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Do You Know The Way To Holbox...?
I had worked out details pretty well on our 8 night adventure to include not only Coz (http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/cozumel/248752-our-coz-trip-unforgettable-cab-driver.html), but two days of Tulum Cenotes & Playa del Carmen turtle reef dives ( http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/mexico/248750-tulum-cenotes-playa-del-carmen-turtle-reef-dives.html ) followed by a Yucatan end-run to Holbox west of Cancun for two days of Whale Shark snorkeling trips, but then - “the Devil is in the Details,” always! Jer likes to take a “handle it Don” approach and I would like for him to get a little more involved in planning, but I did what I could - reviewing details over months of complex preparations, asking for input and gaining approval, the last week of hard suggestions too many overlooked by my dive bud. We had survived confusions, problems, and some wonderful dives and now it was time for the big climax - if the rental company would deliver my car…?!
I’d overbooked us with 3 ho-hum dives at PDC and we were late leaving the hotel with scant time to find our way to the final destination - but our car to be delivered at 1pm was nowhere to be seen. I made a few calls, receiving the obvious excuse: “A wreck on the hiway has delayed delivery.” Yeah I bet, got pics? It finally arrived tho, checked out okay and we were off on the road norte. I’d left the best map in luggage and it was another week when I finally realized why I didn’t have it and other better maps as I should have - next time, but I thought we’d find it okay with the maps we did have and the instructions from the rental agent - whom I failed to ask: “Have you ever been there?”
We made our leisurely trip to Cancun and the left turn onto 180D - a very nice expressway zipping us west across the Peninsula. Too bad it didn’t go where we wanted to go.
Some exploring had been considered, but not this degree! Arrrggg! In the US, when they replaced Route 66, they called it I-40, but in Mexico when they build an expressway that cannot be exited parallel to 180, they called it 180D. We needed to be on 180, but couldn’t get off this mistake that the rental agent sent us on until we’d driven well beyond our cross road, paid the toll we shouldn’t have needed, circled back on the local road, arguing over what the map at hand really showed and my printed notes should mean, wondering if we’d make the ferry or not?
My bud was good to remind me a week later in trip review about how hard I am at times; the same trait in me that makes details usually work also makes me hard to deal with when they don’t. We’d traveled a few days thru several challenges and mistakes already, getting on each others nerves a bit here and there, and I’m sure I wasn’t making it better at all by then. We were headed several miles beyond the end of Google maps tho and for those who may consider doing this trip - hire a van, or get the best maps and take turns driving & reading. Jer’s Spanish was more or less good enough to obtain directions from locals along the way - except they’d probably not been there either. Oh well, we found the ferry dock. The last ferry had already left, but there were boats to hire for not much more - if the two of us could calm down and agree. The “handle it Don” approach having failed a bit and we were both stressed and concerned about food before bed or morning dives - thank gawd we are friends, capable of more or less forgiving shortcomings. We managed to get to the island, found a golf cart taxi that took us and all our bags to the hotel, and then things got a lot better…
*
It was 9pm on a remote, sparsely populated Mexican island, but there were many choices of nice restaurants!! Whew! We even found some breakfast snacks for the next morning’s early trip and felt a whole lot better. We’d barely thrown our bags into the room earlier so we returned to unpack and hang our still wet dive gear on the balcony to dry. I knew that the room would have one double bed and one twin, but I don’t think Jer remembered that email. There was a frown in his voice when he offered to flip for the big one, but he’s even taller than me and I’d already planned for him to take it in case he needed to lay diagonally. I was fine in the twin, slept on worse on some live aboard boats.
*
Holbox Dreams is a nice little hotel owned by a French family and ran by a lovely young member of the clan. It was a bit cramped, but we were only in the room to change and nap plus the grounds were nice for any relaxing times. There was at least one small yapping dog on three sides of it, but we closed the windows and set the AC on high. Our boat picked us up the next morning at 7:30 and we were off for new adventures. Free breakfast is included if you don’t do the morning trips, but we got by on snacks until dinners.
