Luxury on the Riviera Maya at Grand Velas resort

But they're not words that spring to mind when it comes to the hotels. Since Cancun started booming in popularity in the 1970s, shiny new places have been cropping up often along this Caribbean coastline, known as the Riviera Maya, from massive all-inclusive resorts to small, luxury boutique affairs.

Grand Velas Riviera Maya Resort certainly fits into the former category, and, having opened in 2008, it's nowhere near faded or old just yet. Quite the opposite, in fact.

On a road trip around the Yucatan Peninsula, we reached the hotel on a sunny afternoon, passing security at a gleaming white wall that separates the property from the road and driving down a long, palm tree-lined driveway. The size of this place made an immediate impression, with three sections (Zen, Ambassador, Grand) containing 540 suites spread out across the 205 acres of the property. The Zen section's a short distance away from the beach, so it's the cheapest option, but what it lacks in oceanfront it replaces with a quiet jungle setting, the spa and a lily pond filled with fish and turtles. The conference center and wedding chapel is also there. The Ambassador Suites and Grand Suites are on the beach, the key difference being that the Ambassador section is for families and allows children, with a Children's Club and Teenager Club. Being child-free, we stayed at the more peaceful Grand Suites.



Like everything here, the lobby's on the large side, with marble floors and big chandeliers. Check-in was fast and friendly; we were soon being guided through long white corridors to our suite by our personal concierge. The suite itself? It was no surprise by this stage that it, too, was huge, a spacious, light and airy bedroom and living room area in white and cream, with a big double bed, comfy sofa and writing table. In the center of the room, there was a unit with a big TV on top, the fridges and cupboards below filled with snacks, drinks and a couple of bottles of wine (all included). And I certainly wasn't complaining about the complimentary bottle of Grand Velas tequila waiting on arrival.

I've stayed at places where the entire hotel room was smaller than the bathroom here, which had (slightly slippery) marble flooring, a walk-in two-door double shower unit, including a rain shower, and a hot tub.



Our suite's roomy balcony was fringed with bright pink bougainvillea flowers, with a double bed sun lounger and its own private plunge pool that looked out onto palm trees and the waves of the Caribbean crashing onto the beach below. Across the ocean, I could see the outline of buildings on the island of Cozumel.

The personal concierge service came in handy during our stay. Being a fussy Englishman, I like a good selection of tea, which was brought up quickly to the room. The concierge also helped with restaurant reservations and other plans.

It was mid-afternoon when we strolled along the front to the hall-sized Azul restaurant and an admirable buffet that was heavy on local seafood, including almond-encrusted snapper and ceviche. Clearly, we were going to eat well here at Grand Velas.



Azul's one of eight restaurants across the resort that together serve up French, Italian, Asian and regional Yucatanese cuisine - plenty to keep taste buds excited during longer stays. Only here for two nights, we didn't get to try them all, but we might have tried the best. Cocina De Autor, which we visited on our first night, is the creation of Spanish-born chefs Bruno Oteiza and Mikel Alonso, awarded five diamonds by AAA inspectors. The set tasting menu has touches of Spanish, Mexican and molecular gastronomy. Four little appetizers served on black slates, including warming balls of cheese and a bundle of sea bass with herbs, kicked things off in style, my girlfriend grinning with pleasure and savoring each one. With a guitarist playing live acoustic music in the background, we enjoyed a leisurely dinner, the 13 courses (18 dishes in total) coming one by one, including a novel tuna and watermelon combination, venison served with a rich mole (Mexico's spicy chocolate sauce), and a dessert of chocolate, orange, almonds and cumin with a delicately smoky foam. But the standout dish was the scallops served with an orange soup, my girlfriend sending her praises via the waiters back to the kitchen staff. If you want to find the direct route to someone's heart or to up your chances of a ‘Yes' to a proposal, booking a table here could be the way to do it.



The rest of our time here was equally pleasurable. Next morning, I took the shuttle over to the spa in the Zen section. Before the main treatment, I was guided through a Hydrothermal Journey by an attendant, from the sauna to the blue tiled ‘ice room', then 10 minutes in a futuristic bowl-shaped steam room, before being handed a little tub of butter-smooth clay to cake myself in inside the clay room. The pool inside the spa has powerful jet hoses to massage back and shoulders. I was pretty relaxed already by the time Monique, the masseuse, led me to a room for a 50-minute Therapeutic Massage. “This is where the magic of transformation begins,” she said, conducting a short Maya-inspired ritual before starting a firm full body massage with hands, elbows and occasionally hot towels. With Mayan-influenced music playing, I might've snoozed for 10 seconds here and there. There were nice thoughtful touches, too, such as handing my robe back to me after the massage snugly pre-heated.



For lunch, we tried the Mediterranean-style Bistro, including a starter of soft scallops with a fruity couscous, followed by grilled shrimp in five spices with hummus and coriander.

We spent our afternoon by the quiet, child-free pool, occasionally swimming up to the poolside bar to pick up fresh margaritas made with mescal (Tequila's smokier cousin), or ordering ceviche and guacamole from the sun loungers on the beach. It was incredibly relaxing, just baking in the sun, swimming in the pool and sea, and walking along the beach. This, along with ancient Maya temples like Chichen Itza, is what people come to the Yucatan for.

Our concierge helped book us into Frida, the gourmet Mexican restaurant, in the evening. We ordered fresh salads, green chili and corn soup, and salmon with a yellow mole sauce, along with a bottle of good Mexican Merlot. It might not have quite hit the heights of Cocina De Autor, but then that did set the bar high. It is, however, delicious Mexican cooking and a fine way to spend an evening.



Next morning, we were sorry to leave, not least as we'd have liked to sample more of the restaurants. But the pain was suspended by the helpful staff arranging a late checkout and allowing us an extra couple of hours by the pool. It's hard for a place as big as Grand Velas not to lose something of the personal touch; it has the feel of a very well-oiled machine, rather than an intimate boutique hotel where all the staff know your name within 10 minutes of your stay. There are other hotels on the Riviera Maya, too, with more of an individual character, the décor here mainly sticking with a safe, pleasant cream and white. But every want and need here was undeniably met, and the exceptional service and friendly, thoughtful touches - late checkout, our concierge's helpful suggestions, a tea delivery… - really made our stay. Almost as much as the mescal margaritas.

When you go: Grand Velas Riviera Maya is 35 minutes from Cancun International Airport, and guests can request a shuttle transfer for an extra charge.

Visit website: https://rivieramaya.grandvelas.com/