Island Goers

Super Luxury Resorts of Maldives

Published

15 years ago

April 14, 2011

With its 1190 coral islands, Maldives boasts of breathtaking scenes, compelling natural beauty and extraordinary privacy and exclusivity. With resorts spanning from standard to super luxury, Maldives presents to you more than a hundred isolated island resorts. Each resort with its own uniqueness and beauty, you will find yourself drawn to them as well as their water sports. Whether you wish to indulge yourself in the pleasures of a romantic escape or the amusement of a family vacation, Maldives is simply the perfect destination.

W Retreat & Spa – Maldives

Isolated and private with its unique and natural architecture, this resort presents to you its white sandy beaches, its turquoise lagoons and remarkably breathtaking reefs. Some 72 kilometers from Malé International Airport it takes only 25 minutes to reach this magnificent 5 star resort, with its 78 rooms. It offers you four different types of villas where you can enjoy your own plunge pool, sundeck, and beach. Fitness and spa facilities are also provided along with an opportunity to dive beneath the ways to explore world class dive sites. This remarkable resort also provides free items ranging from mosquito repellents to ice creams and more, along with a “Whatever Whenever” service where you can have you dreams come true whatever it is, whenever you want it. W Retreat also has one of the largest collections of Vodka in Maldives along with the only club of its kind, “15 Below”, literally 15 steps under the ground.

Taj Exotica Resort & Spa, Maldives

This award winning resort offers some of the finest contemporary luxuries and services. Only 8 kilometers from Malé International Airport, it can be reached via speedboat in 15 minutes. The lush green tropical island overlooking one of the largest lagoons in Maldives offers 64 villas of six types and a presidential villa suite. This exclusive resort also presents an authentic Indian spa, a choice of gourmet cuisine, water sports and recreation.

Soneva Gili By Six Senses

Just a short 20 minute boat ride away from the airport, this beautiful resort is situated in a beautiful lagoon with jetties that spread out across the water towards its exclusive water villas. Soneva Gili offers 45 magnificent over water villas including private residences that is only reachable by boat. The resort and its design, both environmentally friendly and luxurious, radiate the beauty of nature itself. Its spa, dive center, and fitness center provides incomparable services, not to mention the garden supplying fresh fruits, salads, herbs and mushrooms to the kitchens of Soneva Gili.

Soneva Fushi By Six Senses

Eco-friendly, unmatchable natural beauty, and complete remoteness are understatements in describing this luxurious resort, only 30 minutes away via a scenic seaplane flight. This resort with its sophisticated style is the ultimate Robinson Crusoe idyll. It offers nine different types of 65 villas, along with spa suites, multiple gourmet cuisines, bars, libraries, a dive center, and an open air cinema. Vine tasting and candle light dinners of glamorous romance under the stars are only a little of what this resort has to offer. With a striking observatory and souvenir shops of grand ideas, this is one of the finest resorts in Maldives.

Six Senses Laamu

Proudly presenting the best organic fresh food, locally grown and caught, with over 400 wines, Six Senses Laamu is a gem nestled within Laamu atoll. This resort, boasting of its unmatched service, requires a fifty minute flight to Kadhdhoo and a short 25 minute boat trip. With 97 beach villas, this resort offers water villas and a multitude of restaurants designed to cater for every tourists’ needs. Along with library services and leisure activities, it offers lessons and certifications as well. Six Senses Laamu also presents restaurants and bars designed to take maximum advantage of the islands idyllic beauty with panoramic views and spectacular sunrises and sunsets.

Shangri-La’s Villingili Resort and Spa, Maldives

Set amidst the abundant tropical foliage and surrounded by white sandy beaches, and with private ocean retreats and tropical tree house villas, this is definitely a premiere Maldives luxury resort. Shangri-La’s Villingili Resort is reachable with a 70 minute flight from Malé to Gan, and an eight minute boat ride. The resort offers luxury yacht facilities, tempting dining facilities and aquatic leisure activities along with innovative spa treatments. With 17,000 coconut palms and nine types of villas this is one of the most luxurious resorts.

Naladhu Maldives

With ultimate comfort and elegance, this island paradise is easily reachable with a half an hour sail through 13 kilometers of Maldivian waters. With dramatic arrivals, gracious service and a spa facility, this luxury resort allows you to live on your own terms as you let your spirits flow. Along with 19 private houses Naladhu proudly offers you scuba diving, fishing, sailing, and snorkeling, among other leisure activities. This resort allows you the opportunity to lose yourself in the enchanting folklores of the island’s storyteller. Dining at Naladhu brings you the sense of romance and adventure as they cater to your senses.

Island Hideaway at Dhonakulhi Maldives, Spa Resort & Marina

This crescent-shaped island resort with more than a kilometer of beach on either side is a luxury boutique resort with six types of spectacular guest villas along with a marina, the first of its kind in the Maldives. It is harmonious resort with its tranquil and serene beauty, reachable by a 45 minute scenic photo-flight from the international airport at Malé, followed by an exhilarating 20 minute trip via speedboat.

