Cozumel

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Cozumel Snorkeling Tour: Starfish, Stingrays and the Turtle Bay Experience

Badge of ExcellenceCozumel, Mexico

Cozumel Snorkel Tour Starfish Stingrays and Turtle Bay Experience

4 hours
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

Overview

What's Included

Visit to El Cielo sandbar, El Cielito Beach and the Turtle Bay
Guided snorkeling tour
Snorkel gear: Vest, Mask, New tube
Drinks: Beers, Water, Sodas and one Snack
Insured Shaded Boat
Experienced trained guides

Marine Fee $6usd

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Marina FONATUR Cozumel
Carr. Costera Sur Km 6.5, Zona Hotelera Sur, 77675 Cozumel, Q.R., Mexico
Meeting time is 10 minutes before your Tour time is at the MARINA FONATUR located 5 minutes by taxi from SSA and PUERTA MAYA cruise ports and 10 minutes from Downtown. Upon arrival look for the MAYBE TOURS office. Please Note Our Tours are operated in Cozumel local time.

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Near public transportation
Infant seats available

Not recommended for pregnant travelers
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 16 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Featured review

kady_H

Our compadres on this snorkeling tour treated us like family. They knew where to go, took care of our kids who were a little unsure snorkeling for the first time. Some of the best snorkeling we’ve experienced! Having guacamole on the sandbar with the stingrays was amazing. Was a little hard to find the meeting point- the taxi did not recognize the address. But would absolutely recommend!

Reviews

4.5

97 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

We perform checks on reviews

Showing 1-10 of 97 reviews

Disappointed

Tina_T, May 2024

To many people trying to snorkel In the same place. You need to let everyone spread out. My husband was kicked in the privates at 2 locations and chose not to get off at 3rd location. Should stay the longest at first place lots of marine life. Should make last snorkeling spot the shortest or don’t go at all. Should stay longer at beach area and don’t tell people they don’t need the snorkeling gear at beach area. Also got sunburned bc you couldn’t reapply sunscreen. If they would invest in fins for everyone the snorkeling would be much easier and maybe they would let people spread out. Do not recommend.

A fantastic Excursion & Kid Friendly!

Nicholas_G, Apr 2024

We had an excellent time on this tour. While trying to nail down exactly where we needed to go was the most concerning part before the trip, we found it to be very easy to figure out where we needed to go. The staff was very friendly and put on a great tour. They were very accommodating and welcoming of our son, who is 6. They offered suggestions to make his experience relaxing and more enjoyable. They went out of their way to make sure he was able to participate in the snorkeling the best way possible. We got to see numerous types of fish. The best part was the up close encounters we got with several sea turtles!! We also saw 2 baby whale sharks. The last stop is lunch on a shallow sandbar where numerous sting rays swim at your feet. Make sure to keep your mask at this stop if you want to see them under water. They had taken all of the gear so we could relax on the sandbar and have our lunch and beverages. I wish we would of kept our masks so we could see the stingrays under the water. Other than the stingray "issue" mentioned above, this tour was fantastic!! We would definitely do it again!

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Dear Nicholas Thank you for this great review. We are delighted to know you had an excellent time and were able to see a lot of sea life , we are also glad your whole family was able to enjoy this Cozumel Snorkeling Tour and can't wait to have you back! We remain at your service.

Recommend!

Nina_V, Apr 2024

Great trip! Great staff! Encountered sea turtles, mantas, star fish, morenes and lots of fish. Beer and nice people☺️

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Dear Nina Thank you for your review. It is such a pleasure to know you had a fantastic day and you got to spot the amazing sea life Cozumel Snorkeling Tour offers. Kind regards,

Awesome!!

Tracy_E, Apr 2024

We had a wonderful time!! Saw 4 huge turtles!! Tons of starfish!! And several stingrays!! It was well worth the $$ !! Would recommend!!!

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Dear Tracy Thank you for your review. It is great to know you enjoyed the sea life Cozumel Snorkeling Tour offers, we hope to see you again! Kind regards,

Amazing snorkeling!

