Two numbers on neighbouring stands of the same beach can look identical and mean different things. Operators in Cancún and Cozumel count a jet ski per machine and a parasail per seat in the harness, and that difference decides what a day for two costs. At The Jet Ski Brothers half an hour costs 1,400 MXN (about $70) per machine; at Jet Ski Cozumel it is $75 per machine. A flight with Parasail Cancun and with Jet Ski Cozumel costs $75 per person.
- The three units of price most often confused on the beach
- Jet skis: why “for two” and “per machine” are the same amount
- Parasailing: what is being charged for — the flight or the person
- What two people actually pay in Cancún and on Cozumel
- The deposit that is both 20% and $20 on one page
Important
Every figure below was taken in September 2026 from the operators’ own pages, in their own currency and unit. Where an operator prints two different numbers for the same thing on one page, both are named.
Three units of price
There are exactly three units on these two beaches, and they are not interchangeable. Per machine: you pay for the jet ski, and how many people ride it is a question of load, not of the till. Per person: everyone who sits in the harness pays. Per flight: a group that goes up together pays once, and then the number of people changes the cost per head but not the total.
Check the unit before the number. A 75 on one stand means a whole machine for half an hour; on the stand next door it means one seat under a canopy for fifteen minutes. Same figure, different goods.
A jet ski in Cancún: 1,400 MXN (about $70) is the machine
At The Jet Ski Brothers half an hour on a jet ski costs 1,400 MXN, and the operator itself puts that at roughly $70.
Right beside it on the same page sits a second rate: 700 MXN (about $35) per traveller sharing a jet ski. Add it up and two people sharing one machine pay the same 1,400 MXN. The unit has not changed, only the way of writing it. Two on one machine are allowed up to a combined 400 pounds (about 181 kg), and the driver must be over 18 with valid ID.
On top comes what the operator explicitly leaves out of the price: the watercraft permit and licence plus the environmental impact fee, 200 MXN or $10 per person in total. Departures run daily from 11:00 to 16:00, cancellation is free 24 hours ahead, and booking online at least seven days out takes 10% off at checkout.
A jet ski on Cozumel: $75 per machine and three ages on one page
At Jet Ski Cozumel a half-hour rental costs $75 per machine, an hour is $135 and the ninety-minute guided tour with snorkelling, a meal and two drinks is $199 — all three printed with the label “per ski”.
You ride a 2020 Sea-Doo GTI with 155 hp inside a marked patch of water in front of the base: the rental block describes it as 2000 by 1000 metres, while the questions further down the same page call it “a 1000 x 2000 km area”. Riders switch freely, the operator says, and kids ride along.
Age is the hardest part of that page. The restrictions block says “Minimum Age – 10 Yrs”. The answers below say “the minimum age to drive a jet ski in Cozumel is 16” and “in Mexico, you must be 18 years old to rent a jet ski”. Weight splits the same way: the restrictions give a maximum of 300 lb per person, while the answer on capacity gives 350 lb for the machine including driver and passengers. No version of the page asks for a licence.
Important
Three ages and two weight limits sit on one and the same operator page, and nowhere does it say which version applies at the desk. If you are bringing a teenager or riding two-up, ask when you book and get the answer in writing.
Parasailing in Cancún: the price of a seat in the harness
At Parasail Cancun a flight costs $75 per person on an open ticket you use any day between 10:30 and 17:30.
You spend about ten minutes in the air while the boat runs three miles, climbing to 260 feet by the operator’s account; in its answers it gives a maximum height of 80 to 90 metres depending on the weight carried. Take-off and landing are from the stern platform. Two or three can fly together provided the total stays under 180 kg (397 lb), with the captain making the final call on weather and total weight.
Here lies the first trap in the arithmetic: the operator charges $10 per person at check-in if you fly from Playa Tortugas. So a couple pays $150 for two seats plus $20 in fees — $170 for one visit to the beach.
Parasailing on Cozumel: the tandem that saves nothing
At Jet Ski Cozumel a solo flight costs $75 per person, and the whole excursion takes half an hour, of which fifteen minutes are flight time.
Next to it sits the tandem: $150 for two people, captioned “just $75 per person” and badged “SAVE $25”. Divide it and you get exactly the same price per seat as the solo flight. What the tandem saves, and against what, the operator does not explain: on the same page it compares its $75 with $100 at cruise lines and $85 at online resellers, and the badge may refer to that. It is worth asking plainly at the desk.
The flight time is also given twice. The pricing card and the “what’s included” block both say fifteen minutes, while the description of the flight says “10–12 minutes before you start descending”. The climb, the operator promises, is to 500 feet, with take-off and landing on the boat platform, so you need not get wet at all.
What does it come to for two?
| What you buy | Operator’s price | Unit | Paid on the day | Total for two |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jet ski, half an hour, Cancún | 1,400 MXN (about $70) | per machine, up to two riders | 200 MXN per person | 1,800 MXN (about $90) |
| Jet ski, half an hour, Cozumel | $75 | per machine, riders switch | nothing named | $75 |
| Jet ski, an hour, Cozumel | $135 | per machine | nothing named | $135 |
| Parasailing, Cancún | $75 | per person | $10 per person at Playa Tortugas | $170 |
| Parasailing, Cozumel | $75 | per person, tandem $150 | nothing named | $150 |
The biggest gap in the table is not between the cities but between the units. Half an hour on the water for two on Cozumel costs $75 for both, because you are buying the machine; fifteen minutes in the air for two on the same beach costs $150, because you are buying two seats. Neither operator gives any discount for flying as a pair.
The deposit: 20% or $20?
Jet Ski Cozumel promises on both its pages that a 20% deposit holds the booking, with the balance due on arrival in dollars, pesos or by card. But the buttons under the prices name fixed sums: $20 under the $75 rental, $36 under the $135 hour and $54 under the $199 tour. Twenty per cent of those prices would be $15, $27 and about $40.
The same operator prices its beach pass twice as well: the booking-bonus block calls it $25, the list of what is included calls it $20. And it gives the taxi two prices: the jet ski rental page says about $16 for up to four people, the parasailing page says $25 for one to four and $45 for five to eight from any cruise pier.
Important
The deposit, the pass and the taxi fare are each printed in two versions by this operator, and nowhere does it say which is right. Check the amount in your booking email against what was actually charged, and settle the difference before you pay the balance.
