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Future Possibilities               to their habitats, I had to admit Linares   IF YOU GO
                                             might have been on to a great idea. In   Belmond Maroma www.maromahotel.
          Change and growth are inevitable any- 2011, I applauded as the United Nations   com
          where as beautiful as the Riviera Maya,  World Tourism Organization present-    Cesiak www.cesiak.org/
          but rapid development has damaged   ed Mayakobá’s developers the Ulysses   Esencia www.hotelesencia.com/
          fragile ecosystems, altered the coastline  Award for tourism projects that take a   Serenidad  Shardon  www.shardon.
          and driven away the birds and mam-  leading role in responsible, sustainable   com/
          mals who long found refuge here.   and universally accessible tourism.   Viceroy Riviera Maya http://www.vice-
                                                                                  royhotelsandresorts.com/en/riviera-
          Once again, prescient investors staked  At the same time, the Rainforest Alli-  maya/overview
          out prime parcels of jungle and sand in   ance honored Mayakobá with the Sus-
          the 1980s, eventually purchasing more   tainable Standard-Setter Award as the   The Maya Side of the Riviera
          than 1,500 acres of jungle, mangroves   first resort in Latin America to be rec-
          and beach.                         ognized as a Rainforest Alliance Verified   One of the most promising devel-
                                             Destination.                         opments in the Riviera Maya doesn’t
          The Spanish owners left the land alone                                  involve bulldozers and construction.
          for  years,  until  Salvador  Linares,  an   Mayakobá is now one of my favorite Riv-  Instead, the Mayan communities of the
          impassioned Spaniard with wild white   iera Maya destinations. I spent a couple   area, with help from government and
          hair and a prodigious imagination, en-  of nights at the Fairmont Mayakobá   private investment, have created a pro-
          visioned an environmentally sensitive   after my Sian Ka’an adventure, thrilled   gram called Maya Ka’an. Emphasizing
          tourism community built around a se-  to soak my sweat-stained clothes (and   culture, eco-tourism and sustainable
          ries of canals leading to just one mile   sunburned, bug-bit body) in a huge   projects in Mayan communities, Maya
          of beach. “People said this man is crazy,”  bathtub filled with fragrant bubbles.   Ka’an  encompasses tours  to small  vil-
          Linares said with a laugh after the Fair-                               lages, colonial towns and untrammeled
          mont Mayakobá, the resort’s first hotel,  I loved sitting on a deck outside my   archeological sites where local guides
          opened in 2005.                    comfy  air-conditioned  suite  with  my   provide insight into daily life. Punta Al-
                                             morning coffee as anhinga, coots and   len and Sian Ka’an are included in proj-
          I watched the whole process evolve over   egrets swooped about an Amazon-like   ect, and tours include birdwatching,
          many visits as the Fairmont, Rosewood   canal capturing bugs that might other-  kayaking, traditional medicine, history
          and Banyan Tree hotels rose amid man-  wise seek out my blood.          and a creepy cave where snakes hang
          groves, underground rivers, sinkholes                                   from crevices to hunt bats.
          called cenotes, and murky canals.   Riding through the canals in an electric
                                             gondola  while  spotting  osprey,  boat-  Until now, most cultural Riviera Maya
          To say I was dubious is a gross under-  billed herons and kiskadees reminded   tours have involved visits to Mayan
          statement. At the time, I thought the   me a bit of Sian Ka’an. Sure, I’d rather   communities that have been groomed
          whole thing was a massive boondoggle   the whole coast remained as pure and   and amplified to provide entertain-
          that would destroy the coastline I loved.  undisturbed as the biosphere reserve,   ment for groups. The companies run-
                                             but that dream is long gone. Instead, I   ning Maya Ka’an’s tours include small
          Over several years, as I toured the ca-  can only hope that future developers   cooperativas where some members are
          nals with naturalists and biologists and   learn to respect and care for the natural   trained as licensed guides while others
          watched herons and crocodiles return   side of the Riviera Maya.        are learning how to interact with for-
                                                                                  eign visitors and share their knowledge
                                                                                  about everything from the use of indig-
                                                                                  enous plants to cooking in pibs (wood
                                                                                  burning ovens and raising stingless
                                                                                  bees to produce honey. Natural prod-
                                                                                  ucts are sometimes sold to guests—
                                                                                  the honey shampoo is amazing.

                                                                                  For more information go to www.
                                                                                  mayakaan.travel






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