Mia Reef Isla MujeresA private-pier island resort on Isla Mujeres with sunrise and sunset views

Mia Reef Isla Mujeres sits on its own tucked-away islet, reached by a private pier, twenty minutes from Cancun. Coral reef runs out to the horizon, the beach is private white sand, and the hotel gets both the sunrise and the sunset.

See rooms and prices at Mia Reef Isla Mujeres

There are 156 rooms, suites and villas: 93 beachfront rooms and 63 suites, in a mid-rise tower or Spanish-style villas. Deluxe Ocean View rooms open through floor-to-ceiling glass onto a terrace or balcony, and the Ocean Front Villas on the north side of the resort are the most private. Furnishings are Mexican, in a Caribbean palette.

Sarimar sits beside the beach and looks west over Playa Norte, with a breakfast buffet and Mexican and Caribbean dinners. A poolside restaurant serves guacamole, duck, lobster, fish and mole, and the Cevicheria does fresh seafood. Blue Moon runs a pool bar and a beach snack bar, and a coffee lounge handles grab-and-go.

The outdoor pool has a swim-up bar, and the Kids Club takes children from 4 to 11. The spa overlooks the water with two treatment rooms, a couples suite and a relaxation lounge, and the reefs are there for snorkelling.

It suits couples and small families who want a quiet island base rather than a big-resort scene.