waynel:
Like I said, haven't been to Cozumel in 18 years. San Miguel was a sleepy little village then. I've been reading a great deal of threads on this board concerning Cozumel. I hear "laid back". But man, between warnings about car insurance, parking, police, cab drivers and now picking up a rock...doesn't sound too laid back to me. I remember when it was 18 years ago. Hope I'm not disappointed. I stopped going to Cancun because of that same reason. Went from "sleepy" to "stress".
Well, you'll see some changes since 1989 (my cherry trip was in 1979), but mostly in spots along the west coast and the first block or two from the water in town (i.e., where the cruseros go). But not to worry; there's still plenty of Cozumel that's the same as it ever was. Compared to Cancun, it's still very laid back. One thing that will be new to you is traffic lights. I think that there are about 10 of them on the island now.
Some of the old haunts are still there; La Choza, Pancho's, Sonora, Pepe's, Las Palmeras, El Capi Navegante, the Museum, Neptuno, and El Moro are all pretty much as you remember them. Others, like Acuario, the Scaramouche, and Joe's Reggae Bar, are just gone. The Acuario is still standing but gutted by Wilma, but you'd never know the Scaramouche was ever there. Joe's moved a couple of times, briefly, but economics finally closed their doors for good.
Anyway, be not dismayed; it's still a great place to go, and it it retains a lot of what you remember. The only constant thing is change. BTW, I haven't seen a conch shell on the beach in a long time, anyway.