Crazy bicycle idea

[Diver Kat]

I was looking at Continental and you can count a packed bike as a checked piece of luggage, but if it's over 50 lbs the fee is $95, and if it's an extra piece of luggage (over your 2 checked bag limit) it looks like the fee is an additional $80 :11:... assuming all the airlines have similar fees, if you can buy a bike in Coz, it might be a heck of lot cheaper.

 

[Christi]

Great idea! We were just Cayman Brac Beach Resort and they had these beater cruiser bikes (with baskets) that got the job done. Aren't there bikes for sale at Chedraui? I'd kick in. We just bought a basic 15 speed bike at Target this summer for $69. What would the duty be on something like that if one had the receipt to show customs , Christi?

It's just not worth it when you can buy that same bike or similar here for less than $100

Shipping things to Mexico is not like shipping things within the US or even to most other countries.

1. It will be VERY expensive...probably more than the cost of an inexpensive bike
2. EVERYTHING shipped into Mexico will have to go through customs and duty will be assessed at whatever random value the customs agent feels like assessing. The more expensive and newer the item, the more duties you will pay.
3. If you are not a resident of Mexico, you would be required to have a customs broker to claim your package at customs on this end, when/IF it even arrives in Cozumel - this too will most likely cost more than the bikes themselves and would require coordination and communication ahead of time.

You'd be much better off bringing your bike on the plane as extra luggage (check with airlines on costs & restrictions) or buying one here. Bringing it on the plane may still cause you to pay duties on it when arriving here. I'm not sure if one bicycle per person is an exempt item or not, you'd have to check on that with Mexican customs as well. See what a pain itw would be to try to bring one for a short stay?

There are several bike shops here and you can get a very decent general-purpose bike here for less than $100. Start with the bike shop on 30th, across from the Pemex gas station.

 

[ucrtwf]

Thanks for everyone's thoughts. We'll look into some cheap bikes when we get there in a few weeks.
Take care,
Tim

 

[underachiever]

Can you take a bike on the ferry over to Playa? Or back from playa?

 

[betsyinczm]

Yes, you can.

 

[halocline]

Isla bicycleta was a great shop; I used to rent a high quality mountain or road bike from them for the week whenever I was in Coz; I used it to go back and forth to town, and would also take a day and ride around the island. The rental situation since they closed has been pretty grim; I usually check out the rentadora place right near Chedraui. Maybe there's a place in playa that has good bikes, and if so it would be worth it to rent one there if you were going to ride it all week, and if you like exploring the island on a bike. Just bombing around town it's probably not worth it.

You guys that live there might do some investigating to see what happened to Isla Bicycleta's rental bikes; if by some chance they were available to buy, I'm sure a decent quality bike rental business would do really well.

 

[Christi]

You guys that live there might do some investigating to see what happened to Isla Bicycleta's rental bikes; if by some chance they were available to buy, I'm sure a decent quality bike rental business would do really well.

See my earlier post. I called them in Playa del Carmen. They said that after Wilma, they decided not to reopen in Cozumel and just have the Playa del Carmen location now. He said that even before the hurricane, the bike rental business wasn't very good for them here, and that's sad...because they were pretty much the only ones around.

 

[Aspendiver]

that's sad...because they were pretty much the only ones around.

Sounds like you have an idea for a new side business, Christi- I'll come down and help you set it up....

 

[Christi]

Sounds like you have an idea for a new side business, Christi- I'll come down and help you set it up....

I actually thought about it....still checking out logistics, liability issues, etc.

 

[Moodiejeff]

I actually thought about it....still checking out logistics, liability issues, etc.

That's one way to keep Pedro around!