We may earn a commission if you buy something from any affiliate links on our site.
For a discreet seam of the global glitterati, Maroma, a Belmond Hotel on Mexico’s Riviera Maya, is the hotel reopening of the year. After an extensive, multi-year renovation project, the storied property—housed at the jungle’s edge, where the whitest sands touch the bluest waters—has undergone the chicest of Vogue-approved face lifts, and opened its doors again last month.
When architect Jose Luis Moreno first ambled through the seemingly impenetrable Mayan jungle to the riviera’s shoreline in the mid-1970s, back when Cancun and its surroundings had but a few scattered lodgings and an airport with a thatched roof, few could have predicted that a hotel legend would one day be born. But by the late 1980s, after several years living by the exquisite shoreline himself, he built a hotel that became a top-tier haven for the travel cognoscenti. Acquired by Belmond some 20 years ago, the magic has once again been truly re-energized.
With 72 rooms, suites, and villas spread over 200 acres, the beveled, white-washed buildings with wooden accents feel entirely at one in the locality. Luxury is at full tilt, though this isn’t a bubble of a resort. The craft and materials of the region feel incorporated at every turn. Tara Bernerd & Partners—no strangers to grand-scale hotel projects—have brought their most intimate instincts to bear on Maroma, working closely with local artists and makers on everything from stunning, individually painted floor tiles for the suites to an emphasis on local woods, ceramics, and textiles.
Maroma’s very talented executive chef Daniel Camacho continues to oversee the sumptuous menus at Casa Mayor (whatever you do, do not skip breakfast—the freshly rolled quesadillas are to die for) and is a man with a rare talent for elevated Mexican cuisine that doesn’t compromise on authenticity. In an exciting new addition, Belmond has brought in Michelin-starred Australian mega-chef Curtis Stone to run Woodend, with a wood-fired menu that is earthy, prepared with an international influence, and served with just the right level of formal informality. Don’t skip Freddy’s Bar on the beachfront, either. (Order a clarified piña colada. Trust us.)
Be sure to take some time away from your heavenly sun lounger—where complimentary aftersun and face mist are kept on ice for you—to venture out to a local cenote or two (the near-infinite network of sprawling caves and plunge pools inland). The hotel provides excellent guides for the experience, where the full force of ancient energies can be felt.
True to Belmond form, a sense of relaxed luxury and attention to place are already integral here, but with a huge new spa opening this autumn—Guerlain’s first in Latin America—the range of treatments with a local flavor soon promises to be world-class.
Bragging rights. This hotel will be on everyone’s wishlist for the coming year. Make sure you get in there first.
Booking details for Maroma, a Belmond Hotel:
