My husband and I went to Hotel Esencia for 7 days for a must-needed relaxing vacation. We have stayed at many wonderful hotels around the world, and this was truly our favorite ever based on service, atmosphere, and, of course, the wonderful beach! We did much research on this site, so we wanted to reciprocate. The dates we were there were Oct 25 - 31, 2007.

The Beach
First, this is one of the most beautiful beaches we've ever been to. The sand is soft, clean, and cool to the touch, even in the heat. The water is crystal-clear and blue. Fairly shallow for a long while. It was calm most days and even when rougher in other spots along the beach, was more calm along this area due to the peninsula to the left of this particular beach. We did not snorkel much, but there are good spots for it. There is sea grass, but it is in limited areas and you can go swim/float quite a distance without seeing it. No need for shoes in the water.

The Hotel
It is amazingly beautiful. It is very white, as some have commented. We loved the cleanliness and minimalism of it. I've posted some pictures to show. We were in a garden room, called Romero. It was very private. We never heard anyone the whole time. There was a great area to lay on a daybed and read outside or take in room service. This was contreversial on the postings, but we liked it - 15% is added to everything to cover all gratuities and you never receive or have to wait for a bill at dinner, they put it under your door every couple of days. I think this is partically why the service was always so great.

I'll describe a typical day at Esencia to illustrate how wonderful the service is. Between 7 and 8 am, coffee, fresh-squeezed juice, and sweet rolls are delivered to your room. They do not disturb you and leave it outside. As others have said, if you wait, a bird will get to it. However, they do cover the juice, rolls, etc., so this only happened to us one day. Then, you can go have breakfast at the pool area, included in the rate. Breakfast is truly wonderful and very large there. You always get rolls (again, if you want), fruit plate, and mango jelly. You also choose from the menu. Mexican eggs, Frittatas, French toast, etc. Very, very good. Then, when you go back to your room, they have typically cleaned it or in the process of wrapping up cleaning it. We usually headed to the beach at that point. The beach service is the best I've ever had anywhere. They give you snorkeling equipment if you ask. You arrive at the beach. They ask if you'd like shade or sun. They take you to a palapa, if you want shade, as we did. If you are getting too much sun, they will move your chairs, bring umbrellas, whatever you need. They also bring bottled water in an ice bucket for you. You can order drinks, lunch, etc. on the beach and the service is excellent. For lunch, it is very good, and large portions, approx $15 for snacks/tapas and from $18 - $25 for entrees. Throughout your beach day, they will bring wet, towels with ice to use to cool off. I can't emphasize enough how truly friendly and helpful EVERY member of the staff is. They seem to really enjoy making your day perfect. When you go back to your room, there will usually be fresh fruit, wine, or some other little treat. Additionally, as others have said, they stock water (lots of it), a couple Cokes, Diet Cokes, beers, and juices in the fridge, along with ice (all complimentary). There are also plunge pools in the garden rooms that they will heat if you like (watch out, it can get VERY hot). We usually showered or napped and then headed to dinner either on property or went to Playa. The restaurant there is very, very good. Prices are about $8 - $10 for appetizer or salad and about $30 for an entree (approximately). Service there is also excellent. You can eat inside or outside. When you come back to your room, it is usually turned down with a scented oil burning in the room. You can borrow movies to watch on the DVD player. You can exchange books at the main house (or magazines). The iPod in the room is great and loaded with a nice variety of music and piped throughout the bathroom and bedroom. You can also plug your own in. Try to chocolate cake, it is to die for!

The Spa
My husband did a deep tissue massage and I did the special Earth, Water, Fire (something like that) ritual. Very good, loved the herbs and scents used.

The Weather
For our week, it was in the mid 80s all week with a great breeze. One night I needed a sweater at dinner. It rained on evening (30 minutes) and one afternoon (1 hour) where we just read on our balcony on the daybed and enjoyed watching the rain.

Other Restaurants
We ate at Al Cielo next door. Very good. My favorite was the scallops wrapped in bacon in passion fruit. I highly recommend this place. We walked over one evening. Great service too. I think if you were on a budget, this would be a fabulous place to stay (they have 4 rooms). Same gorgeous beach as Esencia. Not the same service and atmosphere, but still very rustic and nice. We ate at Yaxchte, a Mayan restaurant in Playa - very, very good. We at at La Parilla, Mexican in Playa - also very good. We had a beer at a nice little beach bar at Hotel Fusion. The hotel didn't look luxury, but the beach bar was very nice and laid back.

Bugs and other annoyances
Yes, there are bugs here. It's the jungle. I'm a mosquito magnet and did get 2 or 3 bites. I simply wore bug spray (the one they provided called bye bye and Buzz Away (a natural one I'd brought) and they pretty much left me alone. They are out in the morning, at night, pretty much anytime. So, if you tend to get bit, spray yourself! We didn't have any problems with bugs in the shower or on our fruit as others have talked about. We simply got rid of fruit if it was going bad or put it in baggies (good to bring for lots of reasons).

If you haven't been to Playa, I found the sales people a bit annoying, yelling for you to come in and some kind of stalking you in the shops. We still thoroughly enjoyed going there and went 2 days into town. Just say no, gracias a lot.

I would recommend this trip to anyone looking for a luxury vacation in a serene, private setting. This would be a fabulous honeymoon spot.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.