The 800-square meter Spa at Ceiba del Mar Beach & Spa Resort in the Riviera Maya, Mexico takes a holistic and aromatherapy approach and offers guests the opportunity to have a truly Mayan experience.
The first thing that we noticed after we entered the Spa at Ceiba del Mar was the delicate aroma gently perfuming the air; and the second, was the professional and welcoming staff. A large bouquet of exotic flowers graced a wood table sculpted with three women holding a large bowl, and colorful cushioned lounges invited Spa guests to relax before Spa treatments.
Reception Area
The knowledgeable staff helped us select a treatment from their diverse menu, patiently explaining their Energetic Balancing Evaluations, Signature Treatments – a Mayan Experience, scrubs, facials, massages using light, medium, or firm touch, ionithermie body treatments developed in France in 1978 (for the treatment of cellulite and body contouring), body masks, and Temazcal, an indigenous ritual to purify and renew the body, mind, and spirit. Treatments utilize Mexican herbs, organic aloe vera, and honey from bees from the Yucatan peninsula, as well as more than 50, mostly organic, English essential oils.
Temazcal
After careful consideration, it was decided that we should experience the Top’Nikté Massage, one of their Signature Treatments, which was explained to us as, "The Mayan experience is a fusion between Ancestral Mayan wisdom, Mexican herbal remedies, essential oils and modern know how."
Our therapists Nery (for Debra) and Josephine (for Edward) lead us to the dressing rooms where we changed into our Spa robes, and then brought us to our separate treatment rooms where for the next 90 minutes, we went on a Mayan journey.
The treatment began with a purifying ritual using copal, a resin from the Mayan sacred tree, which the therapists burned to begin the harmonizing of the body, mind, and spirit. Next came a relaxing footbath, followed by a consultation to determine which essential oil was right for us. Basics established, our therapists requested that we lay face down on the massage table, and then began our full body massage with essential oils. With each stroke of the therapists’ hands, we could feel the tension slowly subsiding from each of the muscles in our necks, backs, and legs. For the next 50 minutes, the therapists worked at harmonizing our bodies, minds, and spirits through therapeutic massage.
After the massage, the next step of the treatment was being wrapped up in very warm cocoons of wet cotton toweling that had been infused with herbs, and then covered with warm blankets to retain the heat, to help remove the toxins from our bodies, and also to moisturize our skin. Warm and snug in our wraps, with the aroma of the chamomile and herbs wafting in the air, our therapists continued our treatments with a scalp massage using essential oils, also paying special attention to the neck and shoulder area, and by now we were drifting in and out of sleep that comes from a profound feeling of well-being and deep relaxation.
Spa Treatment
Heads massaged, the therapists progressed to our facial massages, gently soothing the tension from each muscle. Lulled to a pleasant state of relaxation, when our therapists gently told us that 90 minutes had passed and that our treatments had concluded and it was time to remove the cocoon wraps, we wondered how we would have enough strength to get off the massage tables. Somehow we managed, with the thought that we just needed to walk a few steps from the treatment rooms to the relaxation area where we could recline on large blue cushioned chaises in the pretty garden-like setting.
Comfortably settled on lounges, the therapists brought us cups of herbal tea, which we sipped while taking in the meditative ambience of the relaxation room and reflecting and discussing our treatment experiences.
Relaxation Room
The 7-treatment room Spa has a sauna, steam room, cold plunge pool, warm water whirlpool, and also a shop where they carry a large selection of interesting holistic and aromatherapy products.
Spa Shop
Please read other articles on Ceiba del Mar Beach & Spa Resort in the Hotels and Resorts, Restaurants, and Chefs’ Recipes sections where Chef Santiago Kantun shares his tempting recipes.
Spa at Ceiba del Mar Beach & Spa Resort
Costera Norte Lote 1 S.M. 10
Mza 26 CP
Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo, Mexico 77580
Telephone: +52 998-872-8060
Toll-free: 01-800-426-9772 (Mexico)
Toll-free: 1-877-545-6221 (USA)
Fax: +52-998-872-8061
Email: info@ceibadelmar.com
www.CeibadelMar.com
Ceiba del Mar Beach & Spa Resort
Please read other articles on Riviera Maya in the Destinations, Hotels and Resorts, Restaurants, Chefs’ Recipes, and Adventures sections.
Read other articles on Mexico in Destinations: Cancun, Hotels and Resorts, Restaurants, Chefs’ Recipes, Spas, Liquor Cabinet: Xtabentun, Adventures: Scuba Diving in Cancun, Music Scene: Interview with Paco Renteria, Music Scene: Paco Renteria – Gitanus and Oceano, and Travel News: Luxury Avenue.
For information on Riviera Maya, Mexico, please visit the website: www.RivieraMaya.com.
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