A sweltering canvas sweat lodge isn’t where you typically picture a MICHELIN Inspector. But on one summer afternoon, during my anonymous stay at Be Tulum — a hotel my colleagues and I recently awarded One Key in Mexico — it’s where I was, finding a brief moment of enlightenment through a distinct struggle to breathe. As Inspectors learn every day in our work, luxury comes in many forms. I emerged from this traditional temazcal ceremony, my face streaked in mud and perspiration, with my newest appreciation yet of that concept.
In Tulum, tourists usually find themselves in either the main town or the zona hotelera on the beachfront. Most of our Key hotels break that mold. In Wakax (One Key), you stay in a private, hacienda-style compound with (and this is exceedingly rare) its own private cenote and lagoon. Casa Chable (Two Keys) is even more outside the norm. That one’s on a private estate, in the far-off Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve, a boat ride away through a sparkling, crocodile-filled lagoon. When you reach its thin peninsula, you can watch the sunrise from one beach and the sunset from another.
To be frank, Be Tulum is not in such rarefied air. It is simply the very best version of very typical Tulum. There are what seem like hundreds of hotels on this strip of town on the beachfront, many shoulder to shoulder. Be Tulum is one of them: earning its Key through sheer quality and execution.
My suite was as close to the ocean as possible without waking up wet, its style a match for the rest of the mini-resort’s gorgeous, dark, beach-chic aesthetic. A thatched-style ceiling and wooden accent wall warmed cool concrete floors and stone walls, with books and figurines (what caught my eye: a pregnant clay warrior) to keep the guest’s visual interest. Other rooms are set further back between paths cut through the hotel’s own little jungle. Some sport one of Tulum’s most common amenities, the private plunge pool.
The hotel has several restaurants: one for traditional Mexican food, one for seafood or grilling on the beach, as well as a terrace and bar, but is blessed too by its location. My colleagues and I found three spots to include in the MICHELIN selection just minutes from Be Tulum, spots that share in its same jungle aesthetic while serving a variety of creative dishes. Read more of our thoughts on those particular hotspots, here: NÜ Tulum, Wild, and Hartwood.
But right now, my focus is on the hotel. And like so many in Tulum, Be avoids homogenization into the wider global luxury scene by mixing its glitzier aesthetic with the area’s more spiritual attractions. It’s how I found myself sweating bullets in that canvas tent. Other experiences are less intensely physical: cacao ceremonies, pranic meditation, and vinyasa yoga. Many of these activities take place at Be Tulum’s larger sister hotel, Nomade, just next door. It’s another way that Be Tulum finds a magic formula. Its own campus is small and intimate (not to mention child-free). With the connection to Nomade, guests lose nothing in terms of amenities.
Speaking of which. A beautiful, wood-platformed, indoor/outdoor spa complex is just across the street, bookable through a friendly concierge over Whatsapp, and shared by tiny frogs inching their way along the deck.
Despite the high-end amenities and the occasional influencer-sighting, Be can feel pleasantly down to earth. Visiting hotels throughout the city, my colleagues and I noticed a distinct lack of pretension in hotel staff. Service was rarely overbearing, sometimes downright lax. On my visit to Be, two resident dogs made their friendly presence known, only haphazardly shooed away by servers when they approached the outdoor restaurant. That is among the charms of the location: a frankly chill vibe I found comforting about luxury in Tulum. Like all the best parts of this town, Be has it in spades.
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Top image: Be Tulum
