Port #4-Cozumel, Mexico

This is the final post in the Ports of the Freedom of the Seas Western Caribbean Cruise series. We took this cruise is May, 2010, and Cozumel, Mexico is the 4th port on the seven-day cruise.

Party atmosphere in Cozumel!

This port is a mainstay of the Western Caribbean cruise itineraries. The ship’s excursions run the gamut from the full-day trip across to the mainland to see the Maya ruins at Tulum to shorter snorkeling trips and party catamarans. Royal Caribbean docks at the International Pier, while most of Carnival ships dock at Puerta Maya, about 2 miles south. Both terminals have large shopping areas, as well as bars and restaurants. The day we visited there were 3 cruise ships in port. In the winter months, there can be as many as 6 or 7 ships in port at a time.

 

We decided not to do a ship excursion, but take a taxi to Chankanaab Nature Park-about 6 miles south of the pier. This park is costly to get into-upwards of $20 per person, depending on your package. We got some coupons off the internet for a free drink, free t-shirt, and entrance to the shows for about $25 per person. We could have gone snorkeling, as the reef is right off the beach here. We could have gone swimming with the dolphins, as they have a section of the beach set up for this. The dolphins are in separate enclosures, and each small group of people gets its own dolphin with which to get up close and personal. Those activities cost more money. We did see the manatee and get a tour of the dolphin enclosure, and we saw the sea lion show. At the end of the show, each member of the audience can get a photo with a sea lion. Purchase available in the gift shop about 30 minutes after the show.

There is also a botanical garden with walkways through the jungle, a pretty lagoon, a nice beach area with shaded chairs, 2 restaurants and several bar areas. We walked the length of the park and had our free drinks at a bar. We did the show and the tour of the dolphin enclosures, perused the gift shop. We hadn’t brought our suits, or we would have sat on the beach and gone swimming. It was quite hot that day, so by the time we left the park and headed back to town, we just went back to the ship. The taxi to the beach was about $12.00 and the taxi to town would have been about $5 more.

I would recommend Chankanaab for a full day of activities all in one place.

Since Cozumel is such a popular cruise port for many cruise lines, what follows is more info about things to do in town.

The town of Cozumel has a main shopping strip along the water that goes for several miles. There are many many shops selling everything from cheap souvenirs to the expensive jewelry and watches.There are good restaurants just a few blocks off the main drag. One we liked is called La Choza Restaurant. There is also the Cozumel Museum which costs $3.00 entry fee and has art exhibits as well as 2 rooms devoted to the biology, history, and geology of Cozumel.

If you want to head to a beach, the taxi stand outside the port terminal has signs that tell you the cost to each beach. Several websites have info about all the beaches and offer coupons. One good one is www.cozumelinsider.com. Another one is www.cozumelmycozumel.com

The farthest beaches on the leeward side can cost about $25 one way. Most beaches have free entrance, and you buy food and drink there. Some beaches charge for chair rental, but most hope you’ll spend lots on food and drink. There are a few beaches that cost money and take reservations, notably one called Nachi Cocom. It is a nice, quiet beach, and the entrance fee comes with included food and drink. Here as well as at a lot of the beaches, you can rent snorkeling equipment or hire a boat for parasailing trips.

We ended our day in port with some shopping for souvenirs.

If you are heading out on a cruise, I highly recommend joining www.cruisecritic.com and browsing the pages for port and excursion information.

Port #3: Georgetown, Grand Cayman

This is a tender port, and the cruise ships anchor or electronically hover very near the port terminal. The water is crystal clear and azure blue. The coral reefs are close to the shore. Grand Cayman is a low island, much drier and flatter than Haiti or Jamaica. We had a wait for the tender, but that’s a different topic for another post.

Tender boat leaving the ship

We had booked the RCCL Reef and Wreck Snorkel trip and were given the 11:00 tour. We chose this as it was the least expensive of the snorkeling excursions offered, and only lasted  2 hours. We finally got on a tender to the pier and landed at the port terminal area where there are a few shops and a patio bar. There was also a Carnival ship in port that day, so the area was crowded with people trying to find their excursions.

We finally got in the group for our tour and a guide led us out of the port terminal, across the parking lot, and onto the street. No bus was waiting for us. We walked down the street, around a corner and down another block to a different pier area and then onto our boat.

The lower level had a glass bottom with places to sit and watch the underwater sights. The middle deck had bins with the snorkeling equipment, and the upper deck was open to the sun. We got our gear, then went on top and claimed places on the side benches. Our captain talked to us about safety and what we’d be doing on this trip.