Conrad Maldives Rangali Island

Twice voted ‘Best Hotel in the World’ and several times ‘Best Resort’, Conrad Maldives offers 50 luxurious water villas, 79 exotic beach villas and 21 fabulous spa water villas with private treatment rooms. A wonderful 30 minute seaplane flight is all that stands between you and experiencing the stunning beauty of this resort. Home for food lovers, Maldives’s seven world-class restaurants offer breathtaking dinning venues with over 18,000 bottles of wine that await discovery in the underground Wine Cellar. With white sandy beaches and crystal clear waters you are free to dive or snorkel in the world’s most remarkable waters and unspoiled reefs.

Coco Palm Bodu Hithi

About 29 kilometers from Malé, located on the private island of Bodu Hithi, a 40 minute luxury speedboat ride is all that takes to reach this beautiful resort with its rich in vegetation with naturally designed sandy walkways and coconut trees. With turquoise seas and isolated sand banks, the island enchants even the most selective guests. With 100 distinctive designer villas and suites Coco Palm Bodu Hithi offers indulgence and luxury with delicious cuisine and fine wines for the discerning palate.

Beach House Maldives, A Waldorf Astoria Resort

Offering true Maldivian experiences, touched with a rich heritage of service and excellence, this resort is a true paradise for those who appreciate magnificence and beauty of life. Beach House Maldives, about an hour and a half away from the international airport at Malé, offers 83 luxury villas, over water or on the beach, with distinctive Maldivian architecture of thatched roofs and indigenous wood panellings. The resort also offers a wide range of Maldivian and world-class international cuisine, in the restaurants and bars, on the beach or in the privacy of your villa.

Banyan Tree Madivaru, Maldives

Reachable by a 20 minutes seaplane flight, this true Maldives five-star hotel comprises of 6 Tented Pool Villas, the first of its kind in Maldives. Each Tented Pool Villa comprises three individual tents, distinctively equipped to function as living, sleeping, and bath areas. The resort boasts of meals and scheduled excursions that ensure the guests the very best of fresh catches and marine activities. It is a perfect place to enjoy a private romantic dinner on a sandbank island, and a high level of privacy with the fine service.

Four Seasons Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru

A scenic 30 to 45 minute seaplane ride from Malé, this resort offers one of the largest natural lagoons in the islands for you to snorkel with turtles, manta rays and whale sharks. The resort offers ultra private accommodations on the beach, over the lagoon or in tropical gardens along with cuisines ranging from Lebanese and Moroccan fare to Italian and organic meats. They also provide beach picnics and sandbank dinners, Robinson Crusoe picnics and private parties.

Jumeirah Dhevanafushi

This beautiful resort of mesmerizing beauty and tranquility offers a safe retreat to the breathtaking wonders on earth, far from the pressures of modern life. With its 38 suites of Beach Revives, Island Revives and a single Island Sanctuary, Jumeira Dhevanafushi presents a choice of breathtaking views, over island or ocean. Private excursion and water sports such as snorkeling, canoeing, windsurfing, private charters, diving and deep sea fishing are only a few of what the resort has to offer. Dining choices that range from international cuisines, casual beach grills to exquisite fine dining.

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Awards

Maldives’ first island-to-island zipline receives global excellence award

Published

2 days ago

September 2, 2026

m@ldives

Zipline Maldives, the first island-to-island zipline in the Maldives, has received the Global Excellence Award for “World’s Most Beautiful Zipline – Maldives” at the Global Brand Awards 2026.

The recognition was presented as part of Season 2 of the Global Brand Awards, Sri Lanka Chapter. The certificate of achievement was presented to Ibrahim Asim of Vahmaafushi Picnic Island, recognising the project’s contribution and performance.

Located in South Malé Atoll, Zipline Maldives connects Maafushi with neighbouring Vahmaafushi, taking riders across 428 metres of open ocean between the two islands. The attraction, which opened earlier this year, introduced an island-to-island zipline experience to the Maldives and has added a new adventure tourism offering to the country’s local island sector.

The ride takes approximately 45 to 60 seconds and operates on two parallel lines, allowing two people to travel side by side. According to Zipline Maldives, more than 2,000 riders from over 50 countries have used the attraction since its launch.

The experience begins in Maafushi and crosses the lagoon to Vahmaafushi. A standard booking includes the 428-metre zipline ride, safety briefing and equipment, a return speedboat transfer, a welcome drink and access to Vahmaafushi Island. The attraction is open to riders aged six and above, subject to a weight range of 40 to 110 kilograms and operating conditions.

Vahmaafushi was developed as an experience-focused island close to Maafushi, combining the zipline with beach visits, dining, private celebrations and other island activities. Located around two minutes from Maafushi by boat, the island forms part of efforts to expand the range of experiences available to visitors staying in one of the Maldives’ largest local tourism destinations.

The zipline was introduced commercially in May 2026, with its operators positioning the over-ocean crossing as a new attraction for tourists and residents. Its location near Maafushi also allows visitors staying in the wider South Malé Atoll area to incorporate the activity into day excursions.

The Global Excellence Award marks an international recognition for the attraction within months of its opening, as local tourism operators continue to introduce experience-based activities alongside the Maldives’ established accommodation and marine tourism offerings.

