Snorkel Boat Tour

[RADGIRL80]

Hi, 

 

We are a group of 8 (4 adults and 4 kids-12, 12, 12, and 15) coming to costa Maya in a couple of weeks. I’ve been trying to find a good snorkel boat tour in costa Maya and can’t find anything. I tried contacting gypseadivers based on prior recommendations, and haven’t heard back. We are also fine going to a good beach club and going on a snorkel boat from there. I know Jamie’s has one, but we aren’t interested in all inclusive. I would appreciate any recommendations! Thanks! 

[c-leg5]

2 minutes ago, RADGIRL80 said:

Hi, 

 

We are a group of 8 (4 adults and 4 kids-12, 12, 12, and 15) coming to costa Maya in a couple of weeks. I’ve been trying to find a good snorkel boat tour in costa Maya and can’t find anything. I tried contacting gypseadivers based on prior recommendations, and haven’t heard back. We are also fine going to a good beach club and going on a snorkel boat from there. I know Jamie’s has one, but we aren’t interested in all inclusive. I would appreciate any recommendations! Thanks! 

Malecon21 used to be one of our favorite beach locations but were disappointed in service at the beginning of this year. It has been a difficult year all round so perhaps it was an off day. I know they were able to arrange snorkel tours previously. 
 

Also i have seen groups leaving from Hotel Luna de Plata.

[lifes-a-beach]

19 hours ago, RADGIRL80 said:

Hi, 

 

We are a group of 8 (4 adults and 4 kids-12, 12, 12, and 15) coming to costa Maya in a couple of weeks. I’ve been trying to find a good snorkel boat tour in costa Maya and can’t find anything. I tried contacting gypseadivers based on prior recommendations, and haven’t heard back. We are also fine going to a good beach club and going on a snorkel boat from there. I know Jamie’s has one, but we aren’t interested in all inclusive. I would appreciate any recommendations! Thanks! 

For some reason I didn't have good luck with the gypseadivers website either.  Try Catherine Giroux at coralnegro8@hotmail.com .  She was very responsive to me and was there when we arrived. 

[RADGIRL80]

22 hours ago, c-leg5 said:

Malecon21 used to be one of our favorite beach locations but were disappointed in service at the beginning of this year. It has been a difficult year all round so perhaps it was an off day. I know they were able to arrange snorkel tours previously. 
 

Also i have seen groups leaving from Hotel Luna de Plata.

 

3 hours ago, lifes-a-beach said:

For some reason I didn't have good luck with the gypseadivers website either.  Try Catherine Giroux at coralnegro8@hotmail.com .  She was very responsive to me and was there when we arrived. 

Thanks so much! I emailed to this email and Catherine got back to me. We are booked with them. Did you like the snorkel trip? Were there a lot of people on your tour? Did you stay at the beach after? If yes which one? We plan to do that when snorkeling is done. Thanks!!

[lifes-a-beach]

Our arrival time was delayed like an hour for some reason that I can’t remember.  Catherine was aware of the delay and we took a cab to their little hut as soon as we could.  It was, I think, a noon arrival.  It was just me, my 30 year old son and my 28 year old daughter.  We are all experienced and my daughter is certified in scuba as well.  I say that to say we have our own equipment and our expectations are based on experience.  There was a 3 person crew and we were the only customers.  Two of the crew, a man and a woman, were in the water the entire time.  The man was in front directing our attention to various sea life and leading us around where we needed to be swimming.  The woman was safety and shadowed us with a life ring. The third man was the boat captain and remained in the boat.  The water was quite rough that day and had we not been experienced and confident I’m not sure the trip would have been fun.  Catherine did ask us if we were ok going out.  If it turns out to be rough like that, and if you and your group are not somewhat experienced or wouldn’t handle the up and down of the small boat, you should consider cancelling.  The good news is that rough water isn’t the norm.  We did enjoy the trip and saw some interesting coral and sea life.  Given the options, this was a good trip and I will go with them again.  Catherine couldn’t have been more pleasant and the crew attentive.  I’m a safety-first guy and they handled that aspect very well.

 

We did not stay on the beach this trip as my wife had stayed on the ship and we are booked to return there several more times this year.  We have been to various beach stops there many times, most recently Krazy Lobster which was ok.  The Sargassum was very bad and all the beach clubs were struggling to keep their spots nice.  We plan to try Maya Chan when we return in November.  Gypsea is right next to YaYa and my wife and daughter had a good day there in May.  My wife spoke highly of their service and the comfort of the lounge chairs, something lacking at some of the clubs.  If they’re booked up just keep walking down the malecon back toward the lighthouse and you’ll see plenty more options.

