We're not really big on tours, but our Airbnb hosts said that the Isla Mujeres one was worth it because it included the ferry price ($15-$20 for just the ride), lunch, snorkeling, parasailing, kitesurfing, etc. We took their word for it and booked the one they suggested for Wednesday without looking into it, which wasn't the smartest thing we did. While it was fine, there was no parasailing, kitesurfing, etc.; just the ride, lunch, snorkeling, and some beach/exploring time. All in all, while it was fun, probably wasn't worth the money. We'll learn from that!
Our day started pretty early - we had to be at the ferry station by 9:00-9:30 for our catamaran. While the ferry location would take less than 10 minutes without traffic, it took 50 minutes during the morning rush - Cancun traffic can be pretty miserable. Once we got to station, we checked in, got our tickets, and waited for our color to be called. We got onto the boat pretty quickly, got a great location that we kept for the day, and headed out.
Waiting for our color to be called. |
Mistake #2 for me was not putting my seasick patch on that morning. I thought about it before we left, but then forgot to put it on, and I paid for it at times. HOWEVER, they did have a guy taking pictures that you could buy, but because I looked pretty miserable, he didn't even push it with us :).
The first stop (well, second. The first stop was to pick up more people) was snorkeling. It was just bad luck, but the current was REALLY strong that day, so people kept crashing into each other and it was hard to stay incredibly calm. All things considered, it could've been worse. We did get to see some pretty fish and barracudas, so it wasn't a total loss.
Catamaran! |
After the snorkeling, we got back on the boat and they started coming around with drinks - rum punch, tequila sunrise, beer, etc. - while we headed to a beach on Isla Mujeres for lunch. Lunch was a pretty nice spread, including this green sauce that was HOT. There was sign there that said muy picante, and they kept telling everyone this, but A LOT of people were using it like guacamole! For the record, it did NOT look like guacamole, nor did it taste like it. It was yummy, but SPICY! We had another 30 minutes or so after lunch, so we grabbed a hammock and a chair and just relaxed for a bit.
View from lunch. |
We got back on the boat and made one more stop, where we had an hour and a half to hang out. We walked up toward Playa Norte, had a drink, and went swimming. They had chairs and umbrellas for rent, but it wasn't worth it for the hour we would be there so we just took turns swimming and sitting at the bar. The beach was beautiful. After this, we headed back to the boat and set sail for Cancun. It got pretty dark and overcast on the ride back, but we were somehow able to get back to shore, hop on a bus, stop at Walmart and grab a frozen pizza, and walk back home before the skies opened. That's actually been the most rain we've gotten in Mexico so far, which is a nice change from Jamaica.
Playa Norte |
For those wondering, the frozen pizza hit the spot. It's probably what I miss most from the states (people not included) - pizza.
Adam will have to add pictures - I'm not sure where they are and he's swimming right now.
**Photos added on November 6 while in San Diego.
Now with video!
ReplyDeleteOK so your comment about the photo guy on the boat makes me think of one time in college, a bunch of us went to Six Flags in Atlanta and when the annoying photographer dude came up to us by the park entrance, Julie goes "sorry, we're not that photogenic". #micdrop
ReplyDeleteThat's amazing, I'll have to remember that one.
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