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The Riviera’s most opulent retreat is frequented by celebrities attracted to its 80 hectares (200 acres) of lush jungle and vast stretch of private beach. Rooms are truly vast, and there’s a superb pool and a refined restaurant. Honeymooners and beauty-therapy addicts are well catered for.

A new landmark in Playa hotels: a sleekly minimal-ist hip hotel that looks as if it leapt straight out of a design magazine and has shot to the top as the coolest place to stay in town. It also has an equally trendy bar, Fly (see Fly, Playa del Carmen).

Those looking for quality, privacy, and style – from newly weds to celebrities – can enjoy an exotic and environmentally friendly stay at this luxurious hotel. Each villa is resplendent in artistic decor, and fastidious attention is paid to the minutest detail.

The Yucatán’s restored hacienda-hotels are mostly in the luxury bracket, but this charming estate gives you the chance to sample local country life for much less.

A 17th-century estate 30 km (18 miles) east of Mérida, one of several aristocratic haciendas that have been converted by the Plan Group. Rooms are spacious, with Colonial-style furniture.

A selection of 17th-century houses have been carefully restored to become the most original hotel in the area. Rooms and suites are equipped with satellite tv, and the accommodation boasts a restaurant, lounge bar, and pool.

This 18th-century hacienda now offers 18 ultra-comfortable suites, each with a terrace and Jacuzzi, set in luxuriant gardens. There’s a terrace bar, two pools, a spa, and a fabulous restaurant, the Casa de Piedra (see Hacienda Xcanatún).

The most luxurious place to stay near Uxmal is provided by this Plan Group hacienda, 45 km (27 miles) north of the ruins. The 17th-century main house, terrace restaurant, and pool are spectacular.

In an area unknown to most visitors just west of the Mérida-Campeche road is another Plan hacienda, with 11 rooms and suites. The lofty, Colonial-style rooms are lovely, some with their own gardens. The restaurant, bars (in an old chapel), and pool are to match.

The most isolated of the Plan haciendas, on an old henequen plantation (for ropemaking). The conversion has been done with style, and the pool – in a ruined, roofless building – is astonishing.