Need to know

Rooms

13, including nine casitas and four private villas.

Rates

Low season, $400–$10,000; high season, $520–$16,500, excluding 27 per cent taxes and service. Casita rates include breakfast; additional meals are $95 a person a day, including non-alcoholic drinks. In villas, meals are $140 a person a day.

Check-out

There are no set times for check-in or check-out; each is determined on a case-by-case basis.

Facilities

Massages and beauty treatments, free WiFi in the villas and the clubhouse, 25,000 acres of grounds, tennis court, airstrip, DVD library. In rooms: TV, DVD/CD player, bar, open fireplace. The four villas each come with a full complement of staff.

Poolside

The villas all feature their own private pool area, and the casitas share a pool overlooking the coconut groves and the turquoise waters of the Pacific.

Children

Under-12s stay free and cots are available. Babysitting can be arranged with two days’ notice ($15 an hour). Meals are free for under-fives, and half the adult rate for under-11s.

Eco-friendly

Sir James Goldsmith became something of conservationist during his last years, and it shows: Cuixmala includes a wildlife sanctuary, and food is sourced from the grounds or the nearby farm. Even the lobsters are plucked straight from the sea.

Also

Dogs weighing less than 9lbs are welcome, but you’ll be expected to feed them and ensure they’re appropriately leashed in communal areas.

In the know

Our favourite rooms

Of the four casas, the enormous La Loma was Sir Jimmy’s private house, so naturally it’s the most gasp-inducingly opulent, with four bedrooms, an outdoor Jacuzzi overlooking the beach, a movie lounge, lounges and dining rooms galore, and more than a passing resemblance to Florence’s Duomo. Casa Alborada, perched on a hillside with great views of the estate, is humbler, but still magnificent: a three-bedroom villa with a sparse white sheen, complemented by blue accents and light terracotta hues. Artworks and ornaments from Mexico and India are dotted around and there’s a team of four staff on hand to ensure your every need is met instantly. Guests staying in the casitas share a pool, clubhouse and restaurant – Gardenia and Primavera have pretty day-bed terraces with enviable views.

Packing tips

Guests are often given a sarong on arrival, but you may want to bring a sun hat to go with it, especially if you plan on horse riding during your stay.

Also

You can hop on board Cuixmala’s 47ft sailing boat available for trips to the nearby Chamera Islands nature reserve, and there’s a smaller Boston Whaler available for fishing jaunts.

Food & drink

Hotel restaurant

Each casa has its own cook who can prepare whatever you want, whenever and wherever you want it; casita guests dine in the clubhouse on a menu of classic Mexican dishes such as enchiladas, mole and chiles rellenos.

Dress code

Boho beach style with linen trousers and espadrilles, supplemented with a flash of stupidly expensive jewellery – you may not be a holidaying billionaire, but you can certainly look the part.

Top table

Most tables in the clubhouse and on the villa terraces offer beautiful views of the estate, but for an added romantic frisson, ask staff to set up a low table on the beach and dine on cushions in candlelight.

Last orders

Everything about Cuixmala is tailored to your needs, including meal times.

Room service

Only available in the casas, where staff are on hand to provide whatever you require, 24 hours a day.

Hotel bar

Each villa has a bar area where you can help yourself to drinks or have ‘your’ staff mix a cocktail for you. Casa Gomez, the clubhouse, is a relaxed spot to enjoy a margarita, and there’s waiter service around the pool.

Smith card offer An hour’s horse-riding session for two

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Cuixmala

Km 46.2 Carretera Melaque, Puerto Vallarta, La Huerta, Jalisco