This one bedroom 17th century house is the first house we renovated and lived in when we moved to Merida in 2001. It was published in Taschen's "Living in Mexico" and "Mexico Style". It's just off the park and gardens of Ermita. The house has a large garden and roof terrace. If you're traveling alone and love antiques this is the house for you. One of the best things about Casa Ermita is the large well furnished kitchen. Read more about it on our blog...

The Orangerie is a romantic two bedroom colonial home in centro historico a popular neighborhood for expatriates and very convenient for tourists. We designed this house for Josh's parents soon after moving to Merida. When they sold it the new owners didn't change a thing and asked us to keep in on as a rental. This was the beginning or Urbano Rentals. We keep adding antiques and objects as our collection overflows our own properties. There's a large terrace for sunning and hammock napping. The open plan of the house with it's mosaic tiles and skylights reminded us of Morocco. We added the gated archway to the terrace and it became L'Orangerie. Read the story behind that and some of the other features on the blog for L'Orangerie.

This three bedroom colonial home is our latest home. It is our most luxurious vacation rental in Merida's Historic Center. El Portico has 3 distinct living
areas so it's the perfect place to stay if you are traveling with friends or family. The kitchen is large, modern and central. It divides the central patio from the pool and garden. The upstairs master bedroom suite has a private terrace with views of the cathedral and a large luxurious bathroom. Above the kitchen is another large guest room and bath surrounded by the treetops of the ceibas, a tree sacred to the Mayans. El Portico is four blocks from the main square.

A block from Santiago Park this is our most popular two bedroom colonial vacation rental with a pool. The master bedroom is at the opposite end of the house from the guest room. The kitchen and dining room separate the master suite . This is an easy and comfortable house to share with friends. Casa Azul was created by Salvador Reyes Rios. The large pool in the central courtyard overlooks a beautiful tropical garden. There is a roof terrace lounge where you can enjoy the cool breezes at night with views of Santiago's church and the fireworks in the Zocalo.

Just off Paseo Montejo, Salvador Reyes Rios designed this 5 bedroom art deco casona with a large family in mind. The old colonial house has 3 queen bedrooms and two baths. In addition there is a master suite and a smaller guest room beside the pool. Villa Santa Ana has 3 patios and a roof terrace. The ideal choice for a large group who value privacy but also also available to smaller groups who do not need all 5 bedrooms.

This private luxury estate 30 minutes from Merida has the much-sought-after combination of service and seclusion to make it the perfect Yucatan vacation rental. Not far away are Haciendas Teya and San Jose Cholul for dinner or lunch. The ruins of Mayapan and Uxmal are also nearby. Sac Chich is minutes off the convent route and about 40 minutes from Izamal, a World Heritage site. Hacienda Sac Chich has a modern addition in the old Casa de Maquinas with the Master Suite and the two guest rooms. In the old colonial house are the kitchen, living room and two guest rooms. These rooms have not changed much since it was photographed by Karen Witynski for "The New Hacienda" and the new room's will appear in Karen's new book due in April 2008.

We discovered the Hacienda Yunku when we rented it for New Years Eve in 2002 from Madeleine Parmet of Luz en Yucatan. If you want an authentic taste of what it must have been like to live on a hacienda in the 19th Century, Yunku is for you. We took over in 2004. We've been in the process of renovating the hacienda for the past 3 years. This year the owners have added a new kitchen. Next year the bathrooms. It is located in the Ruta Puuc just 15 minutes from Starwood's Hacienda Ochil and Hacienda Temozon. The Casa Principal has 3 bedrooms with 3 bathrooms and the Taller Guest house has 2 bedrooms and 1 bath. There is a beautiful cenote on the property where you can dive or swim in one largest private pools in the Yucatan.

Around the corner from my house in Ermita I found this large mid-century modern home near the San Sebastian park and market. The main attraction for me was the huge garden and open sky. So I added skylights to most of the rooms and raised the ceilings with vaults. Now it has a light lofty and peaceful quality that strikes you when you open the door. It is furnished with a mix of modern and antique furniture.. For the moment there is nothing like this house in Merida. But I just bought another modern home in the neighborhood of Mejorada. Since its my most recent renovation, I have a lot to say about it...

Our friends Pia and Roberto have the most beautiful and unique home on the beach near Tulum in Sian Kaan. It is a 3 bedroom modern palapa home perched on the dunes overlooking a pristine beach and a lagoon. There is a wonderful staff on site to cook and pamper you. It is far enough away from the hotels on the beach in Tulum that you'll have the beach to yourselves. But it's close enough to the restaurants and clubs that you won't feel totally isolated... unless you want to. Too bad we don't have more friends like this!