Hi,
My family is looking at doing a family trip down to Cozumel in late March or early April of this year. My parents are in their 60's (WI), my husband and i in our mid 30's (MN) and my brother and his partner in their late 20's (NYC). We are all certified divers, we all love warm weather but can't stand just beaching it all day. Don't need a ton of night life as long as we can get a rum and coke. Our budget is about $5,000 for the 6 of us for air, accommodations (for 5-6 nights), food and a few dives/activites. We need suggestions on how to get to Cozumel (should we fly into Cancun and do the whole planes trains and automobiles) or just fly right onto the island. We don't need luxury, but all want our own bedrooms, and love to cook b-fast in our unit - a kitchenette is needed~~ so need accommodation suggestions and dive shop suggestions. Plus anything anyone else wants to put out there.
Thanks in advance!

First of all, check out Cozumel's conditons. It was hit pretty hard by hurrican Wilma and I don't know how much they've repaired yet.

We went to Cozumel with my inlaws about 5 years ago (so this might be dated info.) and loved the house we rented from Cozumel Vacation Rentals.

We rented Casa Quetzal, which was very comfortable, with one bedroom with a king and another with 2 queens. It is in town, not at the beach, but had 2 baths, a pool, a shaded patio, a rinse tank for your dive gear and lovely landscaping. A maid came every day. Here's a link:
http://www.cozumel-vacation-rentals.com/quetzal.htm

They have larger houses too. We thought Casa Quetzal was a great deal, and loved night-time dips in the pool.

We rented a jeep to go snorkeling and exploring (we weren't divers yet, then, but were inspired by the snorkeling to get certified.)

If we go back we will definitely try to stay here again. It was in a "real" neighborhood, with a tiny hole-in-the wall restaurant around the corner where we lined up with the locals and got mini ham and cheese empanadas for breakfast each morning. It was delightful!

Sorry I can't help with dive shop recommendations. Have you looked at The Traveling Diver's Chapbook? It is full of real write-ups about resorts and dive operations by divers. I find it very helpful. Have a great trip.

This might be too late of a reply, but maybe not? I just booked a trip to Cozumel for mid april.. We are leaving out of Minneapolis 4/9 and returning 4/16.
For air/hotel, transfers and daily breakfast - staying at Case Del Mar we got a wonderful deal of approx $575 per person.. They had units with kitchenettes for slightly more. It was through MLT.. Good Luck and Happy Travels.

Go to www.scubadiving.com and post your question on their BB. Several active posters there live and work on Coz and can give you great recommendations and most up to date info. There are some good all-inclusives on the south end of the island which is nearest the best diving but they all got hit hard by both Hurricane Emily and Wilma - some may not yet be open. Closer to town are lots of smaller hotels, no beach, but within walking distance of the restaurants, bars, etc which will save cab fare. 3 years ago we stayed at what is now called the Hotel Cozumel [it has changed names a couple of times recently] - reasonable accomodations, great pool, no kitchenettes as far as I know, has a small beach and an on-site dive operation. Also close to downtown is the Scuba Club Cozumel - it is AI but caters to divers. Has a tiny beach, but great reviews from divers. Don't need to worry about cooking or meal expense. They have a website - www.scubaclubcozumel.com - and if you pick up a copy of either Rodales' Scuba Diving Magazine or Sport Diver, they are always advertising specials - often 1 diver pays full price, second diver pays non-diver price - or things like that.

Look at some of the package deals available thru companies like Funjet. Airfare to Coz isn't cheap, but a charter will be cheaper than scheduled air. Continental flys into Coz from Houston and American has 1 flight from Dallas. You can fly into Cancun and take the ferry over - it's cheaper but a bigger hassle because you have to take a bus from Cancun to Playa then get on the ferry, then repeat the process to go home. It'll cost you almost your whole last day just to get back to Cancun for your flight. I'd spend the extra $$$$ to go straight to Coz.

I just came back from Cozumel on Monday. Had a reasonable fare into Coz from Kansas City for $407 with AA. There was only one thing that I wanted to do (visit Punta Sur) that I could not because of Wilma's damage.

My trip report with many photos is at http://www.mightymac.org/06cozumel01.htm

Keith