Beach Houses and Jungle Villas on the Riviera Maya
What a Week Here Actually Costs
10 guests · 5 bedrooms · 7 nights at Soliman Bay in February at $1,800 a night
Villa rate
7 nights x $1,800
$12,600
Taxes
16% VAT and 6% state lodging tax, plus the state visitor fee of about $16 a guest
$2,932
Fees
Booking fee, damage waiver, departure clean
$199
Chef
Private chef for three meals at about $500 a day. Housekeeping is included
$3,500
Staff gratuities
About 10% of the rent, split among the staff
$1,260
Food & dining
Groceries $50 pp/day, 2 dinners out in Tulum at about $150 pp
$6,500
Transfers & getting around
Van from Cancún for 10 at about $300 each way, plus about $200 in taxis for nights out
$800
The number the family pays
$2,779 per person · 121% above the villa rate
$27,791
Plus a refundable damage deposit set by each house, not included above.
These are our costed estimates for a villa of this class, not a quote. Send us the brief and we'll cost your actual house.
Cost Your Own WeekSubject to Villa Type
Housekeeping: Usually Included
Most of our Riviera Maya houses have housekeeping every day, often six days a week. At many of the bigger houses a cook makes breakfast too. Ask what yours includes.
Chef Extra
A private chef for a group of 10 runs about $500 a day for three meals, with the food on top.
Tips aren't in the rate. About 10% of the rent, split among the staff, is normal. The 16% VAT and the 6% state lodging tax are in the costing above. So is Quintana Roo's visitor fee of about $16 a guest. Damage deposits are set house by house, often $1,000 to $5,000.
Flights
Can You Get There From Where You Live?
Your Nearest Metro
Nonstop from Atlanta on Delta or Southwest, several times a day. About 2 hours 10 minutes. Delta also flies nonstop to Tulum.
Nonstop from Austin on American or Southwest. About 2 hours 30 minutes.
Nonstop from Boston on JetBlue or Delta. About 4 hours 15 minutes.
Nonstop from Calgary on WestJet or Air Canada, several times a week in season. About 5 hours 40 minutes. WestJet also flies Calgary to Tulum.
Nonstop from Charlotte on American, daily. About 2 hours 45 minutes.
Nonstop from Chicago O'Hare on United or American, and from Midway on Southwest. About 3 hours 50 minutes.
Nonstop from Dallas-Fort Worth on American, several times a day. About 2 hours 40 minutes. American also flies nonstop to Tulum.
Nonstop from Denver on United or Southwest. About 4 hours.
Nonstop from Detroit on Delta. About 3 hours 35 minutes.
Nonstop from Houston on United from Bush, or Southwest from Hobby. About 2 hours 15 minutes. United also flies Bush to Tulum.
Nonstop from Las Vegas on Southwest, and from Salt Lake on Delta in winter. About 4 hours 30 minutes.
Nonstop from LAX on four airlines. About 4 hours 45 minutes.
Nonstop from Miami on American, and from Ft Lauderdale on JetBlue or Spirit. About 1 hour 50 minutes.
Nonstop from Minneapolis on Delta or Sun Country. About 4 hours.
Nonstop from Montreal on Air Canada or Air Transat. About 4 hours 15 minutes. Both also fly to Tulum once a week.
Nonstop from JFK on JetBlue or Delta, and from Newark on United. About 4 hours 10 minutes.
Nonstop from Orlando on Southwest or Frontier, and from Tampa on Southwest. About 1 hour 50 minutes.
Nonstop from Philadelphia on American or Frontier. About 3 hours 50 minutes.
Nonstop from Phoenix on American or Southwest. About 3 hours 50 minutes.
One connection from San Diego & Orange County, via Dallas-Fort Worth or Houston. About 6 hours 30 minutes to 8 hours total.
Nonstop from San Francisco on United or Alaska. About 5 hours.
Nonstop from Seattle on Alaska or Delta, and from Portland on Alaska in season. About 5 hours 45 minutes.
Nonstop from Toronto on Air Canada or WestJet, several times a day. About 4 hours. Both also fly to Tulum a few times a week.
Nonstop from Vancouver on Air Canada or WestJet, several times a week. About 6 hours 15 minutes.
Nonstop from Washington Dulles on United, and from Baltimore on Southwest. About 3 hours 30 minutes.
Cancún International (CUN) has the most flights by far. Playa del Carmen is 45 minutes to an hour south, and Soliman and Tankah close to two hours. The new Tulum airport (TQO) is 30 to 45 minutes from Tulum, with far fewer flights.
What Governs the Arrival Day
The drive from Cancún. Book a van to meet you, about $300 each way for 10 to Tulum. Big groups with luggage often need two. Every foreign visitor also pays the state visitor fee online, about $16 each, before flying home.
A rental car helps at Soliman and Tankah, where dinner in Tulum is a 15-minute drive. Take the Mexican liability insurance with it and avoid driving at night.
Schedules change. We check yours before anyone books.
Best For
- Families with small children, in the calm reef bays north of Tulum
- Big groups, with estates that sleep 40 or more
- Groups who want cenotes and Mayan ruins as day trips
- Easy flights, with nonstops to Cancún from almost every big city
Not For
- A short arrival day if you stay near Tulum, nearly two hours from Cancún
- Summer trips, when sargassum seaweed can pile up on the beaches
- Walking to dinner, except from the houses in Playacar
When to Go
High Season
Mid-December to Easter, with February one of the driest months
Festive Window
About Dec 20 to Jan 3, minimum 7 nights at most houses
Low Season
May to early December, about a sixth less than February, with sargassum worst in June and July and hurricanes peaking August to October
Minimum Stay
7 nights over the festive window · 3 to 5 nights the rest of the year
Where to Stay in Riviera Maya
Soliman & Tankah Bay
Our biggest group of beach houses, on the calm bays 10 to 15 minutes north of Tulum. Most have five to nine bedrooms. Five-bedroom houses run about $1,700 to $2,000 a night in February, and the Tulum Bay Estate sleeps 42.
Tulum
Houses on the beach road or a few minutes inland in Aldea Zama. A handful more are off the grid down in Sian Ka'an. The biggest is Zorba Estate on the beach road, which sleeps 44 at about $9,450 a night in February.
Playa del Carmen & Playacar
Houses in and around gated Playacar, a walk from Fifth Avenue and the Cozumel ferry. Five-bedroom houses run about $1,400 to $1,900 a night in February, and Casa Estrella sleeps 30.
Pairs Well With
Planning a Trip to Riviera Maya?
Tell us the group and the dates. We'll come back with the houses that fit and what the week costs.
Request a Costed Shortlist