Help Picking Cozumel Port Adventure

[cashda]

Need help on deciding which port adventure to take during our stop at Cozumel Mexico. Open to any suggestions/first hand experiences.

We don't really want to lay on a beach all day, so looking for an adventure and way to experience the culture.

(We have decided to book through Disney)

 

[dcassetta]

I really like Xel-ha but we went when staying in Cancun. Some people say that the ferry to and from the mainland can be a little rough.

 

[cashda]

Here's a link to the port adventures offered:

https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/port-adventures/caribbean/list/cozumel-mexico/

 

[YawningDodo]

I was in the same boat as you (..haha, boat) and ended up picking the beginners' scuba experience. I've done scuba before so I'm fairly comfortable with the idea; it's just that my certification is years out of date so it was the beginners' course or no scuba at all. No idea how "beginner" the beginner experience will really be.

One of the big factors for me was travel time. I decided that it wasn't worth it to me to spend hours of my day on transport, and a lot of the mainland excursions included both a 45 minute ferry ride and an hour+ bus ride each way. When I was drawing up a list of comparisons, I calculated total travel time for each, because the language describing the excursions was sometimes designed to soften the blow and make you forget that you'd be dealing with traveling the same time/distance on the return trip.

 

[Marc D]

I really like Xel-ha but we went when staying in Cancun. Some people say that the ferry to and from the mainland can be a little rough.

It can be a lot more than just a little rough. It’s not nicknamed the Vomit comet for nothing. We rode it on two occasions. The first time was ok, with only a few passagers being sick. Last March, it was terribly windy. A third of the passengers had their head in a plastic bag. They were being passed around even before we left the dock. After the last time, we said ‘never again’ even if we were not sick ourselves. The smell on the ship was terrible.

That being said, we very much enjoyed Xcaret both time a we went there. There’s an underground river you swim in for around an hour. The rest of the park features animals and cultural demonstrations. If not for the jet boat ride, we would go back there every time.

 

[cashda]

I was in the same boat as you (..haha, boat) and ended up picking the beginners' scuba experience. I've done scuba before so I'm fairly comfortable with the idea; it's just that my certification is years out of date so it was the beginners' course or no scuba at all. No idea how "beginner" the beginner experience will really be.

One of the big factors for me was travel time. I decided that it wasn't worth it to me to spend hours of my day on transport, and a lot of the mainland excursions included both a 45 minute ferry ride and an hour+ bus ride each way. When I was drawing up a list of comparisons, I calculated total travel time for each, because the language describing the excursions was sometimes designed to soften the blow and make you forget that you'd be dealing with traveling the same time/distance on the return trip.

Great point, I really need to dig in more regarding travel time...don’t want to waste precious hours on a bus

 

[cashda]

I really like Xel-ha but we went when staying in Cancun. Some people say that the ferry to and from the mainland can be a little rough.

Thanks for the insight!

 

[cashda]

It can be a lot more than just a little rough. It’s not nicknamed the Vomit comet for nothing. We rode it on two occasions. The first time was ok, with only a few passagers being sick. Last March, it was terribly windy. A third of the passengers had their head in a plastic bag. They were being passed around even before we left the dock. After the last time, we said ‘never again’ even if we were not sick ourselves. The smell on the ship was terrible.

That being said, we very much enjoyed Xcaret both time a we went there. There’s an underground river you swim in for around an hour. The rest of the park features animals and cultural demonstrations. If not for the jet boat ride, we would go back there every time.

Sounds great but not sure I would survive the boat ride...I do t do well on small boats in rough waters

 

[Anchors Away 2016]

Just want to provide a different experience on the Ferry. As the PP said, it really depends on the day, and it is tough to know how likely rough seas are. I am very motion sickness prone, and so I was worried. (We did the Tulim Ruins trip). But it really was no big deal. The ferry ride itself is about 30 minutes (with perhaps 15 minutes of waiting on board beforehand), and on our trip out and back, it was no issue at all. Only one young boy got sick, and even he had time to get to the bathroom with his mother in time, so no smell issues. They did pass out bags to all of us before the trip, but we didn't need them.

Travel time could be a factor for you if you don't want spend a lot of time in transport. If you read the info in the DCL excursions they each spell out how much time you will spend on the ferry and on the bus. During our bus ride we got some nice local information from our guide, which made the time go by, plus the scenery was wonderful, so we didn't mind so much, but if that doesn't appeal to you, you should probably stick with one of the ones that are ON the island.

 

[YawningDodo]

Travel time could be a factor for you if you don't want spend a lot of time in transport. If you read the info in the DCL excursions they each spell out how much time you will spend on the ferry and on the bus. During our bus ride we got some nice local information from our guide, which made the time go by, plus the scenery was wonderful, so we didn't mind so much, but if that doesn't appeal to you, you should probably stick with one of the ones that are ON the island.

Fair point; a good guide will keep you relatively entertained on the bus. Part of my decision-making in avoiding the bus is that I'm going as a solo traveler and don't have a group of family or friends to fall back on if I don't end up being able to engage with the driver or guide. OP says "our" rather than "my," so it's possible it may not be as big a problem for them.

 

[Anchors Away 2016]

Fair point; a good guide will keep you relatively entertained on the bus. Part of my decision-making in avoiding the bus is that I'm going as a solo traveler and don't have a group of family or friends to fall back on if I don't end up being able to engage with the driver or guide. OP says "our" rather than "my," so it's possible it may not be as big a problem for them.

Quite right. Another factor for some is the total time. I found in my three excursions that they ALL went on the long end or over the estimated time. So if time to shop in port is important to you, or if you fantasize about getting back on the ship early before most of the others get back, those day-long or even 4-5 hour tours might not be right for you.