Cozumel - Travel Channel - Great Cruises

[Moodiejeff]

Out of sheer boredom I watched the Samantha Brown: Great Cruises show on the Travel Channel last night knowing that Cozumel was one of her stops... I'm sure it's not new, but it was new to me. She's on the Freedom of the Seas, supposedly the largest cruise ship in the world, with stops in Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Haiti & Jamaica.

Of course once on Cozumel she did all the touristy things: swim with the dolphins at Chankanaab, tour the square on a Segway, show the diamond stores etc. They went to commercial break with a teaser showing a bunch of tequila bottles. I thought for sure that she was going to get some lame tasting at one of the places on the main drag... or at best Los Cinco Soles

Lo and behold, they come back from break and she gets a private tequila tasting at Mr. Sancho's in the wedding garden where Mia and I got married. Awwwwww, how sweet! :blinking: At least now I can say it was worth watching.

Next she heads to Grand Cayman and to Stingray City... how she can make that look boring i'll never know but she does it! I turned it off after that, she was on her way to Haiti & Jamaica, two places I can almost certainly say that I will never visit. The best thing about the show was that it confirmed in mine and Mia's minds that there is no way in hell we would ever want to take a cruise. At least not until we're "nearly dead".

Oh, the bestest best thing is when she tried to learn to surf (you've seen the commercials where they surf on the ship) and the water jets kept washing her feet out from under her and she kept face planting. HA HA!!!

If you're interested in seeing it, click the link way above and it shows upcoming show times (Jan. 27th, Feb. 7th & 8th)... Just be warned, Anthony Bourdain she ain't!!!

 

[Nevis Diver]

I was cruising a Waldenbooks yesterday while my fiance was looking at dresses and picked up a Fodor's on Mexico and, of course, turned to the Cozumel section. It was interesting to compare their advice to my actual experiences. They make Cozumel's leeward side seem as if it is a primo beach destination. It did mention touring the north end of the island which I would love to do one day.

 

[Firerescueguy]

My wife told me when she watching the local news a couple of nights ago, they were doing a news story about businesses in Mexico and some of the footage they were using was the area by papa hogs dive shop pre wilma. We were wandering where they found that video since we are in Arkansas. The story was actually about car manufacturing plants.

 

[Sue Sue]

Hey Jeff, How are you two? Hi to Mia too ! .... :wavey: Anyway, Michael and I were cruisers for awhile...However, since we left the cruising world...and have directed our efforts on land based getaway time..to Cozumel of course..we do find some of the cruising activities...well...comical. The way that the masses are herded from one activity to another...the shopping talks, the excursion talks, how the Pod people do their exploring and touring. (Which is actually one of my favorite past times when I am in Cozumel..just watching the Pod People scampering around) But, there are are few things about cruising we really did enjoy. Sitting on the deck, seeing different ports, enjoying the dining experiences and some of the Party atmosphere. (Michael and I are two time twisting champions !! ) The best experience we had was for our 25th wedding anniversary 2 week Back-to-Back cruise. First week Western Caribbean and the second Eastern Caribbean. Our friends joined us the first week and we hosted the tours for Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Jamaica and Belize. Then they left and Michael and I had the rest of time to ourselves. We mostly just relaxed with the exception of a dive in St. Thomas. But the MOST favorite thing was the 4 hours in between cruises. There were only 6 Back to Backers on board. Four of them left the ship for the day for a land excursion in Miami. Michael and I stayed on board. We watched everyone leave the ship then headed to one of the higher decks with a chilled bottle of champagne, croissants,cheese and fruit that our cabin steward arranged for us. We toasted our 25 years then set about exploring the ship. It was a beautiful sunny and calm Miami day. The view from the top deck of the ship was magnificent. We had sailed on Paradise a total of 6 times so we were familiar with the layout very well. What was so interesting was seeing the ship from behind the scenes. We saw all the nooks and crannies that are not usually visible to people as they cruise. Such as storage areas and supply elevators that appear from nowhere that are hidden within the walls. We also got to see the crew at work, setting up for the next cruise. Many of them asked who we were and when we said "Back -to - Backers" they let us through and go wherever we wanted to go. What a time that was to know we were the only two passengers on board. We also enjoyed a very Private cocktail time with the Captain and officers..Let me just say,,,they eat VERY WELL...! Overall, I don't know if we will ever cruise again, but I am glad we did. For us, now, finding the nooks and crannies of Cozumel and staying put in one place is where we want to be. Anyway, just my 2 cents..., Sue

 

[diveborg]

And while the Freedom class ships from Royal Caribbean are currently the largest pod carriers, that won't be the case when they launch their first "Genesis" project ship. 5000+ passengers to the 3200+ for Freedom.

I also watched that show this morning while reading the Sunday paper. If I understood it correctly, the Freedom couldn't dock in Cozumel because it's draft was too deep? so the podders had to tender.

While it is kind of fun to make fun of the typical clueless cruise passenger, not everyone that takes a cruise falls into that characterization. I've been on several cruises with my non-diving family and I think it is a good compromise vacation for someone who wants to dive while going on vacation with his/her family. Yes, I'd prefer a week on Cozumel to a cruise any day, but sometimes compromises have to be made to keep everyone happy.

If you laugh at the accuracy of how Cozumel was portrayed, then you should also know that Samatha's experience on the ship isn't very accurate unless you are the host of a travel show.