Kimpton is about to enter the all-inclusive world.
The new Kimpton Tres Rios Riviera Maya is opening Sept. 22 near Playa del Carmen, bringing the boutique hotel brand into one of the fastest-growing segments in Caribbean and Mexican Caribbean travel.
It’s a debut we’ve been following for some time. We first reported on the resort’s Sept. 22 opening date earlier this spring, and Kimpton is still listing the property as “opening soon,” with reservations available beginning later this month.
And we found some notable opening rates. In our latest rate check, a two-queen room with a mangrove view was available for $378 per night, while a king room with a mangrove view was $422 per night. A room with a balcony and soaking tub was priced at $423 per night.
The resort has 355 suites, each with a private balcony or terrace and views of either the ocean or the surrounding mangroves. Some categories add plunge pools and soaking tubs, while adults-only options include swim-up suites and ocean-view suites.
But the setting is what separates Tres Rios from the typical Riviera Maya all-inclusive.
The resort is surrounded by the Tres Rios Nature Park, with mangroves, freshwater rivers, eco-trails and cenotes incorporated into the experience. It gives Kimpton a natural centerpiece for its first all-inclusive rather than simply another beachfront resort complex.
Then there’s the food program, an area that has always been central to the Kimpton brand.
Tres Rios will have seven restaurants and five bars, with concepts ranging from modern Mexican cooking at Sabina and Italian cuisine at Bacetto to Asian fusion at Kotori, Mediterranean dishes at Elaia and steaks at El Carnal. There’s also Mexican street food at De La Calle and coffee, pastries and juices at Café Casa.
The all-inclusive package covers meals and drinks along with Wi-Fi, entertainment, fitness activities and non-motorized water sports.
There are four outdoor pools, a beach, the Kej Spa and a fitness center, along with the nature experiences that surround the resort.
Kimpton’s arrival is also notable because the brand is entering an all-inclusive sector increasingly populated by hotel companies that historically focused on traditional European-plan resorts. Hyatt, Marriott and Hilton have all expanded their all-inclusive footprints, and lifestyle brands are increasingly joining them.
Kimpton is trying to bring its own personality to the category: smaller-brand sensibility, a serious restaurant program and familiar touches such as its evening social hour, now inside a large destination resort.
The opening has taken longer than initially expected. But reservations are now live, and when we checked the booking calendar in July, Sept. 22 was the first available date.
That puts one of the Riviera Maya’s most closely watched resort debuts just days away — with opening rates beginning under $400 per night in our latest check and Kimpton preparing for its first real test in the all-inclusive world.
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