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Step into a picture-postcard. Literally. Maldives resorts, they are a-changing. Long gone are the days when a palm-thatched hut by the beach with brackish water in the bathroom, and fish with everything (breakfast, lunch and dinner) were the highlights of a holiday there. Just 10 years ago, if someone smiled at you in a resort he was almost certainly Sri Lankan, since the Maldivians were too shy to let their feelings show. Things have certainly changed.
Toss out a question and your Maldivian hosts will respond with a ready smile and wit, waxing eloquent on the wonders of their delightful archipelago. And much they have to talk about. These islands have gone through rapid transition, catapulting from 19th century dhoni sailboats to howling 21st century speedboats with triple engines and enough thrust to land a wrestling marlin on the moon.
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| Shangri-La's Villingili/ photo: hotel |
Success has wrought changes. In 2008 a surge in visitors saw the year’s total number at 683,012, all pouring into this tiny Indian Ocean archipelago in search of the ultimate, stress-free vacation: sea, sun, sand and sophistication by the bucket and spadeful. Arrivals dropped with the beginning of 2009 but industry observers expect this to bottom out to a decrease of no more than ten percent for the whole year. Britain contributed the most visitors (116,821), followed by Italy (103,823) and Germany (69,240). China contributed 41,511 visitors to the total with Japan adding 38,193. They stayed an average of 8.3 days. That's endorsement enough.
In the wake of the December 2004 Boxing Day tsunami, a number of affected Maldives resorts set about speedily rebuilding their premises and are back in operation. Even without the impetus of the tsunami, resorts re-invent themselves every few years to keep up with the competition from new comers, among which could be a smart Mandarin Oriental in late 2010. Add to this in 2009, a Regent, the Shangri-La's Villingili Resort & Spa (July) and the Alila Villas Hadahaa (July) in the southern Gaafu Alifu Atoll.
A very informative and useful site – to keep abreast of developments in the islands as well as to plan a holiday and check out a comprehensive list of Maldives resorts – is run by the Maldives Tourism Promotion Board at www.visitmaldives.com. And without further ado, herewith a Maldives resort review and guide, a select pick of some of the best Maldives resorts for a family outing or a Maldives honeymoon holiday.
In an effort to upgrade and attract big-spenders, some resorts, such as Adaaran Select Hudhuran Fushi, have added superlative over-water accommodation with fine dining options. This separates up-market guests from the mass market mob on all-inclusive package deals in holiday-camp style beachside cabanas.
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As tourism has expanded from the core of Malé Atoll to the whole apple of the Maldives, with new resorts soon to open in the northern tip of Haa Alif Atoll and in the deep south across the Equator in Addu Atoll, more Maldivians are getting a taste of the once forbidden fruit of tourism.
Tourism arrived in the early 1970s as the hippy trail snaked down through India to wind up in isolated fishing villages causing consternation to islanders as foreigners lounged about on the beach in what appeared to be their underwear, and sometimes no-wear at all.
Under President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom (who served six five-year terms until losing the Presidential election in 2008) tourism was organised as an industry. Tourists were comfortably banished to uninhabited islands, not with a bag of rice and a goat, as was the lot of local misfits sent to far-flung village islands to rehabilitate themselves, but to resorts especially created for them.
New government policy under his successor, President Mohamed Rasheed, aims to end 37 years of segregation between tourists and locals by introducing community-based tourism with budget to mid-market tourist villages owned and run by locals, in order to distribute the wealth generated from the tourism industry more evenly. At present, the multi-million dollar industry responsible for one-third of the country’s income comprises largely high-end resorts, and is concentrated in the hands of very few. Tourism centres will be developed either in allocated areas on inhabited islands or on adjacent uninhabited islands, and the option of building and running guesthouses and other facilities will be given to local islanders first.
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| Dine with the fish at Conrad |
President Nasheed has also announced an ambitious plan to achieve carbon neutrality within a decade under a bold initiative to decarbonise the economy. This will set a standard to be incorporated by all new or refurbished resorts.
Since 1972 over 90 picture-postcard islands (a further 50 are said to be in the pipeline) have been transformed with state-of-the-art infrastructure (including water desalinisation plants and garbage disposal units) into stunning getaways offering privacy, solitude and unspoiled sugar-white beaches enclosed in turquoise coral gardens, but with all modern conveniences for those hankering after some city comforts.
Desalination is a costly and painstaking business – worth bearing in mind while running showers and taps. Electricity is expensive and, despite the increasing use of air-conditioners, you will often be able to get by quite comfortably using ceiling fans. Several resorts shun TVs to offer a genuine escape though some have succumbed to noise and karaoke.
