Boutique hotels in Mexico

Mexico has some of the most inventive small hotels in the world. Architects and designers have turned colonial mansions, henequen haciendas and simple beach shacks into places with a strong sense of craft, often using local stone, palm thatch, handmade tiles and the work of nearby artisans.

Colonial cities

Oaxaca, San Miguel de Allende, Mérida and Puebla each have a beautifully preserved historic center, and their best hotels hide behind plain façades with courtyards, fountains and roof terraces. Mexico City, one of the world's great food capitals, has design hotels in the leafy neighborhoods of Roma, Condesa and Polanco.

The Caribbean and the Yucatán

Tulum's beach road is lined with palm-thatched hotels between the jungle and the sea, while Holbox, Bacalar and Isla Mujeres are quieter and more relaxed. Inland, the colonial town of Valladolid sits near the Mayan ruins of Chichén Itzá and dozens of swimming cenotes.

The Pacific and Baja

The Pacific coast is wilder, with surf towns such as Puerto Escondido, Sayulita and Mazunte and the exclusive villas of Careyes. In Baja California, Todos Santos is an artists' town near the desert and the ocean, Cabo San Lucas has the country's grandest beach resorts, and the Valle de Guadalupe is Mexico's leading wine region.

When to go

November to April is the dry season and the best time for most of the country. Summer brings afternoon rains to the central highlands and the risk of hurricanes on both coasts, especially from August to October.