THIS LUXURIOUS RIVIERA MAYA RETREAT IS INFUSED WITH MEXICAN FLAVORS AND TRADITIONS — HERE’S WHAT OUR EDITOR-IN-CHIEF LOVED

Staying at the 72-room oasis was a true immersion into the colors and joy of Mexico.

My eight-year-old son, Bobby, subscribes to the beige diet: mac-n-cheese, french fries, and chicken fingers occasionally thrown in for good measure. Salmon, avocado, and anything remotely healthy or adventurous? Real hard sells these days.

Imagine my surprise when, after settling into our light-filled one-bedroom suite at Maroma, a Belmond Hotel, he made a beeline for the welcome amenity of fresh guacamole and deep-fried chapulines (grasshoppers). It turns out the protein-filled snack, popular in Oaxaca, makes for an excellent garnish. “Those are actually bugs,” I pointed out to him, popping one of the crispy nibbles, seasoned with a touch of lime and salt, in my mouth. “Want to try one?” 

“Sure,” he replied, unflinching. One bite and he was hooked. “But I won’t eat the guacamole.” 

Go figure.

Our four-night stay at Maroma, a 72-room oasis along the Riviera Maya, was filled with many moments of delight such as this — and proved to be a true immersion into the colors and joy of Mexico. Opened in 1995, Maroma was arguably the first luxury resort in the region, now a tourism behemoth. In 2023, roughly 21 million international and domestic tourists visited the state of Quintana Roo, where the Riviera Maya is located — a 6.9 percent increase from 2022. The hotel’s location along an under-trafficked, 1,000-foot stretch of sand is still the stuff of envy, with gentle surf to satisfy families and more cautious swimmers. 

Now operated by the Belmond Hotel Group, the low-lying property shines anew thanks to a $45 million overhaul by Tara Bernerd & Partners. The London-based interior designer stripped out many of the staid, darker elements and added in strategic pops of color, such as in the yellow-and-white umbrellas by the saltwater pool, located just off the main entrance. I was also struck by the brilliant royal-blue-and-gold tiles — designed by Bernerd and then custom-made in Guadalajara — adorning tables in the excellent Mexican restaurant Casa Mayor, and equally impressed by the subtle amber trim of the loaner caftans, woven by female artisans from Chiapas. 

Architect Jose Luis Moreno first scouted the area via a private plane in the 1970s while searching for a home site. He ultimately settled on this prime bay, employing local Mayan masons to build his white stucco estate; it became a spot for friends to stay and, eventually, a hotel. Evidence of the locals’ craftsmanship can still be seen in surprising ways. Right by the entrance to the hotel, I found a miniature house tucked under a ceiba tree, like a child’s toy. There are 10 of these dwellings on-site, all built by the masons for the aluxes, mythical elves in traditional Mayan culture. Every May, the staff does a ceremony to honor their presence. 

There are also 10 hives of Melipona bees, native to the area, housed in a sanctuary close to the spa. The rare, stingless insects — sacred to the Mayan culture — are now endangered, but Maroma has partnered with Guerlain (the official brand at the spa), Fundación Selva Maya, and local organization Mayahuum to study the bees and offer educational workshops.

This heady, wonderful mix of heritage, warmth, and respect for the environment makes Maroma an exceptional place to stay. Here’s a closer look at the standout features.

The Rooms

Each room at Maroma is unique, which is part of the charm. Years ago, they were free of TVs; not so anymore, a nod to 21st-century living. But here’s our family truth: we never turned our big screen on, preferring to read our books (thank you, housekeeping, for my leather pagemark) and sit on the oceanfront terrace, spellbound by the hums and crashes of the Caribbean Sea.

The resort sprawls across 11 low-lying buildings, each charmingly named and marked for a loteria card. (Loteria is a traditional Mexican board game, similar to bingo — you can learn to play as part of a tequila-tasting experience.) I loved discovering the “El Nopal” (cactus) and “El Corazon” (heart) cards emblazoned on tiles, a quirk added by Moreno years ago. Pre-renovation, there were 63 rooms; now, the count is 72, with three villas — Maroma, Mariposa, and Xuxu — rounding out the options. A bonus in my book? Seventy-five percent of the guest rooms have ocean views; the other 25 percent face one of the three pools or lush tropical gardens, so you will still feel immersed in the Riviera Maya. The entry level is a deluxe garden view room from 336 to 423 square feet. 

Bernard used a lot of warm, natural tones to make the rooms feel organic and location-appropriate: think baskets for light fixtures; thick sisal rugs, ideal for absorbing any stray specks of sand; and wooden coffee tables, organic like a piece of driftwood. Our family stayed in a one-bedroom oceanfront suite, where complimentary coffee was delivered every morning — promptly — at our requested time of 7:45 a.m. The living room felt like a friend’s chic beach home, with a comfy, cloth-covered couch and a well-stocked bar where we had our choice of complimentary soda and sparkling water.

Maroma’s bathrooms, in particular, benefited from the upgrade: ours had double sinks, brilliantly pebbled in green and white stone, with a marble countertop offset by the earth-toned tiled floors. (Jalisco-made tiles — 700,000 of them — were used throughout all the guest rooms, the work of master ceramicist José Noé Suro.) A separate door led to a “wet room” lined in moss-colored sukabumi stone, with a freestanding tub, rain shower, and bath products by Mexico-City-based Xinu, scented with amate root, copal, and lemon.

