• Advertising

• Contact

• About Us

• Submissions

The secret elixir of youth may be hiding on the tip of the Yucatan Peninsula at The Ceiba del Mar Beach and Resort Spa. It's not just the remote location and views of the beach you have while lying by the infinity pool or on the hammock stretched across your balcony. It's not only the gourmet food found in the restaurant or the artistically arranged fresh fruit and cheese platters left in your room. It's not even the wine or champagne that leads you to believe you're growing younger. It's the complete pampering of body, mind and spirit that urges you to escape for an extended weekend of renewal.

The tranquil atmosphere and beautiful landscaping alone bring a soothing calm as you walk the grounds. Deep greens climb up the white walls with energizing pops of orange, red and purple. Combined with the cooling sea breezes and gentle hum of the breaking ocean you feel as though you've reached your nirvana. And then you step foot into the spa.

"The spa is set apart by the oils they use. They really try to help you get rid of everything stressful or negative and start fresh, healing you," expresses Tammy Petersen, President of LMP International.

The Riviera Maya Cancun Luxury Spa at Ceiba del Mar offers various facial and massage treatments as well as some signature treatments. The assortment of massages and wraps mingle with a holistic healing mentality. The Top'Nikte massage begins with a luxurious body wrap in a cloud of fabric and ends with a 50 minute full-body massage. The attendant will help you choose a tailored blend of aromatic herbs and oils to help your body relax and heal. This perfume mixture is poured over the cotton towels that are then draped around you. While lying in the cocoon of warmth and with the sweet smells lulling you, a deeper relaxation is achieved with an indulging scalp and face massage.

To spa manager Gloria Guerrero the spa is an aromatherapy holistic destination; a place to restore balance and harmony in your life. To take advantage of all the spa offers it's wise to begin with an assessment of what your body needs. A bio-meridian feedback measures the meridians on your fingers, which are a sort of frequency within your body. It feels like a small static shock and reads like an x-ray. It gives you an indication of the state of your emotions and tells you which organs are out of balance.

"It's like taking your car in for diagnosis. We can detect things before you even feel it in your body," says Guerrero.

And the prescription? Spa treatments, inundated with germanium, lavender, marjoram or any of the 50 essential oils used. This includes the usual assortment of age-defying facials, deep-tissue or hot stone massages as well as the unique Temazcal, an ancient way to connect with the earth and restore our life energy.

A holistic and cultural tradition, the Temazcal ritual allows you to release all stress in the terra-cotta sweat lodge. Performed on the beach at sunset a shaman leads the group ritual by brushing away the old life with an herbal bouquet. Symbolic mud face masks are applied by friends and washed away with the many facades of life before crawling through the small opening into the sweat chamber. The use of hot volcanic stones and aromatic herbs enhance the invigorating steam session where you follow the chants of the shaman in a soul cleansing. A walk into the ocean afterward completes the renewal of self found in this deep meditation.

"The Temazcal would be great for a group of girlfriends after a divorce," says Petersen. "Families of a wedding party will use it as a start to the new life."

Whether you restore harmony in your life through the Temazcal rituals, meditation walks along the sandy beach, sipping herbal teas, or practicing yoga or pilates at sunrise over the ocean, you leave Ceiba feeling youthful and renewed.