Are Royal Caribbean's Western Caribbean Ports Worth Visiting?

Are you considering a Western Caribbean cruise with Royal Caribbean? Stick around to see what the ports of call are like and if they are even worth visiting!' It’s coming up right now on…

A 7-night Western Caribbean cruise with Royal Caribbean usually includes two stops in Mexico - Cozumel and Costa Maya plus a stop at Roatan, Honduras.

Like most experienced cruisers, we look forward to port days because we pretty much have the ship to ourselves. This means no long lines at Flowrider, the Ultimate Abyss slide, and plenty of seating by the pool.

But we are on vacation and in a foreign country, so it can still be fun to get off the ship and do a little exploring. But what is there to do? And is there anything you need to be careful of?

I’ll take you on a tour of the 3 most popular ports of call so you can see for yourself.

Cozumel, Mexico

We were on Wonder of the Seas from Orlando so our first stop was Cozumel, Mexico. Cozumel is the most authentic port I’ve seen in the Caribbean.

See, most of the Caribbean ports you visit whether it be Mexico, Jamaica, or St. Thomas, and so on, are all manufactured ports.

These are not rlittle towns that exist naturally. They are full-blown tourist traps. But that’s ok, we’re tourists. Orlando, Dollywood, and Las Vegas, all follow the same principles.

These fake little towns are in a high-security compound, so you’ll only find fellow cruise passengers here and licensed vendors.

The first thing you’ll notice about Cozumel is that it’s a bustling city - a real city. After getting off the ship you’ll stop for a quick security screening and then you're inside the port complex.

There are several bars like Margaritaville and Senor Frogs. Their main draw is that they promise a party atmosphere - similar to a college frat party. If this is your thing, more power to you, but they are famous for overpriced drinks, allowing people to get drunk rather quickly, and serving lousy food.

On our visit, we kept walking past the bars and entered the outdoor shopping district.

I like Cozumel in particular because the area is generally well kept and they have a lot to look at. Almost all of the stores sell the same things like t-shirts and Mexican-themed souvenirs. Other stores sell diamonds, silver jewelry, and leather goods.

I like to look for stores that might have something unique. Maybe they have someone making personalized souvenirs or offering hair braiding.

Now don’t be weirded out if the store owners call out to you. This is customary in Mexican culture. I saw some people get super offended by this and began yelling back.

Others stopped to offer an excuse. It’s perfectly ok to ignore them and just keep walking.

This is cultural and you will not hurt their feelings if you just walk by.

We continued walking and found a covered shopping area as well. The stores in here seemed to be a little nicer but still offered the same kinds of things.

I did a little research before our cruise and saw on a map that there was an additional shopping area across the street. It was a little hard to find the back exit, but eventually we got there.

I liked being out here because it felt to me like we were getting away from the fake Mexico and getting into more authentic territory - but without straying too far.

There was another outdoorsy mall but hardly anyone was there and some of the shops were closed. It looked like this was a failed attempt at expanding the port. But it was a nice area, maybe someday it will come back.

As we reached the end of the shopping area, we found ourselves across the street from a small resort right next to the harbor. I went to look around, I love to explore hotels. I spoke with the front desk staff and it turns out they sell day passes to use their pool and facilities.

There was a massage area and a restaurant. I wouldn’t go here if you’re looking to swim at the beach because you’ll be swimming in the harbor,

but the beach and pool are nice places to relax and get some great views of the ship. There are plenty of beach resorts if you want to book an excursion, but if you’re just looking to stay near the ship, this place would be great.

It’s called the El Cid Resort - and for about $65 US per adult, $33 US per child, you’ll get unlimited food and drinks, free WiFi, an open bar, 90 minutes of snorkeling and use of the facilities and pool.

There’s also a $25 package that includes wifi, use of the pool, 90 min. Or snorkeling. So basically it doesn’t include the food or drinks. Children on this package are $13 US.

Now being in Mexico, I wanted to see if I could find an authentic taco.

I live in Orlando the capital of chain restaurants. So I wanted tacos not one from the tourist areas, but a local place.

I had read about a guy who sells tacos out of a blue truck but didn’t know if it was any good.

I asked the bellman at the hotel where I could find authentic tacos. He told me to go see the guy in the blue truck two blocks away. Ok so now I know this guy must be legit.

It was a leap of faith because we had to leave the tourist area to walk down a busy road with barely a sidewalk. But Sure enough, we saw the blue truck.

He makes tacos in the bed of an old pickup truck. When we got there, the guy was using a machete to chop vegetables.

