Days of Romance in the Riviera Maya

On your next trip to Grand Residences spend the day exploring with the one you love. A day on the beach, out on the water or discovering a city full of history can be a magical and unforgettable experience.

Riviera Maya Beach Hopping

Start the day at Grand Residences with a stroll along the beach at dawn. Listen to the waves, feel the cool sand between your toes and the first rays of the sun on your face. It’s another beautiful morning in paradise.

Pack a picnic basket, grab a bottle of wine and head off for a day of Riviera Maya beach hopping. There are so many lovely beaches to choose from along this stretch of shoreline with idyllic spots to be found in Maroma, Xpu-Ha, Akumal, Xcacel, Bahias de Punta Soliman and Tulum, among others.

On your way back, stop off in Playa del Carmen for a spot of shopping, a cocktail and dinner.

Set Sail

Take to the waves on board a chartered yacht with captain and crew. Set your course for a voyage along the Riviera Maya coast or from Cancun to Isla Mujeres. Spend the day snorkeling, swimming and taking in the views of sparkling, crystal-clear waters in shades of turquoise, azure and indigo.

Sign up for the weekly Grand Residences sunset cruise or arrange an evening in Cancun for a lobster dinner cruise on a Spanish galleon that sails through the Nichupte Lagoon.

Merida Serenade

Plan a getaway to the historic city of Merida, capital of the neighboring state of Yucatan. Spend the day exploring 16^th-century churches and 19^th-century mansions, visiting museums and galleries and shopping for arts and crafts.

As the shadows lengthen, the city springs to life after the sizzling heat of the day. Candles are lit in restaurants and waiters with menus greet passers by. There are restaurants and cuisines to suit every taste but when in Merida you should dine in a romantic courtyard filled with plants and listen to the trova melodies of a guitar-strumming trio as they serenade guests.

After your meal, walk to the main square or Plaza Grande where you’ll find more musicians and flower sellers carrying bunches of roses, lilies, gardenias or fragrant white flowers called mariposas. There’s a cultural event somewhere in Merida every night and on Monday it is the turn of the square with a traditional folk dance performance in front of City Hall.

Stroll around the square and watch the video mapping show that plays across the façade of the towering San Ildelfonso Cathedral, Mexico’s oldest cathedral, Casa de Montejo, the 16^th-century home of the family that conquered the Yucatan, and Government House.

In the 19^th century, local dignitaries would drive along the Merida streets in pony and trap and calesas or horse-drawn carriages still ply their trade in the evening. However, it is just as romantic to wander along Calle 60 past more colonial churches and leafy squares. En route, you’ll pass the Universidad de Yucatan, one of the oldest in the Americas, the neoclassical Peon Contreras Theater and Plaza Santa Lucia, site of a trova concert every Thursday.

Head north along Calle 60 for several more blocks and turn right on to Paseo de Montejo. This wide tree-lined boulevard was inspired by the Champs Élyseés and is the setting for the opulent mansions built during the henequen boom of the late 19^th century and the first years of the 20^th century. Standing silent now, these imposing town houses and chateaus are testimony to a time when Merida had more millionaires than New York.

As you stroll along Paseo de Montejo, stop for a coffee or ice cream at an open-air café or sip a cocktail under the stars in a romantic rooftop terrace bar.

Planning your trip

The Grand Residences Concierges will help you arrange yacht charters, day trips and longer excursions in the Mexican Caribbean and Yucatan.