Whether you are visiting for a day while on a cruise or staying in Cozumel for a week, you can significantly increase your enjoyment by taking some tips from someone that has been there before.

Here are my recommendations, but don’t stop with just these, seek out the advice of others as well.  This will ensure your trip is mucho bueno!

1.  Dive Palancar

Scuba diving is the most popular activity in Cozumel for good reason.  Diving in Cozumel is excellent!  I dove for the first time on this trip and it was amazing.  If you get the chance, you definitely want to dive.  I saw a nurse shark, sea turtle, Eagle Ray and more fish than I could count!

There are literally hundreds of dive shops on the island.  The shear number of choices will make your head spin.  I can save you a lot of time and trouble by recommending one of the best.  Dive Palancar is an excellent shop with very convenient daily dives.  I was very pleased with their promptness, courtesy and professionalism.  You can’t go wrong with Dive Palancar!
Photo by globalreset

2.  Playa Corona

Not a diver?  Still want to enjoy the beautiful Cozumel ocean life?  You can snorkel right from the beach at Playa Corona and see a lot of nice fish and maybe even an Eagle Ray or eel.  This is a very small beach club with some very nice snorkeling.  They even rent snorkel equipment if you don’t have your own.

There is no charge for the snorkeling if you have your own mask and fins.  However, be sure to order a beer or piña colada while drying off.  This is also an excellent place to watch some beautiful sunsets over the Caribbean!    Photo by Rob Inh00d.

3.  Paradise Beach

Looking for a great beach to kick back in a lounge chair, sip a tropical drink and munch on some delicious snacks?  Give Paradise Beach a try!  It is a fantastic place for a lazy day in the sun.  There is no admission fee like some of the other beaches charge, but no lack of fun either.

Of course, if you want to do more than just lay on the beach, there are a ton of things to do at Paradise Beach.  Why not try parasailing or renting a WaveRunner?  You can pick and choose the activities that suit your mood and only pay for what you do!    Photo by steews4

4.  Coconuts

When you are ready to get out and see a little more of Cozumel, then rent a car or scooter and head out to the windward or east side of the island.  Here you will find Coconuts Bar and Grill.  Coconuts sits on top of a cliff facing the ocean and offers absolutely the best view on the island.  It is worth the trip just to sit at one of the tables near the edge and watch the waves roll in from the beautiful Caribbean Ocean.

While at Coconuts order a margarita, guacamole and chips and salsa.  You will not be disappointed!    Photo by BluEyedA73

5.  Jeanie’s

Jeanie’s is a great, small beach club located right in downtown Cozumel.  Admittedly, the beach is very small, but if you the lack time or transportation to go farther, then there is plenty to enjoy at Jeanie’s.  They have a full restaurant that serves delicious food.  I had the chicken enchiladas which were great!  They also have a small beach with lounge chairs and a dive shop.

You can snorkel or scuba at Jeanie’s.  There is a sunken airplane and some other interesting stuff just a few yards off shore that make it worth checking out.  If you aren’t scuba certified, but still want to get a taste of the underwater world in Cozumel, then you might want to try Jeanie’s SeaTrek or Snuba offerings.  Photo by triplezero

6.  Guido’s

Once you get tired of eating Mexican food in Cozumel, it is time to check out Guido’s for some awesome Italian cuisine!  Don’t be deceived when you walk by.  From the sidewalk, Guido’s looks small and uninteresting, but they have a very nice garden courtyard just out-of-site.  Also, you won’t find better food on the island than at Guido’s! 

I ordered the homemade Spaghetti Bolognese and my wife had the Four Seasons pizza cooked in a wood fired oven.  Both of these dishes were excellent!     Photo by ?o??ƒx™

7.  Pancho’s Backyard

Pancho’s Backyard is a beautiful courtyard restaurant located in downtown Cozumel.  You have to walk through the Los Cinco Soles store to get to Pancho’s.  This restaurant is usually a little of a splurge for my wife and I, but the food and atmosphere are well worth it.  I think we usually end up spending about $50 for the two of us.  However, we always make it a point to visit Pancho’s on every trip to Cozumel.

I would highly recommend going to Pancho’s at night, if possible.  The lighting after dark makes the whole experience that much more enjoyable!    Photo by Brave Sir Robin

8.  Casa Mexicana Hotel

Looking for a great place to stay on the island with convenient access to restaurants and other activities?  We have enjoyed two stays now at Casa Mexicana.  This is a fantastic hotel that is clean, spacious and very accommodating.  The staff is very hospitable and the free breakfast buffet is a huge bonus!

Be sure to get an ocean-view room!  It is worth every additional penny you have to spend.  The views are absolutely gorgeous.  You can watch the cruise ships come and go right from your balcony!  Photo by Skinned Mink

9.  Downtown Plaza on Sunday Night

Every Sunday evening in Cozumel, the locals congregate in the downtown plaza just after sunset.  It is a fantastic opportunity to people watch and enjoy some free entertainment.  There is always a band that plays and you will see various street acts and artists perform.  There are also several street vendors with food and desserts to enjoy.

We love going to the plaza on Sunday evenings!  It is a great way to drink in some of the culture of Cozumel.  The people are all very warm and friendly.  Several restaurants surround the plaza so you can easily make an entire night of this experience.
Photo by Brave Sir Robin

10.  The bank of your choice

I have one last recommendation that may seem a little odd.  I would suggest making a bank in Cozumel one of your first stops on the island.  The banks offer the best rates for exchanging dollars to pesos.  During our visit, the banks were paying at least 13.75 pesos per dollar. 

Every establishment on Cozumel will take your dollars as payment, but you will lose money based on the exchange rate they offer.  Most places will only pay 10 or 12 pesos per dollar compared to the 13.75 paid at the banks.  This adds up!

