In the know

Our favourite rooms: We liked the seclusion and spaciousness of the Mayan Villa, as well as the hanging bed, suspended from the ceiling by thick ropes, which gently sways you to sleep. The large terrace is great for lingering breakfasts before a dip in the private plunge pool. Two of the Junior Suites in the main building share an ample private garden and swimming pool with the Deluxe Suite, the hacienda’s largest, which has a living room too. All rooms are decorated in colonial style, with attractive red and cream tile and cotton hammocks enticingly slung across the corner.
Packing tips: A mask and snorkel are essential gear if you plan on exploring the cenotes (underground rivers) at nearby Chochola; otherwise, insect repellent and a good book will help you while away lazy days by the pool.
Also: Ask for a tour of Santa Rosa’s botanical gardens. Spread over 9,200 square metres, the gardens contain a vast assortment of plants used in cooking and medicinal remedies, as well as some rare species.

Mexico hotels: Hacienda Santa Rosa, need to know

Current offers

Smith card offer: 10 per cent off spa treatments
Current special offer: 25 per cent discount on room rates

Hacienda Santa Rosa

Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico [view map]

Style: Colonial relaxation plantation
Setting: Sleepy Yucatan village

Close to Mérida and the Yucatan Peninsula’s Caribbean coast, Hacienda Santa Rosa is a Mexico boutique hotel vibrantly painted in brick red and cobalt blue. Looking out through the arches of the colonnaded terrace where dinner is served, you can see wide green lawns, the enormous botanic gardens that supply its kitchen with fruit and vegetables, and the distinctive Yucatan jungle beyond, home to hundreds of tropical bird species.

Need to know

Rooms: 11.
Rates: Low season, $359–$689; high season, $424–$754, excluding breakfast and 22 per cent service charge and tax.
Check-out: Midday, but flexible depending on occupancy and subject to a $40 charge.
Facilities: Spa treatments, (temperamental) WiFi in the main building. In rooms: TV, CD player, open fireplace, minibar. DVD players are available for a fee.
Poolside: As well as a shallow wading pool stretching across the lawn, Santa Rosa has a deeper pool that reaches underneath part of the main hacienda, allowing you to swim through the arches of the smoky red building into the shady caves beneath.
Eco-friendly: Hacienda Santa Rosa uses waste water to irrigate its gardens, grows its own fruit and vegetables and its owners are behind the World Haciendas Foundation, which supports henequen rope-making communities in the Mexican southeast.
Also: Smoking is allowed in all rooms.

Food & drink

Hotel restaurant: Although the restaurant has a grand room indoors for cooler nights, most dining is done on the terrace outside. Gilded black lanterns hang from the beams, illuminating a row of round tables, where guests enjoy mixed Mexican and European cuisine.
Dress code: Linens for lounging, dresses for dining.
Top table: On the front terrace, overlooking the town’s ancient church. Breakfast by the pool beside the botanic gardens.
Last orders: Santa Rosa’s kitchen is open until 10.30pm.
Room service: Restaurant meals can be enjoyed in your room from 7am–10.30pm.
Hotel bar: Although there’s no bar as such, you’re free to enjoy a drink anywhere in the hacienda’s grounds.

Smith card offer

10 per cent off spa treatments

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