Mexico · the Yucatán coast
The trip
We explored Mexico's Caribbean coast in January 2025, hopping between two cruise stops — Cozumel and Costa Maya — and the weather was decent and the water gorgeous. Cozumel is the island one: rent a scooter, chase beaches, snorkel the reef. Costa Maya is the jungle one, and the gateway to the ancient Chacchoben Maya ruins. Together they made for an easy, varied few days of sun, sea and history.
Island days
A laid-back Caribbean island off the Yucatán coast and one of the easiest cruise stops to do independently. We rented a scooter and spent the day beach-hopping around the whole island — glassy water on one side, wild waves and a shipwreck on the other.
📍 Isla Cozumel
This was our favourite way to see Cozumel: renting a scooter was cheap and easy, and we spent the day looping the island, stopping at whatever beach or cove looked good. The main road hugs the coast the whole way round, so you're never far from the water. Fill up on fuel, grab a helmet and just go — it's the freedom that makes the day.
Rent a scooterLoop the whole island
📍 West & south coast, Cozumel
The sheltered western and southern sides of the island have the calm, glassy water Cozumel is famous for — the kind you can see straight through. Beach-hopping by scooter, we kept finding quiet stretches of pale sand with barely anyone on them. Bring cash for the little beach clubs and reef-safe sunscreen for the water.
Calm, clear waterQuiet beaches
📍 Cozumel reefs
Cozumel sits on the Mesoamerican Reef, the second-largest reef system in the world, so the snorkelling and diving here are genuinely world-class — warm, clear water full of turtles, rays and colourful fish. We'd happily point you to an organised snorkel trip to reach the best spots (starfish, stingrays, turtles and all).
World-class reefTurtles & rays
📍 Windward (east) coast, Cozumel
The windward east coast is Cozumel's wild, dramatic side — big Caribbean swells crashing onto jagged limestone, near-empty beaches, a famous graffiti-covered shipwreck and iguanas basking everywhere you look. It's rougher water (great for photos, not always for swimming), and the scooter loop makes it easy to reach. This side was our favourite surprise.
Dramatic & wildWatch for iguanasJungle & ruins
Further south down the Yucatán coast, Costa Maya is the gateway to some of the region's best Maya archaeology — a completely different side of Mexico from the beaches, and well worth a day off the ship.
📍 Chacchoben, near Costa Maya
From the Costa Maya port we headed inland to the Chacchoben ruins — and they were awesome. Set deep in the jungle, this ancient Maya city has beautifully preserved stepped pyramids and temples, with howler monkeys calling in the trees around you. It's an easy, shaded half-day and a brilliant contrast to the beaches. Going with a guided tour meant we actually understood what we were looking at.
Jungle templesGo with a guideSave these
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The full roll
