Tony:

Welcome back, nice to hear from you. Great photo coverage of the rebuilding. Best wishes to you and your family.

Tony .... good to see the photos of your 'recovery' ... glad things are going well ...
I was going to ask if that was a biker bar or jail across the street then I saw a sign that you rent those bikes? ...
t.

Hi guys,a while since i,ve been on site,just got over jetlag.We had a nice time in cozumel,the people are really friendly,but if you go there watch out for the shop owners on the front strip, they will try to overcharge you as much as 4 x the prices,barter hard,there is a lot of competition.The tourist industry is SLOWLY getting back to normal so the businesses have been hit badly (maybe the reason for the high prices),also a lot of poverty in the back streets,but surprisingly very cheerful people.
We met tony,a great guy with lots of helpful advice,fingers crossed that the embassy will soon be finished and things start picking up,good luck mate.The weather there was really hot so if you go for a trip make sure your accomodation has aircon.We found the food was excellent and the prices were reasonable.The only thing we did not like was the 24 hours it took us to get there,3 planes, a coach and the ferry,arriving at midnight, a lot of stress.

Donny....It's good to be back...lets hear some T-2 music from you....my addy is coming

Scotty....good to talk to you also,I enjoyed your latest song.....

Steve....Thanks, good to be back....there will be more photos coming soon...

Tony....A "BIKER BAR" I love it...hehehe..
I try to ride my bike at least once a day for a few minutes... rentals are slow now..

Mike Nardoni...great to meet you and Jenny..
sorry we didn't get much time together...but
next time let's see some of that magic from
your bag of tricks...hurry back.....you should give us a trip report so the members can learn about COZUMEL....
TR

Ok tony, i will give a bit more detailed report,giving the good and the bad and then those that go to cozumel will have a fair idea of what to expect.
From the bus station in playa del carmen men with 3 wheeler bikes will take you and your luggage to the ferry for 20 pesos ($2). The ferry was a nice experience.
The accomodation tony arranged for us was 100 metres from the beach and central to all the bars and restaurants,I was quoted $40-$45 dollares a night plus tax, tony got it down to $38 a night no TA?,You can rent a villa for $1000 ( a good idea if there is 6-8 people)a week but most of those are a bit far from the action.accomodation was basic with 2 double beds ,shower wc,and wash basin, ceiling fan and aircon ,it was cleaned every day and the staff were very helpful.Food is good value for money,some places give large meals and we noticed on a few occasions some people were ordering a starter that was shared and same for dinner like is served at indian restauants,all the restaurants we went to give taco chips with their local spices (watch out some will blow your head off he he).Tony recomended a GREAT chinese restaurant. You can hire scooters (?) be careful you will find that a lot of them will find faults when you return them,will blame you for doing the damage and so lose your deposit,you can also hire cars or even hire a motorbike from tony.
Taxis if you are new there,they will try to rip you off,always ask the price before you get in the taxi,at the bottom of the main street there is a sign from the good taxi drivers (union)who say we charge only for the taxi,and they are more fair.We are not mean but we got caught a few times,why pay $16 dollars when it is only $8.
Entertainment is minimal some street singers go around the bars for tips,the council had laid on mexican culture in the square.So when tony is back up and running properly it will be the in place to go because he has the edge with entertainment.
Watch out for the timeshares around the port and main street,if they don,t catch you on t/share they will try to overcharge you on taxi trips around the island or glass bottom boats.
Every shop on the front will try to persuade you to go into their shops,some even offer free drinks. If you ever want to buy anything ,never buy on the first day,look around and you will find the fairer shops.
The cruise liners dock quite often (massive ships compared to the mediteranian,As far as enjoyment goes, we loved it,but it was HOT.
The best piece of advice i can give you is this, whatever you want ,ask tony first, he will guide you in the right direction, and save you money.
ps, try tony,s baby ribs they are great.