La Veleta & Holistika
La Veleta is one of my favorite areas in Tulum. Located 5 minutes away from downtown Tulum and 10 minutes away from the beach, La Veleta offers a blend of nice, new architecture while still maintaining a local feel.
Location and Accessibility
La Veleta’s main street, Calle 7, has a wide variety of nice and fancy restaurants, yet they are priced correctly and don’t give you the sensation of overpaying for a beer or a nice dinner. Here, you will also find bars, grocery stores, laundry services, some clothing stores, convenience stores such as Oxxo, and a couple of cool coffee shops.
As it is not a huge area, you can walk to most places in La Veleta. If you want to get there faster, you could use a bicycle, but you can easily avoid the need for a motorbike or a car.
Amenities and Lifestyle
In this neighborhood, you can find buildings with studios or apartments up to 3 or 4 bedrooms, as well as several single-family houses. There is often confusion about how big La Veleta is, as many people (even Google Maps) consider some parts of Region 15 as La Veleta. To be precise, the limit between these two areas is Calle 11, only 200 meters south of Calle 7.
This distinction is important because many properties for sale offered in La Veleta are actually in Region 15, and the difference between these two areas is significant. Region 15 has way less infrastructure than La Veleta. Most of the streets are unpaved and many of them are in very bad condition, making the experience of driving around unpleasant. Most of the roads in La Veleta are paved, and many of them are illuminated.
Holistika
Next to La Veleta, you can find Holistika hotel. The area around this renowned hotel has adopted its name, so we call this neighborhood “Holistika.” This is another beautiful and super interesting area as it is only 5 minutes away from La Veleta by walking. Most of the properties here are single-family houses, making it a more chilled area. Holistika hotel attracts many people every day because of the wellness activities and beautiful restaurant, making this area one of the most sought-after areas in Tulum.
Personal Experiences
I often go to Nimeño, a beautiful French bakery in the heart of La Veleta, or have meetings with clients at Tierra, Holistika’s restaurant. I also love going to Canova, an Italian restaurant with great food, an amazing ambiance, and super fair prices. Many locals (and tourists) go every day to Holistika for yoga or to La Veleta for a coffee.
Real Estate Options and Investment Potential
While it’s impossible to predict what is going to happen with prices in the future, I’m confident that this is one of the areas that will have interesting value appreciation. However, this depends a lot on the purchase price. If you buy at a high price, you will not benefit as much from this value appreciation. Talking a bit about real estate, you can find lots from $400 USD per square meter (about $37 USD per square foot). Keep in mind that lots are usually between 300 m² (3,229 sq ft) and 500 m² (5,381 sq ft). If you want to have a house with a generous yard, you should look for two lots together, which can be rare to find but not impossible. Condos in this area are sold from $200,000 USD for a two-bedroom unit, and houses start from $400,000 USD, although it is rare to find these prices today. Houses for sale in this area shall start closer to $600,000 USD.
Conclusion
La Veleta, Tulum, is rapidly becoming one of the most sought-after areas for real estate investment. Located just a short distance from Tulum’s world-renowned beaches and vibrant downtown, La Veleta offers a unique blend of convenience and tranquility. This up-and-coming neighborhood is characterized by its lush greenery, modern amenities, and a growing community of expatriates and locals alike.