— Seclusion, redefined for those who seek the extraordinary
There are more things to do on the Costalegre than a week can hold. From the villa, the days run outward: golf at El Tamarindo, a massage on the terrace, a tequila tasting with the butler, a hike through the UNESCO reserve, snorkeling straight off the cliff, polo in Careyes. Every experience is arranged with advance notice, so the house stays quiet and the coast does the rest. Our Careyes and Costalegre travel guides cover the festivals, the drive down the coast and the wildlife season.
— PRIVATE CHEF & GASTRONOMY
Four full-time staff run the house, and one of them is your chef. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are cooked daily and served when you want them.
Long lunches under the palapa, the catch of the day at dinner, a table set for twelve above the Pacific. Once you confirm, we put you in touch with the chef to shape the week around your group.
Chef service is included. Groceries and drinks are billed at cost, with receipts, and can be stocked before you arrive. Between meals the chef teaches a Mexican cooking class and the butler hosts tequila and mezcal tastings, each $40 per person.
— MASSAGE, YOGA, SOUND HEALING & BEAUTY
Casa Papelillo brings the spa to you. Massage, private yoga and meditation, sound healing and beauty services are arranged on your timetable, in your suite, on the terrace or beside the pool. The therapists, teachers and stylists are independent professionals who come to the villa, so you never need to leave the house.
From a relaxing massage with gentle pressure and aromatherapy to deep-tissue work on postural strain and tight muscles. Have it in the privacy of your suite or in the open air beside the pool, with the sea breeze for company.
Private sessions matched to your level, usually at first light, when the sky above the jungle colours first. There is a yoga mat in every suite. Sound healing with singing bowls is held after dark on the oceanfront terrace. Groups can book the whole house as a yoga or wellness retreat: see Events.
Manicures, pedicures, makeup and hairstyling, done in your suite before a dinner out in Careyes, a celebration at the villa or a wedding morning. Book single treatments or the whole party.
Tell us what you would like when you book, and we will fit it around your days.
— BOATS, FISHING, SNORKEL, SCUBA & SURF
A boat charter on Chamela Bay begins in the water directly below the house. Within ten minutes the bay opens out into a crescent of water scattered with uninhabited, protected islands. Everything is arranged with advance notice.
A private boat reaches the beaches, sea caves and coves you can only get to by water. Isla Cocinas is the one guests ask for by name: a pale curve of sand in a sheltered cove. From November to February the captain also goes whale watching for the humpbacks that migrate through the bay, and a sunset sail, with a glass of wine and small plates, has a fair chance of meeting them on the way back in.
A fully equipped run for marlin, sailfish, tuna and mahi-mahi, for a half day or a full day, for seasoned anglers and beginners alike. The crew are the fishermen who keep their pangas at Punta Pérula. Afterwards the catch comes home to the chef, so dinner that night is whatever the morning gave you.
A private staircase in the cliff leads straight into the bay, so you can snorkel right off the house; bring your own mask, snorkel and fins. Scuba runs year-round with a PADI-certified master diver. The sheltered bay is among the best on this coast for paddleboard and kayak, and surf trips run to the breaks at Punta Pérula, ten minutes north. No boards are kept at the house: we arrange rentals, lessons and guides.
— CAREYES, HIKING, TURTLES & GOLF
Careyes excursions are the land half of a stay at Casa Papelillo. Ten minutes south stand the landmarks that made this coast known for its architecture. Closer to the villa, guided hikes set out on the edge of the UNESCO Chamela–Cuixmala Biosphere Reserve.
Copa del Sol, the great concrete vessel on the cliff, is best at sunset, when the light comes through it sideways. The Pyramideon nearby is smaller and stranger. Guided tours tell the story of the artists and architects behind them, and galleries sit around the Plaza de los Caballeros del Sol. For the festivals on the Careyes calendar, see Events.
Guided hikes start early, before the heat, on the edge of the UNESCO reserve, which protects tropical dry forest that has largely vanished elsewhere in Mexico. From July to December sea turtles nest on the beaches nearby: wake at sunrise to watch hatchlings cross the sand, or book a release viewing at Playa Teopa with the Careyes Foundation, or at Cuixmala.
The nearest course is El Tamarindo, about an hour south: an oceanfront course where non-hotel guests can play with advance booking. Book ahead, and we arrange the tee time and a driver.
— BEACH RIDING, JUNGLE TRAILS & POLO
Local riders take you through palm grove and jungle, then out onto the sand. We match the route to the group, so seasoned riders get the pace they want and first-timers get a horse that has done this a thousand times.
The signature route runs along close to a mile of sand, empty most evenings. Riders leave the stables in late afternoon, cut through palm grove and a short jungle track, and come out onto the beach with an hour of light left. In sea turtle season, July to December, the sand carries the tracks from the night before.
This ride goes into the private reserve of Cuixmala, where tropical jungle meets an unexpected savannah: birds, crocodiles in their lagoons, then zebras and antelopes roaming free. Inland, a longer half-day route climbs through the dry forest.
The Careyes polo fields are ten minutes south. The season runs from November to April and spectators watch free of charge. With notice, visitors can also ride.
EVENTS
Celebrations, retreats and weddings
Welcome with prior written approval, on a whole-villa booking. Reserve the villa first, then ask us about the event.
