Adrian Ortega drives a taxi in Cozumel, Mexico and he's seen tourists do just about everything you could imagine, including plenty of mistakes.
Royal Caribbean cruises regularly visit Cozumel, Mexico on so many of their sailings, and with the cruise line poised to open a beach club there soon, even more tourists will be going there.
Cozumel is one of the more well-established Caribbean cruise ports you can visit. It has so many things you could do, and Mr. Ortega shared with me the things tourists should and should not do while they visit.
While having so many choices of what you can do is a good problem to have, it's easy to choose the wrong kind of experience leading to disappointment.
Here's what he recommends anyone visiting Cozumel on a cruise ship should do for a great visit.
Don't rent a scooter
When I asked Adrian what mistakes he sees tourists making, he didn't hesitate to immediately call out renting a scooter as a major potential problem.
As a taxi driver, he drives all around the island of Cozumel, and those scooter rentals have lead to a lot of tragedy's.
The issue is a lot of people don't know how to drive them properly, and it leads to many accidents.
He's seen lots of scooters going down the wrong direction on a street, which is not only illegal, but causes accidents.
These accidents cause not only damage to the scooter, but injuries to the tourists involved. Road rash and more severe injuries are common with these vehicles.
Skip the first tour opportunity you see
Another mistake he sees tourists making are overpaying for tours around the island.
"If they want a tour, maybe don't take the first one, because normally the first one inside the cruise ship, is the highest price," he explained.
There are shore excursions offered by Royal Caribbean that take guests around the island and that will cost a premium to go through the cruise line.
He estimates if a tour offered on the ship or in the port area costs $200 for 3 or 4 hours, that same tour could be had by an independent guide for around $100-130.
How to find reputable tour guides in Cozumel
Adrian's advice of going with a local guide is a good suggestion, but I'm sure many reading this would want to know how to find a good tour guide.
When you walk around Cozumel, there are many drivers offering tours of Cozumel. It can be daunting to know who to pick.
Adrian's recommendation is to look for a few important details in any driver:
- Make sure the taxi has a taxi license plate or a printed license inside the cab to be a taxi guide
- Make sure the guide can speak English well
"It's going to be uh sure a boring tour because nobody can speak each other," he explained why it's important to work with someone that speaks English well.
If you'd like to contact Adrian, his phone number is +52 987 564 5430. We make no promises or guarantee about Adrian or his work, but you can contact him at your own risk.
His favorite beaches in Cozumel
Which beaches would Adrian recommend to someone spending the day in Cozumel?
He really likes the beaches on the western side of the island because of how sandy their beaches are. They don't have pools or other facilities, but he likes to go for the serenity it has.
"In my opinion, I prefer go there because it's more private for you. You only pay what you eat, what you drink, and you can stay at the beach the whole day."
However, if you want more facilities with your beach day, he prefers Paradise Beach, "Paradise Beach I think is the best beach club in the island."
He also really likes Playa Palancar Beach Club, or Chankanaab.
Where not to go in Cozumel
I asked which places he hears from tourists they didn't like, and he stressed it's important to go to a beach that has the amenities you care about.
He used Skyreef Beach Club as an example because it's great if you want to snorkel, but a bad choice for a sandy beach day because of how rocky it is.
Don't eat at the restaurants near the port
Cozumel has a lot of restaurants, but the ones near the port are usually overpriced.
He says the restaurants downtown are going to be less expensive. The more you're willing to venture into town, the better the prices.
One issue with eating off the beaten path is going to be the language barrier. He said there's probably less English being spoken there, but as long as you have the basic phrases, you should be fine.
Eat at the better restaurants in town
I asked Adrian for his favorite restaurants in Cozumel.
Adrian's top choices are:
- La Monina
- Casa Mission
- La Mission
- La Choza
Piggybacking on his earlier advice of getting a guide for the day, drivers should know which restaurants are the best and help you with navigating any language barriers that exist there.
"In my opinion, take a tour guide for the whole day. It's going to be a little more expensive, but they know the recommendations of which places are the best go to go and everything."
Try the seafood
Mexican cuisine can be quite varied, so I asked Adrian what food is the best when in Cozumel.
"Seafood," he replied quickly.
Cozumel has a large fishing operation, and the best restaurants source fresh fish in their restaurants.
He's a fan of the fresh caught octopus or sea snails as two foods worth trying while in Cozumel.
