Private Tour: 5-Hour Cozumel Sightseeing with Private Driver and Tequila Tasting

If you’re looking for a stress-free, personalized day in Cozumel, skip the crowded cruise excursions and book a private driver through Tours Plaza. We were recently there on a port stop and the experience was seamless from start to finish. Communicating with Edwardo beforehand was a breeze; he was incredibly professional and answered all our questions. Our driver, Benjamin, was waiting for us right as we hopped off the ship. He was fantastic, super friendly, and knowledgeable. The van itself was spotless and the AC was blasting, which was a lifesaver in the Cozumel humidity. Most importantly, Ben was very mindful of the time and made sure we were back at the pier well before our "all aboard" call, making it stress free.

We were visiting Cozumel on the Independence of the Seas and decided to book with Tours Plaza after reading a ton of reviews—so glad we did. From the start, Edwardo was super easy to communicate with and very responsive. When we got off the ship, our driver Ben (Benjamin) was easy to find and got us going right away. We had an awesome day. The van was clean, comfortable, and nice and cold (huge plus in the heat). Ben was super friendly and easygoing, and really just rolled with whatever we wanted to do. We told him we wanted something more local, not the typical tourist stuff, and he nailed it. He took us to a small neighborhood spot for tacos (so good), a tequila tasting, and then to a beach where we had lunch right by the water with our feet in the sand. Honestly, it felt like hanging out with a local friend. He also made sure we got back to the ship with plenty of time, which we really appreciated. If you’re on a cruise and stopping in Cozumel, skip the big group tours and book with Tours Plaza—you’ll have a way better experience.

We’re a family from Houston and after reading like 200 reviews we ended up going with Tours Plaza for our day in Cozumel. Our cruise sailed from Galveston and we headed straight to the island. I was a bit nervous, not gonna lie, cuz that day there were gonna be like 6 ships in port, so I was picturing a total madhouse at the pier. But we found our driver in less than 15 minutes, easy as can be, the instructions and his uniform made it He was super friendly, and the minute we hopped in the van I felt very relaxed. I’d been hearing stuff in the news about violence in Mexico, so yeah I was a little on edge, expecting maybe less security or something. But Cantaro (that’s our driver/guide) is a true gentleman. Funny, kind, real easy to talk to, and he made us feel safe right away. I finally relaxed cuz it honestly felt like we were in good hands. We didn’t have a strict plan, so he just took us around to places we were interested in. We stopped at spots where they show you how they make chocolate and tequila, real interestin, and they let you taste all kinds of flavors and smells, which was a lotta fun. Then we went to a little bee farm with those Mayan bees that don’t sting, no stinger at all. They had all sorts of stuff made from honey, like soaps, shampoos and such. After that he drove us over to the other side of the island and wow… it’s somethin else. The difference between the west and east side of Cozumel is just night and day. The east side feels wild and wide open, hardly anybody around, fresh ocean breeze, shells everywhere, birds and seagulls flyin all over. Felt like a whole different world. We stopped at one of those little beachside restaurants and let me tell ya, that fried fish and ceviche were downright delicious. Simple, fresh, just perfect. After that we headed to a beach called Chen Rio, and it was beautiful. There’s all these rocks that form little natural pools where you can just lay back and let the ocean water wash over you. Real peaceful spot. By then I had eaten so much I was about ready to pass out haha, so we decided to skip a few other places and save ’em for next time. Stuff like the Mayan ruins (can’t recall the name), climbin that lighthouse at the tip of the island, and wanderin around all the jewelry shops, perfumes and all in the shopping area. Truth is, we fell in love with Cozumel. Way more than we expected. We’ll definitely be back someday, but next time we’re stayin at a hotel cuz there’s just so much to see and do. It’s a whole different Mexico than what you hear about on the news, that’s for sure.

We have used Mr. Gerry of Toursplaza several times in Cozmel. We trust him to always take good care of us and family and friends. Great guy. Great company. Highly recommend using him.

Booked this 2+ months in advance and the morning of the experience a couple of hours before our cruise ship arrived they canceled on us b/c of issues with their driver.

Jerry did a wonderful job of making sure we made the most of our day with him. The vehicle was clean, cool and well supplied with drinks. We will definitely book with you again.

It’s been seven years and the friendly service is still impeccable! For this trip we opted to tour the chocolate factory and did the tequila tasting. Both were very good choices. As with prior trips, Gerry was the best host. I highly recommend Tours Plaza!

Relaxing trip, we sat back and enjoyed the 5-hour block we purchased because we didn't have to worry about driving and we could relax and take in the beauty of the island. Our personal driver took very good care of us and helped us figure out our agenda for the time we spent with him, again, a super great experience from beginning to end, would HIGHLY recommend booking with this company. It helps the driver was super nice and friendly, no stress whatsoever, what else could you ask for?

We absolutely loved our tour with Alex! He was right where he said he would be upon our arrival. We stopped to buy some extra drinks before beginning our day. We opted to do the Chocolate Factory first ( informative and yummy, we enjoyed this), then the ruins, followed by tequila tasting. As advertised here, the ruins were a total of $14.50, and we opted for a tour guide who was great. Lots of information and he made it interactive as well. After the ruins we went to our tequila tasting. A welcome paloma was ready for the adults (4) and a non-alcoholic one for the kids (3). Quick tour and straight to tasting from there. It was delicious. After the tasting we decided on lunch instead of the beach as we only had a little over an hour left and the beach was on the opposite side of Cozumel from our ship. Lunch. Was. AMAZING. One of the best meals we had on the entire week long trip. Alex took us to las Casitas which was right in the coast, beautiful, breezy and seriously good. This was our favorite excursion of our three excursion days during our cruise. We highly recommend this tour, and Alex was so flexible with what we wanted to do (and what order we wanted to do it in).

Our ship ended up coming to a different dock in Cozumel than what was advertised in the ship's newsletter. Thank goodness the company gave us directions for all three piers on where to meet up with our guide. We were on the NCL Gem and ended up at the International pier, but Sergio was there and waiting for us! We spent the first hour touring the downtown area, stopping for shopping and pictures in the plaza. We then headed across the island, taking a tour of a park that included the Tequila making process and a tasting of some very smooth and wonderful tequilas! After that, we headed to the east side of the island, and went to Punta Moreno for lunch. The service at Punta Moreno was really slow, which prevented us from stopping at the Money Bar, but Sergio still took the time to stop at a local grocery store where we were able to purchase vanilla and Mexican treats for our grandkids. He also stopped at a local pharmacy so we could purchase some antibiotics and other meds that are very expensive in the US. Overall, we had a perfect day! I would definitely recommend using Tours Plaza for any future visits to Cozumel. Ask for Sergio, he was wonderful!