The visitor's first glimpse is usually from the air – a breathtaking rhapsody in blue, from the dark turquoise of the Indian Ocean to the crystal azure of lagoons lapping golden rings of sand and clumps of coconut palms. There are 1,192 islands in the Maldives stretching for 511 miles from north to south and as the arriving jet zooms low to find the runway protruding into a lagoon, every one of them appears priceless. Closer acquaintance confirms the pilot's-eye view is right: the Maldives is priceless – as well as pricey.
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| Maldivian Air Taxi: Island hops |
The impact of tourism development (both physical and social) has been somewhat blunted by regulations designed to protect the environment and people. Go soon if you want to keep ahead of the crush. With a second international airport open in Gan in Addu Atoll giving access to hitherto unseen areas, and a slew of new properties, things may not remain quite so idyllic and quiet for much longer.
Getting around the Maldives
Visitors are transported by speedboat or, for farther destinations, by a Trans Maldivian Airlines turbojet or seaplane (www.tma.com.mv), a Maldivian Air Taxi seaplane (www.maldivianairtaxi.com) or a turbojet of Island Aviation (www.island.com.mv). Maldivian Air Taxi operates the world’s largest seaplane fleet and its Canadian prop Twin Otters serve over 40 resorts. Flight timings of seaplane services are set the day before to link up with international flight arrivals and departures.
With no fixed schedule to go by, things may appear a tad dramatic, but it all works out in the end. Service is friendly and informal with barefoot pilots handling both the baggage and the flying. Views are terrific from any seat.
The Maldives is a 100 percent Sunni Muslim republic with about 350,000 people who live in 198 inhabited islands and the country's capital island of Malé. The capital has a population of about 120,000, a few trendsetting restaurants and transit hotels (but no alcohol) and little to appeal to the hedonist from the west and east.
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| Stunning Baros/ photo: MTPB |
Pleasure-seekers, however, are thoroughly pampered on exclusive resorts where spas, bars and romantic alfresco restaurants compete for attention with a brilliant see-through underwater world. The fact that all these acres of unspoiled coral are right at your doorstep simply adds to the allure.
The airport is on its own island and will shortly be linked by road to the newly created residential island of Hulhu-Malé. Arrival facilities are simple as long as the three sections of the immigration form are completed correctly, and foreigners have a return ticket and a confirmed hotel reservation. A 30-day visit permit is given to all nationalities on arrival.
All arriving luggage is X-rayed for bottles since the importation of alcohol is prohibited. Any found is kept in bond for the visitor's departure. However, that’s when homeward-bound alcohol-lugging passengers hit a snag as bottles (unless purchased from – and properly wrapped and sealed by – the airport’s duty-free shop) won’t be allowed on board departing flights.
There is a well-stocked duty-free shop selling wines and spirits, as well as others with upmarket perfumes and fashions, in the airport's two-storey departure lounge. As many flights depart late at night, if you return at the end of your resort holiday to the airport by a seaplane, which only flies in daylight, be prepared for a long wait – or check in to the airport hotel or one in Malé. There are a couple of undistinguished cafes serving the staple hamburger and chips, and a Movenpick at the airport entrance offers ice-creams.
Malé the capital, 10 minutes by ferry from the airport island, has developed rapidly over the past two decades from single storey sea-front shops adorning sandy streets, to a fairly cosmopolitan town – at least in appearances. It now boasts paved streets, tree-lined avenues, a clutch of restaurants serving everything from Thai to Continental, the odd Internet café and a busy waterfront drive where boats from resorts, and the airport ferry, pick up and drop off passengers.
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| Banyan Tree cruises/ photo: Banyan Tree |
Buildings have grown to 10-storey-high and have acquired reflective glass frontage, and taxis now ply streets where walking or bicycles were once the norm. Taxis charge 20 Maldivian rufiyaas (US$1=Rf12.8) for most trips. However, if your feet will transport you in the heat, the island’s size (not much more than a single square mile in area) means most places are within a 20-minute walk.
There are a few mid-range (think US$80 a double per night) guesthouses in the capital with pride of place going to the Nalahiya Hotel, located at the busy junction where Orchid Magu (road) meets the main shopping street of Majeedhee Magu. Its glass-walled, timber-floored lobby is wonderful for people-watching and it has astute reception and efficient housekeeping staff. Built as an apartment block, the WiFi-enabled, comfortable (if small), self-contained bedrooms can be rented individually by the day or night. A Holiday Inn is scheduled to open in late 2009.
But it is in the far-flung atolls that the sea begins to exert its charms at some of the best resorts in Asia, each on it own private island.