Food and Drink

As part of the renovation, Maroma retooled its dining options, keeping old favorites like the alfresco, thatched-roof Freddy’s Bar — named after longtime favorite bartender Freddy Flores, now retired — and adding newcomers like Bambuco, an intimate, low-lit spot for a nightcap, just off the lobby. 

Our best meal was at Woodend, celebrity chef Curtis Stone’s first restaurant in Mexico, an elevated place that also felt welcoming to families. The starter, a refreshing bowl of tomato water with cucumber, melon balls, and hoja santa oil, was a clean, simple precursor to the rest of Stone’s protein-forward menu, all about wood-fired cooking. My husband and I first shared a spectacular striped bass crudo with jicama, citrus, and peanut, followed by rock cod with roasted fennel, and then an epic cowboy ribeye for two. (Three in our case, since Bobby will eat steak.) Little touches like coat rack-slash-handbag stands and a well-edited Mexican wine list — order the Quinta Monasterio tempranillo if you like a light, fruity red — and outdoor seating made the whole evening memorable.

Casa Mayor, from executive chef Daniel Camacho, is another highlight, with more than 90 percent of the ingredients sourced from within Mexico. Though we loved our dinner of duck carnitas, Sahuayo-style, the daily breakfast stole the show. Included in the rate, there are special treats like a coffee of the day (who knew every Mexican state produced beans?), a Maroma basket including fruit and pastries, and hand-pressed quesadillas, made to order with fillings such as cheese, chorizo, or mushrooms by a staffer sitting close to the entrance, working their magic at the griddle.

Accessibility

There is one guest room that is ADA-compliant: a deluxe ocean-view accommodation, number 29, located by the Coronas Garden. Public areas that can be adapted to be ADA by adding a ramp include Casa Mayor, Freddy’s Bar, Bambuco, the beach, and the main pool area.

Activities and Experiences

Part of the joy of Maroma is just settling into loungers on the beach and being spoiled by the sun and the incredible beach attendants, who swing by with treats such as fruit popsicles, avocado popcorn, and nuts with onion and lime. There is a fitness center and yoga pavilion close to the main entrance, but many guests choose to spend most of their fitness time jogging or walking on the beach. A more formal kids club is in the works; for now, it occupies a guest room, with the team making ample use of the small(ish) space to host pinata-making workshops, mixology, and guacamole lessons. Kids can even participate in swim sessions outdoors.

Two highlights during our stay involved culinary experiences, which were booked as add-on activities. Chef Camacho and his team led us through a “nixtamal” culinary class in the live-fire kitchen of Woodend, teaching us about the different varieties of corn and how to roll, press, and cook tortillas to perfection. It was a welcome break from the day’s heat — and we proceeded to enjoy the fruits of our labor over a lunch of flank steak ranchero, chicken pibil, and shrimp with tomato and oregano.

We also loved our tequila, mezcal, and raicilla tasting in the new La Cantina, a private event space just off the lobby. I’ve tried my fair share of tequila tastings in Mexico — the trick is to keep them to under an hour and focus on bottles that are not so easy to find at a bar near you back home. We tried an excellent tequila blanco made by Don Fulano, which was crisp and floral, and an earthy, woodsy mezcal by The Lost Explorer, aged for 10 years.

The Spa

The freestanding spa was built many moons ago to resemble a temple. Stone carvings of salamanders, snakes, turtles, and other local animals are strategically placed in the pathways, and there’s even a dipping pool under a giant ceiba tree just off the main corridor.

While the bones and soul of the spa remain the same, there are a few new welcome structures, including an expanded check-in area — stocked with Guerlain Abeille Royale products, a nice nod to the bees — an apothecary for blending scents, and one additional treatment room, bringing the total to nine. The menu has an excellent range of face and body treatments — I tried the bee healing ritual, which includes a gentle exfoliation and hydration with Guerlain Abielle Royal products, pressure point stimulation with herbal compresses as well as a healing mixture of basil and sesame oil, placed on the stomach. Maroma’s temazcal (traditional Mayan sweat lodge) lies on the main beach, close to the guest rooms — don’t miss out on this hour-or-so spiritual cleansing ritual led by a local family.

Location

Maroma is a speedy 30-minute ride from the Cancun International Airport, which offers service to most major U.S. gateways. During our February visit, the vast, quiet beach was blissfully free of sargassum, which has come in waves to the Riviera Maya over the past decade. The pesky microalgae often washes up from May through October, when water temperatures rise, but many major resorts are diligent about raking up the seaweed each morning.

If you choose to go off-site, the ruins of Tulum (one hour by car) and Chichén Itzá (closer to three hours by car) remain top attractions; Maroma offers a full-day experience to Chichén Itzá with a visit to Valladolid, totaling eight hours. The ruins of Ek’ Balam, just north of Valladolid, are less well-known and make for an excellent day trip; Maroma can again arrange an excursion.

Another wonderful option for families is cooling down in a cenote (watering hole). At Ecopark Kantun Chi, you can bring along your snorkel gear and explore five cenotes and an underground cavern. For a full-day adventure, Xcaret is a massive theme park that offers snorkeling tours, stingray encounters, a butterfly pavilion, a coral reef aquarium, and traditional dance shows, among other attractions.

How to Get the Best Value

Travelers who book through Virtuoso, FHR, Signature Travel Network, Internova, and Chase may be entitled to special amenities such as a resort credit or upgrade, subject to availability.

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2024-04-09T16:34:27Z dg43tfdfdgfd