*
We didn’t know for sure what itd be like to swim with Whale Sharks, aka Domino Sharks for their spots - the largest fish in the world and Mantas - the largest Rays, also in the shark family - both shallow filter feeder straining plankton from the water. Both are quite harmless, and while some are curious and friendly to swimmers, these see humans in the water everyday for months, ignore us, and everyone had to swim the hardest to stay with them. The first day we were good to watch as others went first, 2 tourists and the local guide on every round - but the second day we were the leaders going again and again until I gave out. The guide does every swim and they never seem tired, and Jer said he was good for another round - so I guess I was the wimp here, but a safe one. Each day gave us great dolphin viewing, Domino encounters, some Manta encounters, decent ham & cheese sandwiches & fruit with beverages, a snorkel stop in shallow water (I think that was planned as a bathroom in the water break), and a little tour of the tidal creeks that make Holbox an island rather than part of the little peninsula. And since our hotel is owned and operated by French, it wasn’t too surprising to see topless ladies on our beach on return.
I did get some enjoyable videos both days, I think. If you haven’t tried them, please do: MySpaceTV Videos: Holbox Whale Sharks by DandyDon and
MySpaceTV Videos: Whale Sharks & Mantas, Holbox Is Mexico Day 2 by DandyDon
All of our hotel & boat bookings were done in US Dollars and the ferry, cabs, cafes and shops all seem happy with those. Again, no plastic or travelers checks. Jer had settled with me in Pesos that he picked up on travelers checks exchange in Coz and I still have a couple of thousand Pesos to deposit in my bank here.
Really, I hope they never fix the road or signs any better as Holbox is such a charming island village of sand streets and fun shops. Business is booming during summer Whale Shark season tho, as well as Spring break and Winter holiday season - so I fear it’ll become more like overly developed Mexican Riviera. Glad we got to enjoy it before it’s ruined, and hope we can again.
In addition to the vids, I did get a few pics: play the AOL slide show here, "View As Guest" is asked to login....
Some other notes that might be helpful, and - we had more learning experiences to come in our adventures on the way to the airport…!
We didn’t use the taxis to and from town for dinners as it was just a few blocks. You can request an early morning taxi when you have luggage, but don’t count on it. I stayed with the bags and Jer found us one just in time.
The private boat is really worth the extra money over the ferry, we think. We paid for one but shared it with others on the way over late that night; no biggie - the owner made out well. But the trick is to arrive 30 minutes before a ferry and ask a boater how much? Jer got us a bargain leaving…!
When you pull into the ferry dock in a rental car, fill up the gas tank before you do anything else. The station is open late, but not early on a Sunday and we were not sure we’d find one open on the quarter tank remaining. We did, but it was touchy and food on the way back was a challenge.
Again with the good maps. Get the $2 Cancun airport map from Can-Do Maps and a decent one of Cancun itself. We did a helluva lot more exploring in Cancun before we found the road to the airport, then more around looking for the rental return before I gave up, called and demanded they come get their car. The maps the agency gave us didn’t show anything of the airport much less where to dump the rental, but we got rid of it with only a couple of parking fees.
And test drive the rental model before you leave the states. Ours had a 5th gear okay, and I was fine shifting up and down a hundred times for the villages and speed bumps Mexico is so fond of, but I never could figure out how to prevent the irritating beep beep beep with every 4th-5th transition.
Whew - a helluva a lot for two old farts in 9 days. We got it all done, quite an accomplishment. My hard approach got in the way some more but Jer’s laid back attitude evened us out pretty well. Hell, he was talking about where next tonight at dinner…
Pic albums links at bottom
I had worked out details pretty well on our 8 night adventure to include not only Coz (http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/cozumel/248752-our-coz-trip-unforgettable-cab-driver.html), but two days of Tulum Cenotes & Playa del Carmen turtle reef dives ( http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/mexico/248750-tulum-cenotes-playa-del-carmen-turtle-reef-dives.html ) followed by a Yucatan end-run to Holbox west of Cancun for two days of Whale Shark snorkeling trips, but then - “the Devil is in the Details,” always! Jer likes to take a “handle it Don” approach and I would like for him to get a little more involved in planning, but I did what I could - reviewing details over months of complex preparations, asking for input and gaining approval, the last week of hard suggestions too many overlooked by my dive bud. We had survived confusions, problems, and some wonderful dives and now it was time for the big climax - if the rental company would deliver my car…?!
I’d overbooked us with 3 ho-hum dives at PDC and we were late leaving the hotel with scant time to find our way to the final destination - but our car to be delivered at 1pm was nowhere to be seen. I made a few calls, receiving the obvious excuse: “A wreck on the hiway has delayed delivery.” Yeah I bet, got pics? It finally arrived tho, checked out okay and we were off on the road norte. I’d left the best map in luggage and it was another week when I finally realized why I didn’t have it and other better maps as I should have - next time, but I thought we’d find it okay with the maps we did have and the instructions from the rental agent - whom I failed to ask: “Have you ever been there?”
