The new Banyan Tree Veya, Valle de Guadalupe, might have a wellness focus, but guests needn’t think they have to skip the wine, with the property planting its own onsite vineyard.
Built to seamlessly blend into the rolling hills of Valle de Guadalupe, the 6.5-hectare resort has 30 villas crafted from wood sourced from the tropical forests of Mexico’s southern region, each with a private plunge pool, wine bar and fireplace.
And while each villa centres around wellness with yoga mats, floating weights, and mindfulness aids; outside it’s all about the picture-perfect vines that will offer an exclusive collection of grenache wines.
Banyan Tree Veya Valle de Guadalupe General Manager, Ximena Dipp, says more than just a winery, it is a research centre for the grenache grape.
“We are the only place in the Americas where the five grenache varieties are planted together. For our wine production, we do not only use the ones that are planted here but also some grenache from neighbouring valleys.
“Despite the fact that the neighbouring valleys are close by, the terroir changes drastically. Grenache is also the most sustainable grape – using 30 per cent less water than its counterparts. The wine has also minimal intervention and is produced in very small batches.”
When wellness calls
A purpose-built, traditional Mexican temazcal (house of heat) was also built on the property – the first luxury temazcal of its kind in the Valle de Guadalupe.
Dipp says here, guests can indulge in a two-hour ceremony.
“Participants pass through four symbolic doors of life represented by the four elements with different meanings. As they go along, the temperature gets hotter gradually with the arrival of new hot stones for a final extreme sweat.
“For us Mexicans, it is a tradition. It is said that the temazcal is Mother Earth’s womb. So, in a way what it represents when we leave is a rebirth, where soul, spirit and body are purified. The idea is that you leave inside the temazcal everything that you need to let go of.”
The Veya Spa is also home to four treatment rooms, a hydrotherapy room, fitness studio, meditation and sound healing cave and two hilltop pools.
Wine and dine
Led by Food and Beverage Manager, Fernando Labra Degante, the resort’s seven culinary concepts weave “healthy ingredients and practices into both traditional and modern Mexican dishes”.
Each dish is created using fresh, locally harvested food that supports small farms and is sustainably sourced.
Restaurants include all-day dining, Asian fine dining, contemporary Mexican cuisine, open-fire cooking, pool-side dining and a cognac room for petite pastries and spirits.
All matched of course by a glass of that exclusive grenache.
For more information, visit Banyan Tree Veya.