[c-leg5]

4 hours ago, lifes-a-beach said:

We did not stay on the beach this trip as my wife had stayed on the ship and we are booked to return there several more times this year.  We have been to various beach stops there many times, most recently Krazy Lobster which was ok.  The Sargassum was very bad and all the beach clubs were struggling to keep their spots nice.  We plan to try Maya Chan when we return in November.  Gypsea is right next to YaYa and my wife and daughter had a good day there in May.  My wife spoke highly of their service and the comfort of the lounge chairs, something lacking at some of the clubs.  If they’re booked up just keep walking down the malecon back toward the lighthouse and you’ll see plenty more options.

Glad to hear your wife liked YaYa. It is high on our list of places to try next time, as we search for somewhere new in Costa Maya. I agree loungers looked to be some of the better ones when we were passing earlier this year. The menu and “model” are very similar to Malecon 21 that we have enjoyed previously but prices seem slightly lower and it looks like they don’t require an advanced deposit. Did your wife make a reservation, or just turn up?
 

Good to know service was good as that is what we found lacking at Malecon last time we were there. 
 

Edited June 17, 2022 by c-leg5

[RADGIRL80]

4 hours ago, lifes-a-beach said:

Our arrival time was delayed like an hour for some reason that I can’t remember.  Catherine was aware of the delay and we took a cab to their little hut as soon as we could.  It was, I think, a noon arrival.  It was just me, my 30 year old son and my 28 year old daughter.  We are all experienced and my daughter is certified in scuba as well.  I say that to say we have our own equipment and our expectations are based on experience.  There was a 3 person crew and we were the only customers.  Two of the crew, a man and a woman, were in the water the entire time.  The man was in front directing our attention to various sea life and leading us around where we needed to be swimming.  The woman was safety and shadowed us with a life ring. The third man was the boat captain and remained in the boat.  The water was quite rough that day and had we not been experienced and confident I’m not sure the trip would have been fun.  Catherine did ask us if we were ok going out.  If it turns out to be rough like that, and if you and your group are not somewhat experienced or wouldn’t handle the up and down of the small boat, you should consider cancelling.  The good news is that rough water isn’t the norm.  We did enjoy the trip and saw some interesting coral and sea life.  Given the options, this was a good trip and I will go with them again.  Catherine couldn’t have been more pleasant and the crew attentive.  I’m a safety-first guy and they handled that aspect very well.

 

We did not stay on the beach this trip as my wife had stayed on the ship and we are booked to return there several more times this year.  We have been to various beach stops there many times, most recently Krazy Lobster which was ok.  The Sargassum was very bad and all the beach clubs were struggling to keep their spots nice.  We plan to try Maya Chan when we return in November.  Gypsea is right next to YaYa and my wife and daughter had a good day there in May.  My wife spoke highly of their service and the comfort of the lounge chairs, something lacking at some of the clubs.  If they’re booked up just keep walking down the malecon back toward the lighthouse and you’ll see plenty more options.

This was incredibly helpful!! Thank you so much!! We will try Yaya afterwards or just walk down as you suggested. Again thank you for the detailed response! Sounds like a very personalized snorkeling experience, just what we are hoping for! Hopefully we have calm waters. Thanks again! Glad you all liked it!

[c-leg5]

3 minutes ago, RADGIRL80 said:

This was incredibly helpful!! Thank you so much!! We will try Yaya afterwards or just walk down as you suggested. Again thank you for the detailed response! Sounds like a very personalized snorkeling experience, just what we are hoping for! Hopefully we have calm waters. Thanks again! Glad you all liked it!

Just be aware YaYa may require a minimum cover charge. They may/may not have reinstated this requirement now. Unfortunately many of the beach bars in Mahahual are trying to go AI or minimum charge. Whilst we willingly  pay our way for the length of time we stay at an establishment sometimes we like to walk the malecon and sample along the way without committing to staying in one area for the whole time and this is becoming increasingly difficult.

 

Also realize the “ends” of the malecon are considerably quieter than the middle and whilst not vendor-free they are definitely less frequent.

[lifes-a-beach]

C-legs is on point.  Here’s the YaYa website page showing the different packages.  
 

https://www.yayabeachclub.com/bookings 

 

My wife says they got the deluxe no alcohol package and it was good.  Krazy Lobster doesn’t have the packages.  You can just get a table or lounge chairs and PAYG.  Their food was good and service was excellent as well.  It was very crowded the time we were there.  That may be the case at any of the beach clubs on any given day.  
 