Now I must warn you, this is the ultimate Mexican street food ok, not the most sanitary so you need to be willing to overlook a few things.

But if I wanted to know what I’m missing when I go to Chipotle. This is what I was looking for - street food in Mexico.

The chicken tacos were awesome I watched him make them on a flat top. There were no cruise passengers around and the Locals were so happy that we were there.

They couldn’t stop talking about how good the tacos were. Everyone was very friendly. Oh, and he takes American money. Now if you want to find him, just search Google for Blue Taco Truck in Cozumel - you’ll find it.

After a couple of hours in Cozumel, we walked back to ship and enjoyed a really quiet day at the pool.

Roatan, Honduras

Day 2 was Roatan Honduras. Roatan is a large island just off the mainland of Honduras. It’s the smallest port town on Royal Caribbean’s Western Itinerary and it was recently refurbished to look like a small village.

The most popular excursions here are to visit the animal sanctuaries, ATV tours through tropical rainforests, and beach passes. Keep in mind that the cruise lines use different ports in Honduras. So if you’re on Royal Caribbean, be sure you look up Coxen Hole.

Other cruisers have told me this is one of their favorite ports of call and that may be true if you have an excursion, but if you’re just planning on getting off the ship to check out the port, I’m afraid it’s a little disappointing.

When I say the port is small, I mean it’s actually smaller than the cruise ship. There are just a handful of souvenir shops but they are still fun to walk through. I found them to be well-kept and organized. Most will take American money and credit cards.

The refurbishment added tiki huts and some water features, plus a few nice restaurants and bars. But you can walk through here in less than an hour..

Just for a little adventure, I wanted to see what was beyond the port complex like I had done in Cozumel. That’s where things took an interesting turn.

As soon as we left the secure boundary of the port, we were immediately swarmed with dozens of people asking if we wanted a ride.

They were negotiating and outbidding each other and I hadn’t even said I wanted a ride. I felt like Indiana Jones returning to the village after the quest.

There were so many guys, that it was nearly impossible to keep walking, it was not a great position to be in.

I found it disturbing that they had to post signs all over reminding us that human trafficking is a crime.

Hopeful that things would get better once we got away from the taxi drivers, we ventured out a little further. But several guys began following us and some approached us asking if we wanted a walking guide.

While everyone was friendly, I just got bad vibes.

The immediate area surrounding the port was not great - there were no sidewalks and there wasn’t anything to see.

We turned around and went back into the secure port.

My advice is to stay within the boundary of the port. If you do want to book an excursion, book it through directly Royal Caribbean so you know they are vetted and reliable.

We had a very short day in Roatan. Other passengers were telling me how much fun they on their excursions. But my advice is that Roatan is not a do-it-yourself port of call.

Costa Maya, Mexico

On Day 3 we returned to Mexico, this time Costa Maya. Of the 3 ports, this was our favorite. If you’ve been to Disney World and enjoy themed entertainment, you’ll like Costa Maya.

The port is quite large and oval-shaped, so you can walk around and return to the same place you started. There are a few side streets with additional shops within the compound as well.

Inside, there’s a resort-style swimming pool, but I don’t think it looks very appealing. Granted on the day I was filming it was raining, but even on previous trips, I hardly ever see anyone in the water.

You’d be surrounded by tourists and shoppers, not quite the best pool atmosphere.

There’s an elevated bird aviary that takes you above the rooftops, this is a popular activity, especially with kids. You’ll also find a few performances from mariachi bands and ancient Mayan dances.

If you would like to swim with dolphins without straying far from the ship, you can do that here right in the port.

The shops pretty much sell all the same things. Just like Cozumel, look for shops that have something a little unique or one that offers personalized souvenirs.

My son wanted a leather bracelet with his name on it. Watching it be made was pretty entertaining. It’s amazing to see the craftsmanship and how fast they can work.

By now you know I was on a quest for great tacos. On a previous trip, I found a great taco stand inside the port, so I was on a mission to go there once again. It’s located in the back, down a little alley. This one is clean and well-kept, not located in the back of a pickup truck.

The vendors here take American money and credit cards. The atmosphere is pretty relaxed here you won't have vendors calling out to you like Cozumel.

Now, if you didn’t book an excursion here in advance, but would like to, there are kiosks located in the port. On a previous trip, we rented a golf cart and drove it down to the beach where we found additional shops, bars, and restaurants. You can also take a taxi, but a golf cart is way more fun.

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