Tulum is a small beach resort area located about 1.5 hours south of Cancun Airport. The resort area has a very relaxed, bohemian feel to it. Small boutique hotels, shops and restaurants are side by side along a small few mile stretch of road that runs the length of a beautiful soft white sand beach. I would recommend Tulum for the traveler seeking a very relaxed low key environment where you can find many hotel rooms right on the sand. This is not a destination for the traveler seeking a high end luxury experience with 5 star service.
During my visit to Tulum I toured one of the newest properties in the area called Sanara. The property is comprised of 17 rooms, a small spa, yoga studio and an organic restaurant all in a beachfront setting. While only a couple of the rooms have full ocean views they are all a few footsteps to toes in the sand and steps to the beachfront daybeds. The rooms are simple (think Santorini) with cool concrete floors, large day beds, modern and newly designed bathrooms with exceptional linens. The ceilings are high and vaulted and the lower level rooms have small outdoor space with furniture and large oversized soaking bathtubs. The spa is small but had a fairly extensive menu and was very zen like. In addition, the spa hosted some nice outdoor lounging space for pre and post therapy hang out. The beachfront restaurant has a modern eco décor and the organic menu included locally grown ingredients.
Sanara is for the couple or family looking for not much to do other than chill out and relax. You won’t see many Gucci loafers in Tulum and you could easily spend a week without buttoning a shirt or tying a shoelace. Flip flops, t-shirts and shorts seemed to be the local attire. No fashion police on patrol in Tulum however there are a plethora of small restaurants and bars along the perfect white sandy beach to keep you entertained at night.