Work Gets Underway on $150M Wellness Resort in Mexico

Aug 15, 2008
By: Barbra Murray, Contributing Editor

Construction has commenced on Taheima Wellness Resort & Spa, a project in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico, spearheaded by Whole In One Nuevo Vallarta S.A. de C.V. To be developed at a cost of $150 million, the upscale condo-hotel will ultimately feature 400 units. Whole In One is targeting the baby boomer set in North America and South America, highlighting the property's wellness-centric attributes.

Taheima sits on the El Tigre Golf Course fairway in Paradise Village, approximately 10 miles from Puerto Vallarta International Airport. In addition to space to accommodate offerings such as yoga, T'ai Chi and lectures ranging from cooking to public affairs, the resort destination will incorporate an outdoor amphitheater. Additionally, water will be a central theme, as the seaside property will feature swimming pools and lagoons, as well as sand-bottomed lakes and canals, from one end of the site to the other.

Mexico's resort market is teeming with activity. Last month Bald Mountain de Mexico SRL announced it had broken ground on Rosewood San Miguel de Allende, a 63-residence spa resort in San Miguel de Allende. In May, ING Real Estate revealed plans to join forces with Grupo Carrousel and Operadora Punta Maroma to develop a $150 million beachfront resort on Bahia Maroma, about 30 minutes from Cancun International Airport. The 254-acre property will consist of an 86-villa hotel, 127 residential units, a 10,000-square-foot clubhouse and an 18-hole signature golf course. The pipeline of lodging facility developments in Mexico as of the close of the first quarter included 136 projects accounting for 25,610 rooms, according to a recent report by hotel real estate research firm Lodging Econometrics.

Construction of Taheima is on target to reach completion in 2009. The project marks Whole IN One's first foray into the resort market.