Banyan Tree Mayakoba

Reviewed by Spa & Wellness MexiCaribe in 2024

Nestled within the lush landscapes of the Riviera Maya, Banyan Tree Mayakoba offers a serene escape that emphasizes relaxation and rejuvenation, with wellness woven into the many activities around the resort. With excellent service standards across the property and exquisite food with outstanding attention to detail, guests can ensure their dietary requirements and service needs during their stay will be accommodated.

The Banyan Tree Spa brings a taste of Asia to Mexico, with many therapists hailing from Thailand and Indonesia, working alongside Mexican therapists to deliver a range of wellness experiences incorporating techniques from around the world. The spa offers personalized hydrotherapy with their ‘Rainforest Indulgence’ journey. Start with the rain shower pebblestone walkway through alternating hot and cold showers, refreshing the body while also stimulating the feet. Proceed to the steam room and apply body and face masks before rinsing off and cooling down with crushed ice available from the ice chute. Continue with the dry sauna and then relax in the sensorial pool with a variety of jets for the body and hot jacuzzis. The spa also arranges wellness events such as their sound healing journey held in the hydrotherapy area. Flotation straps are used for buoyancy as guests float weightlessly in the water, feeling the intense vibrations of Tibetan bowls for a transcendent sound experience.

The Thai Traditions treatment, a holistic journey to release muscle tension and revitalize the body, begins with a refreshing foot bath, setting the tone for the experience. Following the foot ritual, the guest is guided to the wet room for a warming ginger body exfoliation. The invigorating properties of ginger revitalize while exfoliating dead skin, leaving the body feeling refreshed. The scrub is rinsed off under the Vichy shower which adds an element of luxury, as the warm water soothes and enhances relaxation.

The journey continues in the tranquil treatment room with a massage that integrates traditional Thai stretching techniques, as skilled therapists utilize their expertise to ease tension and improve flexibility. These stretches are combined with an oil massage also incorporating Thai herbal poultices, warmed to release their medicinal properties, providing heat that penetrates deep into the muscles. Via a detailed consultation, the therapist ensures that the treatment is tailored to each individual’s needs. Throughout the treatment, the spa’s ambiance includes gentle sounds of nature coming from the mangroves and waterways outside, creating a peaceful immersion in the natural surroundings of the region.

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Reviewed by Spa & Wellness MexiCaribe in 2018

The beautiful resort of Banyan Tree Mayakoba sits just north of Playa del Carmen and offers an authentic Asian experience to its guests, right here in Mexico. Luxury suites and a variety of restaurants await guests in addition to the stunning and well equipped Banyan Tree Spa. Like the sacred tree, Banyan Tree Spa aims to offer guests a sanctuary for the senses where physical, mental and spiritual renewal can take place.

The impressive private ‘Rainforest hydrothermal circuit’ at Banyan Tree Mayakoba comprises a cascading rain shower walk over a foot-stimulating pebbled floor, aroma steam, sauna, hamam with body and hair masks, invigorating experience showers, an ice fountain and brine cavern. Enjoy these before finishing up in the vitality pool with strong hydrotherapy jets and hot Jacuzzis to work on muscle tension.

Visiting a traditional Thai resort hailing from Phuket while in Mexico may not seem like the obvious choice of brand. We talk a lot about drawing on local ingredients and providing authentic local experiences for spas in Mexico, the Caribbean and Latin America, but who’s to say we shouldn’t also provide authentic experiences from around the globe to those who visit or those who are local to the area to the country? I, for one, love Thai and Balinese massage and in my experience visiting spas around the world, I’m yet to find therapists from anywhere else who compare in terms of hand and finger strength. Therapists at Banyan Tree Spas are trained at the academy in Phuket ensuring they consistently deliver high quality spa treatments and the ‘Master Therapist’ massage experience certainly delivered. An experienced massage therapist will complete an in depth consultation to discover areas of tension, preference for pressure whether strong, medium or light and favorite techniques and will then create a bespoke massage incorporating various modalities. Mine included hot poultices to warm the muscles, stretching techniques to release tightness and Balinese massage movements, my favorite!

By Sara Jones, Editor