CAREYES. STAY ECCENTRIC.
There's a secret land where architecture blends with nature. Where people are as unique as their houses and bright colors are all around.
I had the pleasure of visiting Careyes, a luxury private resort located in the coast of Jalisco, Mexico. Nowadays, secluded places are the favorite destination for the upscale traveler. But Careyes isn't new to the game. Back in 1968, Gian Franco Brignone discover this uninhabited spot and bought miles and miles of land. Today, that land is known for its creative, imaginative, really colorful and sometime eccentric villas. After meeting the really interesting Gian Franco, I wasn't surprised when I found out that the owners need to meet 27 conditions to be accepted. Among the conditions, they need to "Live in the present every minute of the day"; "be multilingual"; "have cried for others"; and "have committed most of the seven deadly sins". After reading this, you can at least try to imagine the really amazing, peaceful and whimsical energy that Careyes has.
La Ceiba entrance.
I was invited to spend some days at "La Ceiba" villa. A very tastefully decorated house, situated on top a cliff edge with an infinity pool that faces the ocean and open spaces and hammocks all around. When you arrive to the house, the first thing you'll see is the big entrance and a large corridor with palm trees.
On each side, you'll find stairs that will take you to the roof, an amazing place to lay at night and watch the stars.
Right when you set foot in the house, you'll feel the positive energy I was talking about. It's as if the house shuts down the world outside. The feeling is even stronger once you get to the diaphanous white rooms. If this doesn't make you feel calm and at peace, I don't know what will. They have a strong greek influence because of the pure whiteness, the shapes and the floors.
All the rooms have hammocks, either inside or at the balcony.
Every room has a different type of bathroom but all of them are amazing. Mine had a window facing the trees and when I showered I felt as if I were in the middle of the jungle.
The house has a several common areas. The dining room has a big round table and it has no walls. There you'll be able to try the delicious food of the cook of the house and every morning you'll have fresh fruit right when you wake up.
The dining room is connected to another open room with a big sofa that faces the ocean. It's the perfect spot to chill out at night with your friends.
On the other side of the dining room there's a little patio. There's also a little balcony from one of the rooms that reminded me of Romeo and Juliet.
Right next to the dining room and the sofa room there's another chill out area. That was my favorite reading spot and some of my friends used the space to do an early morning meditation. Although the house has many secret and even more private spots to do yoga or meditate.
The house has so many cool spaces to take pictures because of the colors and because of the design and decoration. Check out some of the pictures I took while I was there.
In this picture I'm wearing a Tula Rosa Label dress.
The one piece is a Mara Hoffman.
I loved every corner of that house but my favorite part - and I'm sure it will be yours- was the infinity pool that faces the ocean. The sunsets there are something else. The pool area also has a table where you can eat.
I'm a sucker for symmetric photos so I couldn't stop taking pictures of the pool stairs'.
The good news is that you can actually rent this house. It can fit up to 14 people in its 7 rooms. If you are interested you can check out their Instagram account @laceibacareyes or contact the owner at fbarnetche@gmail.com
While in Careyes we also visited a couple of beaches. As expected, they weren't too crowded. Playa Rosa is really close to the house and there's a little restaurant right there where, of course, everything is pink.
The second beach we visited was "Careyitos". And there, we were completely alone. To add to the whimsical energy of Careyes, that beach has a meteor that you can touch.
The village has a couple of nice restaurants. We had dinner at Punto Como and I would totally recommend it. The meats and the pasta were really good. It kinda reminded me of the restaurants in Spain.
But what really hypnotized me and recharged my batteries was "La Copa del Sol". A 35-foot-high concrete cup that has diamond shaped windows and the acoustic of a greek amphitheater. If someone whispers from the top of the cup, the person inside will hear everything loud and clear.
Gian Franco created this cosmic installation, which symbolizes the woman. He also created the Piramidion, inside of a cave, that symbolizes the man. They are aligned in such way, that when the sun sets in la copa, it shoots a beam of light through one of the diamond windows and illuminates the pyramid. If you want to feel a cosmic-out-of-this -world-experience get inside la copa alone during the sunset. The feeling is therapeutic if you can stop thinking for a minute that an alien is gonna come down and kidnap you.
If during your stay in Careyes you don't see magic, is because you were not paying attention.