If you exchange $100 at the 12 peso rate instead of 13.75, you are losing over twelve dollars!  My experience is that dealing exclusively in pesos will generally save you quite a bit of money in Cozumel.  Be sure to take your passport with you when you go to exchange money.  Some of the banks require it before they will proceed with the transaction.
Photo by eliazar

Have a fantastic time in Cozumel!

Cozumel is a great place to go for vacation.  It is a very fun, warm and safe place to visit.  We always immensely enjoy our trips to the island!  In fact, we are already scheming on how to get back before the end of the year.  I hope you enjoy these wonderful places as much as we do.  I am confident that they will add a great deal of satisfaction to your trip!

Adiós Amigos and happy travels!

Have you been to Cozumel?  What was your favorite place to visit?

1.  Breathe continuously.

This is probably one of the most important things to do as a scuba diver.  Breath is life.  Obviously, while diving and otherwise, we need to breathe to live, but continuous breathing helps to protect a diver’s lungs as the volume of air changes with depth underwater due to changes in pressure. 

Air compresses and expands as you descend and ascend in the water.  If you hold your breath while ascending, you could over expand your lungs causing a serious injury.  Scuba divers avoid this by simply breathing continuously.

In life, we also pass through different situations where the pressure varies greatly.  Sometimes, we experience significant stress at work and at home.  We go through things that we wished we didn’t have to endure. 

The only thing you can do is keep breathing.  You just have to believe that "this too shall pass".  Breathing is symbolic of staying calm and centered.  It is the most basic of our needs.  As long as we are breathing, then we live to fight another day.

2.  Use the buddy system.

In diving, you always want to have a buddy along.  You need a buddy to assist you through all phases of a dive.  Before you dive, you perform a buddy check to verify each other’s scuba gear is set up and functioning properly.

Circumstances can arise while in the water that you cannot resolve on your own.    Your buddy is there to help.  He even serves as your backup air supply should you run out of air or experience a severe malfunction.  Having a buddy along underwater is indispensable and it is just more fun to dive with a companion.

Again, as in diving, so it is in life.  We need friends, family and spouses by our side to help us deal with the difficulties of life and to celebrate the good times with us.  Life is just a much richer experience when we are regularly surrounded with those we love and that love us.

Loved ones keep an eye on us.  They let us know when something in our life is going wrong.  They are there to pick us up and dust us off when we fall.  They tell us we are special and the good ones throw us parties on special occasions!  We all need a buddy or two or three or ten!

3.  Avoid entanglements.

Becoming entangled underwater is a serious problem for a number of reasons.  First, you only have a certain amount of air.  Second, you risk decompression sickness or "the bends" if you stay underwater too long.  Third, it can cause you to panic and do something really stupid.

Divers are cautious to avoid entanglements.  It is prudent to stay clear of heavy  vegetation.  You also need to stay out of underwater caves and sunken vessels without knowledge of these spaces.

Entanglements are equally dangerous in day-to-day living.  When we stray off the high road, we can wind up with a mess on our hands.  From experience, I have found that many of the moral and ethical rules to live by are designed to keep us out of such traps.

Several things that are widely accepted as "normal" behavior today lead to complications in life.  Things like premarital sex, debt, and divorce were once considered taboo, but now are commonplace.  Of course, these things often lead to entanglements that suck the joy out of living.  We should avoid entanglements to minimize the craziness in our life and maximize our fulfillment.

4.  Know your limits.

In order to stay out of trouble while diving, it is imperative that you know your limits and avoid exceeding them.  You have limited air and a limited amount of time that you can stay underwater without risking decompression sickness.  You have to plan and execute your dive accordingly.

In addition, every diver has limited experience.  No one has been diving at every possible dive site.  Getting cocky and believing that you know it all is dangerous.  This is usually where problems occur. 

In life, we also have to know our limits.  Just about anything done in excess becomes bad.  Take work as an example.  We need to recognize when we are working too hard or too much.  It is important to maintain balance in our life.  Otherwise, we can burn ourselves out and risk hurting our relationships.

We need a plan and some goals to get the most out of life.  We have to keep our behavior in check and avoid becoming overconfident.  We should always have a safety buffer built into life to protect us when things take an unexpected turn.  Knowing your limits and staying within them will enable you to live a rich life!

5.  Have fun!

Scuba diving can be a lot of fun.  The underwater world is full of sights and adventures that you cannot find anywhere else.  The whole point in diving is to have fun and enjoy exploring the wonder found in our oceans and other bodies of water.

I’m just starting out, but I hear that there is also a strong sense of camaraderie among divers.  This just adds to the enjoyment.  It is always more fun when you can share common experiences with others that also have a passion for diving.

Over the years, I’ve learned that although it is great to work hard to try to achieve goals, it is also important to have fun.  You have to take time out in life to enjoy all that you have accomplished.  We get so caught up in trying to get more, we sometimes fail to enjoy what we have.

I do not want to get to the end of my life and realize that I failed to have fun.  So, while we want to be smart about living life, we also want to go out and be crazy once in awhile.  Smile and laugh often.  Surround yourself with others that are happy and fun to be with.  Fun is contagious.  Go catch some!

Get the most out of life and diving!

The "rules" often are designed to help us enjoy ourselves and avoid problems.  This is true in diving as well as in life.  It doesn’t have to be complicated.  We tend to make things that way ourselves.  If we observe some basic guidelines, we can save ourselves a lot of trouble.  Now go out there, have fun, and be safe!

What "rules" do you live by to have fun and excel?

Photos by Franie Frou Frou and SteelCityHobbies and Larsz