Although there is little or nothing about Casa Violeta that I could find on the web, I reluctantly sent my deposit to a NY bank account and held my breath (slightly) that the place did in fact exist. I travelled with my wife and 2 1/2 year old son, and my wife's sister, husband and 3 kids (10, 8, 5 years old) and rented Cabanas 3 and 4. When we arrived, I was immediately relieved. Casa Violeta is small, quiet, charming, clean, welcoming and relaxing. The Cabanas are quaint (if a little rustic) with hot water showers, mosquito netting for beds, luxurious comforters and sheets and just about a hundred feet from the waters edge. There is no air conditioning or ceiling fans (the power gets turned off at 10pm or so every night), but also no telephones, tvs or clocks (which is exactly why we were here!) The lack of breeze into the cabanas would be about the ONLY downside, but it did not bother me.

Rubi is a terrific and welcoming host who fits well with Tulum. She's there if you need her, but never gets in your way. The rest of the staff was extremely courteous and friendly and most were bi-lingual. Lucy was particularly kind to my (shy) son.

The food at the restaurant was first rate and definitely merits a special trip if you are not staying there. The menu is Italian themed and is limited, but they have enough variety to appeal to everyone (and we were travelling with some pretty finicky kids)

My wife and I have a pact that we will never revisit the same place twice because we feel the world is too big and there is always more to see, but Tulum was truly special and I will have a hard time keeping up my end of the bargain. I hope to return to Casa Violeta soon.