Cozumel El Cielo/Snorkeling/Beach excursions

[Spencer71]

My 14-yr old daughter and I will be in Cozumel Apr 7 from Allure of the Seas. Would like to see El Cielo and then spend time on a "pretty" beach.  Don't need food/drinks.  I'm not sure how much snorkel time we want, because she's never been and we'll be doing that in Roatan/Costa Maya the days before.  She may not like it, or may want to do a lot more by the time we get to Cozumel.  Would like to maximize time in Cozumel and not have to come back to ship too early.  Any recommendations on the best excursions/tour companies that could accommodate this?

[c-leg5]

30 minutes ago, Spencer71 said:

My 14-yr old daughter and I will be in Cozumel Apr 7 from Allure of the Seas. Would like to see El Cielo and then spend time on a "pretty" beach.  Don't need food/drinks.  I'm not sure how much snorkel time we want, because she's never been and we'll be doing that in Roatan/Costa Maya the days before.  She may not like it, or may want to do a lot more by the time we get to Cozumel.  Would like to maximize time in Cozumel and not have to come back to ship too early.  Any recommendations on the best excursions/tour companies that could accommodate this?

El Cielo is a sand bar and you will need to arrange a boat excursion. I haven’t been so can’t comment on excursion other than recent reports have been that boat traffic there has been busy recently. 
 

what else you have time for will very much depend on which marina the boat excursion uses in relation to International pier.

 

ETA I wonder if you contacted the snorkeling company at Palancar Beach if they could accommodate this?

Edited February 28, 2023 by c-leg5

[mitsugirly]

We did the boat excursion to El Cielo and had a good time. They took us snorkeling at Palancar Reef and then we went to Columbia Reef and the coral was beautiful with tons of fish. Then we went on to El Cielo where there were tons of starfish and stingrays. Then they took us to the sandbar where we could get out of the boat and stand in the water in the middle of the ocean. Sandbars are always so cool (we've been to several) We got to play around in the water while they prepared fresh guacamole with chips and pica de gallo. It was yummy and hit the spot. We had a great day. 

 

You can find my review HERE and it has tons of pictures to show you our experience and has information on the vendor we used. 

Edited February 28, 2023 by mitsugirly

[Spencer71]

I can only find one excursion that includes El Cielo and a beach and that's through Tortugas, and they are sold out.  I'm not necessarily looking for multiple snorkel stops, but just want to see El Cielo and also hang out at a beach for the day.  Unless I do a private tour (which looks like it costs $$$), I'm guessing I'm out of luck?

[mitsugirly]

1 hour ago, Spencer71 said:

I can only find one excursion that includes El Cielo and a beach and that's through Tortugas, and they are sold out.  I'm not necessarily looking for multiple snorkel stops, but just want to see El Cielo and also hang out at a beach for the day.  Unless I do a private tour (which looks like it costs $$$), I'm guessing I'm out of luck?

 

Spencer, I just found this tour.... it mentions the snorkeling, the sand bar and going to a beach HERE

[Southern_Roots]

This is an amazing excursion, only accessible by boat. Usually there is a snorkeling tour attached to this excursion on the way to the sandbar and that snorkeling is better than any you’ll do in Costa Maya in my opinion.

[mitsugirly]

3 hours ago, Southern_Roots said:

This is an amazing excursion, only accessible by boat. Usually there is a snorkeling tour attached to this excursion on the way to the sandbar and that snorkeling is better than any you’ll do in Costa Maya in my opinion.

 

This is in Cozumel, not Costa Maya.

[day-day]

On 3/8/2023 at 6:32 AM, mitsugirly said:

 

This is in Cozumel, not Costa Maya.

The OP mentioned snorkeling in Costa Maya prior to visiting Cozumel...