Cozumel and the Mesoamerican Reef
Parque Nacional (CONANP) / Sistema Arrecifal Mesoamericano · Cozumel, Quintana Roo
Mexico's largest inhabited island, only 19 km off the Quintana Roo coast, sits on the western edge of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef, the second-longest reef system on earth, running about a thousand kilometres from the tip of the Yucatan to Honduras. Jacques Cousteau filmed here in the 1960s and made its name, and the reputation held because of the current: Cozumel is drift diving, where you drop in, stop swimming and let a clear blue river carry you along coral walls and through the swim-throughs of Palancar and Santa Rosa. Before that it was a Maya sanctuary where women crossed the channel to the shrine of Ix Chel at San Gervasio. Today it is a dive island and a cruise port, so San Miguel is crowded on ship days. The reef is not what it was after disease and bleaching, but it is still world class for divers. Rent a jeep, circle the island, swim on the west coast only, and use reef-safe sunscreen.
San Miguel de Cozumel, Cozumel, Quintana Roo, 77600, Mexico
The island is open access - free, no gate. ⚠ A CONANP MARINE PARK BRACELET IS REQUIRED to dive or snorkel within Parque Nacional Arrecifes de Cozumel and dive operators collect it. Punta Sur Eco Park, Chankanaab and San Gervasio keep daytime hours with paid admission, and INAH Sunday free admission at San Gervasio applies to Mexican nationals and residents only. The ferry from Playa del Carmen runs frequently through the day, about 45 minutes. ⚠ REEF-SAFE SUNSCREEN ONLY IS ENFORCED IN THE MARINE PARKS. ⚠ DO NOT SWIM ON THE EAST COAST - undertow, rip currents and no lifeguards. ⚠ HURRICANE SEASON JUNE TO NOVEMBER. ⚠ HOURS AND PRICES NOT VERIFIED FOR THIS FILE.
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