Punta Sur (South Point) is an ecological park at the Southern tip of Cozumel. It has archaeological sites, wetlands with alligators and a lighthouse. At the end of the gravel road there is a sheltered beach. In Mexico it's illegal for beaches that are accessible by road to be left peaceful and unspoiled. By law, they have to have "beach clubs" on them, with lounge chairs, restaurants, bars and mandatory thumping music. There were several local raccoons making their rounds of the tourists (including us). Off this beach, the bottom is shallow, flat and sandy and mostly covered with sea grass. There is supposed to be a "reef" a couple of hundred meters offshore and the beach clubs rent snorkel gear (life jackets are mandatory) for guided tours of it. We rented the mandatory life jackets and went off to find it on our own. I didn't know it at the time, but the reef is visible on the satellite image as a long, dark line. There are supposed to be gardens of sea fans, but we didn't see any. Maybe we weren't out far enough.
I thought this place was ok. It's not the classic Caribbean coral reef, but it's a good place to cool off in the water after exploring the park. We went to the first beach club (there are several at the end of the road) and it seemed a bit more peaceful and less crowded that the other ones around Cozumel.
