Hotels in the Jungle Riviera Maya
When we talk about the Riviera Maya, we generally refer to its white-sand beaches, its palm trees swaying in the sun, and its turquoise blue sea with its soft and relaxing waves. However, there is so much more, so many things to do, see and hear throughout the territory that this corner of paradise includes and presents to us.
Since the time when the Chicxulub meteorite ended 90% of life on the planet, the Riviera Maya has been growing into a wonderful place full of both animal and plant life and is part of what is known as the Mayan Jungle.
After the Amazon, the Mayan jungle—extending through Mexico, Belize, and northern Guatemala and with an area of more than 14 million hectares—is the largest tropical forest on the American continent. It provides refuge to countless unique and endangered species, such as the white-nosed peccary, tapir, scarlet macaw, harpy eagle, and howler monkey. Jaguar tracks can often be seen on the forest floor. In addition, it is home to almost 400 species of birds and, at the peak of the migratory winter months, receives several million visiting birds.
With this wonderful environment, it is not surprising that investors from all over the world today seek to acquire properties in the jungle to develop hotels and facilities that take advantage of all the benefits of living in the jungle, as long as all guidelines that the environmental authority imposes are taken care of. Since this type of incursion into habitats that, as we have already said, give shelter to so many species of protected flora and fauna.
Already as a visitor, the guest in these “Jungle Resorts” can appreciate the peace, tranquility, and relaxation away from the hustle and bustle of the big tourist centers such as Playa del Carmen, Tulúm, or Cancún. It is very common for these hotels to offer their visitors restaurants with menus focused on a “healthy” and “detox” lifestyle. Amenities such as crystalline and cold water cenotes to cool off from the heat or temazcales to sweat and reconnect with the earth.
“The temazcal serves as therapy for physical and spiritual ills in some ceremonies the use of medicinal plants is also used. During the ceremony, the guide or “temazcalero” uses herbs to “call the steam”, while singing prayers or traditional songs of the temazcal and at the same time splashing the stones with water.
There are more and more lodging options available to the traveler who enjoys connecting with nature and distancing himself from the mundane life full of technology. People who prefer a coffee in the garden while listening to the sounds of a habitat full of life such as the song of the birds, the calls of the monkeys, or the constant call of the cicadas. Without telephones, radios, or televisions, without distractions that take us out of that cocoon of isolation and peace.
You also have the option of renting a cabin through the Airbnb platform and living the experience in a slightly more personal way where it is necessary to make the necessary purchases for the stay well in advance since these properties are generally located at a considerable distance from the nearest market, but if cooking and preparing your food is part of your plans, it is a very good option.
Likewise, the offer is very varied in terms of location since there are options in the municipalities of Puerto Morelos, Solidaridad (Playa del Carmen), Tulum, and Bacalar to name a few. A short google search will give you a dozen options.
If what you want is a more permanent experience, which has become a worldwide trend, you can acquire a property and build your own little sanctuary in the Selva Maya. For that, Select Riviera Maya Real Estate has an interesting portfolio of properties to show you. Get in touch with us and we will gladly assist you.
Cozumel is Paradise
The Island of Cozumel, whose ancient name is Cuzamil means: “Nest of Swallows” in the Mayan language. It is one of the most visited islands in the world. However, not many people know about his legacy.
Sometimes when we think of an island in the Caribbean our imagination wanders through all the wonderful islands of the Antilles such as Cuba, the Bahamas, Jamaica, or the Dominican Republic. However, Mexico has its own like Isla Mujeres off the coast of Cancun or Cozumel off the coast of Playa del Carmen.
Cozumel was a very important settlement for the Mayan culture in the 900s AD since it was the temple of the Goddess Ixchel, Goddess of Fertility, and the Moon. Mayan women made pilgrimages to bring offerings and pray to the Goddess Ixchel.
Cozumel was a very important port for the exchange and commercialization of the Mayans, they commercialized coffee, corn, rice, and jade, among other things.
Approximately 500 years ago, in 1518 it was the first arrival of the Spaniards to the Island of Cozumel under the charge of General Juan de Grijalva, also came Gonzalo Guerrero who became the Father of Mestizaje when he married Zazil-Ha (Princess Maya), hence the mixture between Spaniards and Mayans was born.
Sometime later the mestizos and Mayans left the Island of Cozumel, remaining uninhabited until the year 1848, a group of mestizos escaping the caste war in the Yucatan Peninsula arrived in Cozumel, and thus once again the now known worldwide was founded. Cozumel Island.
In 1950 the first steps of the tourist development of the Island of Cozumel began to be created, receiving guests from the East Coast of the United States, the growth of the Hotel Industry in Cozumel came shortly after the Cuban revolution in 1959.
In 1968, the first Arianne cruise ship arrived, which had fixed routes in the Caribbean, and over time Cozumel became the most important cruise port in the world. By 2022 alone, it is expected that this paradise will receive 962 cruise ships with almost three thousand passengers per ship. It is not necessary to explain the important economic benefit that each cruise ship’s arrival represents for the Island.
The Cozumel with Tank, viewer, and fins.
“It’s so blue!” are the first words spoken by many divers in Cozumel. Towering coral, balmy temperatures, and stellar visibility bless this underwater kingdom, while on the surface there are friendly people, good food, sandy beaches, and lively nightspots. It’s a perfect diving vacation.
Diving in Cozumel is a wonderland of lush walls and high-voltage drifts, where caves and caverns are ready to explore. Cozumel Island is located right on the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef, the second largest on the planet after the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Therefore, it is possible to see a large amount of marine flora and fauna that will surely leave you breathless with everything and that you bring the tank completely full.
