Beginning in December 2002, Insider was proudly the first website to provide readers the Cozumel News in English.
Articles are slected from local newspapers which we feel will be of interest to our diverse audience. These articles are then translated into English. We cannot always investigate the veracity of a particular article but offer these translations as a reflection of the Cozumel community news just as reporters write it for Por Esto, Diario de Quintana Roo, Novedades and El Seminario and many other sources.
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09/21/2026 - Numbers go up quite a bit this week in Cozumel as cruise ship arrivals show 21 ships registered to dock as we head towards the end of September. This is 7 more ship than last week and 1 more than the "20 in port" which marks a "high season" number. There were 18 ships in port during the same week of 2025. An estimated 73,500 people will visit Cozumel this week via these cruise ships leaving an estimated US $ 7.8 million dollars behind in the local economy.
High season for cruise ship arrivals typically runs from November 15 - April 15 each year with the remaining 7 months of the year considered "low season." This week Puerta Maya pier will be host to 9 ships docking there, 5 ships will dock at SSA International pier while Punta Langosta pier will see 7 arrivals and the downtown San Miguel pier will have -0- arrivals with passengers tendering in.
On Monday 3 ships will dock, 3 ship will dock on Tuesday, 3 ships on Wednesday, 6 ships on Thursday, 3 ships on Friday, 3 ships on Saturday and Sunday will see 0 ships in port. To see a complete list of this week's ship arrivals, please visit Insider's Weekly Cruise Ship Schedule
OVER 4,000 SIGNATURES: Cozumel Residents Reject Boardwalk Renovation
Plans are underway to renovate the boardwalk on the "Island of the Swallows" with an investment of 136 million pesos. Although the project began in late August, the majority of the population opposes it and is currently gathering signatures to prevent it from moving forward.
Construction is scheduled to begin on October 15. Consequently, on September 15, residents plan to submit a document to various authorities, including the Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat) and the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), accompanied by the citizen signatures collected so far, which total more than 4,000. "That boardwalk has withstood the strongest hurricanes we’ve ever had, it also serves as a breakwater, acting as a protective barrier for the island's waterfront; yet now, they want to remove it," lamented Guadalupe Álvarez, an activist and Cozumel native who launched this movement alongside Guadalupe Martín Martín and Alex Tobar. One of their main demands, she explained, is the presentation of the mandatory environmental impact studies; residents doubt such studies were ever conducted, noting also that there was no public consultation. Public discontent is growing, she pointed out, because the municipality is facing serious deficiencies in public services. Therefore, before spending millions to alter the boardwalk's aesthetics, residents are demanding repairs to the 40-year-old sanitary sewer system and an end to pollution in the mangroves.
Signatures will continue to be collected to channel public discontent; the population is overwhelmingly opposed to this imposition, arguing that the *malecón* (seafront promenade) represents the island's traditional identity and is its greatest asset for international tourism, and therefore should not be altered to mimic other modern destinations. "We don't want 'modern'; we want to keep our *malecón* just as it is so we can remain Caribbean. Tourists come to see that, they don't come to see a Miami, they come to see a Cozumel. Cozumel has always been this way, and people have liked it that way. Now they want to tear it all down, they’re on their way out, and they want a 136-million-peso project just to see how much each of them can pocket," the speaker denounced.
Grupo Xcaret-Linked Company Seeks $20 Million Purchase Of Dolphin Company’s Mexican Parks
A company closely associated with Grupo Xcaret has offered $20 million plus value-added tax for five Mexican operations owned by the financially troubled Dolphin Company, including marine parks in Cozumel, Isla Mujeres and the Riviera Maya. The proposed transaction is not a purchase of The Dolphin Company in its entirety. It is an asset sale being pursued through the company’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings in the United States, and it still requires approval from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware and Mexican regulators.
According to a sale motion filed in the bankruptcy case, Delphinus Blue Planet, S.A.P.I. de C.V. has agreed to purchase specified real estate, operating assets, permits, concessions and marine animals connected to five operations: The proposed sale also covers 87 dolphins, six sea lions and eight manatees currently housed at the facilities, according to a summary of the Delaware bankruptcy filing. Under the proposed payment structure, Delphinus would deposit $15 million before closing. The remaining $5 million would be paid once specified Mexican regulatory requirements were satisfied. The purchase price would also be subject to Mexican value-added tax.The bankruptcy court had not approved the sale as of July 30. Objections to the transaction and challenges involving the assumption of contracts were due August 7.
