Giants on the water and below
Up to seven cruise ships can anchor in the harbor of the Mexican island of Cozumel. Tourists come here for the blue water and the pristine coral reefs but it's no surprise that with so many visitors, nature suffers.
Tourist attraction
Cozumel is one of the most popular destinations for cruise ship tourism. As a result, the island's harbor is large - up to seven ships can anchor here at the same time. They bring five million visitors a year to an island, which has less than 100,000 inhabitants.
4,000 passengers on board
Most of the tourists come from the United States. About 4,000 of them fit on a single one of the huge ships. The pier is called Puerta Maya. It is designed as a shopping mile for cruise ship tourists.
Biggest business
Most people working on Cozumel depend on cruise tourism in one way or another, says the security chief of the pier, José Nieto. Therefore, it's almost impossible to imagine the island without them.
Second largest reef in the world
The island's coral reefs are part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef, the second largest reef system in the world. Despite the ships, it is still in good shape: Underwater visibility is excellent, more than 300 species of fish and unique corals live here.
Main attraction: Diving
Diving instructor Raymundo Ramirez says that only few tourists know how to behave in the fragile ecosystem of a coral reef. He himself only takes small groups below the surface, giving precise instructions so that the corals are not damaged.
Art and history
The people of Cozumel are ambivalent about the island's reputation as a hotspot for cruise ship tourists. They would rather attract day visitors from the mainland and backpackers who are interested in the culture and the Mayan history of the island.