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 Reef, Cozumel
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 Located 20 km off the eastern coast of the Yucatán Peninsula, Cozumel is the largest inhabited island in Mexico. The island has been settled since the beginning of the common era. It rose to prominence among the Maya as both a trading post and religious center, but was abandoned as a result of the Spanish Conquest. It remained uninhabited after that, visited only by fishermen or the occasional pirate. It was reborn in 1852 when Yucatecans fleeing the Caste War, migrated to the island in droves.
The refugees cum-settlers dabbled in farming and ranching, but for years the island’s main source of income derived from chicle. Harvested throughout the peninsula from the zapote tree, the world’s first chewing gum was processed at the mainland camps then sent to Cozumel for exportation Fishing was a sideline. International tourism discovered Cozumel in the 60s, thanks to the oceanographer Jacques Cousteau whose documentaries showcased the island’s spectacular reefs. Today, Cozumel is a world class dive destination and a major cruise ship port-of-call.
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 © 2004 Editorial Veras. La guía Oficial del Caribe Mexicano. |  |