A pink design icon on Paseo de Montejo
Rosas & Xocolate was my final stop in Mérida, at the very end of my route through Yucatán and Quintana Roo, before continuing south towards Oaxaca. After days of movement — beaches, small towns, long drives — arriving here felt like stepping into something more architectural and intimate: a city hotel with a strong identity, and a sense of place that goes far beyond aesthetics.
This distinct character has not gone unnoticed. Over the years, the property has cemented its status as a Design Icon and a Tesoro de México, earning titles ranging from Best Boutique Hotel in Yucatán to Best Urban Hotel in Mexico. Yet, despite the accolades and its recognition as a socially responsible company, the experience remains personal.
Located directly on Paseo de Montejo, Mérida’s most emblematic boulevard, Rosas & Xocolate is a Design Hotels icon with Marriott Bonvoy benefits, feeling like a property that defines a destination rather than simply belonging to it. Its position puts you in the city’s most elegant district, walkable to the historic centre and museums, yet only 20 minutes from the airport—making it an ideal strategic base for exploring cenotes, haciendas, and archaeological sites across the wider Yucatán landscape.
PS: Check out highlights from my recent trips to Mexico → Mexico I | Mexico II
The Concept
Rosas & Xocolate is the result of an integral restoration project that rescued the beauty of two exquisite 19th-century mansions, abandoned for more than 30 years, and transformed them into one of Mérida’s most distinctive boutique hotels.
Architect Salvador Reyes led the renovation, preserving the elegance of the original structures while introducing a contemporary, romantic and highly curated design language. The result is a hotel that feels seductive, playful, and unmistakably bold — an icon in pink, right in the heart of Mérida’s colonial atmosphere.
Design & Atmosphere
This is not a minimalist hotel designed to disappear into the background. Rosas & Xocolate embraces personality.
The interiors combine restored antiques, custom upholstery, replicated patterned floors arranged like carpets, and art pieces distributed throughout the property. Every corridor feels intentional, every space layered — the kind of boutique hotel where design is not decoration, but mood.
There is a creative, slightly decadent energy to the hotel, balanced by calm and privacy once inside.
Rooms & Suites
One of the defining aspects of Rosas & Xocolate is its scale. With only 17 rooms—ranging from Deluxe Kings to three signature suites—the hotel feels closer to a private design residence than a conventional city property. The architecture prioritizes sensory comfort: double walls over four metres high, hermetically sealed glass for complete silence, solid cedar carpentry, and soft cotton textiles throughout.
My Stay: Deluxe King Room I stayed in a Deluxe King room; spacious, calm, and designed as a personal retreat overlooking the water gardens. The bathroom was generous, featuring double sinks and the hotel’s most distinctive detail: an outdoor stone bathtub open to the air. Whether under the moonlight or the warmth of the sun, it’s an intimate luxury that feels poetic rather than performative.
Small touches reinforce the sense of place, from the Bose sound system to the handmade artisanal amenities, including their signature chocolate soaps.
Food & Recognition
Rosas & Xocolate is not only known for design — it has also been recognised for its culinary offering.
The hotel received CANIRAC’s award for Best Hotel Restaurant in Mexico (2016), positioning it as a gastronomic destination in its own right, not simply a place to stay.
This distinction is driven by Chef David Segovia, who helms a kitchen dedicated to contemporary fusion, blending local Yucatecan ingredients with international techniques—an experience best enjoyed on the terrace overlooking the emblematic Paseo de Montejo. The gastronomic journey extends beyond the main table: the property houses a sophisticated Tequila Bar with over 250 labels set within a library atmosphere, and the vibrant Moon Lounge on the rooftop, where live jazz and signature cocktails come together under the stars.
Wellness: A Yucatán-Inspired Spa
The Rosas & Xocolate Spa was ranked among the Top 50 spas in Mexico (2019), offering traditional Yucatecan treatments shaped by aromatherapy herbs, essential oils, warmth, and certified therapeutic touch.
Even without booking a treatment, wellness feels embedded in the hotel’s rhythm: restoration, calm, softness.
A Place to Remember
For me, Rosas & Xocolate was the ideal finale to my Yucatán journey: intimate, design-driven, deeply atmospheric — a hotel that feels like an experience rather than a product.
Some stays disappear into the timeline of travel. Others become markers.
Rosas & Xocolate is the latter: a pink icon of Mérida, and one of the most distinctive boutique hotels in the peninsula.
Book Rosas & Xocolate, a Member of Design Hotels™
Paseo de Montejo 480, Zona Paseo Montejo, Centro, Mérida, Yucatán 97000
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