The second I turned into the sandy parking stall, opened my door and sunk my toes into the flour like sand that buried the top of my feet, we knew we had made a good decision. Like many, we wanted to try something different. This place is a respectable, well cared for, well appointed, casual paradise getaway spot. I researched this strip of boutique hotels through a third party agent and it was not easy to make a decision. This kind of vacationing is likely not for everyone but it was exactly what we were looking for.

The water pressure is low, the lights only came on at night (funny how that works hey?) and we could see clearly between the floor boards, the sand beneath. But folks, leave your hang ups at home when you get here. The plumbing is an experience but completely functional, clean, and private. The rooms are rudimentary, rustic, tribal, cultural, serial to my way of life. So very cool.

The grounds are very well kept and the gardens are well designed to add privacy for all. We enjoyed our ideal vacation but it isn't necessary to have a cabana right on the beach to reach Nirvana, any one of the cabins would be enjoyable at this place. We kept the shutters open and the ocean breeze swept right through our beach front cabana all night, which was wonderful. You do not need to wear shoes anywhere on this property.

My wife and I lost 5 and 6 pounds respectively, eating only a small amount of fruit and homemade bread in the morning, the fresh catch with some soup and salad for dinner, and pica de gallo salsa and chips in-between. The food everywhere in Tulum was fabulous including this place. We ate the fresh catch tossed with homemade pasta and a flavorful tomato based sauce served for the 2 of us in the pan it was prepared in, just as we imagined it might be like. We ordered the same thing the next day based on the owner's recommendation as she described what the fisherman sold to her chef.

You can expect no less then what Hemingway offers on-line so if you are intrigued by that, you will not be disappointed.

The beach was nice, not the best swimming directly in front but there is so much beach in Tulum you will not be deprived in anyway. There were no shortage of clean beach beds.

We ate at several spots offsite and they were all fantastic: directly across was an all-day breakfast and lunch spot, the Mezzanine and Zuma hotels were good too. In Tulum itself we recommend a funky spot called Pepenero's for shisha smoking from hookahs in the back or just hanging out on the front patio being cool with other cool people, either way the cocktails were incredible hand made creations - superb.

We rented a car through Hertz via Hotwire for $115.00Cdn/US for the week, unlimited mileage, for us it was well worth it.

There are many cabana style hotels on this strip. They all have a different thing going on, this one is rustic and quiet. I wouldn't stay at all of them. I'd stay here again but we'd like to checkout others too.

Tulum is a casual experience far away from the chaos of Cancun.

Enjoy.

We rented a car in Cancun rather than mess with the expensive bus transfer. Tulum is very different from the ghastly hotels in Cancun and surroundings, but the Hemingway was perhaps a little basic. We were fortunate in one sense that we had the second-story room over the restaurant; good because it was full of ocean breeze and up above the movements of the people below; not so good because late drinkers in the bar/restaurant downstairs would keep us up longer than we wished. But the balcony hammock was a great place to laze, morning noon or night, and the shower was wonderfully basic: like washing under a waterfall... I was glad that we were not in one of the Hemingway cabanas, especially one away from the beach.
The beach is great with lots to explore in both directions, and the shelter of the off-shore reef and steady trade winds make it a great place to learn to wind surf, kite board, etc.. The Hemingway/Tulum is also a good jumping-off point for Yucatan explorations of pyramids, Tulum's ruins, the inland waterways and the coast down to Belize.
We had to replenish our cash a few times and had trouble with Tulum ATMs (although not with the good supermarket there). There are several very good ccard restaurants (and small hotels) up and down the beach, and we ate at these as well as the Hemingway restaurant. We had some great meals.
Next time, we will probably stay in one of the more luxurious places, but we did like it simple, and we did like Tulum.

I was at Hemingway for 4 days in August 2011.

Hemingway is a very pleasant place :
- the rooms are comfortable and clean,
- the breakfast (included in the price of the room), and more generally the food, is excellent,
- the situation of the hotel is unique with a romantic beach in front of the cabanas,
- there is a laundry service,
- the place is quiet (there is no loud and awful music like in the other hotels in Mexico),
- the staff is nice.

The clients have access to kayaks for free.

The first price is 1000 Mex $ without direct view on the beach, which can be a bit expensive for some travelers...But it's worth it !

A good souvenir from Tulum.

Elena

We recently returned from a wonderful stay at the Hemingway beach cabanas.
Ok, so I'm going to start with the positives.
After renting our car in Cancun, we arrived very late in the night...
to a very welcoming Rafael (night watchman) he was so, so kind and sweet,
Helping us with our bags to our beautiful cabana just steps from the sea,
and turning on the electricity for a half hour so we could get ourselves organized.
Beautiful cabanas, very rustic.. you feel like your on a "Swiss Family Robinson" adventure by the sea.
Lizards, little sea crabs & bugs oh my! Living with us in our little hut by the sea!
It was quite fun to lay in those big, beautiful, comfy beds
and watch the the little lizards frolicking around above you, in the grass roof!
Gorgeous, huge bathrooms with lovely hot showers!
I loved the attention to detail in the decorating, not just in the cabanas, but all over the property.
Very peaceful, serene & quiet.
You don't even notice that there is no electricity until the evening,
and even then, we preferred the candlelight!
The breakfast that is included is delicious...
fresh fruit, sweet breads, a veggie/egg quiche of some sort, baguette toast with lovely homemade jams.
And the cinnamon coffee is divine!
We loved the little dining areas, so quaint and inviting, looking out over that gorgeous turquoise sea...
either covered or uncovered patio, both so comfy!
Oh and I cannot forget to mention the heavenly swinging sunbeds on the beach! Wow!
SO, SO , SOoooo COMFY!!!!

Now for the cons, unfortunately there are a few.
I think our biggest complaint which actually has nothing to do with Hemingway..
was the trash and seaweed all up and down Tulum beach.
The staff at Hemingway were really good about getting it all cleaned up every morning,
in front of the property, but walking north or south, it was just awful, glass bottles, light bulbs, plastics, bags, old shoes, etc...
it was such a disappointment for us.
The beach in front of the resort next door, "Maya Tulum", was covered in seaweed & trash,
they try to clean it up, but it's just overwhelming!
The rock that jets out from their property is disgustingly, covered in trash.
Not sure where it's all coming from?
Or if it's a seasonal thing, but they should definitely be more on top of it,
it is such an eye sore,
let alone how much it is harming the environment,
especially since the area of Tulum is suppose to be all about "Ecotourism".
Also, 2 words....."THE WIND"! Holy crap! It was relentless...
good to keep the mosquitoes away, but man it didn't stop blowing once for 8 days!
Might be a seasonal thing, not sure, but I've heard Tulum is a relatively windy place.
While we are talking "skeeters", bring your sprays people!!!!
Once you leave the windy beach and head into the jungle,
those blood thirsty buggers are relentless!
It's been a few weeks since our return,
and I'm still itchin'!!

As far as Hemingway goes,
sure wish on the days the housekeeping do not change the sheets,
they would at least give them a good shake before they make the bed,
to get the sand out. We had to de-sand our beds almost every night.
A little broom in the cabana would also be lovely to keep the sand under control?
...and maybe a bucket of water by the door to rinse our feet off.

And pleeease, I think most people could do without the "Nirvana & Pink Floyd" blaring at breakfast!!
Not the kind of music one likes to hear on a beautiful Caribbean vacation.
Most of the staff was very accommodating, not overtly friendly, but kind enough.

So the question remains...
Were we SO won over by Hemingway that we would return? Probably not.
There are so many other cool cabana resorts to choose from in Tulum.
We would definitely venture on to somewhere else.