By Air in Cozumel

By Air

The Aeropuerto Internacional de Cozumel, Cozumel's only airport, is 3 km (2 mi) north of San Miguel. Flight schedules and frequencies vary with season, with the largest selection available in winter. At press time there were no commuter flights between Cancún and Cozumel, though there was talk of a new airline starting the route soon. International airlines serving the island seasonally or year-round include American Airlines from Dallas, Continental Airlines from Houston, and US Airways from Charlotte, North Carolina. The airlines don't have offices on the island. The best way to check your flights is on the Internet or through a hotel concierge or tour desk. Several charter airlines offer seasonal flights as well. Flights to Cancún may be considerably less expensive. From the Cancún airport you can take a bus to Playa del Carmen and then take the ferry to Cozumel. The trip should take about three hours, if everything runs on schedule.

At the airport, the colectivo, a van that seats up to eight, takes arriving passengers to their hotels; the fare is about $7 to $20. If you want to avoid waiting for the van to fill or for other passengers to be dropped off, you can hire an especial -- an individual van. A trip in one of these to hotel zones costs about $20 to $25; to the city it's about $10; and to the all-inclusive hotels at the far south it's about to $30. Taxis to the airport cost between $10 and $30 from the hotel zones and approximately $5 from downtown.

Contacts

Aeropuerto Internacional de Cozumel (987/872-1995 or 987/872-0928).