Delphinus operates dolphin habitats at Xcaret and Xel-Há, as well as facilities in Cancún and the Riviera Maya. Its public-facing website describes Xcaret and Xel-Há as partner locations. The proposed buyer is widely identified with the business network connected to Grupo Xcaret, although the court filing names Delphinus Blue Planet, rather than Grupo Xcaret itself, as the purchaser. The Dolphin Company’s parent, Leisure Investments Holdings LLC, filed for Chapter 11 protection in Delaware on March 31, 2025, following loan defaults, liquidity problems and a dispute over control of the company. Court filings show that advisers Greenhill and Keen-Summit contacted 122 potential buyers during an approximately eight-month marketing process. The company told the court that the process did not produce another actionable offer for the Mexican assets. The proposed sale would be conducted under Section 363 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, a process that allows companies in bankruptcy to sell assets with court approval. The debtors are requesting authorization to transfer the properties and operations free of most existing claims and liens, with those interests generally attached to the sale proceeds. The company has already sold or transferred other properties and interests in the United States, Europe and the Caribbean as its restructuring increasingly moves toward asset sales and an eventual wind-down or reorganization. The sale has become another point of conflict between The Dolphin Company’s current restructuring team and founder and former chief executive Eduardo Albor. Albor’s representatives argue that the $20 million offer is substantially below previous valuations of the Mexican properties. They also contend that Mexican court proceedings restrict the transfer of company assets and that the current management did not have the authority to place the business into Chapter 11.The current restructuring team disputes those claims. Independent director Steven Strom and chief restructuring officer Robert Wagstaff maintain that they remain the company’s authorized representatives and that the Delaware bankruptcy is valid. They have accused former management of interfering with the restructuring and mischaracterizing Mexican court decisions.
A Delaware judge held an evidentiary hearing July 20 and 21 on the continuing dispute over company control and whether the Chapter 11 cases should remain in the United States. That matter had not been fully resolved when the Mexican asset-sale request was filed. Albor ceased participating in the company’s operations in March 2025, when creditors replaced the previous leadership. The competing groups continue to dispute whether that removal was legally valid. Albor’s representatives claim the transaction would give the buyer control over more than 90% of Mexico’s dolphin-habitat market. That percentage has not been confirmed by Mexico’s competition authority, and the relevant market would have to be formally defined before regulators could determine whether the sale creates an unlawful concentration. Nevertheless, the competition question is significant. In 2023, Mexico’s former Federal Economic Competition Commission blocked a proposed acquisition involving dolphinariums in Cancún, Tulum and the Riviera Maya. The agency concluded that the transaction, as proposed, would reduce the number of competitors, potentially increase prices and create problems in a market with high barriers to entry. That decision specifically examined dolphin-entertainment services in Quintana Roo. Competition responsibilities have since transferred to Mexico’s National Antimonopoly Commission. Depending on the transaction’s structure and financial thresholds, its authorization could be required before the sale closes.
Mangroves Recover Ground Worldwide; Quintana Roo Leads Mexico In Protection
Mangrove forests are regaining ground in various regions around the world after decades of degradation from coastal development, pollution, and climate change, according to a study published in the journal Science. The research documents a significant reduction in mangrove loss over recent decades. Based on satellite imagery analysis from 1980 to 2023, the study found that natural regeneration and conservation efforts have reversed the loss trend in many coastal areas, estuaries, and deltas, marking one of the most important advances recorded for these ecosystems.
The findings align with assessments by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), which highlight greater stability in global mangrove cover and the positive impact of restoration programs launched in various countries to protect biodiversity and strengthen coastal resilience against climate change. In this context, Quintana Roo remains the Mexican state with the largest mangrove area, concentrating 27.3% of the national coverage, equivalent to more than 247,000 hectares, according to data from the National Commission for the Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity (Conabio). This places it ahead of Campeche and Yucatán. Beyond hosting one of the country’s largest mangrove expanses, Quintana Roo relies on these ecosystems as a natural barrier against hurricanes, to reduce erosion, capture large amounts of carbon, and serve as a refuge and breeding ground for numerous marine species, factors that also support the state’s fishing and tourism industries.
Specialists consider that while the results are encouraging, sustaining the recovery will depend on strengthening conservation, restoration, and sustainable management policies for mangroves, particularly in regions under intense pressure from urban growth and tourism development, such as the Mexican Caribbean.
Need a LEGAL U.S. Notary Service? THIS is your solution!
