IT'S ALWAYS SUMMER IN COZUMEL
Sunbathers - Beach club with service and entertainment, or wild, lonely stretches of white sand? You choose!
Ocean Lovers - With one of the world's best diving and snorkel sites, you can't go wrong. Our recommended dive instructors know them all.
Explorers - Discover unique wildlife, mangrove forests, blowholes, cenotes, rocky arches, and ancient Mayan sites.
Cyclists - Ride along the ocean on a bike-only-road, or into the jungle on a mountain bike.
Foodies - Go where the locals eat or mingle with other travellers - both options are within close walking distance.
Relaxation Seekers - Just want to relax? Perfect! We have a rooftop terrace, a small plunge pool, and a beautiful garden.
DISCOVER COZUMEL
Isla Cozumel is located about ten miles off the eastern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, in Quintana Roo, southeastern Mexico. From the northeast to the southwest, it measures about 30 miles (48 km), averaging nine miles (14 km) in width.
Apart from being a popular destination for cruise ship tourists, Cozumel is a paradise for nature and culture lovers alike. Its underwater world is one of the most fascinating around the globe.
The Cozumel Reef is part of the Mesoamerican Reef, the second-largest barrier reef system in the world - extending nearly 700 miles from the northern tip of the Yucatan Peninsula down through the Honduran Bay Islands.
Surrounded by the crystal-clear blue Caribbean Sea, Cozumel's waters are home to hundreds of fish species, from beautifully colored angelfish to majestic stingrays.
The beaches on the east coast are the birthplace of thousands of sea turtles: Green, Hawksbill and Loggerhead turtles. Each year, between May and September, the mothers come ashore, digging nests as deep as one meter and lay around 150 eggs.
Cozumel's marine park, Parque Nacional Arrecifes de Cozumel, covers about 12,000 hectares on the southeast and southwest coast. Since 1996 it is a protected area and known for scuba diving and snorkeling. Popular dive sites include Columbia Reef, Devil's Throat at Punta Sur, Maracaibo, Palancar Reef, Paradise Reef, Paso del Cedral, San Francisco, Yucab, and the shipwreck of the C-53 Felipe Xicoténcatl. The latter forms an artificial reef.
Punta Sur marks the southern point of Cozumel and is part of Parque Punta Sur, a 100 hectares ecological park. It includes reefs, beaches, lagoons, and mangrove forests.
Mangrove forests cover large areas of the island. They are the boundaries between land and sea, provide habitat for fish and shorebirds, and protect coastal areas from hurricanes and strong storms.
Some species are endemic to Cozumel - like the pygmy racoon Procyon pygmaeus, the vibrant colored Cozumel splendid toadfish Sanopus splendidus or the Cozumel emerald Cynanthus forficatus, a hummingbird species.
You also find natural sinkholes, known as cenotes, on the island. The coastal cenote in Chankanaab Beach Park is particularly interesting as it connects to the ocean through underwater caverns. These are home to unique species of fish, mollusks, and crustaceans that all depend on the constant current of water.
Cozumel was a commercial and ceremonial center during the Mayan period (about 250 to 950 AD). The most famous archaeological site on the island is San Gervasio. Known for its shrine of Ixchel, the goddess of fertility, San Gervasio has been a center of pilgrimages and worship. The Mayan culture is still very present in Cozumel, and many local families use Mayan words within their Spanish.
Please help us protect Cozumel's amazingly beautiful flora, fauna and culture so that future travelers can enjoy them too!