Laura_E, Apr 2024

This was awesome!!! We had to go to different reefs due to weather. I was disappointed to miss out on the turtles but this was pretty cool. We snorkled at 3 different reefs and then spent some time on a beach with homemade guacamole (literally he made it on the boat) and chips. We saw stingrays and barracudas and so many beautiful fish! Best snorkel experience other than Hawaii. The guides were amazing!!! Be aware even with reef safe sunscreen they only allow you to use a little before you leave and there’s no reapplying. Naturally our backs were pretty burnt by the end. Our boat wasn’t overloaded like some reviews I saw of tours. You do have to wear a life belt while the boat is going to and from the marina but can remove while snorkeling if you’re a strong swimmer. We used them at times to float on but took them off to dive down. The meeting spot is on the far side of the marina. Bathrooms at marina weren’t great but on par with a lot of marinas. Cab ride was $10 and less than 10 minutes. Cabs were also available when we returned. My family really enjoyed this one, even the teenagers! Definitely recommend.

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Dear Laura Thank you for your review. We really appreciate you taking time out of your day to share your experience and recommending us. Due to weather conditions and safety reasons , sometimes we are in need to go to different reefs , however you are able to spot beautiful marine life in these reefs as well. We are happy to know your whole family had an amazing day and hope to see you soon. Have an incredible day!

Beautiful waters

jodi_w, Apr 2024

Water was a bit rough. It was a long boat ride out to the location . Saw a lot of starfish, a couple ✌🏻turtles and a lot of stingrays. Wish we could have touched the stingrays. Drinks and Guacamole was a nice tough. Over all a great day.

Friendly and Best Snorkling

kady_H, Mar 2024

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Dear Kady Thank you for your review. We are ecstatic to know you had a great time at Cozumel Snorkeling Tour! It is greatly appreciated you taking time out of your day to share your experience and we can’t thank you enough for recommending us! Your Cozumel Tour family awaits for you! Kind regards,

Spectacular Experience!

Laura_L, Mar 2024

We had an exceptionally fabulous time! We got to see turtles and starfish and swim with the stingrays. Kinji made the experience a truly memorable one. We're putting this one on our list of things to do next time we are here!!

Started Off little CONCERNING .......

Keithmarti_K, Mar 2024

I found your company and this excursion on line! We have done multiple excursions such as this before... never purchasing from the Cruise Ship. I was told that someone would be meeting us at the port as we exited our ship with a Company Sign. No one was there to greet us as we were told. We found a taxi and went to the address... still no one was around or has heard of Viatar???? We waited around and finally found your spot... No one was looking for us!!!! I had TEN People who were trusting me with this excursion! This DID NOT Look Good for YOUR COMPANY as well as myself. So it was a little CONCERNING and FRUSTRATING to start this way. Once we were on the boat and heading out the Excursion was everything and more than we had hoped for. The Crew Members did an Excellent Job! The Diver pointed out lots to see under water. The Snacks were Delicious! Had a Great Time on the boat and in the water. Just felt like you should be a little more organized on how you receive your customers!!!!

Will not do it again

Aleta_S, Mar 2024

Waiting forever to board the boat. Not a great excursion. Will never use Viator again. Boat trip to snorkeling was too long.

Good trip with Dad

Ben_H, Mar 2024

Good trip overall - about 3 hours on the water which is a good time frame for these kind of tours. The water was a little rough, so the guide pivoted to a different location for one of the planned stops. We saw a tiny bit of marine life, including a turtle, fish & starfish - but it was very scarce (of course the guides can’t predict in the ocean where there will be a bunch) — there were a TON of boats on the water doing the same tour around, some big catamaran boats & others with glass floor bottom boats. Ours was a normal smaller 10 person boat which was probably better than a huge catamaran of people. The snack was some chips & ceviche. You get your 2 beers at the very last stop, but can bring your own to drink before & buy it at the store beside where you jump on for cheap. Cool experience overall though, water was breathtaking clear & bluest I’ve ever seen!

Wonderful snorkeling adventure

Christina_C, Mar 2024

Unfortunately, our original locations were closed due to wind. We didn't get to see any turtles or stingray. The tour group made it there priority that we still had a great time and visited beautiful locations filled with fish and a few starfish. My family and I still had a great time and would definitely go again.