Maldives spa resorts and luxury escapes
The focus in the Maldives swings inexorably southwards with the arrival of Shangri-La's Villingili Resort and Spa (July 2009) on the newly developed, and huge, island of Villingili, close to the new international airport on Gan Island, in Addu Atoll at the archipelago’s southern tip. Shangri-La Maldives plans to be among the top Maldives luxury spa resorts with an arsenal of distractions including its signature CHI, The Spa - with an endless menu of spa therapy and holistic treatment - tennis, gym, dive centre with a decompression centre, kayaking, sailing, water-skiing, and yacht cruises.
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| Breathtaking aerial views |
Within the 12-hectare grounds are ocean villas and tree houses each with at least 133sq m of stretch-room. The presidential villas go up to a whopping 957sq m. Expect aircon, iPods and docks, DVD players, espresso machines, a pillow menu, and Man Friday butlers. Guests will be able to pop over to Gan to ride bicycles the 17km length of five scenic, causeway-connected islands. As many as 25 dive sites are within striking distance of this resort including the coral-encrusted wreck of British Loyalty just 30 minutes away.
Other pioneers can stay on Gan at the Equator Village created out of accommodation that once served British Royal Air Force personnel. The causeway and new highway links Gan with other non-tourist islands in the Addu Atoll group, so visitors can actually meet islanders as well as hotel staff.
The closest hotel to the Malé International airport, and the only one that can be reached by road, instead of by sea or air, is the Hulhule Island Hotel, a five-minute drive from touch-down. Run with Singaporean efficiency (by an associate company of Singapore Airlines), it has 136 neat bedrooms, a couple of restaurants and a bar as well as a pool and that anonymous ambience typical of airport hotels. It's good for an overnight stay after a late arrival while awaiting the next day's boat or flight to your chosen resort.
The right choice of resort in the Maldives is vital since it is not possible to leave and go down the street to another hotel if the selected one doesn't suit. With the sole exception of Kuramathi, all the islands dedicated to holiday have only one resort apiece. There is no ferry service between resorts, although there are boats and seaplanes daily to the airport island of Hulhule. Pick from top-drawer – and flashy – Maldives luxury resorts, soothing Maldives spa resorts, or go for something simpler. There's something for everybody.
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| Sheraton Full Moon/ photo: hotel |
While some islands have an agreeable mix of nationalities, others are marketed exclusively in particular countries. Few visitors arrive without having made a reservation in advance and most holidays are sold on the "package" principle that includes airfare and transfers. A good local travel agent (such as Inner Maldives) can arrange accommodation for independent travellers. Single travellers in search of romance will be guided to islands with a lot of single guests, or advised to try another country.
The islands are for families (many Maldives resorts have facilities for children), couples, lovers of nature, both on shore and underwater, and the stressed. This is not a country for touring or mingling with the local populace, or for hectic nightlife beyond karaoke carousing. Since the resorts are horizontal it is usually a long walk (instead of an elevator ride) from room to restaurant.
Resorts in North Malé Atoll close to the airport are popular with those who feel they have travelled enough by the time they arrive and want only a short boat ride to sprawl on the beach. The country's oldest and grandest resort has emerged from a complete re-building as Kurumba Maldives. Every room is a suite with four-poster bed, wooden floors and ceilings, a dressing room and a bathroom that includes an open-air garden with, in some, a swimming pool. The resort is just 15 minutes by speedboat from the airport. All rooms are equipped with in-room safes, minibar, hairdryers and IDD phones. A pioneering resort with easy access, Kurumba is also within boating range of a number of other North Malé Atoll islands. With the largest over-water bar deck in the Maldives, a water-themed spa, and eight top notch restaurants, including Indian, Arabian, Chinese, Italian, and a Japanese counter, Kurumba Maldives is a classic resort that sets the standard for the rest.
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| Four Seasons Kuda Huraa/ photo: hotel |
Ten minutes away by speedboat is the Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa on an idyllic picture-postcard island a 15-minute boat ride from the airport. It offers a sugar-white sand beach and 156 lodging choices ranging from deluxe rooms and beachfront cottages to over-water bungalows and suites. The prized stand-alone beachfront cottages serve up Robinson Crusoe thatch roofs, family-friendly tile floors and sunning patios with wraparound sea views. The 52 water bungalows offer 54sq m of space for romance, 20 megapixel cameras, or a date with a good book. There is air-conditioning but ceiling fans are available if you prefer to savour balmy breezes. Expect cable TV with news and entertainment, a CD player, safe, and obligatory Broadband.
