For someone who loves the Caribbean, hotels and shopping as much as I do, staying at Mexico’s Thompson Playa Del Carmen feels like winning the lottery. It’s nothing less than a fantasy fulfilled, a mash-up of all my passions delivered in one sleek package and the Best Playa del Carmen Hotel.

By Sarah Greaves-Gabbadon
CJ Travel Editor

Open since last February in the heart of the bohemian Riviera Maya beach town, the boutique comprises two buildings: the 27-room Beach House, directly on Playa’s sandy sweep, and a 92-room main hotel on the bustling main drag, Quinta Avenida (Fifth Avenue) at Callé Corazón.

The Beach House, just three blocks from the main hotel, is a study in coastal cool with a South Beach aesthetic (minus the attitude, thankfully) and a casual vibe.

Euro-style lounge music emanates from plush curtained cabanas; the lap pool glistens in the sunlight; and the waves, which break mere steps from inviting day beds and the al fresco C Grill restaurant, beckon with rhythmic whispers. Petite and intimate, the narrow property is the perfect spot for a romantic getaway a deux or a destination wedding (you can buy out all 27 rooms and have the place to yourself). If your Caribbean fantasy requires that you actually be able to see the Caribbean from your bed (or bathtub or balcony plunge pool), you won’t find a better option than the rooms at the Beach House (which all come with 24-hour in-suite dining, natch).

However, if, like me, you prefer your vacays to have a little more va-va-voom, the main hotel will be more your speed. Occupying the top three floors of the year-old shopping mall Calle Corazón, the Thompson’s hub checks all the boxes for a Caribbean-loving, hotel-hopping shopaholic, with chic suites that seem ripped from the pages of a West Elm catalog and access to one of the region’s buzziest beaches and a wealth of worthy “shopportunities” less than five minutes away.

The view from a Beach House suite

While The Beach House is a low-key oasis, the main hotel is definitely the place to see and be seen, with a rooftop spread guaranteed to garner a gazlllion likes on your Facebook feed. Spanning most of the semi-circular building’s rooftop, a turquoise pool is embellished with cushioned “islands” crowned with parasols and with sensuously curved in-water chaises, which have already been immortalized on Instagram posts thousands of times. A swim-up pool bar on the southern end means you needn’t leave the water to top up your tequila, and the adjacent Cinco, serves breakfast, lunch and sunset cervezas on a breezy deck or straight to poolside cabanas populated by taut-bodied creative types from the U.S. and beyond.

Although the hotel’s rooftop is a definite draw, what lies below is as much of an attraction for me as the scene above. Calle Corazon is home to several international stores (H&M, Michael Kors, Swarovski and Calvin Klein, among them) and neighboring boutiques and stalls on the mile-long pedestrianized stretch of Quinta Avenida offer locally made items (silver jewelry, embroidered dresses and leather totes) that tempt at every turn.

Fueled by a hearty breakfast of chilaquiles at Cinco and refreshed with a quick dip in the pool, it only took me three minutes to descend to street level, where I launched a thorough investigation of the retail landscape (solely for journalistic purposes, of course).

The pool at the Thompson Playa del Carmen hotel beach house.

Immersed in shopping, it takes a lot to extract me. But Catch, the Thompson’s dinner-only rooftop restaurant, was up to the task. Sister to outposts in New York City and Dubai, it’s a hipster hangout that lives up to the hype, offering a rare combination of warm hospitality, a scenic location overlooking Quinta Avenida, and exceptional cuisine. Start with the Catch me cocktail (gin, passionfruit juice, lemongrass essence and rosemary) and then progress to either seafood (the truffle sashimi and seared tuna are standouts) or meat (the chimichurri-drizzled Tomohawk steak will satisfy even the biggest appetite).

Whether you’re a committed carnivore or a hard-core vegetarian, Catch offers the best of both worlds. Which makes total sense, since the hotel it calls home, with its beachfront and town center locations, does exactly the same.

It all adds up to what is the Best Playa del Carmen Hotel; because while there are a number of terrific places to stay in the greater Playa area, this is all about staying in Playa del Carmen itself, enjoying the authentic urban experience in the Riviera Maya’s tourism hub.