Rob9876
Contributor
Yes, AirBnB is a thing in Cozumel, and the last time we were there we got a great 3 bedroom house with a small pool in a nice part of town for about $140/night (total including all fees, and that was on short notice, you can probably do better). Tip: when they say "air-conditioned" you may want to ask if it's the whole house or just the bedrooms (if so, confirm all bedrooms). It's quite easy for non-Spanish-speakers to shop at the Chedraui or Mega supermarkets in town. You can get some nice baked goods at the Chedraui or one of the bakeries in town -- we did this for convenience many mornings, but some mornings we went out for breakfast. There are a lot of good, reasonably priced restaurants in town. My son and I were getting our OW certification, and the other 3 of our party were going to beaches, so we rented cars from Rentadora Isis, who we have rented from several other times with all good experiences.
For a small boutique hotel at great prices you might consider Casita de Maya. They have a chef that can take your breakfast orders the night before and have you ready to go early. So many good restaurants in town that we really only ate here for breakfast, and half the time just had coffee with baked goods from the bakery in town that we bought the night before. Here, again, you will need to drive or take a taxi to beaches, which is not a big deal -- could be at Buccanos beach club in less than 10 minutes.
The more we visit Cozumel the more we enjoy alternatives to All-Inclusives (AI), but there is definitely a convenience about AI's. We've stayed at Allegro once and Melia several times. You can often get great prices at the Allegro, and it has a nice sandy beach (which equals bland snorkeling) and it also has a dive shop on premises (Allegro Cozumel Hotel & Dive Resort | Pro Dive International). The Allegro has what someone called cafeteria-grade food (not bad, not great). But their breakfast was good, lunch passable for beach days, and dinner o.k. but worth splurging to go to a restaurant in town a few nights. The Melia has better food, is closer to town, generally costs a little more, the beach and water is not as nice (but some decent snorkeling at the hotel next door, which you are allowed to go to) and also has a dive shop (Melia Cozumel Golf - All Inclusive - Pro Dive International).
As I've been planning my next trip to Cozumel, Dive With Martin and Tres Pelicanos have been the shops that stood out from my research as having good prices and lots of great reviews. I've been especially looking at Dive With Martin (Home Page) as their dive package prices include the cost of all basic gear, which is pretty unusual, but nice if you don't have gear or don't want to schlep it. Also, you can add a night dive to their package for $35. They'll also pick up from some resorts.
Hope this helps!
For a small boutique hotel at great prices you might consider Casita de Maya. They have a chef that can take your breakfast orders the night before and have you ready to go early. So many good restaurants in town that we really only ate here for breakfast, and half the time just had coffee with baked goods from the bakery in town that we bought the night before. Here, again, you will need to drive or take a taxi to beaches, which is not a big deal -- could be at Buccanos beach club in less than 10 minutes.
The more we visit Cozumel the more we enjoy alternatives to All-Inclusives (AI), but there is definitely a convenience about AI's. We've stayed at Allegro once and Melia several times. You can often get great prices at the Allegro, and it has a nice sandy beach (which equals bland snorkeling) and it also has a dive shop on premises (Allegro Cozumel Hotel & Dive Resort | Pro Dive International). The Allegro has what someone called cafeteria-grade food (not bad, not great). But their breakfast was good, lunch passable for beach days, and dinner o.k. but worth splurging to go to a restaurant in town a few nights. The Melia has better food, is closer to town, generally costs a little more, the beach and water is not as nice (but some decent snorkeling at the hotel next door, which you are allowed to go to) and also has a dive shop (Melia Cozumel Golf - All Inclusive - Pro Dive International).
As I've been planning my next trip to Cozumel, Dive With Martin and Tres Pelicanos have been the shops that stood out from my research as having good prices and lots of great reviews. I've been especially looking at Dive With Martin (Home Page) as their dive package prices include the cost of all basic gear, which is pretty unusual, but nice if you don't have gear or don't want to schlep it. Also, you can add a night dive to their package for $35. They'll also pick up from some resorts.
Hope this helps!