Also, the island offers a large number of diving schools with certification capacity at different levels of competence and expertise. All these places have managed to find unique places to take their clients in addition to the traditional ones so that no trip will seem repetitive and much less boring.
There are many who, after a brief vacation, fall in love with the place so much that they decide to invest in the purchase of a property, either to reside full time or to come on vacation and rent during the time they do not use it. Owning a property on a Caribbean island is not something reserved only for millionaires. Select Riviera Maya Real Estate has a portfolio of fantastic properties at very affordable prices that will allow you to live the Caribbean dream. Get in touch with us and we will gladly help you find that house or apartment that fits your needs and budget, but better yet, one that fits your dreams and expectations.
Note: Underwater photos courtesy of @geraparot.photography and @senseidivers
Fly & Buy Riviera Maya
How it works, Benefits and Cost
This is one of the tools used in the Real Estate business to encourage future investments in the wonderful Riviera Maya. We will introduce you to the Fly & Buy sales model to broaden your knowledge on this subject. First of all, it is a very good option to visit properties that are likely to interest you, this allows you to have a vision beyond the simple brochure or photos that the developers can offer you.
We know the pics are kind of romanticizing Fly and Buy, but we could help ourselves.
Being invited to a Fly n’ Buy program is a recognition of your quality as an investor, your purchasing power, and your knowledge of the Real Estate market. This is only achieved through a link with an established real estate agent in the area who knows the different options that are offered and that fit your needs, budget, and, why not, whims. This is very important because it is increasingly difficult to get away from work and multiple responsibilities to travel and meet.
Generally, it is the Broker who makes the invitation and in the process, an itinerary of visits to different properties for which the client has expressed interest is made, either due to their location, cost, the possibility of ROI, amenities, etc. In this way, once the client arrives, they can see first-hand the spaces, finishes, conditions, and other characteristics that hardly reach the “brochure” that the developers send their clients as the surrounding environment to the property (example.- adjoining the cemetery of the city) and that can only be appreciated with a visit to the site.
Likewise, it is the broker who is in charge of the entire logistics process, flights, lodging, and transportation. In the end, the cost of everything is added up and a price is set for the Fly n’ Buy. That price is fully covered by the potential buyer. The important thing here is that the cost will be fully reimbursed when you have fully closed the purchase of any of the properties that the Broker presented to you.
A good broker will know how to choose the properties that the buyer should be interested in so that he only visits those that are interesting to him. They are generally a couple of very intense days in which they also take the opportunity to try the typical local dishes and visit some place of interest such as the 5th. Ave. in Playa del Carmen for example.
After all the visits, and if so desired, the buyer can discover the Riviera Maya in more detail by taking a few days off to discover the magnificent beaches of the Caribbean, the canoes, and the secrets of the Mayan cities. One thing is for sure, you will fall in love.
Gastronomy in the Riviera Maya
One of the greatest pleasures of the human being is, without a doubt, food. Sweet, salty, sour, or smoked, it seems that we live to experience the next bite. The number of flavors and aromas in traditional and non-traditional cuisines around the world are as varied as they are unique. While some become fashionable as “fusion food” others have a perennial acceptance on the palate of the world. And for example, we have the Italian, Spanish or Chinese cuisine where each town, each locality, and sometimes each neighborhood has its unique and unrepeatable flavor.
With the Caribbean as its main attraction, the Riviera Maya is one of the most visited places in Mexico, so over the years, the development of its culinary proposal has improved significantly, until it reaches what it is today, a rich and varied gastronomic proposal of excellent quality.
The diversity of the typical cuisine of the Riviera Maya, includes appetizers to gourmet dishes or fusion cuisine, with menus of the Mayan heritage and others from abroad such as French, Italian, Asian, Argentine, Venezuelan, and Russian dishes. , etc., which represent the possibility of enjoying exquisite proposals that you will be fascinated to taste.
Talking precisely about the wonderful culinary heritage of the Mayans is the subject of entire books. Dishes such as the cochinita pibil, the black stuffing, the panuchos, salbutes, and other delicacies are a must for both those of us who live here and for visitors. Thus, we will also find traditional haute cuisine restaurants such as wonderful tables next to the stove where expert cooks and chefs throw handmade tortillas that accompany dishes flavored with firewood.
Among the typical dishes of the area, are tamales, tacos, a rich lime soup, green and red enchiladas, guacamole, nachos with cheese, quesadillas, enchiladas, fajitas, flautas, burritos, some motuleños eggs, mole, kibis, shrimp cocktail, ceviche, fish in size, among many other delicacies.
A very important aspect to consider when we talk about gastronomy is that the Riviera Maya is a melting pot of cultures, people from every corner of the world have made this corner of paradise not only their home but also a place of cultural expression full of art, sophistication and cosmopolitan. Thus, it is very common to find dishes from distant lands such as Chinese, Thai, Italian, German, Japanese, French, Vietnamese, Greek, or Spanish. Simply, there is something for all tastes and palates.
Completing the menu with a sweet and a delicious drink is something you cannot deprive yourself of, try some tasty mold fritters, sweet tamales, sweet potatoes, cajeta, quince paste, campechanas, coffee flan, sweet sapodilla, Zamorano chongos, guavas in syrup, to sweeten your day; Among the drinks, a Caribbean cocktail, a very cold michelada or the delicious fresh waters of the most varied tastes, are part of the specialties to taste.
The Riviera Maya is in addition to a paradise, a dreamland for the palate. If you, like many, want to invest in a property in the region, Select Riviera Maya Real Estate has an important inventory of options where you will surely find something that fits your needs, budget, and tastes. Contact us, we are here to serve you and we will gladly take you to eat one of the many delicacies that make this place unique.