Costa Maya port construction ahead of schedule

[ilovecruises1972]

Hi all it looks like costa maya is getting there and pretty quick these photos i found, on my search for updates.

Mahahual, february 27, 2008
The first part of the boardwalk has been paved ! Walking on it you can already have an idea how the boardwalk will look like when all 3 kilometers will be finished. Also nice: there are uplights in the ground which will illuminate the new palms from underneath. This will be really beautiful walking there by night.
Work on the cruise ship pier goes on steadily, it is not only a rumor anymore but quite sure that the first ships can dock there in july, 3 months earlier than expected.
In the meantime a lot of construction and repairing is still going on in Mahahual, everybody working hard to get their business up and running before semana santa, the holy week of eastern, the most important holiday in Mexico. i can only post 6 pic but i put another page

[ilovecruises1972]

El Placer before remodel/ El Placer after remodel






this is what i also found the new look i guess when there done

This before and after shot -- I'm not sure why they think the new look is better

More shots of the malecon - no longer the little fishing village

[logan1_2000]

Very, very happy to come across this thread via a link elsewhere and read about the recovery of Costa Maya for the return of the cruise ships. We were at Costa Maya January 2006 and loved it--we enjoyed the port itself, and had a wonderful experience touring Chocchoben. We did not get the chance to head down to Majahual and we wanted to--it seemed so quaint, and un-paved, but now it appears a touch of progress--for good or otherwise to be seen--has touched majahual as a result of the repair. Would have happened (modernization to some degree) anyway, just out of need to accomodate the economic opportunity the cruise ships bring, but it would have been nice to have had the chance to experience it before the hurricane, unpaved, laid back. I'll still look forward to some future cruise taking me to the new improved costa maya and majahual.

[Carolinamamasita]

Looks like Carnival Glory will be the first of Carnvials ships to go back in December 2008 by the cruisecal website

October is Disney Magic
Westerdam and Veendam

November is Disney Magic
Westerndam and Veendam
Norwegian Spirit
Oceana
Independence of the Seas
and Seven Seas Voyager


and December is almost a full calendar
with a ship at port every day

Is Cruisecal up to date ?

[Rheaya]

Does anyone know if they are going to rebuild that beautiful pier they had there? You know when you first get off the ship and you walk down...thingy and then you go through the gates and there are all those stores and then that pool with the swim up bar? I loved that swim up bar...except for I got the worst burn cuz I was having too much fun at the bar!

[ilovecruises1972]

Hi there if you look at my post 2 post up, i put a couple of pic havent seen anything any pic yet of the pier . but if i find some more i will post.

[mostrow]

Just got back last week. Took a panga out to the pier. Very rough, so pics are to blurry. They are working 24 hours a day. Fonatour, Mexico's tourist investment arm, just announced that no further funding will be spent at Costa Maya. The reasons are environmental in nature and they want to keep the area as natural as possible. The Malecon will be finished in town, but don't think it will continue to the port. Private money will have to finish that. Someone tried to put up a beach bar on the beach, and the state came in and had them take everything down. It seems that nothing will be allowed to built on the beach side of the walkway. But its Mexico, that will probably change. The beach is coming more alive everyday. New beach breaks/areas are in the planning stages outside town. Alot more options will be available once the ships come back. Disney Magic is set to sail in Sept.30. 17 ships are scheduled to dock in November 08 & December 08. Costa Maya will be back better than ever.

[slotaddict]

What good news this it, now I have to plan another cruise to get back to Costa Maya. I love it there.

[Carolinamamasita]

Originally Posted by mostrow

Just got back last week. Took a panga out to the pier. Very rough, so pics are to blurry. They are working 24 hours a day. Fonatour, Mexico's tourist investment arm, just announced that no further funding will be spent at Costa Maya. The reasons are environmental in nature and they want to keep the area as natural as possible. The Malecon will be finished in town, but don't think it will continue to the port. Private money will have to finish that. Someone tried to put up a beach bar on the beach, and the state came in and had them take everything down. It seems that nothing will be allowed to built on the beach side of the walkway. But its Mexico, that will probably change. The beach is coming more alive everyday. New beach breaks/areas are in the planning stages outside town. Alot more options will be available once the ships come back. Disney Magic is set to sail in Sept.30. 17 ships are scheduled to dock in November 08 & December 08. Costa Maya will be back better than ever.

