Cozumel advice?

[AP77]

We are a family of 5 and will be doing our first Disney cruise. Kids are age 7, 6, & 4. We don't want to do expensive excursions through the ship. What is there for us to do at the port? Can we just get off and find a beach or things to see within walking distance? We have our own snorkel gear...is there an area that we can snorkel on our own near he port? Is there a nice area that we can take a taxi to (either to walk around or to snorkel/beach)? Any tips for Cozumel would be great. Thank you!

 

[NYCMommy]

We did Nachi Cocum on our own...quick cab ride there, reserved online ahead of time and it was great. Very low key and mellow, very few people. Not a ton of things to do but my kids were 9 and 11 at the time and just played in the pool.

 

[jiminyC_fan]

As in all ports you are docked at the shopping area. IMHO, grab a taxi and go to Nachi Cocum which is quiet and relaxing. Make sure to make reservations with them before leaving as they only have spots for so many. I believe it's 100. Mr Sanchos is nearby and has fun things for the kids to do but it gets very crowded. I don't know if the kids would be interested but it may be fun to grab a taxi and hire it to drive around the island. It's stunning on the East side and that is something you won't see in port. On the way there is Punta Sur which has a lighthouse to tour that offers spectacular views and a crocodile watching area. There is also a beach area. On the drive you can ask your driver to stop anywhere for pictures. He can also take you to the Chocolate Factory which gets rave reviews. Then into town to grab some lunch and do some shopping. If you opt for the drive around the island make sure you don't let your driver leave since there is no phones/no electricity on the East side. Bars and restaurants close down by sunset due to that.

 

[5Texans]

We did Cozumel on Halloween this year with our 5,3,1 yr old daughters. We took a cab to Chankanaab (16$) which worked out great. It was about 20$ for adults and 16$ for kids to get in. They had (fake) ruins that my oldest liked seeing. Then we hung out on the family beach and the oldest and I snorkeled. There was a sea lion show which was cute and they each got a kiss from a sea lion! There were several places to grab lunch or drinks or you could be served on the beach. The pool looked a little green so we skipped it. I thought it was a good mix of a beach day with other activities and the facilities were clean. If my kids were bigger I might check out a beach club with big inflatables etc. but, for us it was about perfect.

 

[BartmanLA]

We were part of a group that took one of the van taxi's to Paradise Beach Club, it's up the coast a bit, (about 20 min) but you get full access to the resort, which includes a pool as well as beach, they have a lot of areas for people, seating on the beach and around the pool area, the staff is very friendly and when we went in 2015 you got full access to the club for $3 US per person along with a expectation to purchase at least $10 per person in food. We had a bite and it was very good. Prices weren't out of line either, plus they have free WiFi and a lot of gear to climb and jump on out in the water for all ages.

 

[CesD]

we did the paradise beach club. we grabbed a taxi at the port. we paid the $18 for access to the water inflatables, kayaks, etc. kids loved it and wished we could stay longer. we bought chips and salsa and a couple drinks.

 

[jendeli]

We did Cozumel on Halloween this year with our 5,3,1 yr old daughters. We took a cab to Chankanaab (16$) which worked out great. It was about 20$ for adults and 16$ for kids to get in. They had (fake) ruins that my oldest liked seeing. Then we hung out on the family beach and the oldest and I snorkeled. There was a sea lion show which was cute and they each got a kiss from a sea lion! There were several places to grab lunch or drinks or you could be served on the beach. The pool looked a little green so we skipped it. I thought it was a good mix of a beach day with other activities and the facilities were clean. If my kids were bigger I might check out a beach club with big inflatables etc. but, for us it was about perfect.

We really enjoyed Chankanaab! I liked that we had a little bit of history, horticulture, beach, marine life, and Mexican food all in one inexpensive place!

 

[CamColt]

We have visited Paradise Beach 3 times now and really enjoy it. Usually we just pay the $3.00 admission for a chair and get a couple of drinks and some nachos but on our last visit we saw they had paddle boards and wanted to try it so we went for the $18.00 extra pass. We were glad we did as we enjoyed it.