There are some engagingly eccentric resorts close to Malé that cater for the whimsical. Rooms at Soneva Gili are born of fantasy and resemble Crusoe-like timbered constructions sprouting from a lagoon. Some villas require a row-boat to shuttle you around. At the top-end of their line are the Crusoe Residences and the Private Reserves. Soneva Gili is also in North Malé Atoll not far from the airport. The swish Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa is among the more stylish Maldives luxury resorts just a short speedboat ride from the capital Malé and the airport. Several thatch-roof villas are over-water with breezy views in all directions. Designed in the manner of a Maldivian village, the Four Seasons Kuda Huraa serves up a spa set on its own private island. Hard to beat. And there's a second choice – the Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giravaaru – but that’s in the northern Baa Atoll, 30 minutes away by seaplane. Bear in mind that while everything in these islands is pricey, Four Seasons islands are high-end Maldives luxury resorts that come with a somewhat stiffer price-tag. This hideaway is among the properties that comes out on top on our Maldives resorts review.
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| Conrad Maldives villa |
North Malé Atoll houses another top-drawer Maldives resort, the small 48-room Banyan Tree at Vabbinfaru (15 minutes by speedboat from the airport) with distinctive conical thatched villas on the beach. The island is informal with trendy public areas and a nice blue lagoon. Highlights include stingrays that come right up to the jetty to feed in the evenings and a sunset cruise to watch schools of spinner dolphins. Banyan Tree also runs a marine lab that focuses on conservation efforts. Part of the same group, the neighbouring Angsana Ihuru, is a slightly lower priced version with chic lime-green bedrooms and designer flourishes. Ihuru is a small, family friendly resort, easily accessible, and with wade-in child-friendly snorkelling. It was one of the first devoutly eco-minded Maldives resorts and that philosophy remains a driving force. This tiny island (it takes less than five minutes to walk around it) boasts a sugar-white beach with one of the best house reefs in the Maldives. Snorkelling is right on your doorstep and excellent visibility. Spot parrot fish, groupers, surgeon fish and the occasional moray eel. Or grab a sea canoe and flex some muscle. This small and intimate hideaway is one of the best Maldives spa resorts and punches well above its class. Banyan Tree has also taken on the Angsana Velavaru in the southern Dhaal Atoll.
One resort rapidly gaining a following is the One&Only at Reethi Rah also in North Malé Atoll. Large and glamorous, it is an uncompromising Maldives luxury resort with six kilometres of coastline, endless expanse of white sand beaches (12 in all), 130 villas, a spa, and a staggering 40 swimming pools (37 of these with bungalows). The plush villas – all with DVD, widescreen TV and Broadband – offer a minimum 135sq m of space, so go ahead and swing a cat by the tail – or your kids by their hair. Each month features a Saturday night Full Moon party where guests mingle at an Arabian Nights restaurant laid out with carpets, cushions and aromatic candles. Reethi Rah is among the best Maldives luxury resorts.
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| One&Only at Reethi Rah / photo: hotel |
Long popular with British visitors, much-photographed Baros concentrates on conviviality, in its mature, lush atmosphere with stylish water bungalows and garden villas. The resort has been rebuilt in sumptuous fashion and has the added attraction of superb cuisine while retaining competitive pricing for its bungalows and villas. Also in Malé Atoll, Huvafen Fushi boasts the first underwater spa, and each of its 44 rooms sport a private pool.
Strong on city-style infrastructure, which makes it look more suited to Miami than Maldives, is Paradise Island with its rows of water and land villas totalling 260 rooms and five restaurants. Bandos is another resort with a metropolitan atmosphere but with the ruggedness of its vegetation carefully preserved. With a generous 178,900sq m at its disposal, this is a larger, more spread out coral island. Bandos is visible from the capital Malé, just a short hop away by a powered boat. This was the second tourist resort to open in the Maldives. Its pedigree ensures standards remain high and the hospitality warm.
For those in search of activity, muscle-bound distraction and organised extravaganzas, there is the Club Med Kanifinolhu (also known as Kani) on the picturesque Kanifinolhu Island. It has benefitted from a major post-tsunami overhaul. The 73 smart new Lagoon Suites are built on stilts and offer fabulous views of the water. Indoors, enjoy an LCD screen and a free-standing tub. The Beach Villas offer landscaped terraces while the 143 Superior Rooms are housed in two-storey bungalows. The Kani package includes the de rigueur activity-based itinerary – aquagym, badminton, beach golf, volleyball, deep sea fishing, kayaking, soccer and windsurfing – that has made Club Med a fixture for families with a French accent, and the young and muscled. Kani is a 20-minute speedboat ride from the airport.
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| Cocoa Island/ photo: hotel |
Adaaran Select Hudhuran Fushi was formerly a down-market property known as Lohifushi until its rebranding as an Adaaran Select resort of the Sri Lankan Aitken Spence hotel group – hence nearly 50 percent of the staff are Sri Lankans, as is the happy-go-lucky holiday ambience. The island, a coconut plantation until it became a resort in 1979, is lush with mature vegetation including huge banyan trees; it also has a full-sized football field. Adaaran Prestige Ocean Villas, constructed from another 37 palm-thatched villas strung out over the lagoon, is available at a premium above the all-inclusive rate of the beach villas, which are pretty densely packed together. A fine dining restaurant and an overwater club-style dining room have been added as an alternative to routine buffets in the huge main restaurant. Transfer from the airport by speedboat takes 30 minutes.