It has happened to ALL of us U.S. Citizens who spend significant amounts of time living / working in Cozumel: reading the dreaded words on a document from back home: "Notarized Signature Required." It's such a simple thing and no one wants the added expense of travelling back to the U.S. just to have their signature notarized but there are many legal processes in the U.S.A. where nothing BUT a notarized signature will be accepted.
Some common documents that U.S. Citizens need notarized while living abroad are: Real Estate Deeds or Mortgages, executing Wills, Powers of Attorney, requests for Birth / Marriage / Death Certificates, Permission for a parent to get a minor’s US Passport, banking / insurance / bonding documents, permission for a minor to travel without parents or application for duplicate or replacement vehicle titles just to name a few.
In the past, the most common solution was for a U.S. Citizen to make their way to the nearest U.S. Consulate or Embassy where notaries are always available but the fees involved can be quite expensive. In addition there is the cost of actually travelling to the Consulate and who knows if appointments will even be available especially if the notarized signature is needed urgently. Plus from Cozumel that Consulate visit includes the cost of a ferry round trip to get to Playa del Carmen. All of these complicating factors just create more of a headache for something that is supposed to be relatively easy and inexpensive.
Another option frequently used has been that of a U.S. Notary operating outside of their country and jurisdiction. While this option is usually easy and cheap (often free or for a donation), it is one of those situations where "you get what you pay for" because technically these U.S. Notaries are operating ILLEGALLY as they are outside the legal jurisdiction for which they are authorized to notarize documents. In theory an illegal notarization could be attacked and challenged in the future and nullified causing legal issues with the documents signed. A fraud challenge to a Notary operating outside of the USA, simply involves a court asking the Notary to present their passport to the judge. Immigration stamps inside the passport will prove the Notary's whereabouts when documents were signed and if this was done inside the Notary's legal jurisdiction or illegally outside their authorized jurisdiction.
So do yourself a favor and avoid any future Signature Notary problems by utilizing an ON-LINE NOTARY SERVICE. Thanks to remote online notarization (RON), you can notarize a document from anywhere in the world, using your computer or mobile device and the internet. It takes only 10 minutes and is quite an easy process right from the comfort of your own home or office any hour of the day or night.
All you need to do is click this link 24/7 Online Notary Service To use this service, the fee is $25 USD and you must have a device with audio- visual capabilities (like a smart phone, tablet or PC) and proof of identity (a valid US Government-issued photo ID such as a Driver’s License or Passport). You can then access and meet with a licensed Notary Public who will notarize your papers in a matter of minutes. The process is easy, quick, efficient and AVAILABLE 24/7 online!! So WHY take a chance doing it any other way?!
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September 6, 2024 (Most Recent) Comprehensive Mexico Travel Warning
U.S. State Department Travel Advisory for Mexico Issued SEPTEMBER 6, 2024 shows the Mexican State of Quintana Roo (includes Cozumel, Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Riviera Maya, and Tulum) to be a LEVEL 2 Advisory - Exercise Increased Caution (Level 4 Advisory is Highest Risk):
There are "NO RESTRICTIONS" on U.S. government employees for travel to "ANY PARTS" of Quintana Roo state, which includes tourist areas such as: Cozumel, Cancún, Playa del Carmen, Riviera Maya and Tulum. However, U.S. government employees are advised to exercise increased situational awareness and caution after dark in the areas of Cancun, Tulum, and Playa del Carmen, and to remain in well-lit pedestrian streets and tourist zones.
U.S. citizens should as always exercise increased caution and be aware that according to Government of Mexico statistics, criminal activities and violence, including homicide, remain a concern throughout the State. While most of these homicides appeared to be targeted, criminal organization assassinations and turf battles between criminal groups that have resulted in violent crime in areas frequented by U.S. citizens. Bystanders injuries, while rare, have occurred. While not directed at tourists, shootings between rival gangs have killed or injured innocent bystanders. Additionally, U.S. citizens have been the victims of both non-violent and violent crimes in tourist and non-tourist areas.
The Mexico Travel Warning dated September 6, 2024 from the Department of State can also be viewed in its entirety on the Department of State website.
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09/21/2026 - Numbers go up quite a bit this week in Cozumel as cruise ship arrivals show 21 ships registered to dock as we head towards the end of September. This is 7 more ship than last week and 1 more than the "20 in port" which marks a "high season" number. There were 18 ships in port during the same week of 2025. An estimated 73,500 people will visit Cozumel this week via these cruise ships leaving an estimated US $ 7.8 million dollars behind in the local economy. 