Would that mean that we couldnt have our tables near the water?
That is one of the things that I enjoyed about Costa Maya ... so I hope that wasnt what you meant by that
That is how most of us remembered Costa Maya , right ?

[ilovecruises1972]

hi there here is the link i found the lastest pics www.mahahualafterdean.com

[dotshub]

Originally Posted by Carolinamamasita

Would that mean that we couldnt have our tables near the water?
That is one of the things that I enjoyed about Costa Maya ... so I hope that wasnt what you meant by that
That is how most of us remembered Costa Maya , right ?

I didnt read it that way at all. Nothing can be BUILT on the beach side of the roadway..or walkway..thats the way it used to be too. yes they set up tables etc on the beach side but the buildings were further up on the shore. Thats the way I remember it and it was fantastic!

[98Charlie]

Click Here For A Link to some Mahahual info. It was last updated a month ago but shows some of the progress being made on the area.

There are links to hotels, tour operators, dive centers, and restaurants that are up and running.

Charlie

[Carolinamamasita]

Originally Posted by dotshub

I didnt read it that way at all. Nothing can be BUILT on the beach side of the roadway..or walkway..thats the way it used to be too. yes they set up tables etc on the beach side but the buildings were further up on the shore. Thats the way I remember it and it was fantastic!

We were sitting at cats Meow , which was across the street from us , we were right on the beach ...with tables & tents , etc
and right next to us was "charlie browns" El Botadero or somethinglike that , and I believe that was like a beach hut , shack right on the beach...
with message tents , tables and chairs ....etc....


it has been awhile , so maybe I am not remembering it correctly but I do have a video of it too ...

will they still have the message tents on the beaches then and the tents for people to eat under ?
I hope so ...

[CruiseCATnMACK]

Originally Posted by ilovecruises1972

El Placer before remodel/ El Placer after remodel

FYI - El Placer remodel was pre Dean. The first picture below I took right after Dean hit the second was taken in October. As you can see where the El Placer sat is a vacant lot.

[AQW]

Alot more options will be available once the ships come back. Disney Magic is set to sail in Sept.30. 17 ships are scheduled to dock in November 08 & December 08. Costa Maya will be back better than ever.

I'm on that Sept 27-Oct 4 DCL cruise with a 9/30 stop in Costa Maya - it will be interesting to see what progress has been made by that time.

[browneyes7]

Originally Posted by gaviota

New Malecon construction looking south - March 2008

Gaviota, Thanks for the information. I can't wait to visit Costa Maya again!!

browneyes7

[JerseyshoreBruce]

Costa Maya will reopen in July 2008 for two cruise ships and the third will be ready for November 2008......Yahoo

[CruiseCATnMACK]

I just wanted to add that only the occasional ship will be porting in Costa Maya between July and October. A regular schedule is not expected to start until October or November.

Mack and I will be in Costa Maya for two weeks in August/September. We have very mixed feelings about the "new" Mahahual and needed one last trip before the ships returned. We have always loved the area and the people will forever hold a special place in our heart.

[rsjc]

thanks to all for the good information.... would love to see pictures of the pier and the shopping area there. Any word on the private beach to the right?

[LuvvaBargain]

Missing Costa Maya.....There is a wonderful painter in the cruise ship market place who has furnished six ceramic tiles for us, over a two year period. There were two young artists with him (maybe relatives, or not) We could not afford the tiles all at once, so we thought it would be a meaningful building of an interior home wall over a cruise period of time.... and we did not ever imagine anything or anyone wiping out the whole Costa Maya shore area. It is worse for the residents, than for us, so we are not without sympathy.

We would really like to build our tile collection for one of our interior walls, with this same artist. It is so tragic that everything came to a hurricane halt.

We are waiting for a Carnival cruise return to Costa Maya, since we have traveled twice a year for the past six years, via Carnival or Royal Caribbean--out of Tampa. Our next cruise will be a seven day, the last week of September 2008.

We will return to Roatan, and have liked Roatan. We do not feel as free to aimlessly and self-sufficiently explore, as we did in Costa Maya.

After reading posts, it seems that Carnival will not return to Costa Maya until Dec 2008 or later? Does anyone have any knowledge on this matter? Thank you so much. Please reply to: luvvabargain@yahoo.com