Doing Cozumel by car?

[DontTreadOnMe]

I usually stay in Cozumel for at least a week at a time - clearly not arriving via cruise ship. I always rent a car and have never had a problem. However, I been there enough times that I know my way around, and know the people to call if some "trouble" were to happen.

 

On my first (and only - so far) cruise we made a call on Cozumel. I hired a driver with a full-size van for the day. There were 6 of us. He met us at the exit from the International Pier and drove us wherever we wanted to go. I certainly could have rented a van, but I didn't want to worry about parking it or manuevering it in the tight confines in San Miguel.

 

The cost was affordable and my driver was fantastic. I had him join us for lunch at a taco place that caters to locals.

 

Bottom line, weigh your options and determine your own personal level of risk. If the level is low, hire a driver. If it is high, grab the bull by the horns.

[golfadj]

Interesting how some of you have to get nasty to those of us urging caution while driving in a foreign country known for dishonest cops.

 

OP do what you want, I am done here.

[05mak05]

Wow! Why bother going to Mexico then? All they to do is want to rip us off.

I have to take up for my favorite ports - Costa Maya and Cozumel. 99% of the people are as nice and honest and trustworthy as they can be. However, many tourists are not aware of Mexico's insurance laws. We've hired private drivers in many places in Mexico - Merida, Progreso, Oaxaca, Patzcuaro, etc. It's always added another layer to our travel experience by having an "insider" as a guide. We used to take our cars across the border all of the time. We knew we should buy Sanborn Mexican insurance on the US side of the border but we never did. We were lucky.

[BeachChik]

SO TRUE.

 

If you don't yield to a bike and hit it, thereby injuring someone, you're going to be in trouble no matter where you are. If you use caution and drive defensively then it is not "foolish" to risk driving around. Personally, I don't let fearmongers bother me too much. Life is too short.

 

My hubby and I have rented vehicles in several countries via cruises and land vacations. People caution others about Mexico because it isn't about being a defensive driver and not hitting someone on a bike, its the fact that they target tourists intentionally by bumping them or causing an accident. And in mexico it is a crime to be involved in an accident and you will be arrested. Mexico is the one country out of the many that we have been to that I was not comfortable renting a car. Everyone has to make their own choices to what they deem risky. Its not about "fearmongers", this is a well known problem in this country.

 

The op asked about renting a car and other posted their opinion. I don't understand why people need to attack just because their opinion differs from yours.

[Hugh0906]

My original post was not meant at all to scare the o.p. from renting a car. I believe it is the only way to go in Cozumel. But I did want to post that it was in his best interest to rent with full coverage.

 

Every person riding his bicycle by you will have a cell phone that you could borrow to call the rental agency in the event of a problem.

 

Imho, folks that eat and play at the beach clubs are missing out on a lot. But they know their own personal tastes, and I respect that. To each their own.

 

I prefer to be a traveller not a tourist.

 

I was not aware of the lighthouse trip. It will be on my dance card next time I'm there. In a jeep that I rented.

 

Hugh in Dallas.

[otowncruisr]

We've done this once and had a good experience...it was definitely nice to have the freedom of your own Jeep.

 

Couple other things...

 

Our jeep was a manual transmission, I'm not sure if they have automatics or not, but something you might want to check into if you cant drive a stick.

 

Make sure the gas attendent resets the pump to 0 when filling up. I checked and had no problems, but my dad didn't check (even though he was warned :rolleyes:) and thinks he got ripped off for a few bucks.

 

As soon as you get on the cross island road, I'd check the brakes good. The one we had was pretty soft...not a big deal as long as you account for it in your driving...you're not going to encounter much traffic except in San Miguel where you will be going slow anyway.

 

And the last thing: as the renter, I automatically became the Designated Driver, which means I didn't get to partake in the libations at Coconuts, Rastas and the 5 or so other places we stopped. That alone would make me not do this again if I have to be the driver.