Across the channel from Malé in South Malé Atoll, resorts are undisturbed by jets flying overhead. What was originally known as Vadoo Diving Paradise has been transformed and opened in April 2009 as the Adaaran Prestige Vadoo. The three-acre island is now a carefully manicured garden retreat, while the accommodation is in 46 detached villas built on columns over a translucent lagoon, linked to the island by winding wooden walkways. Four off-shore villas can only be reached by butler-powered boat. The interior layout is spacious with wooden floors and sliding screens, Broadband and two flat-screen televisions (one’s in the bathroom), bags of cupboard space, a Jacuzzi for two, and a dining deck with small plunge pool. There is a gourmet-class international restaurant, a Japanese restaurant, spa, gym, hair salon and swimming pool on the island itself. It is already popular with Japanese, Korean and Chinese guests as well as dedicated divers of all nationalities. From the airport, it’s 20 minutes by speedboat.
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| Taj Exotica/ photo: hotel |
In the same atoll the Indian-managed Taj Exotica Resort & Spa makes the maximum use of the attractions of the tiny Embudu Finolhu island. Magnificently transformed after the tsunami, it offers classic grand-hotel-style accommodation with a tropical touch in thatched villas (the deluxe versions each have a private pool) and lagoon villas with sun deck. It’s a narrow island, 780m long, with an extension created by the arc of jetties serving its offshore villas. There is a pan-Asian restaurant as well as an overwater Mediterranean one and a wine room. Set in a huge lagoon, it offers safe swimming as well as the ultimate island for smooth relaxation. Its sister resort, The Taj Coral Reef, is in North Malé Atoll and popular as a lower rate retreat.
A 40-minute speedboat ride deeper into South Malé Atoll will deposit you at Cocoa Island's fantasy array of live-aboard dhonis (Maldivian boats) strung out across the water on stilts overlooking a sandbar tongue that leads on to some clear snorkelling waters. This offering from COMO Hotels and Resorts is a stylish retreat with traditional flair. Step right out of your dhoni-styled suite into emerald water teeming with marine life. There is also a COMO Shambhala Retreat with holistic spa treatments and yoga on tap through visiting specialists and workshops. Learn diving, sample South Indian food, or simply dip in the pool.
In a first outside of Thailand, Anantara Resorts arrived in the Maldives in late 2006. The five-star Anantara Resort Maldives, spread over five acres in South Malé Atoll, is self-styled as a “boutique resort”. Situated about 25km from the capital Malé and the airport, the resort comprises 68 beachfront villas (two with their own pool), 38 "over-water" suites and two "over-water" pool suites. There is an Anantara Spa and several restaurants, including the Baan Huraa Thai restaurant set on the water away from the main complex at the edge of a reef. Grab a dhoni to sail into the sunset, and dinner. If you fancy yourself a chef, learn special Thai, Italian and Indian recipes at the cooking school. The Anantara Spa features glass floors for eye-popping views of blue waters below, teeming with marine life.
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| Anantara Overwater Suites/ photo: hotel |
Part of the same complex but branded separately and set on Velighandu Huraa island, the new Naladhu Maldives resort has 19 exclusive "ocean houses", each named after a Maldivian plant. Each elegant, 225sq m house with white-gabled roof has a personal plunge pool and large teak sundeck. Mod-cons include in-house WiFi, Bose surround theatre system, LCD satellite TV, iPod and CD player. Banish stress at the in-house spa or explore the island's underwater world with Naladhu's own PADI dive team.
Further south in the same atoll, Adaaran Club Rannalhi is promoted as an all-action, all-inclusive, fun resort and is managed with panache by the Sri Lankan hotel group that introduced the Adaaran concept to the islands. Rannalhi has an additional claim to fame – a pretty decent house reef that hosts a variety of fish and coral. The lagoon is almost tailor-made for swimming and snorkelling.
Managed by Singapore’s HPL group, Kandooma is an idyllic 32-acre island where break-the-mould architecture is simple and straightforward if unabashedly contemporary. Expect crisply-laundered whites (bring your shades), large windows welcoming of light and sea vistas, iPod docks, flat-screen televisions and various mod-cons. Pick from Beach Villas, Family Villas and 85sq m Water Villas. The resort is 35km from the international airport in South Male Atoll.
Also managed by the same group is more rustic back-to-nature Rihiveli Beach Resort, Maldives, in the bottom tip of the South Male Atoll. The 48 bungalows at about 32sq m each offer a simple escape “without modern distractions” like air-conditioning. There are ceiling fans a few outdoor showers and a range of water sports.
