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hiring a driver for the day

tyson

By tyson,
in Cozumel

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c-leg5

c-leg5

Posted
Posted
OK is Tours Plaza or Gerry there once we get off the ship in Cozume, or do you have to book them ahead of time? If they are there for us to ask if they would take us on a tour, do you have an idea what they charge per hour?

 

You need to reserve in advance. Google ToursPlaza for website with further suggestions for tour and prices. Very good at replying and efficient service.

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LHP

LHP

Posted
Posted
OK is Tours Plaza or Gerry there once we get off the ship in Cozume, or do you have to book them ahead of time? If they are there for us to ask if they would take us on a tour, do you have an idea what they charge per hour?

 

You will need to book them ahead of time.

 

Cost of the tour on a Car for up to 4 persons is usd$107.00 for the first 3 hours tour + usd$25.00 for each additional hour.

 

Cost of the tour on a Van for up to 9 persons is usd$195.00 for the first 3 hours tour + usd$40.00 for each additional hour, these prices are per vehicle not per person.

 

Beverages, lunch, park admissions, etc. are not included in the prices and are your responsibility.

 

We need you to fill up the online reservation format, and then we will e-mail an invoice request and with-in two clicks you can send us usd$62.00 for the Car and usd$100.00 for the Van as a deposit online with paypal funds or credit card, upon receiving the deposit we will send you back your confirmation & deposit receipt with instructions on where to meet your driver, please print it out and bring it with you.

 

VERY IMPORTANT :

 

If you are arriving via cruise ship and are unable to dock in Cozumel at all, deposit will be refunded.

 

Not all private tours will refund if the ship does not dock...so this is very very important that they will !!

 

See the link that LRENE posted earlier!

 

Enjoy!!

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LRene

LRene

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Although you book ahead of time, Tours Plaza is very accommodating and very quick to respond to emails. Even if it's close to the time for your cruise, they will likely be able to squeeze you in for the day.

 

Enjoy your time in Cozumel! :)

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artseeker

artseeker

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Posted

With more than a month behind, I've been very busy, but I promised, and here it goes... at the end it was only 8 of us for the tour in Cozumel, so I hired a regular van. Leo couldn't make it that day so George took over; he was on time and at the place indicated in the confirmation. As soon as I saw the yellow cap I knew who it was; he introduced himself to all of us and I realized he was a gentleman, he helped the ladies get on the van, he explained all the places I had asked to see beforehand, which I thought were the most interesting because of my research before the reservation. First we went to a supermarket to buy water, sodas and beer for the cooler they have in the van; I also bought vanilla and a few canned Mexican salsas, then George gave us a city tour and explained to us the culture and the daily living of the Island people. We took photos, visited some monuments and a small church; he then took us to the local market where we bought some dry chilies that I needed, and some other ingredientes that are difficult to find back home, and when I do find them they're not as fresh as over there. We then went to a store where they sell the Mexican cholotates with so many flavors, habanero chile, eggnog, spearmint, wintergreen, etc., and of course I bought several flavors; George also took us to a tequila tour that is not where they make it, but he explained to all the process of making it and the plant where they get it from. They were selling bottles of tequila, but we didn't buy any because we'd bought some at the store when we got the sodas. George took us then to the Mayan ruins; I had researched the history about this place and the Godess Ixchel and I read that in the monuments they have signs that explains what each construction is. Because we didn't know really how long we would stay, we didn't hire a guide for this, but all was good; I explained to the group the few things I learned, and it was a lot more than they knew ;) and reading the signs was more than enough. I was amazed that at the ruins you see a lot of iguanas eating flowers, all the archeological zones are surrounded by jungle; I really thought it was a very interesting place, not like Tulum but definitely interesting. I tell you, it was hot that day, so we stayed about 1/2 an hour and it was delicious to go back to the AC van that George had turned on before our arrival, what a pleasant surprise. He took us then to the other side of the Island, wow, the wild side is incredible, the lonely beaches, very clean, beautiful, we ate in a place that George recommended us (cannot remember the name), by the ocean, rustic type but very clean, great service, by then we were hunbry and we all liked what we ate, grilled fish, ceviche, fajitas, some Mexican seafood dishes, but what I like a lot about the tour is that you can make changes, all you have to do is tell George and as you go you can modify your itinerary, for instance, we went by a place that were volcanic formations that the ocean breaks on them, and we asked George to stop, he parked and we got down to take photos, somebody bought fresh coconut water (they add some vodka and it's very good). At the beginning our plans were to have George drop us at a beach called Sanchoz and we would take a taxi to theship, but we were having such good time that we changed the plan and went to another beach that George suggested, very peaceful, some went in the ocean, we ordered Margaritas and we stayed a good while, then it was time to go back, we left the beach. With all we hear and read in the news about the violent situation in Mexico, I was a little skeptic, but 10 minutes into the tour with George I knew we were in good hands. The Island, beautiful and clean and interesting, so thanks to George, all the nice people that we met in the different places and to Cozulmel, the tour was one of the highlights of the cruise. If anybody has a question, please let me know and I'll gladly will answer.

