Fishing and sailing day trips are available from most local travel agents including those at tour desks in hotels. Try either the American Express on 11th near the circle at Ave. 30 or Aviomar Tours on Ave. 5 across from the Stadium. Phone: 87 20588, fax: 87 25444
Both deep-sea fishing and bone fishing are popular in Cozumel. In the late spring, there is a Marlin Fishing competition. Unlike our reviews in the diving section, we’ve never been fishing with any of the companies listed here but for information sake, some fishing sources on the island are:
Albatros Charters offers private boat charters for both diving and fishing. Telephone toll free from USA and Canada at 888-333-4643 or 872 7904 local in Cozumel
Cozumel Angler’s Fleet at Club Nautico De Cozumel located at the marina one mile north of downtown. Telephone 87 21113 or Fax 87 21135.
Carlos Vega at Aquarius Travel can arrange bone-fishing trips to the lagoons on the north end of the island. Telephone 87 21092 or Fax 87 21092.
Caribbean Fishing offers deep-sea day trips.
Rio Blanco Heli Tours is now running aerial tours of Cozumel and the nearby mainland area.
Cozumel Sailing offers 22, 23, and 27 foot, fully equipped keel sailboats with electric start outboard motors with or without crew for two hours or more.
Aventuras Naturales offers a variety of nature activities including horse back and biking tours of the jungle.
As noted in the snorkeling section, Dune Buggy Tours Cozumel offers a half day snorkeling trip and dune buggy ride to the other side of the island.
A drive around the island can be made into an all-day trip by stopping at several beaches and/or eating lunch on the ocean side.
While it won’t take a whole day to tour, a visit to the Museo De La Isla De Cozumel will provide a good orientation to the island and it’s history. It’s located on Ave. R. Melgar on the north end of the downtown area.
The San Gervacio Ruins are not very impressive when compared to those on the Yucatan mainland. But if you’ve never seen Mayan ruins and don’t have time to travel to the mainland, a visit there is worthwhile. You can take a cab or rent a car and incorporate a visit there into a day at the ocean side beaches. The most direct route is to turn towards the middle of the island at the gas station on 30th. The ruins are about seven miles on the left. You will pay both an entrance fee and a toll for use of the road as well. It is not required, but you can hire a guide once you get there for about $20. While it won’t be as short a drive as taking B. Juarez, you can also reach San Grevacio by taking the beach road (starting south out of town and then driving) all the way around the island and then following the paved road when it turns west.
If you have the time, visits to the Mayan ruins on the mainland at Tulum, Coba or Chichen Itza are highly recommended. The day trips to Chichen Itza are by plane and cost just over $100. The trip to Tulum is much cheaper and starts with a ferry to Playa Del Carmen and then a bus to the ruins followed by a stop for a swim and a late lunch prior to boarding the ferry for your return. There are a few organized tours from Cozumel to Coba but the best way to there (or Tulum as well) is to work out your own transportation. You can simply buy a ferry ticket to Playa Del Carmen and once you get there, take a bus, rent a car for the day or arrange for transportation with any cab driver you find. It’s not that hard to do (most of the cab drivers there speak English and regularly make such trips.) If there are more than two of you going, you’ll actually save money arranging your own transportation and you will appreciate being on your own timetable. If you decide to go the rental car route, the entrance to the ruins in Tulum is on the main highway (307) as is the turnoff to Coba (near the town of Tulum.) It should take you about 45-minutes to reach Tulum. Coba is about half an hour from there.
The least expensive option for taking a day trip from Cozumel to the mainland starts with a ferry trip to Playa. From there, you can catch a first class bus to Cancun, Tulum, Coba, Merida and other points north and south along the coast. First Class buses are air conditioned, have assigned reclining seats and show movies, usually in English with Spanish subtitles. And the bus fare is very reasonable. The bus station in Playa is 1 block from the ferry pier.
You can check schedules and even buy your bus ticket for a departure from the bus station in Playa Del Carmen in Cozumel. The ticket office is across the street from the central taxi station on Calle 2 Norte between Ave 5 and 10.
Depending on the time of year, a round trip flight to Cancun on AeroCaribe will run from $70-$100.
There is an Archeological Park operated by the Museo located on the edge of town on the southern end of Ave. 65. It features replicas of famous pre-Columbian sculptures from all over Mexico and a recreated Mayan village. Costumed “residents” answer questions and demonstrate life in ancient times.