Dhaal Atoll lies much further south but it’s worth going there to sample the delights of Angsana Velavaru. The 84 rooms comprise 48 beach bungalows, 16 island bungalows and 20 deluxe beach bungalows, all with exquisite interiors. Their thatched conical roofs help them blend in with the vegetation. Beaches are dazzling but the house reef is some way out. It’s 40-minutes by plane from the airport. A sister resort of Angsana in North Malé Atoll.
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| Angsana Ihuru white-sand |
It used to be called Laguna Maldives but now this Universal Resort has moved upmarket with a new name: Velassaru Maldives. The emphasis is on minimalist chic achieved through subtle use of teak, stone and thatch in the new design of the rooms. These match the demands of today’s guests with all except the beach bungalows having iPod docking. There are 28 water villas over the lagoon and 17 water suites with 30 spectacular beach villas and 54 deluxe bungalows. As well as a swimming pool, dive school, watersports station and a fitness centre, the resort boasts an Aquum Spa and a connoisseur’s experience in dining. The Vela restaurant offers “world cuisine with an informal vibe” while the Etesian is a Mediterranean themed restaurant and the Vilunoo is billed as a “food theatre” beachside grill. In spite of its make-over, Velassaru retains the high standards of a Universal Resort, such as can be experienced on its sister island Kurumba.
A 30-minute seaplane flight north from Malé takes in Baa Atoll where the Four Seasons Landaa Giravaaru melds 102 thatch-roof villas and water villas with rugged unspoiled nature. Things are not too rugged at your villa. Expect timbered sunning patio, plunge pool, a DVD player, down pillows – and a fax if you insist on it. Care was taken not to overwhelm the island’s pristine, wilder, tousled charm. Yet, pampering is close at hand at the Landaa Spa and Ayurvedic Retreat with ten treatment pavilions, four of them over-water, steam rooms, massage therapies galore and yoga. Also available to guests is the Four Seasons Explorer, a luxury catamaran – with 10 staterooms and one suite – for sea-breeze-in-the-hair Indian Ocean cruises and trips to remoter islands. This is one of the best Maldives spa resorts around and rates high in our Maldives resorts review.
On the other side of Baa Atoll, Royal Island has 150 suites and beach villas and a quiet efficiency to its holiday atmosphere. The forested island resort of Soneva Fushi is just south of it, created with a designer-rustic, Robinson Crusoe flair. Another resort gaining a strong following in Baa Atoll is the Coco Palm Resort & Spa with a stunning lagoon.
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| Adaaran Prestige Water Villas/ photo: hotel |
The Adaaran Prestige Water Villas built around a crescent-shaped jetty off the island of Meedhupparu are 40 minutes by seaplane from Malé, in Raa Atoll, just north of Baa Atoll. Each of the 20 spacious Water Villas offer the latest in hi-tech amenities along with glass panels built into the floor to peruse marine life, and private sundecks with Jacuzzis. Choose from dining in the restaurant, or being served by a private butler in your villa. Adaaran Select Meedhupparu is the name of the main resort island and this has 215 especially designed, brightly painted beach rooms and an atmosphere dedicated to holiday. The Adaaran Ayurveda Village for intensive toning up and beauty programmes is part of the resort, with 24 secluded cottages and a resident Ayurvedic doctor advising on special wellness regimes.
Kanuhura (formerly managed by One&Only), in Lhaviyani Atoll to the east, is about 150km from the airport and describes itself as a barefoot chic resort and great care goes into ensuring a comfortable and natural stay. Enjoy spa treatments under laundered skies or head off to a romantic private island. Also in this atoll, what began as an island for campers has evolved into Kuredu, now with 300 rooms,150km from the airport. Popular with scuba divers, it has retained a jolly, matey atmosphere.
To the north of Lhaviyani Atoll (and east of Raa Atoll), resorts are being opened for the first time in Noonu Atoll. The scene-stealer will be the yet-to-open Mandarin Oriental Maldives on Maavelavaru island, which brings the Mandarin Oriental’s panache to the islands. The resort will offer 114 villas, including 20 water villas and no less than four presidential suites, all ranging in area from 300sq m to 1,750sq m, some with private spa facilities. Expect a fully equipped fitness centre, a badminton court, tennis courts, squash courts, a soccer field and a beautifully appointed outdoor lap pool. Also on the menu are a comprehensive water sports centre with a full service diving school catering for guests who wish to explore the abundant coral reefs that fringe the island. For added peace of mind, the resort also has a fully equipped decompression chamber and emergency medical clinic available on site.