Action

Maldives’ Dhigurah ranked among world’s 10 most valuable beaches

Published

4 weeks ago

August 7, 2026

m@ldives

Dhigurah in Alifu Dhaalu Atoll has been ranked among the world’s 10 most valuable holiday beaches, with its stretch of sand assigned an estimated value of MVR 2.9 billion (€162.7 million) in a study by luxury villa holiday specialist CV Villas.

The island placed eighth in the global ranking, ahead of Seven Mile Beach in the Cayman Islands and Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The study calculated the hypothetical cost of owning some of the world’s best-known beaches by valuing the sand as coastal land. The figures do not represent sale prices or suggest that the beaches are available for private purchase.

Dhigurah was the only Maldivian beach included in the global top 15. Known for its long sandbank and proximity to whale shark habitats in South Ari Atoll, the inhabited island has become a destination for guesthouse tourism, diving and marine excursions.

Florida’s Siesta Beach topped the global ranking with an estimated value of €1.08 billion, followed by Pampelonne Beach in France at €843 million and Praia da Falésia in Portugal at €573.2 million.

Grace Bay in the Turks and Caicos Islands was ranked fourth at €376.4 million, while Bondi Beach in Sydney completed the top five with an estimated value of €365 million.

Hannah Marshall, luxury travel destination expert and marketing manager at CV Villas, said the research highlighted the role of location in determining coastal land values.

“Everyone has a beach that means something to them, so there’s something fun about seeing what those stretches of sand might be ‘worth’ if you valued them like the land behind them,” Marshall said.

“What comes through is how much location drives the figure: a beach in St-Tropez or on Siesta Key carries a value that a quieter shore — even just as beautiful — simply won’t.”

While Siesta Beach had the highest total estimated value, The Baths on Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands recorded the highest value per square metre, at €8,846. Princess Diana Beach in Barbuda was the most affordable beach assessed, at approximately €199 per square metre.

Culture

Visit Maldives brings spirit of island Eid to worldwide audiences

Published

3 months ago

May 24, 2026

m@ldives

The spirit, colour, and traditions of a Maldivian island Eid will take centre stage this festive season as Visit Maldives Corporation (VMC) prepares to deliver immersive daily coverage of the Eid celebrations from Raa Atoll Meedhoo, bringing one of the country’s most vibrant cultural festivities to audiences around the world.

Beginning on 26 May, Visit Maldives will provide daily coverage from the island across its social media platforms and digital channels, continuing through 30 May. The initiative will showcase the atmosphere, traditions, and community celebrations that define Eid in the Maldives, offering audiences a deeper connection to the cultural identity of the islands beyond their well-known luxury experiences.

Throughout the five-day coverage, Visit Maldives teams will provide daily updates, feature segments, and behind-the-scenes storytelling from the island, capturing traditions that continue to shape community life across the Maldives. The campaign aims to position Maldivian culture and heritage as a central part of the destination experience while highlighting the unique character of local island communities.

Among the key traditions featured is Vedhuma Dhiyun, a longstanding custom where groups of islanders formally seek permission from community elders and leaders to begin Eid festivities. The practice reflects the strong communal values and cultural continuity preserved within island life.

The celebrations will also spotlight Bodu Mas, one of the most recognised Eid traditions in the Maldives. Meaning “big fish” in Dhivehi, the celebration centres around a giant fish structure crafted from woven coconut palm leaves and ceremonially carried through the island in a lively communal gathering rooted in the Maldives’ seafaring heritage.

Another major highlight is Maali Neshun, a traditional performance where participants dress as mythical figures and spirits using handcrafted costumes made from coconut leaves and local materials. Accompanied by the rhythmic sounds of boduberu drums, the performances transform the island into a visually striking cultural celebration.

The campaign will additionally feature Koadi Kendun, a traditional community event centred around a decorated wooden structure crafted from coconut palm materials. The celebration combines performance, competition, and artistic expression, reflecting both longstanding traditions and evolving forms of island creativity.

Speaking about the initiative, Ibrahim Shiuree, CEO and Managing Director of Visit Maldives Corporation, noted that showcasing living traditions and community celebrations remains an important part of strengthening destination storytelling.

“The Maldives is shaped not only by its natural beauty, but also by the traditions, people, and communities that continue to preserve our cultural identity. Through this campaign, we want global audiences to experience the warmth, creativity, and spirit of a Maldivian island Eid in an authentic and meaningful way,” he said.

He also acknowledged the support and collaboration of the people of Raa Meedhoo, particularly the communities of Hulhangu Avah and Irumathi Avah, along with the Raa Meedhoo Island Council, for their role in supporting and facilitating the initiative and helping bring the island’s Eid celebrations to wider international audiences.

Following the daily coverage period, Visit Maldives will continue the initiative through long-form storytelling content scheduled for release from next month onwards on its YouTube platform, offering in-depth features, interviews, and cultural narratives from Raa Meedhoo and its celebrations.

Through this campaign, Visit Maldives continues to expand destination storytelling by highlighting the Maldives as a place shaped not only by its natural beauty, but also by its living traditions, island communities, and cultural heritage.