Cozumel vs. Costa Maya... which port to do a beach vs. ruins?

[CruiseMelissa]

5 night cruise, the only ports are Cozumel and Costa Maya.  We'd love to dedicate one port to a relaxing beach day and one to do some nerdy historical touring of ruins.. how should we divide our time up for these two ports?  Thanks!

[njhorseman]

8 minutes ago, CruiseMelissa said:

5 night cruise, the only ports are Cozumel and Costa Maya.  We'd love to dedicate one port to a relaxing beach day and one to do some nerdy historical touring of ruins.. how should we divide our time up for these two ports?  Thanks!

Neither Cozumel nor Costa Maya are on the Mexican Riviera. There are forums for each of those ports on the Caribbean Ports of Call board, which are the appropriate places to post your question.

Edited October 30, 2021 by njhorseman

[CruiseMelissa]

29 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

Neither Cozumel nor Costa Maya are on the Mexican Riviera. There are forums for each of those ports on the Caribbean Ports of Call board, which are the appropriate places to post your question.

 

Sorry about that,  thanks!

[jas283a]

1 hour ago, CruiseMelissa said:

5 night cruise, the only ports are Cozumel and Costa Maya.  We'd love to dedicate one port to a relaxing beach day and one to do some nerdy historical touring of ruins.. how should we divide our time up for these two ports?  Thanks!

True however I do have an opinion. I would say Cozumel is the better beach area. There are tons of beach clubs close. Mr Sanchos is a popular one. But the other forum will have more info. I’d also say Costa Maya is good for ruins. We went and they were fantastic. Again you can get more info in the other forums 

[CruiseMelissa]

11 hours ago, jas283a said:

True however I do have an opinion. I would say Cozumel is the better beach area. There are tons of beach clubs close. Mr Sanchos is a popular one. But the other forum will have more info. I’d also say Costa Maya is good for ruins. We went and they were fantastic. Again you can get more info in the other forums 

Thank you!   Now I just need to figure out how to delete/move this thread! 🙃

[SelectSys]

I also vote for Cozumel as a better beach destination.  Costa Maya could be my least favorite port ever.  It is also the Sargasso capital of Mexico which to me really cuts back on my enjoyment of the beach.  I would definitely try and do something else in Costa Maya. 

 

A good water option that may be available at Costa Maya via a tour is to visit Bacalar.  This is definitely an area worth seeing, but I am not sure if it's possible  as a day trip from the cruise..

 

[c-leg5]

3 hours ago, SelectSys said:

I also vote for Cozumel as a better beach destination.  Costa Maya could be my least favorite port ever.  It is also the Sargasso capital of Mexico which to me really cuts back on my enjoyment of the beach.  I would definitely try and do something else in Costa Maya. 

 

A good water option that may be available at Costa Maya via a tour is to visit Bacalar.  This is definitely an area worth seeing, but I am not sure if it's possible  as a day trip from the cruise..

 

Agree, Cozumel has far more options for a beach day depending on the ages of your group and type of activities you require. Ruins on Cozumel are very small and certainly not a “must-do” activity. Ruins in the mainland are good but require a lot of travel compared to time spent at the ruins.

 

Tours to the ruins have always been a popular option in Costa Maya. Sargassum is seasonal and effects most east facing localities in the Caribbean. Unfortunately Mahahual is one long beach on an east coast and therefore does suffer from large deposits at times (varies from year to year, and time of year) although baffles have been erected off shore which appear to be helping.  There are certainly trips to Bacalar from the port,  both independently and usually through the ship.