Vivo Resorts

I’ve been trying to figure out which type of person Vivo Resorts is perfect for. For sure it’s the person who wants to be healthy while they’re on holiday, since Vivo has an athlete’s dream gym plus lots of healthy food. Vivo is certainly ideal for the couple who wants to get away from it all — the resort is all alone on a vast beach and you can sleep listening to the sound of the waves. But Vivo is also great for anyone who wants to be close to the action; it’s just a 10-minute drive from the perfect Mexican town of Puerto Escondido. Vivo is also ideal for multi-generational families and was designed with their their needs in mind.

So, maybe Vivo Resorts is perfect for just about everybody.

Vivo Resorts is owned by former Canadian Olympian downhiller, Cary Mullen. He created the resort for what his retirement-age parents and his young family wanted and needed, as he couldn’t find it anywhere else.

The resort is on a stunning and empty 24-kilometre-long (15-mile) beach, Playa Palmarito. In summer the crashing waves are mesmerizing, in winter the seas calm enough for swimming. The beach is also a favourite of sea turtles. Various types of the endangered animals come year round to lay their eggs on this beach. The Vivo Foundation supports the Palmarito Sea Turtle Camp (amongst other charitable organizations) to protect the turtles. Guests can help release the just-hatched babies into the ocean at sunset, increasing their survival rate from 1-2% up to 5%. Whales, dolphins, and rays join the turtles swimming by and can often be seen from condo balconies.

As you’d expect, a resort created and owned by a former Olympian takes health and wellness seriously. Vivo’s gym, for example, is actually welcoming. It’s on the second floor above the restaurant, with views of the resort’s two main pools and the ocean, and has a fresh breeze blowing through windows that actually open. At Ernesto’s, Vivo’s farm-to-table restaurant, it’s easy to find healthy options, made deliciously with local products from the markets and with seasonal ingredients from the fields surrounding the resort. You can cook at home too, as every suite has a full kitchen.

Vivo Resorts is a condo-resort; each property is owned privately, though amenities and decor must adhere to prescribed minimal standards. The 75-acre beachfront community is stunning. There are several pools, including one aimed at family activities, a lap pool, and a beachside infinity pool with swim-up bar. The spa has a range of offerings, plus a meditation room and a yoga studio. You can also take a beachfront taichi or yoga class, plus play basketball or the favourite sport of retirees — pickleball. When completed, the Vivo community will have up to 600 condominiums, 115 private villas, and a selection of shops and cafes.

Ideal for families or groups of friends travelling together, you can book a one-, two-, three- or even four-bedroom condo or a private villa (each one has a full kitchen, laundry and more). Vivo has a Kids’ Club that the Mullen children helped design, as well as lessons and activities that families and friends can do together both on and off the resort. Sure, you can just lie by the pool if that’s what you want, but Vivo aims to bring people closer together and help them learn new things at the same time.

Vivo Resorts is a 10-minute drive from Puerto Escondido, which might just be the perfect Mexican town. It has a traditional market, artisans making crafts and textiles, both traditional and international dining, the third best surfing beach in the world (be amazed by the pros practicing or in competitions), beaches suited for amateur surfers and swimmers, plus friendly residents who welcome you to learn more about Oaxacan culture.

And if you fall in love with Vivo after your vacation? Have a condo or a villa built to your specifications and then you can come back as often as you like.