Guest feature article. A few months ago my family and I took a vacation to Cozumel. There are many reasons to like Cozumel (nice beaches, clear water, friendly people, good food, Mayan ruins and more), but one thing I was excited about was cycling on the island. |
While I've been to some places where I would not feel comfortable cycling alone, in Cozumel the small size of the island, the friendly people and the mostly tourist-oriented economy combine to make it about as safe from crime as any place can be.
Safe from crime, that is - traffic in the town of San Miguel can be a bit crazy!
So, I set out to see about renting a bike. While I normally do most of my riding on a road bike, I did not find any bicycle rental companies in Cozumel that rent road bikes.
It seems most bike rental companies in Cozumel rent either mountain bikes or cruiser bikes, and maybe a few tandems. So, given the possibility for some off-road riding and some bumpy side roads, I decided to rent a mountain bike.
I did a bit of research on mountain biking in Cozumel, and didn't find too much information on trails open to the pubic.
From the research I did, it looked like most of the off-road riding in Cozumel that people talked about involved having to trespass across other people's property - and I just didn't want to take the risk of getting arrested, assaulted, or chewed up by a dog.
Then I looked at the map for the eastern side of the island (the "wild" side without hotels) and decided to pedal over there instead.
Getting there and enjoying the view of the Caribbean Sea was fun, with nice weather and some great scenery, and I'd recommend cycling in Cozumel for anyone that enjoys the sunshine and great Caribbean outdoors.
However, if you decide to rent a bicycle I'd advise you to prepare yourself for the local conditions and take a few items with you, such as a water bottle and cage, helmet, air pump, lights and lock.
This may sound like a lot, but it is best to be prepared when you are away from home, and most of it can pack inside your helmet.
With a little preparation, you can have a great time cycling around Cozumel!
This is an edited version of an article by This is Cozumel guest writer, Rob Taylor, from Pennsylvania.
Visit Rob's Cycling for Beginners website to read the full original article about Cycling in Cozumel or see our Things To Do section for information about Cozumel Bike Rentals.
