There are no cars, no paved roads, no traffic lights, no street names, one main town and lots of bare feet.
Isla Holbox (pronounced Hole-bosh, Mayan for black hole) — population 2,000, with 300 hotel rooms and 56 places to eat, including beach shacks and street food — is a sliver of an island on the northeastern tip of the Yucatan peninsula, a two-hour-plus drive from Cancun and worlds away from the hubbub of that resort destination.
The ferry departs frequently from Chiquila on the mainland, a 25-minute, $10 one-way crossing. Golf carts with drivers meet each ferry, and the ride along the sandy, potholed roads marks the beginning of the Holbox experience.
I stayed at Hotel Holbox Villa Flamingos, a 30-room beachfront gem that's been updated and rebuilt since a fire destroyed 80% of it last February.
Owner Alejandro Canedo redesigned it his way.
His way means no TVs or phones in the rooms, old-fashioned keys that unlock the front door of each unit, an outdoor shower in each private garden and an indoor shower where water spouts from something that resembles an overhead log.
Walls are turquoise, many rooms have a plunge pool and the two-story units have a hot tub on the second level.
Internet is free, and the password is "I'm on vacation."
"I bought this place six years ago from the Spanish owner," Canedo said. "It had 10 rooms and was very basic: no A/C, no electricity, no window glass and a hole-in-ground-type bathroom. It was $35 a night."
He initially expanded it to 18 rooms, upgraded a bit, but after the fire, "I rebuilt the whole place, upgraded and expanded. Isla Holbox is all about the experience; we sell the experience here, a combination of nature and luxury," he said.
Canedo spared no expense when it came to guest comfort; there is a no-clutter feel to the rooms, most of which overlook the beach and pool.
"I slept on one of Sheraton's Heavenly Beds once and wanted mattresses just like that," he said. "The towels are huge and thick, the bathroom basins are mosaic tile. The air-conditioning works well, but most guests like to open the screened windows."
There's a beach bar and a restaurant that serves breakfast, dinner and beverages until 11 p.m.
Bikes, kayaks and massages on the beach or en suite also are available.
Villa Flamingos is named for the numerous pink birds with the skinny legs that used to congregate at low tide on the 150-foot-long beach in front of the hotel.
They've moved farther down the shoreline now, where the shrimp pickings are better (they turn pink from the shrimp and shellfish they eat).
Canedo charges from $450 per night, double, for rooms with the plunge pool and from $500 for the hot tub units.
The majority of his guests currently hail from Europe, with most of the bookings through Expedia and Orbitz.
Airport transfers can be arranged for $170 one way for two people, including car, ferry and golf cart.
"I want to work with the U.S. market. Americans think Isla Holbox is too far away. It's the same drive time from Cancun Airport to the ferry in Chiquila as it is to Tulum," Canedo pointed out.
He's breaking into the wedding market; he has an event planner on site and has booked four ceremonies since the reopening in August, including one ceremony for 110 guests.
For details, visit www.villasflamingos.com.