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Ermita de Santa Isabel 

 Featured Vacation Rental in Merida, Mexico

CASA ERMITA DE SANTA ISABEL

This magical colonial home was featured in the LIVING IN MEXICO by Barbara & Rene Stoeltie for Taschen. It is one of our most unique vacation rental homes. It is in one of Merida’s oldest quarters next to the Hermitage of the Safe Journey [Ermita de Santa Isabel] just outside the old colonial walls. It is a charming one bedroom home half a block from the church, park and botanical garden. The garden is open to the public from sunrise to sunset and is a favorite oasis of shade and water to the local birds. The gardens are dotted with Mayan and Spanish colonial limestone sculptures. The 17c house is owned by an antique dealer from Paris and New York. It features very rustic and curious antiques and antiquities from his private collection. The Central location (just 6 blocks from the main square) toward the south means less tourists and less expats. This is a more authentic mexican neighborhood with a slower pace where the clip clop of the horse and buggies on their way to the zocalo can make you forget which century you are in.

The location also gives you a head start on trips to the Ruta Puuc and Uxmal as you can skip the bustle of downtown traffic. Casa Ermita sits on one of the last brick paved streets in town, the old camino real to Campeche. The real danger here is you might not want to leave the house. There is a cool plunge pool surrounded by koi ponds in the front patio garden. Upstairs there is a open white rooftop terrace that evokes sunny days in the Aegean or cool nights in medinas of Morocco. The Moorish influence is evident throughout the architecture of Colonial Merida.

The house is full of furniture designed by the owner who with his partner has worked for several of the local haciendas finding antiques or designing modern alternatives with local craftsmen. The kitchen has been placed in the garden to keep the house cool in summer. It features 2 Bosch stoves, 2 stainless steel under the counter refrigerators and ample polish cement counters with racks of calphalon pots & pans. You’ll have no problem cooking dinner for 20 guests. The owners passion for cooking may be contagious once you’ve been in the kitchen, so there are plenty of cook books in the library. Once in the library open the giant wood doors onto the garden and forget to read your e-mail and just relax.

The dining room table seats ten comfortably. And it’s comforting to know that if you invite your friends over to dine there is no where for them to sleep over. You’ll have L’Ermita all to yourself in the morning!

The simple bedroom with it’s orginal wood beamed ceilings and 17c Provençal inspired bed opens onto one of the rarest sites seen in a bathroom in Merida, a bathtub. The 5 foot square sunken bath with unlimited hot water and old stone spouts makes it a spa-like experience. This isn’t Mexico this is heaven!

contact: Josh Ramos or John Powell
urbanorentals@yahoo.com

In all of our holiday rental homes we like to orient the guest to the house and the neighborhood. We provide our own guide book to Merida with our discerning recommendations for the best restaurants and day trips. We can provide you with a cell phone if you like. You can call us anytime you need help to ask a question or ask for a service. We know that if you had wanted to be surrounded by people you would have chosen a luxury hotel or hacienda. If you’d wanted to chat with the owners you would have chosen a Bed & Breakfast. We respect your need for privacy in a stress free and relaxing environment and it can’t hurt if it’s beautiful too! Welcome to Ermita. 

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