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| Adaaran Select/ photo: hotel |
The Spa at Mandarin Oriental, Maldives is envisaged as a destination in itself, focusing on the well-being of its guests by offering total rejuvenation and relaxation in a serene, meditative setting. The spacious spa, covering over 60,000sq m of tropical gardens, features 14 expansive treatment villas and six treatment suites, situated around a lavish outdoor Jacuzzi. Each villa consists of four separate pavilions dedicated to Mandarin Oriental’s welcome rituals, signature treatments, water and heat therapies and relaxation areas. The place plans to set a benchmark for the best Maldives resorts.
Back to real life in the Maldives, in Haa Alif Atoll are to be found the northern-most resorts of the archipelago as well as the island of Utheem, the birthplace of the 16th century hero of the Maldives, Mohamed Thakurufaan who drove out the Portuguese colonisers. There are organised boat trips to the island from resorts in the area. Cinnamon Island Resort & Spa Alidhoo is a new resort developed by the Sri Lankan John Keells Hotels group. The island is 35 acres in area and although buggies are available, walking anywhere on the island is easy and pleasant in the lush vegetation. Its 100 rooms, served by butlers, are on the periphery either on the beach or off-shore in 45 overwater villas, seven of which are duplex with large parlour and upstairs bedroom. Meals are buffets in the jungle-esque Village Restaurant and there is a speciality restaurant as well as a disco. A nice touch: breakfast is available in the villas 24 hours a day.
On the other side of the atoll lies Island Hideaway at Dhonakulhi Spa Resort & Marina. Despite being 1.4km long with a wraparound beach of 3.2km, less than five percent of the island has been developed. This means the 43 guest villas of various grades of sheer luxury are scattered around the island with a maze of paths linking them (bicycles are provided). The finesse of the accommodation is matched by exceptionally fine cuisine served in the Asian and international restaurants. There are also berths with full bunkering facilities for as many as 25 yachts, but few yachts ever find their way there. Getting to this resort, and to Cinnamon Island, involves a 55-minute jet-prop flight from Malé domestic airport then a 15-minute speedboat ride.
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| W sunning deck/ photo: hotel |
It is a seaplane transfer to the parallel atoll to the west known as Ari Atoll, where the islands are crowned by the hockey-stick shape of Kuramathi. A favourite island for those who want variety at night, it is large with plenty of vegetation and home to three resorts: Kuramathi Village for the fun loving, Kuramathi Cottage & Spa for the discerning, and Kuramathi Blue Lagoon for both. Guests at one resort can dine at the others and have the tab charged to the room bill.
South of Kuramathi is Fesdu, with 78 plush private villas as an ultimate Maldives luxury resort this time under the aegis of Starwood, is the W Retreat & Spa Maldives. Each villa features a private plunge pool and sun deck while the resort boasts a slew of other intriguing options, like 15 BELOW, an underground vodka bar 15 feet down. There is also the spoiling over-water AWAY Spa for holistic treatments, massage and other herbal remedies. Accommodations include 46 over-water villas (Ocean Oasis Retreats) with glass floors to view marine life, and 28 two-level Beach Oasis Retreats. Dive, snorkel, explore, tan, or head indoors to your 42-inch plasma TV and that signature W bed. The W Retreat & Spa Maldives is a short seaplane flight from the main international airport. It is one of the top drawer Maldives luxury resorts on offer.
If that isn't luxury enough, try Dhoni Island to the east in central Ari Atoll. Accommodation is actually offshore in five super-deluxe dhonis with air-conditioning and luxury modern facilities. Each vessel is served by dedicated butler and crew and can cruise on demand for fishing, diving and picnics. There are also six, stylish, thatched cottages hidden in the lush vegetation by a white-sand beach for guests who want to sleep ashore. There are never more than 12 guests and children are a no go in this adults-only paradise. All meals and drinks are included in the cost, diving is an available extra with an experienced Maldivian dive master, and there is a very private spa. Airport transfers can be by the live-aboard dhoni (four hours) or seaplane (25 minutes).
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| Conrad Maldives Water Villa/ photo: hotel |
The glitz and glamour of a Conrad is further enhanced at the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island by shimmering sands, turquoise lagoons and upscale, thatched, on-the-water accommodation. Formerly the Hilton Maldives Resort & Spa, extensive and well-planned refurbishment has seen the rebranded Conrad re-emerge with several distinctive touches and a new Spa Retreat. The Conrad Maldives occupies two islands – Rangali, where the spacious and spoiling water villas are located, and Rangali Finolhu, where the over-water Spa Retreat and beach villas are based. (The Conrad Maldives features in our exclusive Top Asian Hotels Collection, featuring the best Asian hotels, resorts and spas in a printable A4 page with stunning visuals.)
