Empress of the Seas: Cozumel

Today we are at the fifth and final port, Cozumel, on this Empress of the Seas cruise. I was up just in time to get to the coffee shop as they opened and get my latte. Then met my sisters up on 10. We agreed to meet for breakfast at 8 am at the MDR.

I ordered the pancakes today and really liked them.

We met up to get off the ship around 9 and headed off. Oasis of the Seas was parked next to us and there were four other ships in port it turned out (2 carnival, at least 1 Norwegian; not sure about the 6th).

Cozumel Port

My BIL bought a pair of sunglasses along the way to the taxi stand. We got a taxi for all of us to Nachi Cocum for $34. We had two reservations in our group and they tried to once again shove all 7 of us into one palapa. When I said no, they gave in but it wasn’t pleasant.

After enjoying the beach an hour or so the kids wanted to go to the pool so we went there.

We had a couple of tables in the shade and spent the rest of the day there.

Here’s Sister M enjoying the pool.

Here’s the menu for beverages and food.

My lunch started with guacamole and chips.

I went with fried shrimp for my entree.

A bit later I ordered the coconut ice cream for dessert.

We bought the photos taken when we arrived.

I switched from margaritas to bottled water after lunch. I wanted to leave before the rest of the group so took a solo taxi back to the pier for $17.

It was such a contrast between our little ship and the Oasis of the Seas.

Once onboard the ship, I napped until rehearsals in the showroom woke me up. I then got up and started getting ready for our steakhouse dinner.

My sister came by and let me know it will just be the two of us instead of four. The steakhouse was great about accommodating the change.

Chops Grille

We were the first ones there at 6 pm and was seated at a table by the window. I was feeling dehydrated so no more alcohol for me. I had ginger ale with dinner.

Shortly after we were seated, the captain made an announcement that Royal Caribbean was suspending cruises for 30 days due to the COVID-19 outbreak. I was surprised and yet at the same time I wasn’t. When we docked, the ship would not embark passengers booked on the next sailing.

Our meal started with a basket of onion bread and pretzel bread.

I tried the butter with anchovies but didn’t care for I My first starter was the jumbo shrimp.

Sister M had the bacon which was very good.

I had the crispy goat cheese salad next.

Then we got our steaks. I had the ribeye.

and M went with the NY strip.

For sides, I had macaroni and cheese while sister M had a baked potato. We both had the sundaes for dessert.

During our meal we left Cozumel about 20 minutes early. We also saw a beautiful sunset (sorry no photos!).

I was pretty tired from the day and went to bed early. This guy was waiting.

Notice the card with a shamrock? It was a St. Patrick’s Day greeting from the room steward. I think we got them because they couldn’t use them on the 17th since there wouldn’t be any passengers. A little strange.

Below is the Cozumel Port Shopping Guide. click on the image for the full PDF.