Edit to say they made reservations the day before from the ship.

Edited June 18, 2022 by lifes-a-beach
Forgot something

[Ellaleah]

10 hours ago, lifes-a-beach said:

C-legs is on point.  Here’s the YaYa website page showing the different packages.  
 

https://www.yayabeachclub.com/bookings 

 

My wife says they got the deluxe no alcohol package and it was good.  Krazy Lobster doesn’t have the packages.  You can just get a table or lounge chairs and PAYG.  Their food was good and service was excellent as well.  It was very crowded the time we were there.  That may be the case at any of the beach clubs on any given day.  
 

Edit to say they made reservations the day before from the ship.

Edited 10 hours ago by lifes-a-beach

How does the ala carte pkg work? With no alcohol?  Can you order $25.00 worth of food per person.  Thank you

[c-leg5]

13 minutes ago, Ellaleah said:

How does the ala carte pkg work? With no alcohol?  Can you order $25.00 worth of food per person.  Thank you

Yes that is the package we would take but surely you will want water or something to drink?

[Ellaleah]

2 hours ago, c-leg5 said:

Yes that is the package we would take but surely you will want water or something to drink?

Yes, but being that we aren’t big alcohol drinkers, I thought we would be better off just ordering drinks.

[c-leg5]

1 hour ago, Ellaleah said:

Yes, but being that we aren’t big alcohol drinkers, I thought we would be better off just ordering drinks.

If it works like other places we have been it will just be an up-front charge that they will then deduct food and drinks (alcoholic/non) from. Like a non-refundable pre-payment. It is to ensure a minimum payment to offset use of loungers, bathrooms, facilities etc. It is to discourage  people from ordering one coke and usurping a lounger for several hours. Anything consumed over that will be charged at the end. In our experience, the prepayment is generally taken from the total check (ie not pp) but that is not necessarily a given.

I am not sure if you have noticed the menus also on the website? We are not big eaters at lunchtime on a cruise ship day and $25 pp food would be a lot for us at a beach bar but sometimes you have to consider the facility too. I agree with @lifes-a-beachKrazy Lobster is cheaper and food and service are good but it is busy and huge. Whilst there are some loungers, we only ended up with a table and chairs and it wasn’t as relaxing as I like.

 

Edited June 18, 2022 by c-leg5

[Ellaleah]

4 hours ago, c-leg5 said:

If it works like other places we have been it will just be an up-front charge that they will then deduct food and drinks (alcoholic/non) from. Like a non-refundable pre-payment. It is to ensure a minimum payment to offset use of loungers, bathrooms, facilities etc. It is to discourage  people from ordering one coke and usurping a lounger for several hours. Anything consumed over that will be charged at the end. In our experience, the prepayment is generally taken from the total check (ie not pp) but that is not necessarily a given.

I am not sure if you have noticed the menus also on the website? We are not big eaters at lunchtime on a cruise ship day and $25 pp food would be a lot for us at a beach bar but sometimes you have to consider the facility too. I agree with @lifes-a-beachKrazy Lobster is cheaper and food and service are good but it is busy and huge. Whilst there are some loungers, we only ended up with a table and chairs and it wasn’t as relaxing as I like.

Thanks again for your input. We have never been to Cozumel before so I have been trying to weed through the info to find a beach place for the afternoon after tours plaza or at the end.  I had never a heard of the Island a beach a club.  Have you been there and how does that compare?

[c-leg5]

20 minutes ago, Ellaleah said:

Thanks again for your input. We have never been to Cozumel before so I have been trying to weed through the info to find a beach place for the afternoon after tours plaza or at the end.  I had never a heard of the Island a beach a club.  Have you been there and how does that compare?

OK this is Costa Maya board but I assume you do mean Cozumel?

 

I haven’t been but I can answer more fully if you repost on Cozumel board.

[Ellaleah]

3 hours ago, c-leg5 said:

OK this is Costa Maya board but I assume you do mean Cozumel?

 

I haven’t been but I can answer more fully if you repost on Cozumel board.

 

3 hours ago, c-leg5 said:

OK this is Costa Maya board but I assume you do mean Cozumel?

 

I haven’t been but I can answer more fully if you repost on Cozumel board.

Yes, ty

[jbrinkm]

Gypsea Divers is also very responsive on WhatsApp!

[MahiMahi007]

There are several online companies that sell the tour, search "Costa Maya Snorkeling" in google