Cozumel Snorkeling Tour: Explore Palancar, Columbia and El Cielo Reefs

Embark on an unforgettable Cozumel snorkeling tour to Palancar, Columbia, and El Cielo reefs. Discover the vibrant marine life and stunning coral formations in the Caribbean’s top attractions. Perfect for all travelers!

Duration: 4 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Marina FONATUR Cozumel - Experience three of the Caribbean’s most famous marine attractions: Palancar Reef, celebrated for its diverse and abundant marine life; Colombia Reef, teeming with vibrant fish, turtles, and coral formations; and El Cielo Beach, renowned for its stunning starfish and considered one of the most beautiful spots in the…
What's Included
  • Insured shaded boat for comfort and safety
  • Guidance from experienced, trained guides
  • Explore Palancar and Columbia reefs, El Cielo Sandbar, and El Cielito Beach
  • Enjoy a guided snorkeling adventure
  • Complete snorkel gear provided: Vest, Mask, New tube
  • Refreshments included: Beers, Water, Sodas, and Snacks
What's Not Included
  • Marine Park Fee
Additional Information

Award-Winning Cozumel Snorkeling Adventure!
Embark on an exciting journey to the Caribbean and marvel at the stunning marine life on this acclaimed Cozumel Snorkeling trip. Experience Cozumel’s premier attractions and the most frequented reefs in the Caribbean.
Discover Palancar Reef, renowned for its diverse and abundant sea life, Columbia Reef,…

