In the know

Our favourite rooms: The Master Suite El Venado looks out over the lagoon, and has a cotton-canopied four-poster decorated with Huichol beadwork, as well as an outdoor shower that lets you wistfully gaze out to sea while you wash. A hammock swings breezily on the terrace, and steps lead down to where your own rowing boat awaits to take you across to the hotel’s beach. On the opposite side of the lagoon, Nopalito 12 is another rustic recommendation – it has a king-size bed, a pretty beachside terrace, and some of the most stunning sea views this side of the pacific.
Packing tips: It’s not going to be the most becoming addition to your wardrobe, but a head torch could come in very useful for night-time navigation in the hotel’s electicity-free environment. Candles and hand torches are supplied.
Also: Every July, thousands of baby turtles erupt from the sand when hatching season gets under way. Hotelio Desconcido resident biologist leads the attempt to assist the hatchlings on their way to the ocean – guests can get involved too.

Jalisco hotels: Hotelito Desconocido, need to know

Current offers

Smith card offer: Free horse riding on the beach for two

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Hotelito Desconocido

Jalisco, Mexico[view map]

Style: Eco-chic beach shacks
Setting: Pacific pueblito

It may be less than two hours' drive from Puerto Vallarta, but Hotelito Desconocido is as away-from-it-all, back-to-nature, and off-the-beaten-path as its possible to get without heading for deep space. It's a boutique hotel that takes eco-friendless seriously, without making compromises on comfort. Separated by a rowing boat-traversed lagoon, the hotel’s 24 thatched shacks are decorated in bright, jewel hues and furnished with rustic Mexican pieces. They may be devoid of TVs, sound systems and even electricity, but the hotel’s huts – some stilted above the water – are nonetheless filled with character, cosiness and stay-for-a-month charm. *PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS HOTEL IS CLOSED FOR RENOVATIONS UNTIL MAY 2010*

Need to know

Rooms: 24.
Rates: Low season, $350–$625; high season, $410–$790, including breakfast. Tax is an additional 17 per cent. Meals are $80 a day, plus 15 per cent tax.
Check-out: Latest check-out is at 5pm, subject to availability.
Facilities: Spa, sweat lodge, kayaks, canoes, rowing boats and windsurfs, gardens, small library of books at the front desk, board games, billiard table, free WiFi in reception. In rooms: hand-made bed linen, mosquito nets, coolbox.
Poolside: Lined with deckchairs, loungers and parasols, Desconocido’s simple, saltwater, kidney-shaped pool sits right on the beach, with the sea (often too rough for swimming) on both sides.
Eco-friendly: You won’t find any carbon-hungry modern trappings at this hotel: there are no TVs, phones or, indeed, electricity in any of its rooms. Power is generated by solar panels, and extensive kitchen gardens supply the restaurant.
Hotel closed: Until May 2010.
Also: Cancellations must be received 15 days before arrival. Pets are welcome in all areas except the restaurants and bars. Non-smoking rooms are available.

Food & drink

Hotel restaurant: Desconocido has two: El Cantarito by the lagoon takes care of breakfast and dinner, El Nopalito has lunchtime duties. Both are open-sided thatched palapas, serving a seafood-heavy menu of traditional Mexican dishes, coupled with home-grown fruit and
Dress code: Flip-flopped and carefree.
Top table: Ask staff to keep you a scenic spot at the front of either restaurant, overlooking the beach or the lagoon.
Last orders: Dinner’s done by 10.30pm, but drinks are available in the bar until 11pm, often a lot later.
Room service: The lack of electricity or phones makes calling the front desk an impossibility, but Desconocido has got around the issue with a cunning summoning system. Raise a red flag via a cord at your bedside, and someone will attend to you.
Hotel bar: Each of the hotel’s restaurants has a bar; El Cantararito’s features a shrine to the Virgen de Guadelupe decorated with flowers and candles. Both watering holes are relaxed in the extreme, and mix a splendid ‘Nopalito’ tequila cocktail.

Also worth knowing

Children: This hotel is better suited to couples - leave the children at home!

Smith Members offer

Free horse riding on the beach for two

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