A leisurely breakfast is the ultimate luxury and we have made quite an art of the breakfast ritual, wherever in the world we are.

While on the Mayan Riviera we frequent a few places that add an element of luxury or authenticity (sometimes both) to our Mexican experience. I thought I'd share some of them with you without (hopefully) writing a tome about it. But, you never know. I'll start with hotel Esencia and may submit some more entries later. Here it goes:

Hotel Esencia on Xpu-Ha beach

A former private retreat of an Italian Dutchess of the Ferrari family (so the story goes), this exquisite 29 room hotel is situated on the gorgeous stretch of Xpu-Ha beach south of Playa del Carmen and a couple of miles south of Puerto Aventuras. Reservations for breakfast are required as the property is gated and a guard at the gate must have your name on the list to let you through. Once through the first gate you reach the second gate at the welcoming palapa where you park your car, leaving the keys with the guard and get a ride on a golf cart to the main house of the hotel. The ride through the jungle is interesting during the day and beautiful at night, with low lights lining the narrow path. I don't know how they keep these jungles clear over such a large area.

Once at the main building you are led into the reception office where they ask you to leave a visa imprint with them (to guarantee payment I guess) and then you are escorted to the restaurant by the pool in front of the beach. Some of these formalities are sometimes waved because we have become regulars, but the visa imprint is always taken. I ceased to be offended by it as this is their custom and the experience is worth it.

The breakfast (and lunch) restaurant is served at the poolside pavilion situated right off the gorgeous beach beside the pool and it is beautiful. The staff speaks English (we practice our Spanish) and the food and service are high end. The tables are covered with white cloth and are shaded by a roof. It's airy and bright and the view of the pool, the beautiful grounds, white sandy beach and turquoise waters beyond is simply breathtaking.

Breakfast is pure luxury. The menu offers local specialties and the more familiar International selections. Chilaquilles with fried eggs, juevos rancheros, grilled poblano with scrambles eggs and chorizo and Mexican scrambles eggs are offered along with poached eggs in artichoke heart with foamy hollandaise (exquisite) , waffles, French toast and more. You can see the menu on their website.The coffee they serve is premium brand Cafe Koba from the Chiapas region, one of the best coffee sources in Mexico. It has a full flavour and is served freshly brewed in a French press in one or four cup presses. The milk is hot (that's how we like it) and it's fun sitting with a cup at the end of breakfast planning the rest of the day. We always follow breakfast with a long beach walk and a swim at either end of Xpu-Ha. The water is usually lovely for swimming and the whole experience memorable.

We booked our stay as a 5 day getaway from stressful jobs and long overdue time for ourselves. We were not disappointed. From the unmarked entrance at the busy roadway corridor to the golf cart drive to the main house and our room we knew we had picked the right escape for us: quiet, tranquil and romantic.

Our Pariiso mini-suite in the main house was spacious, well equipped yet simple in design and decor. Loved the rain shower, robes, ipod music, and no thank you to the TV which we never turned on. Coffee waiting on our terrace each morning, fresh fruit every day, mini-fridge complimentarily refilled every day, welcome bottle of wine. We were well taken care of yet left alone, exactly what we were hoping for.

Breakfasts, beach time and dinners were exactly as we had hoped for: friendly staff, excellent cuisine, low key yet professional service. We especially appreciated the entire staff's enthusiasium for our practicing our spanish, and for remembering our names and our daily requests.

I visited the spa for a deep tissue massage and left knowing I will not easily find that kind of experience in a US domestic spa. I look forward to next year's return in part for this experience. As you soak in the warm jacuzzi sipping orange water glance up at the ceiling of thatched bamboo and breathe in the tranquility of this special eden.

I have read other's reviews. I do not need a 'gym' for a 5 day getaway. Esencia does offer daily yoga, and exercize equipment to your room. The pools are both large and available for lap swimming, the grounds are large enough for jogging on the golf paths. The beach front offers over a mile of walking and running sand.

If I were to negatively comment on anything it would be the slight but annoying laundry 'option' that was not explained at check-in. We used the laundry basket in the closet, fully intending to take our dirty laundry with us. To our surprise and in the fine print of the room information sheet, laundry placed in the basket is taken and laundred at an additional cost.

In all, Esencia provided to us exactly what we hoped for and more. We look forward to our next visit, and yes we recommend Esencia to those looking for quiet, low key, romantic and superior service and experience.

totally nice, lovely, we liked too much and would try to come back soon. fancy, delicious and peaceful

We have stayed at all the best places in the area including Mandarin Oriental, Rosewood, Maroma (our favorite), Paradisio, so we were intrigued to try Esencia. We love small resorts that we don't have to leave and offer personalized service.

Upon arrival, there are no flaming arches announcing the resort, instead you pull into a private road where you are met by an Esencia employee. You are then taken by golf cart to the main house where you check in (awkward process) and receive a glass of lemonade. You get a quick tour of the resort which is quick because the resort is so small but perfect sized.

The suites are OK. Very little storage space, no drawers and the windows don't open in the bedroom area. Great view of the ocean, nice rain shower and balcony. Loaded iPod music is nice touch, fresh fruit replenished daily and a welcome bottle of wine was included.

There are two pools. The adult pool is seldom used but perfect if the water was a bit warmer. The kids pool is literally right across, a bit smaller and a bit warmer. Unfortunately, the restaurant for breakfast and lunch is located in this area. And yes, this place is not for kids and luckily, they have no kids camp, no kids activities and kids anything. But we did see kids daily.

The beach is beautiful and the lounge chairs are covered by individual hatched areas although some are very close together. Beach service is spotty but effective. Ocean is not roped off and has plenty of dangerous rocky areas which was surprising. But no seaweed, perfect 1.5 mile of sandy stretch and a few downtrodden and abandoned resorts along the way. We spent each day at the beach and loved it.

The main restaurant open for dinner offers a broad menu and the fresh fish is done very well. The chef, Bernardo, is friendly and will accomodate your requests but speaks little English so be patient. Good wine list and moderately priced. Breakfast is typical assortment of dishes, they can update their fruit and oatmeal quality. Lunch is outstanding.

The spa is very nice and they offer any type of treatment, massages recommended. Stay away from salon services. Nice changing area, steam and assorted whirlpool baths with varied temperatures. No amenities so if using the shower area, you have to bring your own toiletries. This needs to be updated.

Bad news: No gym. First luxury resort with no gym we have encountered. I have no idea what guests do when it rains. There is yoga offered at 8AM but the area is right in front of guest rooms and hidden from the beach.

Staff is very friendly and after a few days, remembers your requests. They will do most anything for you, just be a little patient at times. Management is typically not present and Philip makes it to the resort about once a week. Their take on Esencia is that they want to be like living in your own home so they don't want to bother the guests, have anything with their logo on it and even go to the point of not having bathroom signs indicating men or women.

The main house has a living room area, small library, TV and WIFI (no WIFI in the room but they can arrange for it). There are no lounges or bars to hang out, afternoon tea seemed popular. Most guests were European and languages varied across the board.

If you want to do nothing like we do, this is a great place to visit. We never left the resort and loved it. The food is varied enough so you don't get tired of it either. Note that there is a one hour drive from Cancun airport and you will need private transportation.