Eva Green's Eden - on holiday in Mexico with the French actress

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Eva Green10 April 2012

The sugar-sand beaches and rose-petal foot baths at the Banyan Tree resort in Mexico can bring a smile to the most sultry French actress's face discovers Eva Green...

It is Tuesday morning and I am sitting in bed with a cup of tea. The windows are open and the sun is rising over the sea, which is at the end of the garden. It is going to be another gloriously sunny day and I am doing a sort of horizontal dance in celebration of the fact that it is the middle of January and I have just woken up in such a wonderful place.

Last year was hectic. I worked on two films, Womb with Matt Smith and The Last Word with Ewan McGregor, and the year culminated in a three-week publicity tour for Cracks. I was desperate for a break, so it was such a relief to arrive at Cancun airport, walk out into the warm night air and be met by a driver from the Banyan Tree Mayakoba. I relaxed at once, and it has only got better. After a 45-minute drive through a mangrove forest, my friend Kate and I were welcomed at the hotel with a cold eucalyptus-infused towel and taken to our villa, which is right on the beach. That night we fell asleep to the sound of the sea and woke to the sight of the waves - blissful!

The first morning we surveyed our surroundings. The property flows out over 138 hectares, so guests use bicycles and golf carts to travel. The hotel has a very respectful, green ethos, funding research into the preservation of the coral reef and ensuring the villas do not impact too severely on the environment.

We soon found a rhythm to our days. I wake at 5am (I am an old-fashioned girl who doesn't like to leave European time) and read for a couple of hours (a brilliant biography of Maria Callas) and try not to wake Kate, asleep in her room upstairs. At 7am we jump on to our bicycles and head for a yoga class with the wonderful but extremely strict Maria Garcia. Then we limp to breakfast, having been stretched beyond all imagination.

Breakfast takes place at the Oriente restaurant with the most beautiful buffet I have ever seen. Kate's eyes almost left their sockets when she first saw the plates of delicious fruit, sushi, fajitas, Kate Phillips cinnamon tamales (mashed corn parcels), steamed fish, blueberry pancakes and congee (Chinese porridge) with coconut and chicken. Obviously a bit of exercise is required after such a feast, so next we cycle in the sun back to our villa and go for an hour's walk along the beach. The sand here is white as icing sugar, the sea pale blue.

In fact, it's all so perfect and unspoilt it reminds me of a 1980s Bounty advert. And for the whole week we haven't seen the beach anything other than gloriously empty.

Lunch is at our villa at 1pm in the shady garden. The in-room dining service is stunning - not like some hotels where room service is all club sandwiches and lukewarm pizza. At the Banyan Tree, there are three restaurants: Oriente (Mexican), Tamarind ( Europeanstyle) and Saffron (Thai). During our walk on the beach each day, we discuss our lunch options, although we've mostly agreed on grilled fish and steamed vegetables.

It is such a beautiful place that one wants to be healthy - we've also instigated a regime of no alcohol and absolutely no puddings. All was going well until the third day when we had a few hours of stormy weather. Kate, in a huff about the rain, took to her bath with a Nancy Mitford novel, where she remained for some time. This gave me the opportunity to order the biggest New York cheesecake with white chocolate glaze, as well as a ginger and coconut crème br°lée. All devoured within seconds. Thankfully Kate never found out.

However, most afternoons I go to the swimming pool near the spa to do my lengths. Well, perhaps not every afternoon - I went once and the rest of the time I've spent lying in the sun reading. After the Maria Callas biography, I got so engrossed in Stefan Zweig's The Post Office Girl that I stopped talking. This annoyed Kate, particularly as it is her book.

At 6pm we head to the spa. All the therapists were trained in Thailand and have relocated to Mexico, so all the massages and treatments are authentic Thai practices and induce the most wonderful feelings of relaxation. A Royal Banyan treatment is a must, it includes a rose-petal foot bath, then exfoliation using a turmeric and lemongrass scrub, a hot steam and then a full-body massage. Every day, I try a different treatment: a Chinese one that concentrated on unblocking energy points; a hair treatment for stressed and depressed tresses (I misheard that as 'actresses' not 'tresses' so begged for one immediately). After each treatment, we sip a pot of lemongrass, ginger and honey tea, which is very comforting and a perfect way of easing out of the trance we've fallen into.

You can imagine how exhausted we are after all this activity. In the evening we follow a light supper in the villa with movies. I am obsessed with Gene Tierney, so we've watched The Ghost and Mrs Muir so many times that Kate dreamed she was married to Rex Harrison.

It has been a most restorative timetable. We've been spoilt, indulged and looked after. Living in London, one always dreams of 'good service'. The service here has been utterly impeccable - unlike anything I have ever experienced. Not service, more kindness. I shall leave this lovely place feeling calm, centered and very happy.

Kuoni offers seven nights at the Banyan Tree Mayakoba, on a room-only basis in a garden pool villa, from £2,154 per person (based on two people sharing), including flights with Virgin Atlantic from Heathrow, private transfers and access to a UK airport lounge (01306 747 008; kuoni.co.uk)

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