Super crowded small boat

Valerie_P, Mar 2024

The snorkel boat was completely packed, really crowded. They made us wear life jackets that were bulky and uncomfortable and made for a super uncomfortable long boat ride. If they wouldn’t pack the tiny boats with the max amount of people, it wouldn’t be that bad. The guides were nice. Snorkeling was great but the 2 hour (total) boat ride was horrible. And , put on lotion sunscreen before you get on the boat. They will not let you put anything on because it will “ruin the reefs”. This is true with oil but waterproof lotion is safe. Take a catamaran where there is more room.

Great afternoon bring sun shirt

kelly_n, Mar 2024

Miguel was incredible and we saw everything and more that was promised! Only recommendation is to bring an SPF shirt because the reefs are fragile and sunscreen hurts them!

Not what was expected or advertised

Nicki_N, Feb 2024

First off attempted to find the meeting place, sent a message to the operator, no response was given. Was not expecting a small boat, that had to be hotwired to work, our guides didn’t speak any English. There was 5 English speakers on the boat and no instructions were given in English. I didn’t get off the boat, was afraid I wouldn’t get back on. The snorkels weren’t new. One of the worst snorkel excursions I’ve been on.

Not what I was hoping for

Lukas_K, Feb 2024

Bad organization. As the name of the operator says… maybe … I gave 2 stars as the staff on the boat was nice. Our tour was fully booked so they spilt the group and 1 group left on time. Our group left with 1 hour delay. Snorkling spots were nice but I specifically booked it to see the sea turtle sanctuary (see title of the tour) where we actually never went. Apparently it was “closed for hatching eggs season” but we were not informed about it and it was not replaced by another stop. Nice stop for the snack and drinks but on the way back the boat ran out of fuel…. The captain had to stop another boat and beg for fuel so we could get back to the Harbor. Once there, we met again with the first group so they actually got their 4h trip. They left with the first taxi bus. The second taxi was waiting for us but the driver claimed he had not been paid so he would not drive us except if we pay him. We refused and it escalated quite quickly. I called the customer service they spoke to the taxi driver. They seemed to have come to a conclusion but then the driver still refused to leave after the call. After that no one picked up the phone at the customer service and the chat function remained without reply. The other group members had ferry tickets booked and started to get stressed. Finally we agreed to give him the money upon arrival and he drove us to the ferry harbour. Everyone was worn out and angry by that time and the group members had to run to still get on the ferry. Fortunately I managed to speak to the tour operator on the phone whilst driving back and he met us at the taxi stop and paid. Felt like a planned rip off though and overall the experience was not Meeting the description. I would think twice before booking this tour … but maybe… it might work out for you.

Amazing snorkeling and beach hangout

ErickDaniel_M, Feb 2024

This tour was the highlight of our week-long trip to Playa Del Carmen! We saw sea turtles, a small shark, sting rays, starfish, a lobster and so many fishes! The gear we were given was great, freshly sanitized and our guide was very friendly. Hanging out in the end at El Cielo was beautiful: standing in waist high water, drinking beer and eating chips with guacamole while big stingrays swim nearby!

DISAPPOINTMENT

Howard_G, Feb 2024

After having much difficulty locating where we were to meet the boat which would take us snorkeling, we waited for an hour and a half with boat being a no show. There was a contact person there originally, who seemed to disappear for much of that time. When located, he said boat was in marina, but only boat that showed was marked "Glass Bottom Boat" and was full with people wearing life vests; no room for more and too many for snorkeling tour. Contact person was told by us and 2 other people waiting that it was too late to go- we lost over hour of our tour; he said he would put in cancel for us. When I called the operating company, the man was extremely rude and said we denied the boat- DUH, yes after wrong boat and wasted time! He said he was going to deny our refund. VIATOR was informed of all of this and promptly took care of it! VIATOR is a reliable company to deal with, but this operator is not. I ALWAYS use VIATOR, so I was surprised that a subpar company got their affiliation.

Had a great time...

Alex_W, Feb 2024

Had a great time snorkeling. It was just as advertised, we saw turtles, star fish, sting rays and tons of fish. Venado, Joel and Nide were all great. They were very fun but made us feel safe too. Highly recommend!

Disappointed

Rebecca_A, Feb 2024

The boat left without us and they made no attempts to get us on a different boat or come up with a solution. Very disappointed and frustrated to have wasted the money I paid for this excursion.

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