Tortugas Snorkel Center and Beach Bar — Restaurant in Quintana Roo

I come to Cozumel 4-6x a year. Sometimes alone, sometimes with family and friends and sometimes with big groups. I leave reviews mostly to help me remember which places I like best and why. I have been to almost all the beach clubs on the island at this point and have done the snorkel tour to El Cielo about 15x in the last couple years.

So here is my Pros and Cons list about going with Tortugas.

Pros: The owner/manager was very communicative via WhatsApp. The boat staff was friendly and charismatic. The boat provided a smooth ride. Good for our people who tend to get motion sick. Snorkeling and El Cielo are amazing and truly one of the gems of the island.

Be prepared for: Everything on the boat to get wet! This was my first time using a catamaran so I wasn’t quite prepared for the wet part! Even on a glassy ocean day.

No guacamole. This may or not matter to you. I have several vegetarians in the group so we brought our own sandwiches since ceviche is not their thing. (Most other companies will provide guacamole upon request but not Tortugas)

No fins provided. I bring my own gear but the family we brought with us only had masks and snorkels. Would have been nice to know fins were not supplied. They did have masks and snorkels available and snorkel vests as well.

Not much shade. When I select boats for this trip i ALWAYS make sure there is shade and a bathroom. There was a tiny bit of shade but not much for our paler participants. 😅

The bathroom…. I’d say is for emergency’s only!! And it smelled awful sending fumes up to the sitting area any time the boat was stopped. But hey! There IS a bathroom!! 👍🏼

The boat during snorkels was inaccessible. We had a younger kiddo with us this time. So he spent a lot of time floating on his back trying to rest when what he needed was to get back on the boat.

Tortugas beach club was PACKED. Super crowded and I couldn’t for the life of me understand why! It’s not an amazing location nor does it offer anything unique. Must just be web presence or networking. If you’re looking for relaxing beach vibes this isn’t it!

Cons: Felt rushed. Out of all the trips I’ve done this one felt the most rushed. Even my teens who have done the trip multiple times were like… “what? We are leaving already?” On our first snorkel spot.

The check in process was silly long! We had booked and paid online - so why wait in another long hot line while people book and pay? Should be a better system IMO.

Price kept inching up. The price I was quoted when I first contacted them was $40. That’s generally what I pay on the island so I canceled all other boat options and decided to go with Tortugas to try something new. Only when booking did I learn it was actually $50. Kids under 12 are $40. AND another $5 charged when you get there for the marine park fee. 🤨. Literally all the boats have to include that charge but most do it right up front. So… $55 day. Doesn’t break the bank and it’s well worth going to El Cielo but it’s not what I was quoted and I wouldn’t have gone with them if all that was on the table from the beginning.

Ok so - Summary: Nice people. Fun staff. El Cielo is a must see. Im certain people coming for the first time will be happy because you don’t know anything different. But I won’t be going through this...

We had an excursion planned but our cruise ship was behind the expected arrival schedule. I emailed Tortugas the day prior with concerns about this and info on refund options. They ensured me that it was not an issue and they could accommodate our group if we arrived at a later time. Our group also did not want to cancel as we had done this excursion in a prior cruise and enjoyed this excursion. Our ship did manage to arrive earlier than expected but still was way past the Initial tortugas scheduled appointment time for our excursion. Being that I got email confirmation from a Turugas representative that we would be accommodated without issues we disembarked, headed to that chaotic taxi location and went to Tortugas only to find rude front desk personnel telling us that our excursion had been canceled because we did not arrive on time! They stated that the mexican authorities told them that our ship had arrived on time so they had to cancel and would give no refund. I told them that their information was inaccurate and i even spoke with someone through email the day prior letting them know about a delayed arrival but they did not want to see or listen to anything i had to say. We had Documentation directly from Royal Carribean with a delayed arrival time and they could care less. They did give us an option to ride the 4 wheelers but inorder for us to get SOME KIND OF worth for our money we were forced to sign a paper stating that our ship arrival got there at 9am and we arrived at 12pm. Otherwise we werent allowed to do anything on property. This company scams families and my friends and I have canceled the excursion we had booked in the upcoming few months. We spent almost $1000 on this excursion, we were hot and thirsty and they wouldn't even give us a bottle of water with our package! Many other families were also very upset about the EXTREMELY horrible food and beverage services. We saw 4 difference angry families get up and just leave in taxis because they had been waiting over an hr for thier food and had only gotten 1 alcoholic beverage in the ONE HOUR OPEN BAR that was included with out package. I even tried to go to the bartender for a water for ky family and he was even more rude that the front desk personnel. I DO NOT recommend Turugas for anyone wanting to go to Cozumel and have a great experience. I've let others know about this company in many many other cruise line social media groups aswell because I do not want what happened to us, happen to other families who work hard and pay alot of money just to be treated this way. This is...

Nothing good to say about this experience.

After paying nearly $300 for the package, we were constantly made to feel obligated to tip. Even after giving $15 USD each to three different staff members, we were met with sighs and disappointed looks, as if it wasn’t enough.

The boat portion was underwhelming. We saw very little coral, and most of the time we were being hovered over by a woman, possibly the boat driver’s sister or daughter, trying to take photos to sell us. The snorkeling lasted about 20 minutes before we were rushed back to shore.

The food included in the package was honestly inedible. It looked and tasted like something you’d give to a shelter dog.

We were told that drinks like water and soda would be available during the ATV portion. When we arrived, there were none. We spent over two hours in the heat without any water, despite being promised otherwise.

Transportation was also concerning. We were thrown into the back of a jeep with its check engine light on, and the driver tried to pressure us into operating vehicles after their so-called tequila tasting. I do not want to end up dealing with Mexican police for drinking and driving. To top it off, the Tortugas staff member driving us was speeding and swerving on the road the entire time.

The tequila tasting felt forced and awkward. It was clearly another attempt to push tips, and we were asked at least three times to leave one.

During the ATV ride, we were told photos would be included. But once it ended, the photographer tried to charge us $50 USD for ten photos or $20 for one.

Helmets were not provided. My ATV lost power and had to be restarted eight different times during the hour-long ride. But the worst part of the experience was our instructor, a man in his fifties, who casually told us he was dating a thirteen-year-old. That was the final red flag.

The “unlimited one hour of drinks” was also terrible. Staff deliberately avoided our table and took nearly ten minutes just to take an order. When the drinks finally came, they tasted like watered down rubbing alcohol mixed with a juice box.

The beach was packed with rows of chairs and very few areas where you could sit or relax without feeling completely overcrowded.

Taxi service was also an issue. It was extremely limited, and staff were unhelpful when we asked for assistance in getting a ride.

This entire operation felt unsafe, unprofessional, and exploitative. I strongly recommend avoiding it...