The boat moved away from the dock and slowly made its way across the harbor, past the tender pier, close to the shore until he dropped anchor within 200 yards of the tender pier. Underneath was the “wreck” portion of the excursion, a transport boat that had sunk in the harbor about 60 years ago. We got in the water and had about 30 minutes to cover the area.

 

We saw lots of fish, and the wreckage of the boat was interesting. Back on our boat, I realized that I still had on my pedometer. Oh dear. At least it died a scenic death.

We motored west for about 15 minutes, until we were between the cruise ship anchorages and the shore. This is the “reef” portion of the dive. We saw several barracuda and lots of colorful parrotfish, angel fish, and other species of reef fish. The reefs aren’t that pretty, but we saw brain coral and some tube coral.

When time was called, we all got back on the boat for the 20 minute ride past the tender pier to the other dock. Water and a fruit drink were provided, but that was it for the refreshments. The snorkeling equipment was in good shape. Definitely a bare bones operation, but fine for us.

 

We walked down the street from this dock to the Paradise Restaurant for lunch. A nice covered patio looking out over the water was appreciated. A rambling walk back to the port terminal, stopping in the fancy duty-free jewelry, perfume and art stores concluded our stay in Grand Cayman.

Port #2: Ocho Rios, Jamaica

Again, the ship docks at a large pier and it’s not a long walk to the port terminal buildings. There is a building to the right where ship excursions meet but as we had booked ourselves with Peat Taylor Tours we followed a sign to the left that said “Pre-Booked Tours.” This led us to a parking lot with taxis but no other signs for our tour. Jamaicans eyed us but didn’t offer any information. We were definitely in the wrong place. We walked back to the terminal entrance and walked straight ahead to the main gates where we saw women with shirts that read “Dispatcher.” We asked them for Peat Taylor and they directed us to our bus. We met our driver who did have our name on his list. The bus held about 20 people and we got underway quickly.

We had signed up to climb Dunn’s River Falls, a long-time tourist attraction here. Peat Taylor Tours promises to get you up the falls before the crowds arrive and they lived up to that promise. We left the port area before many buses did, and were among the first to arrive at the waterfall park. We were quickly ushered into the park and got with our tour guides. We were the first group to go up the falls that day.

We walked down to the beach, probably 100 feet down. The Dunn’s River rushes to the ocean over hundreds of feet of rocky terraces and this is where you climb up 300 feet to the take-out platform. People scrub the rocks daily, so there is a minimum of slippage on the rocks. There is a guide in the front, the group holds hands for support, and the guide tells you where to place your feet as you climb up alongside the edges of the falls. There is also a videographer, who takes video of the tour. You can buy your tour’s video (with about 10 minutes of tourism commercial added) for about $40 at the end of the tour.

Don’t wear flip flops or crocs, but a water shoe with straps is fine. I wore Keens, with the toe protection, and they were great. You will get wet, and the guides love to get you under a rock with water rushing over it for photo ops. The guides will carry your camera for you and take appropriately scenic shots with you and without you in them.

It took about 45 minutes to climb up the falls, and by the time our group finished, there were lines of tourists going up the falls behind us.

The scenery is dense tropical forest, and you can’t see the top of the falls. It is beautiful, but hard to stop and enjoy since the group is moving up the rocks so quickly.

We had ample time to get changed and get a drink at the food stall area of the park. The Peat Taylor guides had warned us about the aggressive shop keepers and to be prepared to bargain and purchase if you stopped to handle merchandise or strike up a conversation with sellers. We walked through the outdoor shopping area quickly, with polite “no thanks” when we were approached.

We did give a couple of dollars to the man with the donkey who let us take his picture.

Back on the bus, O’Neal, Peat Taylor’s son led us on a tour of the city of Ocho Rios, up the mountain via the rainforest road called Fern Gully, over the mountain ridge to a lookout spot, then down to town. We saw Ian Fleming’s house, and the area where some of the Rolling Stones’ band had homes. A few of us wanted to go to a beach, so the bus dropped us at Mahogany Beach, a small cove with palapas, food stalls and shops. We spend a couple of hours relaxing and then our driver was there to collect us and take us back to town.

Near the port terminal are several shopping areas, so we checked out a few. We felt very safe walking in these well-trafficked areas. We enjoyed our tour. and would recommend Peat Taylor Tours.