There is a spa as well on Rangali Island ensuring guests are pampered no matter where they are staying. The islands are connected by a 500m boardwalk (that also serves as the seaplane jetty). An indefatigable powered dhoni shuttles regularly across the lagoon as well. Rangali Finolhu, the main island, offers a lounge and bars that could compete with the best of Hongkong's Lan Kwai Fong. The public areas are stylish, fraternal, and informal with sand underfoot. Service is friendly and quick despite the larger number of guests here when the resort is busy. The best snorkelling is off the east beach of Rangali Finolhu though those staying at water villas on the other island can simply step off their patio and into the blue for a quick dip and a view.
A games room, Internet room with free Broadband and WiFi, and a large shopping plaza ensure all guests are fully occupied no matter what their preference. Watch a movie on a large flat-screen TV at the relaxation centre or catch the rays. Water villas are vast, a full 250sq m, with an attractive timber interior – much like a Swedish log cabin – spacious washrooms, and well-thought-out touches, from three-pin (square) plug sockets to electrical switches all labelled in large type for the uninitiated.
The Spa Retreat offers 21 water villas and nine treatment rooms. But, for a true-blue marine experience, head five metres below to an exclusive wine cellar and glassed-in underwater restaurant. Small wonder the Conrad is regarded as one of the best Maldives luxury resorts, its droolworthy spa simply more spectacular icing on the cake. The Conrad is a top performer on our Maldives resorts review.
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| Banyan Tree Madivaru/ photo: hotel |
With only six accommodation units (the island is too small for more) Banyan Tree Madivaru is for beachcombers who want to holiday in style. Each unit consists of three tents, one each for sleeping, living and bathing, grouped around a swimming pool. They have timber floors, rattan and teak furniture as well as conventional hotel fittings. This beautiful tiny island was originally used for picnics and its long, curving sandbank is a divine location for starlit dining. Island hosts are on duty 24 hours to make sure the Banyan Tree standard is maintained even for just six pairs of tropical castaway romantics.
In South Ari Atoll is the spread out and entertaining playground of Diva Resort & Spa (formerly White Sands Resort & Spa) now, after extensive renovations and additions, featuring 88 Over Water Villas, 12 Beach Pool Villas, suites, and a spa with 15 treatment rooms. Diva island offers almost 2km of sugar-white sand shoreline, shallow lagoons, and pretty decent marine viewing. Expect a gym, PADI dive centre, boat-house and tennis courts. This aims to be a five-star Maldives luxury resort.
Finally, for the true Robinson Crusoe wannabe with pots of money, a little island further south in Faafu Atoll can be yours – all yours – for the night, for around US$10,000. Here the grandly-named Rania Experience Private Residence in The Maldives offers very upscale “barefoot living”, with unlimited fine dining, diving, yoga, fishing and spa treatments on demand, and no one around to gasp at how much money you’re spending. Also commandeer an 86ft yacht to do your bidding. The resort will only make one booking per night, but for the ultimate beach party, will accommodate up to 15 people.
The first Regent resort in the Maldives, in Thaa Atoll, a circular grouping of idyllic islands halfway between Malé and Gan in the south, opens in 2009. A 50-minute journey from Malé by seaplane, The Regent Maldives, has just 50 villas both beachside and overwater, all with private plunge pools and expansive timber decks. The resort offers ‘locavore’ dining, which involves a fishing expedition to catch your very own local striped marlin, wahoo and yellowfin tuna. The catch of the day is then prepared for the freshest seafood dinner you can find. There is also an overwater restaurant featuring fresh produce from the chef's on-site organic garden.
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| Alila Villas Hadahaa/ photo: hotel |
Far south in the relatively unexplored Gaafu Alifu Atoll, 400km from Male, the new Alila Villas Hadahaa makes its mark July 2009. The resort has a commendable green footprint with only 20 percent of the island developed and large areas earmarked for “biodiversity protection”. Fish are protected but your wallet is not with Island Villas rack rates starting at US$1,070++. Continuing to explore and expand the boundaries of contemporary leisure design space, Alila Hadahaa serves up stunningly mod water cabins with sloping roofs and wraparound glass windows. Look out for 20 Island Villas with pool, 16 Island Villas, and 14 Aqua Villas, all with iPod docks and home theatre. Dive into two freshwater swimming pools and then get a relaxing body treatment at the Mandara Spa. The resort offers unique diving opportunities in this undisturbed atoll as well as clear skies for star-gazers.
The Raffles Konottaa Maldives arrives 2010 in the southern Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll accessible by plane and then ferry. There are to be 49 villas, a plush Amrita Spa, a diving school, and sea sports by the wave-load.
There's no better time to plan your Maldives holiday especially as a good local agent should be able to negotiate discounts on published rates to keep the tourist arrival figures up. Run through this Maldives resort review, pump some iron, pack strong sun-block and head for the airport.
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