4th Cozumel Cruise Dock is Setback with Opposition
Local opposition to protect the coral reefs. Woo Hoo!
Local opposition to protect the coral reefs. Woo Hoo!
So This is a Surprise
- Thread starter BoundForElsewhere
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10,000 visitors a day on average in 2018??!!!! Is that true??!!! That is an insane number.
OP
I can imagine. I've never been to Cozumel and don't have plans to go. Definitely not with the cruise ships starting up again given those numbers.
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OP
JFS
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Once the ships arrive again, the main street diwn to the ports will be a cluster for traffic because of the bike lane. Its already getting bad with the increase in tourism . The bike lane basically took out parking space from mega to the cruise ship ports. Where are all the taxis gonna park to load and unload now?
We were there in June 2020. It was eerie with nobody there and nothing open on the main drag.
In a dimly lit room somewhere in church basement with stained ceiling tiles, a group of people are sitting in mismatched chairs arranged in a circle. Most smell of cigarettes and are drinking bad lukewarm coffee from small styrofoam cups...black, always black. Some seemed happy, welcoming, kind and understanding. Others stare forward like a poker player with nothing in his hand and all his chips in the pot, mad at the dealer for what he is holding. From this group, a brave man in a Devils Throat tshirt, cargo shorts, and a dive flag tattoo that says "Live To Dive" stands up and says....
Hi my name is Jay, and I'm a recovering....gulp....cruiser. I realized I had a problem when we took our first dive trip to Cozumel...on a cruise ship. The first back roll into blue water was my bottom and I have been wet since 2014..... We now fly to dive destinations and spend a week diving wherever we go. The group responds..."Hi, Jay."
Roll credits......... (my daughter says I'm overly dramatic...I don't see it)
Cruisers disembark at about 9 am and usually have to back on the boats by 4 or 5. Sunburnt, drunk, and wearing either sombreros or balloon hats and carrying plastic yards of gasoline Margaritas....they are easy to spot. Frequently they will become mobile in jeeps or scooters, but often they will attempt to remove themselves from the gene pool once they gain wheels. Kind of a self solving problem.
(Actually, we have met some wonderful people from all over the world sitting at The Thirsty Cougar after morning dives enjoying the pollo poblano burrito and several Bohemia Obscuras)
The advice about avoiding Melgar during cruiser hours is good, when they have to go back to boats, the island becomes the Cozumel we all love again. The good cruisers far outnumber the bad, and the bAd ones are quiet comical if you enjoy people watching. Sadly, the resort and dive industry can't support the entire island so the ships are a necessary evil for the island economy. Even though divers spend far more on the island than cruisers, we don't buy enough mediocre quality jewelry, questionable vanilla, ponchos, Mexican blankets, 5 for $10 t shirts, "Real" Cuban cigars, bait and switch tequila, dune buggy/4 wheeler tours, or other "almost free" touristy crap. I did consider going to hooters once to watch a college sporting event, but ended up somewhere else.
I appreciate the cruisers and the money they spend on the island. I don't appreciate the cruise industry but you can't have one without the other. Perhaps the denial (for now) of the 4th pier can initiate some changes in the industry to do better, but I'm afraid we are stuck with the stereotypical cruiser, at least the money they spend helps the island recover economically.
That's my story, and I'm a greatful recovering cruisaholic. Thank you for listening....
Safe travels,
Jay
Hi my name is Jay, and I'm a recovering....gulp....cruiser. I realized I had a problem when we took our first dive trip to Cozumel...on a cruise ship. The first back roll into blue water was my bottom and I have been wet since 2014..... We now fly to dive destinations and spend a week diving wherever we go. The group responds..."Hi, Jay."
Roll credits......... (my daughter says I'm overly dramatic...I don't see it)
Cruisers disembark at about 9 am and usually have to back on the boats by 4 or 5. Sunburnt, drunk, and wearing either sombreros or balloon hats and carrying plastic yards of gasoline Margaritas....they are easy to spot. Frequently they will become mobile in jeeps or scooters, but often they will attempt to remove themselves from the gene pool once they gain wheels. Kind of a self solving problem.
(Actually, we have met some wonderful people from all over the world sitting at The Thirsty Cougar after morning dives enjoying the pollo poblano burrito and several Bohemia Obscuras)
The advice about avoiding Melgar during cruiser hours is good, when they have to go back to boats, the island becomes the Cozumel we all love again. The good cruisers far outnumber the bad, and the bAd ones are quiet comical if you enjoy people watching. Sadly, the resort and dive industry can't support the entire island so the ships are a necessary evil for the island economy. Even though divers spend far more on the island than cruisers, we don't buy enough mediocre quality jewelry, questionable vanilla, ponchos, Mexican blankets, 5 for $10 t shirts, "Real" Cuban cigars, bait and switch tequila, dune buggy/4 wheeler tours, or other "almost free" touristy crap. I did consider going to hooters once to watch a college sporting event, but ended up somewhere else.
I appreciate the cruisers and the money they spend on the island. I don't appreciate the cruise industry but you can't have one without the other. Perhaps the denial (for now) of the 4th pier can initiate some changes in the industry to do better, but I'm afraid we are stuck with the stereotypical cruiser, at least the money they spend helps the island recover economically.
That's my story, and I'm a greatful recovering cruisaholic. Thank you for listening....
Safe travels,
Jay
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