Cenote bliss
Alila Mayakoba (Playa del Carmen, MX)
GETAWAYS • Playa del Carmen
The Skinny: Opened in February in on the grounds of the shuttered Andaz, Alila Mayakoba is the newest of Mayakoba’s quartet of luxury resorts (Rosewood, Banyan Tree, and Fairmont), sharing 600 acres of grounds, spanning mangrove jungles and Caribbean coastline along Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. It’s the first Latin American property from Alila, which launched in Indonesia and is now part of Hyatt.
The Scene: The dramatic open-air lobby draws inspiration from Riviera Maya’s cenote-laden landscape for a stay rooted in nature. Separated by a shaded path through a mangrove forest, the resort is divided into two distinct sections: a lagoon area and beach area. Guests can traverse the four properties by complimentary ferry, where you’ll likely spot crocodiles, slider turtles, and dozens of different birds along the way. The resorts are also anchored by a PGA golf course.
The Rooms: Textured stone, wood, and clay, including locally sourced marbled limestone, in soothing shades of brown that evoke an earthy ambiance. There’s also woven furniture and baskets, a wooden ladder towel rack, and sculptural artwork by Elena de la Fuente and Ampi Arozarena of Arozarena De La Fuente using natural materials and pigments.
The Amenities: At the botanically powered Alila Spa, you can mix your own body scrubs, where my divine two-hour circadian treatment included gentle abdominal massage, assisted stretch therapy, reflexology, and craniosacral holds that did wonders for my neck.
The most transformative experience of my trip, though, was an Alila Moment excursion, where we tapped into our feminine energy, created mandalas in the jungle, and received blessings from a shaman while floating in a cenote.
Alila Mayakoba is home to four restaurants serving a mix of Yucatecan, Mexican, and pan-Latin cuisine. Enjoy tacos with your toes in the sand at Alisio Beach Club paired with off-menu matcha coconut water served in a fresh coconut, or homemade hibiscus kombucha. For dinner, Casa Amate is designed as a family home, with a library bar and living room.
Why It’s FOUND: A luxury resort from an intriguing new entrant that captures the region’s spirituality and soul. –Amber Gibson
→ Alila Mayakoba (Playa del Carmen, MX) • Carretera Federal, Cancún Km. 298 • Rates from $600/night, $700/night for suites.