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Anyislandwilldo

Anyislandwilldo

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Posted

Just off the Victory. Read many reviews about Tours Plaza so we booked ahead to time prior to docking in Cozumel. Our driver was Leo. Based on reviews and recommendations, we requested to see the San Gervasion Ruins, Coconuts, Punta Sur and just a basic tour of the island. Our driver Leo was very knowledgeable about the island and suggest our itenerary based on our requests. He oftened referenced a map of the island so we knew in advance where we were going. Leo was very respectful towards us. He opened the car door for us and helped us navigate around on some the rock formations. Leo stopped at a local store so we could pick up bug spray for the ruins. We returned to the cruise port with plenty of time left to browse some of the stores. It was fun talking to Leo about the island and he had a good sense of humor as well. We had some good laughs. Please request Leo if you plan to do this tour. You won't be disappointed.

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Kletina

Kletina

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I cannot believe that I waited this long. We are cruising March 6th and it seems Tours Plaza is booked for the day. Can anyone recommend another driver/company other then Tours Plaza????? :(

 

maybe is late to answer this one but I just checked on the reservation calendar at their website, and march 6th is still open, you just have to choose the date on the calendar and the vehicule you want and fields to write your name e-mail, etc will pop up, I just did it and did not receive any messages telling me date is full, on the calendar the only date you can not choose right now is march 1st and that is tomorrow

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LHP

LHP

Posted
Posted
I cannot believe that I waited this long. We are cruising March 6th and it seems Tours Plaza is booked for the day. Can anyone recommend another driver/company other then Tours Plaza????? :(

 

I just talked with a friend who just booked with them and they do have availability for that day....

 

I would check with them again !!!

 

Make sure you checked with the correct folks....

 

http://www.toursplaza.com/

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lori_momof3

lori_momof3

Posted
Posted

We hired a driver a few weeks ago, we were on a cruise. We went to Money Bar, Playa Palancar, then went to the east side and stayed awhile. Loved our time at all three. Most of us carried our own snorkel gear, but a few didn't, a few people rented from money bar while we were there. Great snorkeling at both places. We had plenty of time and even arrived back at the shops for a little shopping. We used Santiago Zapata great guy, had ice cooler packed with drinks we asked for. His email is sanzaparadise@hotmail.com We rented a van for all day, there were 9 of us he had lots of drinks for adults and kids, charged us $180 and got us free snorkel gear and kayaks at playa palancar. Very reliable guy, did not ask for money up front.

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Cruzin_Susan

Cruzin_Susan

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We had Cantaro on Saturday in Cozumel and could not ask for a better time. He was waiting for us at the port and took us to the ruins, the chocolate factory, to Coconuts for lunch (YUM and FUN!) the east side and back to port,. He was pleasant, helpful, informative, very professional. Eduardo called him soon after we got into the car to make sure all was ok. Would definitely book with ToursPlaza and Cantaro again!

 

We just booked our driver and assigned Cantaro! Was relieved to find this post. This is the first time hiring a drive to take us around. :)

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beshears

beshears

Posted
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OK, so what is the "chocolate factory" all about? I see it was part of a tour.

 

If we don't book ahead of time, is it possible that tour guides will be around, trying to fill their vehicles up before they leave?

