Mysterious UFO Flies Past Cruise Ship Docked in Mexico
There are a lot of sights cruisers can expect to see while sailing on a getaway cruise to Cozumel, Mexico – such as sandy beaches, deep blue waves, and even Mayan ruins.
However, a possible extraterrestrial sighting verges very far into the unusual category.
But on May 18, 2025, in the late afternoon, some of the lucky guests onboard may have caught a glimpse of an unidentified flying object (or UFO) while Margaritaville at Sea’s Islander was docked in Cozumel, Mexico.
A live webcam that was filming the 2,650-guest vessel captured a dark, metallic, circular object as it flew past the camera at an incredibly fast speed.
The footage appears to have been taken from Park Royal, a popular resort that is located directly across from Cozumel’s International Pier – where Margaritaville Islander usually docks – and not far from the Punta Langosta Pier.
Cruise fans were left scratching their heads over what the object could have been. The answers were divided between genuine curiosity, possible alien sightings, and blaming a combination of poor image quality paired with a bird or insect.
It’s also possible that onlookers had spotted a drone – as these devices have become incredibly popular with influencers for creating more impressive content.
The UFO sighting is particularly unique though, as when cruisers experience something strange or supernatural – the alleged culprit is usually ghosts of hauntings.
As recently as March of this year, Carnival cruise guests were relaying ghost stories to brand ambassador John Heald on his public Facebook page after being “haunted” on their past sailings.
While many guests told their stories in jest, some genuinely believed that they had made content with searfaring spirits.
But no matter what you believe, cruisers sailing on Margaritaville Islander in the near future should keep an eye out – as the 85,700-gross ton vessel will be returning to Cozumel many more times before the year is out on 4-night, 5-night, and 7-night sailings.
While most cruisers likely won’t spot anything out of the ordinary, you might leave with a cool story if you pay extra close attention.
Another UFO Sighting?
It’s not the first time a ship has possibly made content with a UFO – and it may not be the last, as reports of sightings in general have increased in recent years.
Earlier in 2025, another cruise fan took to Reddit to search for answers after their friend captured a UFO on video from their balcony cabin one night.
While the poster did not confirm the cruise ship, she did state that the sighting took place while cruising in the Gulf of Mexico.
“Caught by my friend off her cruise ship balcony last night in the Gulf of Mexico,” the short clip was captioned.
As in the new footage from Cozumel, the UFO appears to be quite shiny and fast.
Read Also: 10 Unusual Things Passengers Do on Cruise Ships
But in this case, some smart internet sleuthers were able to come up with a plausible explanation. After zooming in on the footage and looking at different angles, the UFO appeared to look a lot like a seagull.
Seagulls can fly quite far – sometimes going more than 20 miles offshore in one foul swoop (pun intended) – so it’s not out of the realm of possibility for one of those birds to visit a cruise ship.
“Seagulls tryna score a feed off the deck. In the first shot you’ll see the slight zig zag in flight before a curved bomb downward. You’ll see the outline of the wings appear right before the dive down,” one person confirmed.
“The white orb type flashes are actually their bellies being lit from underneath. Signed, bird appreciator and fisherman (you’ll see the same off the end of most piers in the world at night time),” they continued.
Have you ever spotted a UFO during a cruise? Let us know on the Cruise Hive Discussion Boards!