Banyan Tree Cabo Marqués

Banyan Tree specializes in bringing a polished sheen to beachfront eco-resorts with a practiced ease that always feels individually tailored. The private pool-villa concept works tremendously well in a place like Acapulco, where it serves as a welcome alternative to the faded glitz of the high-rises looming over the bay. Masterfully secluded at the tip of Punta Diamante, Banyan Tree Cabo Marques ensures that its guests’ experience with those mega-hotels begins and ends with a view of their twinkling lights across the water.

Cabo Marques’s 45 villas are perched on stilts and scattered along verdant cliffs. Everybody gets a heated infinity pool along with a veranda, both of which soar gracefully above the rocks. Building materials are locally sourced, right down to the clay tiles of the pitched roofs. Inside, Southeast Asian design blends nicely with vibrant regional décor, and beyond the sumptuous king beds there’s a minimalist take on the furniture — think angular daybeds, dual sinks, and wall-to-wall glass that bathes the interiors with light.

The villas are intended to be functional apartments, and private visits from chefs and academy-trained spa therapists make it so you don’t really have to venture out. If you prefer to explore, culinary options range from Las Rocas, which serves up the ever-changing catch of the day, to Banyan Tree’s signature Thai restaurant, Saffron. The latter offers a private wine cellar if, for some inexplicable reason, you don’t want to eat on a terrace overlooking the Pacific.

How to get there:

Banyan Tree Cabo Marqués is conveniently located 20 minutes from the Acapulco International Airport.