Playa Viva’s new treehouses inspired by manta rays and designed by Nomadic Resorts, photo by Ryan Forbes courtesy of Playa Viva
¡Viva México! What do you do when you have an iconic piece of glamping accommodation but want to build more? Playa Viva’s treehouse has adorned many of the most discerning travelers’ Insta feeds. But together with Nomadic Resorts, owner David Leventhal has created new travel inspiration. Will Rusbridge finds out more.
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urrounded by the rugged, unspoiled beauty of the western coast of Mexico, Playa Viva, a luxurious and environmentally conscious resort, sits between the Pacific Ocean and the Sierra Madre Mountains, creating breath-taking views no matter which direction you’re looking. Just outside of the village of Juluchuca, Playa Viva is situated on a mile of pristine and private beach. An open-air resort, Playa Viva is designed to immerse guests in the local area making sure that even when inside their accommodation, they are surrounded by its beauty. Leaving the accommodation open and well ventilated, guests are constantly met with incredible views and the sounds of the local wildlife and waves crashing onto the nearby shore. Accommodation comes in many different shapes and forms, from deluxe
suites to EcoCasitas and their award-winning Ocean Front Treehouse. It was on the balcony of this very treehouse that Steven Shea, a returning guest, who was visiting his partner during a wellness retreat she was hosting at the resort, would play a very important part in bringing about the next phase of Playa Viva. Whilst his partner was leading her group retreat, Steven had stayed behind to try and capture footage of the beautiful surroundings with a drone. Having covered the land, the drone was directed out towards the sparkling waters of the Pacific Ocean. Whilst watching, with an eagle-eye, for signs of underwater life, he spotted something unusual. From a distance it almost looked like there may have been a fault with the drone’s camera, a patch of flickering pixels on an otherwise completely
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blue ocean. As the camera zoomed in and the picture became clearer each of these pixels began to take form and were revealed to be a squadron of manta rays. As they moved together in near perfect synchronicity, individuals would occasionally break rank and emerge from the deep blue water, their backs arched and wings pointing upwards as if they were birds about to take flight. It was this footage that gave David Leventhal, owner of Playa Viva, the inspiration for the next phase of the resort. David has always thought that a sense of place is incredibly important. When looking for ideas on what came next for Playa Viva, he decided that the only way forward was to take inspiration from the surrounding area and incorporate it into the resort. What was going to be built had to be true to the area and not some alien structure, no
