Interacuaticas
Escuela de Buceo
1 - 12 Mayo 2007
(Our trip to Cozumel, Mexico in May 2007)
Bob
Sonia
Fernando
Lilia
Bernal
Luis Paulino
Sarai
Nathan
Lizbeth
Didier
Amelia
Fernando
Jose Pablo
Presione para detalles (Click for info)
(Segment 1)
1 May - Group 1 arrived Belize City at 0950. They were picked up by Raul and taken to their lodging at the D'Nest Inn. Hosts were Gaby and Otty with superb service. Cost was $70 for two. Drove around Belize City and ate lunch at Old Belize..
2 May - Dove local Belize reefs at Gallows Point - Mermaids Castle and The Lost Anchor. Cost was $100 plus tip per person.
3 May - Ferry to San Pedro Island to sightsee and then to Caye Caulker. Snorkeling with the Sharks and Manta Rays ($25) and then back to Belize City. Ferry leaves hourly and roundtrip is $25 versus $100 by air with Tropic Air. Hotels at Caye Caulker are about $30 per person per night.
NOTE: An alternative might be to fly into Belize, overnight either at Caye Caulker or San Pedro, dive, etc., and then take the ferry to Corozal which is near the Mexican border.
4 May - Departed via minvan with Raul at 0930 to Belize/Mexico border---$18 exit fee. He charged $100 for 8 people to the bus station at Chetumal. On to Chetumal and caught bus to Playa del Carmen and overnighted at Hotel Molcas. Cost was $55 for two.
5 May - Fernando, Didier, Jose Pablo, and Fernando Jr. dove the cenotes. Fantastic video. Bob and Sonia went on to the Coral Princess and checked in waiting on Luis Paulino's group.
(Segment 2)
6 May - Dove Chankanab and Paradise reefs. Cost $65 plus tip.
7 May - Part of group to Xcaret park south of Playa del Carmen.
8 May - Free day.
9 May - Dove Palancar Gardens and Francesa.
10 May - Mother's Day in Mexico. To free concert in town.
11 May - Dove the Palancar Caves and Tormentos---absolutely incredible.
12 May - Depart Playa del Carmen around noon to Cancun and flight to San Jose.
Actual Costs
1. Airfare via Taca to Belize City and then Cancun to San Jose - $446.
2. Ferry roundtrip Belize City to San Pedro Island $25. Air is about $100 with Tropic Air.
3. Diving locally was $100 for a two tank dive plus tip. The Blue Hole if available is $250. Hotel per person runs between $30 - $70 per person per night on San Pedro and cheaper at Caye Caulker.
4. Bus from Belize City to Chetumal is $10. Novelo's Bus Line. We used Raul for $13 plus tip.
5. Belize departure fee at the border was $18.
6. Bus from Chetumal to Playa del Carmen was $18.
7. Rountrip Ferry to Cozumel ($20), Taxi to Coral Princess ($5), Bus from Playa del Carmen to the airport was $8 and took an hour and 15 minutes. Suggest buying the ticker earlier---the bus was full.
8. Hotel Coral Princess - Cozumel - 7 nights ($588 double) - This is Bob's member rate.
9. Hotel Molca - Playa del Carmen - 1 night ($55 double)
10. Xcaret Theme Park was $59 without a discount. Taxi to and from was $40 for 8 people.
11. Diving in Cozumel was $65 per two tank dive plus tip.
12 Restaurants: Breakfast $8. Lunch $10. Dinner $15.
13. Mexico departure fee was $22.
Overall Note: Our initial plan was to spend between $1400 to $1500 per person if diving on only the Cozumel segment. Total for both the Belize and Cozumel segments was around $1350 plus food.
This was not a package. You paid your own expenses.
19 May 07
