CASA DON JUAN This beautiful villa sits amid trees and gardens on the highest point of Punta El Custodio. Built in a modern style that reflects the old hacienda, it has been described as “barefoot elegant” by its architect. From its living/dining/kitchen great room, its lush gardens and the sea can be enjoyed in all directions as the ground floor is colonnaded and open to the air. Its owners consider Casa Don Juan their second home and have decorated it with interesting Mexican artifacts and paintings. It also has a large library, perhaps the largest around. The four bedrooms are private, each with a full bathroom and charming views. The two upstairs bedrooms have their private terraces and there are many patios where you can find sun, shade and peace amid our beautiful and exotic botanical garden. The interior courtyard garden has, at its center, a dipping pool, which, set amid the rocks and lush foliage, resembles a clear spring. (We don’t heat it, so it is a little nippy in winter, although very refreshing in the hot summers.) Casa Don Juan provides internet at 3G and decent telephone service to Mexico, the United states and Canada (check your provider plan). If you purchase the meal plan, our housekeeper, Yesenia, will prepare your meals to perfection. If you choose to bring your own, she will assist you as much as you wish. She is flexible and will suit your tastes and preferences. She is happy to cook vegan and vegetarian dishes. If you wish to provide your own food and to prepare it, there is a fully equipped kitchen and most condiments. Of course, Yesenia will help as much as you wish; her breakfasts and the limitless fresh orange juice are legendary There is a simple charcoal grill as well. Casa Don Juan has a full laundry; we only ask that you allow Yesenia to do the washing that you require. On a small peninsula overlooking the Pacific Ocean, you’ll find Casa Don Juan, a quintessential Mexican villa. The design and architecture of this villa pay homage to Old Mexico, with an elegant mingling of rustic beauty and modern aesthetics. With four bedrooms sleeping up to 8 adults and 2 minors, the villa is large enough to accommodate large families with ease. While the lush vegetation and A/C’s will keep the bedrooms cool, the kids can cool off in the private pool too. *This property, along with 11 additonal properties, is managed by Villas Punta El Custodio. Casa Don Juan is a comfortable, elegant place to stay on a wild and pristine stretch of Pacific coast, unchanged by tourism. Primeval jungle still covers the mountains and reaches the coast. People still make their living fishing and farming. Whales, dolphins and manta rays still leap from the waves. Casa Don Juan is in the gated community of Punta El Custodio, a luxurious group of 15 private homes set amidst beautiful gardens, with parks, scenic walkways and a magnificent pool. From the North side of this narrow point, the jungle covered headlands meet the crashing sea. From the South, one looks all the way to Punta Mita, starting with a twelve kilometer beach, a beautiful arc of sand, fringed with coconut palms. Casa Don Juan is, itself, set in the middle of a group of palms and giant chalata trees, which we have enhanced with vines, orchids,ginger, ferns and cycads, a veritable botanical garden. Because we are outdoor people, we built the first floor without walls, so we can enjoy the play of light on our plants and the sea, the sounds of parrots, ducks and woodpeckers in the trees and the soft tropical breezes. There are also five terraces, to get away, change your aspect or seek the sun. Our own small dipping pool sits in a fern lined glade. Casa Don Juan was described as barefoot elegant by its architect. It has elements of the traditional Mexican hacienda, but its airiness is completely modern. We have furnished it comfortably and have collected some fine antique Mexican artwork. The first floor is a kitchen, bar, dining room and living room, and a well-stocked library. There are two bedrooms on the second floor and two detached casitas, down the path. Each has its own complete bathroom. On their first visit, many guests are stunned by the beauty of Punta El Custodio and never leave the point. They walk the paths, take in the vista from the rocky point, swim in the pools, comb the twelve kilometer beach, release baby turtles, SURF the excellent break three minutes walk away, or just read, write, eat, drink, commune with their friends and family, or make new friends. You can take off for DEEP-SEA FISHING or WHALE-WATCHING, fifteen minutes away on foot. If you want to explore, there is plenty to do. The citadel and ruined church of the sixteenth century port of San Blas, the mangrove estuary and clear spring of La Tovara, with its crocodile farm and HUNDREDS OF SPECIES OF ENDEMIC AND MIGRATORY BIRDS, the waterfall at El Cora and the lively local markets are all within an hour's drive of Punta El Custodio. For surfers, there is the famous one kilometer break at Stoners, and internationally known surfing at Chacala and Santa Cruz. Recently, we discovered two HOT SPRINGS; one, about 30 minutes from us is a large pool, pedestrian but cheerful. The other, about an hour away, is elegant, with many very clean family-size stone pools in which you can adjust the temperature to your taste. Casa Don Juan has a housekeeper 6 days a week. She'll tidy up, do the laundry, make the beds, fix you gallons of delicious fresh orange juice and cook you great breakfasts and dinners. The community is remote, so we do not recommend that you purchase your food, at least on your first trip. Ismael Franco, our manager offers a meal plan, which is an excellent deal. His menus are flexible, so just ask him what you want; spicy, not spicy, vegetarian, vegan; he has heard it all. Yesenia can then prepare your meals in the fully equipped kitchen. Our guests are also invited to cook, if they choose. We are well equipped for 8 adults. If you have more in your party, we can help you line up another house, very close by. You can add a few children to a party of eight. The bedrooms and library are air-conditioned, for pleasant sleeping in the hot nights of summer. See below for transportation information.