Is Cozumel overhyped? (video report)

[ggunn]

Mostly November through Febuary Cozumel may experience an El Norte which is basically a frontal passage. The wind shifts from the normal easterly direction to a northerly direction. Since the current generally, but not entirely, runs south to north then having a north wind against the current makes for really rough conditions.

The direction of the current isn't much if any of a factor. Onshore winds on the west coast of Cozumel kick up chop and/or swells moving toward the island that make docking and people getting in and out of boats hazardous, so the port gets closed. Shore diving is prohibited as well, though I, for one, would not want to try it, anyway, when waves are crashing onto the shore. Lightning in the area may also close the port.

 

[Nemrod]

The direction of the current isn't much if any of a factor. Onshore winds on the west coast of Cozumel kick up chop and/or swells moving toward the island that make docking and people getting in and out of boats hazardous, so the port gets closed. Shore diving is prohibited as well, though I, for one, would not want to try it, anyway, when waves are crashing onto the shore. Lightning in the area may also close the port.

Every seaman who has handled a boat offshore knows waves against current or tide is going to be a bad day. Your experience is very different from mine.

A Norte is named as such because the winds swing from prevailing easterlies to coming from the northeast to northwest. And of course the waves generated impact the shore line activities as the west coast is no longer in the lee of the island.

 

[ggunn]

Every seaman who has handled a boat offshore knows waves against current or tide is going to be a bad day. Your experience is very different from mine.

A Norte is named as such because the winds swing from prevailing easterlies to coming from the northeast to northwest. And of course the waves generated impact the shore line activities as the west coast is no longer in the lee of the island.

Northeasterly winds are usually not a problem for the west hotel zone; it's when the wind swings around to the west side of north that it closes the port when the velocity is high enough. I have been fishing and diving from Cozumel for nearly 30 years in all sorts of conditions.

 

[Nemrod]

Northeasterly winds are usually not a problem for the west hotel zone; it's when the wind swings around to the west side of north that it closes the port when the velocity is high enough. I have been fishing and diving from Cozumel for nearly 30 years in all sorts of conditions.

I have been going to Cozumel since 1979 and I am staying with exactly what I have said.

The port was closed from November 1-4 and on Sunday the 5th the port opened for a few hours mid day before closing. This is fact. I was there on the 5th, having arrived the 4th. Unfortunately those who were there for the previous week did not get much diving:



The week we were there in Nov. weather turned out okay save for the 5th:



We were there for two weeks in September of this year and had wonderful sunny weather and a few requisite afternoon thundershowers.

 

[ggunn]

I have been going to Cozumel since 1979 and I am staying with exactly what I have said.

OK, but what was that? I have you beat by one year; my first trip to Cozumel was in 1978.

 

[judydivescoz]

We went for the first time. We stayed at the Playa Azul and did a refresher course and dive with Aquatic Sports. Aquatic Sports was fabulous - she knew I was nervous and really made sure I felt safe. The Playa Azul was wonderful - everyone was helpful and friendly, it felt like family, not a big beach but good snorkeling right off the beach (a young barracuda and I looked at each other for about 10 minutes, I say a juvenile ray, tons of fish!,) the food was so good that we ate there most meals even though we hadn't gotten the AI, taxis to town and scuba were cheap, airfare was low.
I'm wanting to go back in April but my husband wants to try Curacao. I hope I'm not disappointed!
nancy

Note to self: don't go in the winter! We may go back this April and thank you!

Happy you enjoyed Playa Azul. The diving in the winter is great! Water is between 78 and 82. Of course there is the chance of a Norte It’s worth the risk especially coming from a bit upstate New York. We lived in that area for many years. Even a cold day in Cozumel is better than a gloomy day in New York!

 

[nldunn]

Happy you enjoyed Playa Azul. The diving in the winter is great! Water is between 78 and 82. Of course there is the chance of a Norte It’s worth the risk especially coming from a bit upstate New York. We lived in that area for many years. Even a cold day in Cozumel is better than a gloomy day in New York!

Agreed!!! I'll take some windy days when I can't dive over the 20 below zero we regularly get here!

 

[ggunn]

Happy you enjoyed Playa Azul. The diving in the winter is great! Water is between 78 and 82. Of course there is the chance of a Norte It’s worth the risk especially coming from a bit upstate New York. We lived in that area for many years. Even a cold day in Cozumel is better than a gloomy day in New York!

My daily morning routine is to call up this webcam on my computer as I am having my coffee:

Grand Park Royal Cozumel en vivo, Cozumel - Webcams de México

Vista de la Playa desde Grand Park Royal Cozumel

webcamsdemexico.com

Heavy sigh...

 

[elgringoperdido]

I wouldn't say overhyped. The Strait of Cozumel was Jacques Cousteau's favorite spot, after all. Some people just don't like guided dives, and I can respect that. But it's Mexican law: all dives are guided dives. Also, the drift makes for a relaxing and easy way to spot wildlife.

I have been to the island eleven times over the past 25 years, and have booked a (12th) trip for January 3-10 of 2024. Definitely it has changed, but it is not as overdeveloped as the mainland across the straits. The first time I visited Playa del Carmen, I drove from Boston and I parked my little five-speed ghetto Toyota Tercel on a small plaza that had a church, a school, an alcalde, and a park, and walked three blocks to the ferry for Cozumel. I left my car there for four days and no one touched it. Today that spot doesn't exist. There's the huge Playacar resort and too much coastal erosion on that side. But across the straits, San Miguel remains peaceful. Not the small fishing village it was in the 80s, but sustainable.

The big game-changer was Hurricane Wilma in 2006, which fractured the Felipe Xicotencatl and left sand all over the reefs. It is still recovering, but on my last trip, in 2022, the small scenes were excellent. Beautiful banded shrimp, big crabs, lobster, squid, and, at night, octopus. The big scenes are excellent as well. I have spotted a number of reef sharks, hammerhead, and barracuda. It remains the only place where I have ever seen a pod of seven dolphins approach me underwater. Best dive ever.

Also, the lionfish, an invasive species, are finally disappearing. When I first started to dive there, they were ubiquitous. The government has been encouraging divers to eat them and publishes several decent recipes. (It's the only fish you are allowed to take in the marine park, if memory serves.) Over the years I have found that we have to dive deeper and deeper to encounter them. My most recent very deep dive was 105 m (344 feet) just off the Playa San Juan on the north of the island, which you normally wouldn't visit unless you booked a technical dive. (Deep Exposure is my recommendation for deep/tech dives in Cozumel.) And even at that depth they were rare, although we managed to spear enough of them for a nice cookout at la casa del dueño.

I'm with Jacques Cousteau when it comes to Cozumel: a paradise not to be missed.