COZUMEL — MEXICO'S ISLAND PLAYGROUND

Mexico's largest inhabited island, Cozumel, measures 53 kilometers long and 16 kilometers wide. That makes it big enough to offer visitors plenty of diversions, but small enough that all excursions can be easy day trips.

Offshore reefs attract divers from around the world. The Palancar Reef, made famous by a 1961 Jacques Cousteau documentary, offers over 200 species of fish and visibility to 60 meters.

Because there are undersea currents here, a local scuba instructor must accompany all divers. Dive shops offer guided tours.

Plenty for non-divers

Non-divers can take glass-bottomed boat tours, or do as we did and visit Chankanaab Lagoon, a natural aquarium, botanical gardens and public beach that's famed for its snorkeling. Nearby, at La Ceiba, divers and snorkelers can find a plane that was sunk for the film, Survive.

Boy builds sandcastles on Cozumel beach. Mexico.

Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll

On our first day, we strolled along an eight-kilometer-long beach, near our hotel on the protected western shore, then kayaked and windsurfed on the aquamarine sea. Another day, we rented a car to explore the island.

There's only one main road, so it's impossible to get lost. You can circle the island in just 1½ hours, but we stopped several times, stretching our drive to a full day.

Mayan ruins

Scrubby jungle encroaches both sides of the paved road. Near the southern tip of the island is El Cedral, one of Cozumel's 35 archeological sites. San Gervasio is the best-preserved Mayan ruin.

The others are difficult to reach, unless you're driving a four-wheel drive vehicle. None of these low-to-the-ground buildings rival the extensive ruins of Chichen Itza or the spectacular location of Tulum on the mainland, however.

Pirates and chewing gum

Cozumel used to be a pilgrimage centre for Mayan women, who paid homage to Ixchel, the lunar goddess of fertility. Cortez landed here in 1519, on his way to conquer the mainland.

Couple relax on lounge chairs. Cozumel beach. Mexico.

Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll

Unfortunately, the Spaniards also brought smallpox, which decimated most of the islanders. By the 17th century, marauding pirates like Henry Morgan and Jean Lafitte, used Cozumel's coves to hide their ships.

Few people lived on Cozumel until the popularity of chewing gum increased exports of chicle, after the turn of the century. When synthetic gum replaced chicle, the island fell into an economic slump until the U.S. air force built a base here during WWII.

Today, tourism is the primary industry, a not-so-surprising fact, when you consider that Cozumel has been hosting travelers, albeit intermittently, for 700 years.

Not all visitors are human

As we turned north, on the windswept east coast road, the blue-green surf pounded the sandy beach. Every year, from May to September, giant sea turtles lumber up on shore to lay their eggs.

Although the beach looked tempting, our guidebook advised against swimming here because of the strong undertow. We saw few people, just sea grapes, stunted palms and the occasional iguana on the flat-as-a-tortilla inland side, and a wildly-beautiful coast on the other.

Capital city

The road turned inland to San Miguel, the capital city, where virtually the entire population of 90,000 lives. There are no parking meters, so we left our car on the waterfront boulevard, Avenida Rafael Melgar, and strolled to the Plaza del Sol.

Colorful buildings line Avenida Rafael Malgar. San Miguel. Cozumel, Mexico.

Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll

It was Sunday evening, and the locals, dressed in their best clothing, were promenading around the four-block plaza and listening to music at the band shell.

Great seafood and steaks

The streets spread out in a grid pattern, so it was easy to get around on foot. We asked Maria, a friendly local, to point out her favorite restaurants. "Las Palmeras, one of the oldest in town, is very popular," she said. "For authentic Mexican food, I like La Chosa. The best place for fine dining on flambéed shrimp and steaks is Pepe's Grill. A few blocks from here, La Mission serves great seafood."

Carlos 'n Charlie's posts a tongue-in-cheek sign reading: "For members and nonmembers only. No smiling, grinning or laughing allowed. No looking around. No diving from the balcony. No whatever you had in mind..."

Red light district

Planet Hollywood is also popular. We asked Juan, another local resident, to tell us about other hot spots for nightlife. "After the restaurants close, people go to Neptuno Disco," he said.

"There are also a couple movie theatres in town where you can see a movie for a great price. Cozumel even has its own zona rosa. People call it 3½ since it's 3½ kilometers out of town."

We opted to return to our hotel for its nightly entertainment, but not before stopping at La Flor de Michoacan which sells luscious tropical fruit-flavored ice creams and aguas frescas. "Don't worry about the water," said the owner, as we sipped our refreshing coconut waters. "Restaurants use only purified water and ice, and the Health Board routinely inspects us."

Walled Mayan city

On our final day, we visited Tulum on a tour from our hotel. A 45-minute ferry ride brought us to the mainland, then a bus transferred us to Tulum. The Mayan walled city sits dramatically on a cliff 12 meters above the turquoise Caribbean. From a corner watchtower, we surveyed the Yucatan jungle that surrounds it on three sides.

In front of us, El Castillo, a pyramid, dominates the remains of the 60 buildings that once occupied the site. The Mayas called Tulum "city of the dawn," because it faced east.

We were too late to enjoy one of its fabled sunrises, but we returned to Cozumel in time to watch the setting sun paint the sky with brushstrokes of raspberry and tangerine. It was a fitting end to a memorable week in Cozumel.

TRAVEL INFORMATION

Cozumel: www.mexico-travel.com/cozumel.htm

MORE INFORMATION

Central America on a Shoestring by Lonely Planet

Additional Reading: Lonely Planet Guide: Mexico