Location
Marina FONATUR Cozumel
Carretera Costera Sur
Meeting time is 10 minutes before your Tour time at the MARINA ASIPONA COZUMEL (Formerly Known as Marina Fonatur) located 5 minutes by taxi from SSA and PUERTA MAYA cruise ports and 10 minutes from Downtown. Upon arrival look for our COZUMEL TOURS office located next to the Tequila shop
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.3
(1335 Ratings)
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Micol_roma
May 25, 2025
Absolutely worth it - We took the ferry ourselves, then a taxi and then the boat trip. It was slightly tiring but the trip was absolutely worth it. Very nice sea, we noticed with giant turtles and stingrays.. Wonderful!!! Money well spent. We were out about 4 hours
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Shaylee
May 22, 2025
10/10 MUST DO!!!! 🌟 - We had the BEST time snorkeling in Cozumel! Our guide Luis and captain Diego on the ‘Sky Wolf’ boat. Luis was very knowledgeable about the area and reef system and both men all around a great time! Luis was a huge help on the water, with it being our first time snorkeling in the ocean! We even felt safe enough to remove our life jackets and swim freely with him ready to help! They went above and beyond for us to have the best experience! They served us ceviche and fresh fruit with plenty of drinks on the most beautiful coast we have ever seen! We saw stingrays, sea turtles, nurse sharks, hundreds of fish!!! 🐠🐡 When I say the water was BLUE! Multiply that by 100x it was so beautiful!!! 10/10 recommend!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Brad
May 13, 2025
Fun time, good value - Fun time, felt safe. Captain and guide were great. Beautiful clear water. Overall value was great. Drinks and snacks were supplied.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Carolina
May 12, 2025
The best - We loved it worth every penny this visit to the paradise of Cozumel. We recommend crossing from Playa del Carmen to Cozumel early to enjoy this beautiful place Rent a cart so you can know the best places
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Y760oytaylorw
May 9, 2025
Amazing snorkeling - The trip was really fun as first time snorkelers. We saw lots of different fish and a sea turtle. Lalo and Jajir were great guides and provided snacks and beer :)
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Alekos5n
May 18, 2025
Great snorkeling experience in Cozumel - Well organized tour, the guide (Paulino) was very kind, he even prepared ceviche for us to enjoy by the beach. We got to see many fishes, starfish, a little turtle, and some stingrays. The only thing I would have liked that was missing, would be having more explanations about the animals that we saw, to learn a little bit about them and not just observe them. I suggest getting swimming clothes to cover yourself during the tour, since you cannot wear sunscreen to protect the wildlife you will get burnt badly. I unfortunately learnt that the hard way.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Allison_g
May 12, 2025
Great snorkeling, lacklustre tour - My husband and I enjoyed our snorkeling experiences and saw a wide variety of marine life. The reefs were beautiful and vibrant and we were able to get close to the fish and starfish. A few areas for improvement... 1) it's hard to know where to go when you arrive as Viator doesn't give you the name or exact location of the tour company (other than the address). It was called May Be Tours. 2) The tour guides don't give you much information about the marine life or reefs, other than a few sentences about what you might see and not to touch them. It would be great to know what kinds of fish you're seeing. Our tour guide spoke English well, but didn't really do much guiding other than sort of coralling us while in the water. 3) The boat ride to and from the reefs was about 45 mins to 1 hour which was quite a long time for us coming from the cruise ship. That wasn't really explained. If there's a company that departs from a marina closer to the reefs, you'd save a lot of time. And at the sandbar, they provided a nice snack and drinks, but just remember you're about to be on a boat for one hour... when we arrived back at the marina, let's just say the lines for the bathroom were long and urgent. Oh and one other note is that you're only allowed to wear reef-safe sunscreen in the water, but our guide just told everyone 'No more sunscreen'. Make sure you apply well before you get on board... once you arrive at the reefs, they want everybody in ASAP and if you have a pale complexion, a couple of hours of the sun magnified through the water and you'll be having a rough sunburn. All that said, we did have a great time in the water and loved seeing a wide variety of fish (Maybe over 20 types?), one sea turtle and many starfish and rays. It was a lot of fun, even though the actual service provided left a few things to be desired. Oh and if you're coming from the cruise port, you can easily walk there and back in 20 mins. Just keep moving past the taxi drivers.
Review provided by Viator
Rachaelpd8247nm
May 7, 2025
Cozumel Snorkeling - The snorkeling was great. The first stop was a bit choppy but the next stop was much better. We got to see fish and starfish. The beach was nice and there were stingrays swimming by. The ceviche and drinks were good. Definitely worth it!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Grisel_a
May 15, 2025
Unenriching experience - Staff receiving consultations in the office are inefficient. We travel exclusively to Cozumel from Playa del Carmen for this tour. We needed to know where the ferry terminal in Cozumel was to calculate how long we had until we reached the meeting point by taxi. They told us they didn't have that information and it wasn't on googl maps either. I ended up finding it on my own and when I shared it with them they answered that this was the address of a shipping company and not the ferry terminal. By that point I decided not to continue talking because I seemed to be talking to a wall. The tour itself was a simple transfer to the snorkeling sites. The guide had no information. We snorkeled in the Galapagos and this guide did not even reach the heels of the professionalism with which we work there. I just take care that nobody in the group gets lost. He never dived to show fish or explain anything. What's more... we get more information from the photographer about the fish and the area we were in than from the "guide." He also gave us tips on how to dive. A great guy the photographer. He did his job and some of the work the guide didn't do. The activities in the open ocean became very short. It’s nice to stop at La playa del cielito, but not for that long, because as the tour the agency sells says: it’s a snorkeling tour, don’t drink beer on the beach. Plus the activity ended 15 minutes early. If I give it two stars it's for the good attitude of photographer, but not one would put them.
Review provided by Viator
Lovethebeach0133388
May 26, 2025
Disappointed - One of the worse snorking excursions we've done. I'm surprised this was rated the #1 Cozumel snorking tours...?? The meeting point was clear and we had to ask many people to figure out if we were in the correct location. It was very unorganized and they booked too many people on the boat - we also departed 30 minutes late. We've been coming to Mexico for 18 years so we don't expect perfection. Cozumel reef is supposed to be very highly rated and it's possible it's been ruined by too many tours. The 3 reefs visited are super close together and non had good fish or marine life viewing. The best part of the trip was hanging in waist high water on a sand bar. It was also crowded with boats - and this was actually considered low season. Someone on our boat had the snorkel guide hold thier sunglasses which went missing and he didn't remember taking them... shrugged it off and did not assist to try and locate them. Overall very disappointed.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $65
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).