We made our leisurely trip to Cancun and the left turn onto 180D - a very nice expressway zipping us west across the Peninsula. Too bad it didn’t go where we wanted to go.
Some exploring had been considered, but not this degree! Arrrggg! In the US, when they replaced Route 66, they called it I-40, but in Mexico when they build an expressway that cannot be exited parallel to 180, they called it 180D. We needed to be on 180, but couldn’t get off this mistake that the rental agent sent us on until we’d driven well beyond our cross road, paid the toll we shouldn’t have needed, circled back on the local road, arguing over what the map at hand really showed and my printed notes should mean, wondering if we’d make the ferry or not?My bud was good to remind me a week later in trip review about how hard I am at times; the same trait in me that makes details usually work also makes me hard to deal with when they don’t. We’d traveled a few days thru several challenges and mistakes already, getting on each others nerves a bit here and there, and I’m sure I wasn’t making it better at all by then. We were headed several miles beyond the end of Google maps tho and for those who may consider doing this trip - hire a van, or get the best maps and take turns driving & reading. Jer’s Spanish was more or less good enough to obtain directions from locals along the way - except they’d probably not been there either. Oh well, we found the ferry dock. The last ferry had already left, but there were boats to hire for not much more - if the two of us could calm down and agree. The “handle it Don” approach having failed a bit and we were both stressed and concerned about food before bed or morning dives - thank gawd we are friends, capable of more or less forgiving shortcomings. We managed to get to the island, found a golf cart taxi that took us and all our bags to the hotel, and then things got a lot better…
I did get some enjoyable videos both days, I think. If you haven’t tried them, please do: MySpaceTV Videos: Holbox Whale Sharks by DandyDon and
MySpaceTV Videos: Whale Sharks & Mantas, Holbox Is Mexico Day 2 by DandyDon
All of our hotel & boat bookings were done in US Dollars and the ferry, cabs, cafes and shops all seem happy with those. Again, no plastic or travelers checks. Jer had settled with me in Pesos that he picked up on travelers checks exchange in Coz and I still have a couple of thousand Pesos to deposit in my bank here.
Really, I hope they never fix the road or signs any better as Holbox is such a charming island village of sand streets and fun shops. Business is booming during summer Whale Shark season tho, as well as Spring break and Winter holiday season - so I fear it’ll become more like overly developed Mexican Riviera. Glad we got to enjoy it before it’s ruined, and hope we can again.
In addition to the vids, I did get a few pics: play the AOL slide show here, "View As Guest" is asked to login....
Some other notes that might be helpful, and - we had more learning experiences to come in our adventures on the way to the airport…!
We didn’t use the taxis to and from town for dinners as it was just a few blocks. You can request an early morning taxi when you have luggage, but don’t count on it. I stayed with the bags and Jer found us one just in time.
The private boat is really worth the extra money over the ferry, we think. We paid for one but shared it with others on the way over late that night; no biggie - the owner made out well. But the trick is to arrive 30 minutes before a ferry and ask a boater how much? Jer got us a bargain leaving…!
When you pull into the ferry dock in a rental car, fill up the gas tank before you do anything else. The station is open late, but not early on a Sunday and we were not sure we’d find one open on the quarter tank remaining. We did, but it was touchy and food on the way back was a challenge.
Again with the good maps. Get the $2 Cancun airport map from Can-Do Maps and a decent one of Cancun itself. We did a helluva lot more exploring in Cancun before we found the road to the airport, then more around looking for the rental return before I gave up, called and demanded they come get their car. The maps the agency gave us didn’t show anything of the airport much less where to dump the rental, but we got rid of it with only a couple of parking fees.
And test drive the rental model before you leave the states. Ours had a 5th gear okay, and I was fine shifting up and down a hundred times for the villages and speed bumps Mexico is so fond of, but I never could figure out how to prevent the irritating beep beep beep with every 4th-5th transition.
Whew - a helluva a lot for two old farts in 9 days. We got it all done, quite an accomplishment. My hard approach got in the way some more but Jer’s laid back attitude evened us out pretty well. Hell, he was talking about where next tonight at dinner…
