Known throughout the haute monde as one of the world’s most dazzling gems, the Star of the South is as celebrated for its features as a diamond— carat weight, color, clarity, cut and radiance (in this case, 128.48 carats of VS-2 cushion-cut, fancy light-pinkish-brown, fiery brilliance)—as for its royal provenance.

The Tides Riviera Maya is the archetypal model of how, when properly executed, an intimate 30-suite resort is able to lavish its guests with a stellar level of customtailored service that larger hotels can never quite achieve, no matter how plush or grand (or expensive) they might be. A mere two-hour trip from Miami will land you smack-dab in the middle of a resort that has seemingly been cut out of a swath of lush coastal rain forest. The Los Angelesbased Kor Hotel Group acquired the sprawling yet secluded property a little more than a year ago, making it the third hotel in its new Tides brand, which also includes beachfront resorts in South Beach and Zihuatanejo, Mexico.

Black has always been a mystical and glamorous color, so why is it any surprise that black diamonds hold an alluring quality that makes them all the more coveted? While the absence of color is the way the majority of diamonds are valued, black diamonds fall under the category of "colored" or "fancy" diamonds, and the heightened interest in them lately has raised their worth many times over in recent years. Another difference between white and black diamonds is that natural black diamonds receive their "color" via natural abnormalities in the structure of their crystal lattice; many levels of graphite inclusion make them quite fragile. This is why upon close inspection many black diamonds show nicks and flaws both on their surface and within.