What to do in Costa Maya

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nitrogenaddict

Guest
The walk to Mahahual is approximately 20 minutes. You can get a ride to the town from the pier. The town is actually 3 miles long. The main "commercial centre" is where you get dropped off. I f you walk a short distance away from the town you will find other bars and restaurants. The town of Mahahual is very safe for all visitors, (contrary to the information given out on some of the cruise ships).

The Dive Centres in Mahahual are BLUE HA DIVING and BUCANERO DEL CARIBE and MAYA PALMS RESORT. All Dive operators offer resort courses. Blue Ha and Maya Palms are PADI centres and can be booked through Mayahual Tours at the cruiseship pier. Bucanero del Caribe (CMAS) can also be booked at the pier. The centres try to accommodate people’s wishes but the most important thing is to get the people back to the ship. Blue Ha has all Scubapro equipment, Maya Palms has Sherwood equipment and Bucanero has a variety of equipment.

Mahahual Village now has: - Snorkel tours, wave runners, fishing, parasailing, and horseback riding, Scuba Diving. 2 operators with booths at the pier are Mayahual Tours (3 booths) and Let's Go Snorkelling. These tour operators organise a trip to town for 5USD per person. The return trip is 2 USD per person with the local taxis. There are a lot of beach bars and restaurants in the area. Shopping for souvenirs is also possible at more moderate prices than offered at the Pier.

Parasailing is now being offered by MAYAHUAL TOURS who have 2 booths at the cruise ship pier.
The snorkel tour operators all have locker facilities for storing personal items of guests. There are three in the town, Mayahual Tours; (20:00USD per person. 1&1/2 hour trip) they have 2 booths at the cruise ship pier selling their trips. They will arrange transport for you or you can go directly into town and they have a stand on the beach just as you come into town. The other is Let's Go Snorkelling- their prices are the same and can arrange transport into town. By the way it costs 5 USD per person for the trip to town. Once in town you return by yellow cab and this will cost 2 USD per person. (Do not ask about this idiosyncrasy in prices). The third place for snorkelling is in the centre of the town (or we should really say Village). They are next door to the Taxis. Their prices are the same. Lifejackets are on board. There are golf carts for rent at the port of Costa Maya , (15 USD per hour, 45 USD per half day and 75 USD per full day). There is also Deep-sea fishing on offer from Mayahual Tours.

As for eating and drinking there are few places worth mentioning: -
OXTANKHA serves the best Ceviche in town -- Ceviche is raw conch, prawns and sometimes Octopus marinated in Lime Juice. It is served with tomato and onion and taco chips.
TAPAS Bar, Italian Argentinean owners. Serve good food and drinks, they have a place on the beach with tables and chairs.
Another good recommendation is PEZ QUADRO. This is about 800 yards south of the town centre. Italian run. A beautiful beach bar with swing seats serving cocktails, beer, and Italian and Mexican cuisine. There are others like, CAPTAIN MONO and El Delfin. Further down about 1 mile and a half from the town centre is the Casa Del Mar Beach Café. This offers pancakes, freshly baked German Bread and all day breakfast with freshly pressed orange juice.

In Mahahual there are a few restaurants offering excellent cuisine in the day and evenings. There is the Restaurant LUNA PLATA offering Italian pasta, pizza and meat dish, run by Italians, Dario, Edzekiel, and Luca. The next restaurant next door is TIROVINO run by Chiara and Michael. They offer Thailand dishes and pasta. In the town centre is OXTANKHA offering Mexican dishes. There is also the TEQUILA BEACH, which offers various meals. Later in the evening is Music. On Cruise ship days these places are always open. Now if you rent a golf cart or ATV (4 Wheeler you can visit TRAVEL IN a small restaurant run by an English Dutch couple. They do great hamburgers, PITA bread with various dips. They are approximately 3 miles out of town or 5.5 km.

There are tours offered by the local taxis to Chachobben, Kohunlich, Bacalar, Chetumal.

There are now 4-wheeled ATVs for rent.
 
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Natalia

Guest
Excellent information... I was wondering what had happened to you. Good to see you again and thanks for all of the informative suggestions. I will be in Costa Maya again later this year.
 
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caughtupincruising

Guest
Hi,
Great information! We will be travelling to Costa Maya on the GOS in Feb. We own our own snorkle equipment. Where is a good place to snorkle and what does it cost for horseback riding? Should we purchase the excursions on the ship or on the pier? Pros and cons? Thanks for your info this our 2nd cruise and 1st with our three children.
 
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