8 Best Hotels in Mexico for a Romantic Getaway

Located in the sleepy fishing town turned bohemian enclave of Todos Santos, Texas hotelier Liz Lambert’s Hotel San Cristóbal is a true stunner. As with her other outposts—the stylishly boho El Cosmico in Marfa and Austin's Hotel San José—every detail here has a stylist’s touch, from the colorful tiled floors and potted cacti in the 32 adobe-style rooms to the glittering pool angled towards the sea, where bronzed guests sip mezcal margaritas and work on perfecting their tan. A sense of place here is also key: the staff is largely local, volunteer activities include helping baby sea turtles, and the food courtesy of native chef Dahli de la Peña is as authentic as it gets.

With its freestanding beach and jungle cottages tricked out with white cotton linens and driftwood and terraces for taking in the sea, Esencia is one of the most romantic hotels in Mexico and every bit the bohemian escape of your dreams, but with a location—secluded Xhu-Pa Beach, to be exact—that steers clear of Tulum’s increasing crowds. Everyone from Kate Bosworth to Gwen Stefani has sought out the property’s surplus of hammocks and stellar spa, while a Japanese-Peruvian restaurant led by top chef Dimitris Katrivesis gives couples all the more reason to check in and dread checking out.

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A favorite for romantics, the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal feels more like a Mediterranean village than a hotel: guests enter through a dramatic tunnel to an infinity pool that blends seamlessly into the horizon and 66 rooms that cascade down a mountainside, all featuring locally made ceramics, fireplaces, private plunge pools with staggering ocean vistas, personal assistants who can arrange everything from local farm visits to vow renewals, and complimentary tequila delivered straight to your door. Follow up a visit to the spa with a tipple at the champagne lounge—a perfect prelude to what awaits at El Farallon, the open-air seafood restaurant cantilevered over the cliffside where live music accompanies your meal.

If ever there was a resort designed for honeymooners, Viceroy Riviera Maya is it. This adults-only hideaway is every couple’s vacation fantasy, from its 41 secluded, thatched-roof villas tucked away in the woods (each with their own outdoor shower, hammock, and plunge pool) to the gloriously pristine (and notably undeveloped) white-sand beach—a far cry from the overrun sands elsewhere in Riviera Maya. The pool is ringed by loungers and hovering butlers, the restaurant bar stocks a particularly impressive selection of tequilas, and, if sharing a dining room with strangers isn’t quite your cup of tea, private dinners can be arranged on the beach. Best of all? There’s not a kid in sight, easily making it one of the most romantic hotels in Mexico.

For better or worse (probably worse), booming tourism has all but rid Tulum of its off-the-grid bohemian ethos. Fortunately, you can still find that kind of barefoot lifestyle this side of the Yucatán—if you know where to look. Just fly into Cancún, drive two hours north to Chiquila, then board a ferry bound for the island of Holbox, eight miles off the coast. The journey rewards visitors with a tropical paradise seemingly frozen in time: sandy stretches that barely pass for roads, protected preserves filled with flamingoes and whale sharks, and empty beaches home to just a handful of hotels. Our favorite is palapa-style Casa Las Tortugas for its treehouse-esque villas, custom-made organic soaps, artist residency program, and quiet address on the outskirts of town.

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A careful five-year restoration of this 18th-century former sisal hacienda has made Xcanatun—dare we say it?—even better than it was before. Inside its 18 suites, you’ll spot original building details from handcrafted oak doors and ironwork to local marble and ticúl stone. As romantic as the interiors are (some guest rooms feature bathrooms with carved stone waterfall tubs), it’s the quaint but verdant grounds that truly impress. Take a stroll through the property's nine acres of gardens, which are scattered with fountains, hammocks, two freshwater pools, and bridges spanning ponds and streams, before tucking into Yucatecan-Caribbean cuisine at the former machine room turned Casa de Piedra restaurant.

Looking to avoid the tourist-filled beaches of Riviera Maya and Baja? Ixtapa, on Mexico’s Pacific Coast, offers resort-town luxury without the price tag. Built along a cliff face, each one of Cala de Mar’s 54 rooms enjoys a sweeping sea view—not to mention private terraces and plunge pools and a contemporary-meets-Mexico design that juxtaposes handmade clay and stone with polished marble and wood. There’s a lot to stay in for, but you’ll want to make an appearance at one (or all) of the hotel’s three restaurants, two freshwater pools, Tequila Room, and spa, where treatments incorporate local ingredients like lemongrass and Xochitl flowers.

With a guest list that reads like an Oscars invitation list (Leonardo DiCaprio, Charlize Theron, George Clooney), you can rest assured that Las Ventanas al Paraíso lives up to its “windows to paradise” moniker. Like the company they keep, all 71 suites (including 12 beachfront villas) are glamorous and private, with wood-burning fireplaces, patios toting telescopes for stargazing and whale watching, and outdoor Jacuzzis in the best of them. While kids are welcome on property, it’s the adult-minded perks that really sell, including an indoor-outdoor-spa and attentive pool service.

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