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c-leg5

c-leg5

Posted
Posted
OK, so what is the "chocolate factory" all about? I see it was part of a tour.

 

If we don't book ahead of time, is it possible that tour guides will be around, trying to fill their vehicles up before they leave?

 

Here is a link to the website http://www.chocolateskaokao.com/DefaultEng.aspx

 

There is a link to booking a factory tour. This is done independently in advance direct with the factory. You can try and go as a walk-up but places are limited as it is a very small place so it depends how many places are already booked whether there will be room.

 

Transport is not offered by the factory but by a private driver arranged in advance, or taxi. It is on the outskirts of town, too far and time consuming for most cruisers to walk to.

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Cruisin4aTan

Cruisin4aTan

Posted
Posted

This was the first time we have hired a driver in Cozumel (have done so in other ports) since we wanted to see the other side of the island.

After Tours Plaza was booked for the day and time frame we wanted, I asked around on the boards and found Black Hat Cozumel. From the beginning of dealing with Crescencio until saying goodby, he was wonderful. He charged us $100 for a little over 3 hours, his van was clean, ac worked great and arrived with a cooler full of ice cold water.

We had our time already planned on where and what we wanted to do and he kept us on track with no worries. Crescencio was a perfect guide and a gentlemen in helping us all in and out of the van. He loves to help with taking group pictures and wanted to take some for his facebook page as well. :)

I would highly recommend Black Hat Cozumel and plan on using them again in a few months to see some of the sights on the "wild side" which we didnt have time for!!

Hope this helps...:cool:

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MisterBill99

MisterBill99

Posted
Posted (edited)
OK, so if you have been to the "chocolate factory," what is it all about? In otherwords, what do you see when you get to this factory in Cozumel?

I'm sure you can find this information in threads here that discuss the chocolate factory, rather than hijacking the thread about booking a car and driver.

 

We did the chocolate factory tour. We really enjoyed it, although timing-wise it really messed us up because I booked the 11am tour and they didn't take us right away (they started it early, before we got there). Our driver (Leo) asked if we wanted him to wait or leave, and we told him to stay because we were planning to go back downtown afterwards. But our hour tour ended up taking an hour and a half so we went back to the ship. I haven't posted about my experience. We really liked Leo, but I don't think we got the optimal use of our time, and part of that was because we were with friends who insisted on doing the ruins and I figured we should get there early. I wanted to see the Mercado, so we started off there, then we went to the ruins but the normal guides were not there yet, so Leo arranged for us to tag along with a bus guide. Then he took us someplace to get some vanilla, which was nice but not that important. Then we had to get to the chocolate factory. We never got to the other side of the island, or to a place I wanted to try for lunch (although my friends didn't want to go so I didn't push it, anyway) and we didn't get to go shopping downtown since we wanted to get back to the ship. We probably should have done the later chocolate tour since it wouldn't have messed up the stuff we could do after the ruins, but I was afraid about getting back to the ship on time after the 1pm tour. We probably should have paid Leo at the chocolate factory and gotten them to call a cab for us, but our friends wanted him to stay and since we were spitting the cost, it wasn't worth having a disagreement over.

 

As for the tour, they start with a talk about the history of chocolate. Then you make a disk of chocolate to make your own hot chocolate with (you take this home), then they give some samples. then you go to the store where you can buy chocolate. I really enjoyed it and it was worth $10. I didn't get to pay online because their system claimed there weren't spots but I emailed them and was told to come in, they had room for me. When I paid, they used a conversion rate of 10 peso to $1 and charged me in pesos which worked out really well for me when my credit card company converted to dollars.

Edited by MisterBill99
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shamrockmama

shamrockmama

Posted
Posted

Hello fellow cruisers! Back from our awesome cruise holiday and feel like sharing our wonderful experience with with Javier from tourplaza... We met him at the designated pick up spot at the pier and headed to explore the island.. Started off at a free tequila tour & Mayan village make shift and then headed to a local delicious (and cheap too!) Mexican food restaurant and after ward went off the beaten path to get a feel of the real Cozumel... It sure was worth it to go with all the great reviews he has on CC and T.A. and have him as our driver for the day, he made sure our dollars lasted and even got more souvenirs than planned:D:D

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