Los Bananos
Located in Sayulita, a lively beach town on the Pacific coast of Mexico, this project consists of two houses carefully positioned on a sloping site. Sayulita has long been known for its vibrant energy, attracting visitors from around the world, yet much of its housing market is dominated by either short-term rental units or high-end luxury villas. This project seeks to address a growing gap by providing residences designed for longer stays—homes for people who want to actually live in Sayulita year-round rather than just passing through.
The two houses, though sharing the same materiality and architectural language, each possess a distinct character.
Their placement and orientation on the site respond individually to the topography and surrounding context, creating unique spatial experiences within a cohesive design framework.
Subtly rotated in plan, each house engages dynamically with the landscape, offering framed perspectives of Sayulita’s rolling hills and ocean horizon while maintaining privacy from neighboring properties.
Built with a combination of stuccoed walls and an exposed structural system—showcasing beams, columns, and the concrete pool basin—the houses embody a balance between raw materiality and refined simplicity.
Each home features three bedrooms and a studio, alongside generous communal spaces that include an open-plan kitchen, dining, and living area.
Expansive terraces and rooftop spaces further extend the living environment, fostering a strong indoor-outdoor connection that is essential to the Sayulita lifestyle.
A distinctive feature of the project is the palapa structure crowning each house. This traditional thatched roof element, reinterpreted through a contemporary lens, provides shade and ventilation to the rooftop spaces while establishing a direct connection to the vernacular architecture of the region.
By integrating a material and technique deeply rooted in local building traditions, the project bridges past and present, offering a contemporary take on a familiar form that enhances both comfort and identity
