenty of ferries and piers here to do the job. Plus, there won't be as many ships in port at the same time, so I don't think you'll find the tenders too time consuming.

 

Ian

 

PS - Coba is BEAUTIFUL - the lost ruins that many people miss. I haven't heard how they faired with Wilma, but they were a little off her path, so I imagine they are okay. Try to stay the night nearby so you can get to the ruins early in the morning before the tour buses from Cancun arrive, there's a nice lake with crocs in too!

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imatarb

imatarb

Posted
Posted

Ian, any chance you can get any updated information on Playa Mia? We are planning on a visit there on 12/8, and we hope they are up and ready to take our $$! We did get an email from them today, as we inquired about visiting, but I wondered what your view was?

 

Thanks,

Lisa

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Cozumel-Ian

Cozumel-Ian

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I haven't been to Playa Mia myself, but both cometocozumel.com and travelnotes.cc say Playa Mia will be open 14 November...

 

http://www.cometocozumel.com/english/wilma/tours.asp

http://www.travelnotes.cc/cozumel/links/hurricane.php

 

I'm planning on visiting the key beach clubs this week to get the latest info and see how they're doing first hand... I'll post an update on my site.

 

I've seen the party boat moored at Punta Langosta and cometocozumel.com also say it will be operational (same link as above).

 

Ian

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ginag

ginag

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Thank you Eileen! We are scheduled to be in Cozumel on Dec.9th, if we go there at all. I talked with a Katie at Cozumelcruiseexcursions on Sunday, and according to her, things are still up in the air. We may be canceling too...:(

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finallyfree

finallyfree

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Just a thought I'd like to share. We are planning on packing any extra suitcases we can fit into our van (since we are driving) & filling them with school supplies, health & beauty supplies to be donated during our trip to Cozumel (or any other nearby destination) then we will use the empty suitcases to either fit inside each other or fill with souvenirs. Sure feels better than writing a check.

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