Hacienda Uayamon

Just fifteen minutes from the historic walled city of Campeche, and deep in the heart of Mayan country, Hacienda Uayamon offers a taste of the other side of Mexican tourism — not the hedonistic indulgence of the seaside resorts, but the time-machine fantasy of the remotest places in the country’s interior.

In the early 19th century, this was a working plantation, practically a tiny city, a self-contained environment housing the owners and workers alike. Today, improbably enough, it’s a small-scale luxury hotel — each of the cottages that once made up the servant’s quarters has been converted into a single luxury villa, and what was once the hospital is now a pair of sprawling suites, each with a private plunge pool.

The setting may hark back to a bygone era, but guests here live in pampered modern comfort, with plenty of space, handsome colonial furnishings, deep bathtubs, and private terraces complete with day beds. The bedrooms come with king beds or a pair of twins, as well as a hammock, for sleeping in what we’re told is the “Mayan style.”

Spa treatments, naturally, incorporate as much of the local history as is plausible, though you could probably spend days touring the ruins of Edzna and the pyramids at Calakmul without finding evidence of ancient Mayan mud wraps or aromatherapy.

How to get there:

Hacienda Uayamon is approximately a 25 minute drive from Campeche Airport and a 2 hours drive from Merida International Airport.