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Soneva looks back at 2019 sustainability achievements
Soneva, the world-leading luxury resort operator with properties in the Maldives and Thailand, is celebrating the success of world-leading environmental projects spanning 25 years.
These have included subsidising low-carbon cook stoves, mangrove conservation, sea grass restoration and hosting international sustainability dialogues on fisheries and marine plastics.
The combined investment of close to $10 million has positively impacted over a million people, and saved over half a million tons of carbon dioxide emissions, the equivalent of taking over 100,000 cars off the road for a whole year.
Last year’s achievements
Soneva generated $553,000 in value across its resorts from the upcycling of waste through the Waste to Wealth initiative.
A total of 65,250 paper straws were used last year, which could have easily been plastic straws had Soneva not banned them in 2008.
Soneva sold 71,400 litres of water in reusable glass bottles, preventing the manufacture of 47,600 single-use plastic bottles.
A total of 900 kg of aluminium cans were compacted and sent for recycling, while 2,400 square metres of Styrofoam was repurposed and used in building Soneva’s villas.
At Soneva Fushi’s Eco Centro, 9,000 kg of charcoal (worth $14,400) was made. The Eco Centro also produced 20,000 kg of compost each month from daily waste food and organic matter.
Through Soneva’s Learn to Swim programme, 70 Maldivian school children learnt how to swim. Four lifeguards were also trained from Maldivian communities by Soneva host.
Around 30 litres of coconut oil were made (from approximately 675 coconuts) each month from the coconut trees at Soneva Fushi.
Each Soneva resort has its own Waste-to-Wealth facility, recycling 90 per cent of its waste through an innovative waste management strategy.
Food left over from the resorts’ restaurants is composted to make nutritious soil for the islands’ vegetable and herb gardens, all of which are organic and provide much of the produce used in the kitchens at each resort. Styrofoam packing is used to make lightweight construction blocks or as insulation within villa walls.
Soneva is aiming for 100 per cent of its waste to avoid ending up in landfills by 2030.
Currently, 12 per cent of Soneva’s total energy usage at the three resorts is from renewable sources. Soneva aims to increase this to 50 per cent, and by 2025 it aims to be using 100 per cent renewable energy.
Another aspect of the Waste to Wealth initiative is Soneva Fushi’s Art and Glass Studio, the only hot glass studio in the Maldives.
Here, approximately 1,200 used glass bottles from Soneva Fushi, Soneva Jani, and neighbouring resorts in the Baa atoll are crushed and melted down each year to be upcycled. Then using techniques such as glass blowing, casting, and slumping, the Soneva glass team creates functional pieces as well as one of a kind glass sculptures, which can be bought from the Art and Glass Studio.
For an island nation like the Maldives, which relies on its natural scenery for tourism and with fish as the main food staple, waste is a massive problem. This is why Soneva started the Soneva Maker Programme at Soneva Fushi.
This programme sees Soneva join the grass-roots Precious Plastic global initiative to become the first company in the Maldives to recycle plastic into new products, using open-source machines made from locally available, low cost materials.
Soneva Water
Soneva banned imported bottled water in 2008. Instead, Soneva filters, mineralises, alkalises and bottles its water on-site.
Soneva has averted the production of 1,500,000 plastic bottles in the last 10 years by using reusable glass bottles.
A percentage of revenues from Soneva Water funds over 500 clean water projects in more than 50 countries. It provides clean water to over 750,000 via charities such as Water Charity and Thirst Aid.
Soneva Namoona
In 2019, Soneva launched Soneva Namoona, a partnership between three Maldivian islands (Maalhos, Dharavandhoo and Kihaadhoo), Soneva, marine plastic foundation Common Seas, and the Maldivian government to change the way the island nation manages waste.
In February, the island of Maalhos inaugurated its Eco Centro and water bottling plant; and marked the end of open burning on the island.
Under Soneva Namoona, Soneva Water provides drinking water to households and guesthouses on the local island of Maalhos in reusable glass bottles, reducing the need for single-use plastic water bottles on the island.
A new Soneva-sponsored Eco Centro ‘waste-to-wealth’ centre enables composting and recycling of waste on Maalhos.
This year, Soneva Namoona is being extended to the local islands of Dharavandhoo and Kihaadhoo.
Following meetings and workshops hosted by Soneva Fushi in 2019, Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih made a pledge at the United Nations General Assembly for the country to become single-use plastic free by 2023.
Soneva Namoona will continue working with the national government to broaden this pioneering approach out to the whole of the Maldives.
Soneva Namoona centres around the three pillars of Reduce, Recycle, Inspire.
Reduce is a radical reduction in the volume of plastic arriving on the islands. Soneva assisted in the establishment of a water bottling plant on the island of Maalhos to desalinate and mineralise sea water, which is distributed in reusable glass bottles, eliminating the need for water bottled in plastic.
Recycling and responsible disposal of waste forms the second strand of the programme. Maalhos is the first island to open a Soneva-sponsored Eco Centro with machinery that will include a wood chipper and a glass crusher.
The third component is to Inspire a love of the ocean and the environment. The belief is that through water sports, education and festivities that children will lose their fear of the ocean and learn to love it, and thus protect it.
“If we work together, we are sure we can create the right environment for the Maldives to be the world’s most progressive country on single use plastic. If we project forwards just a few years, we can see that all islands will have thriving waste-to-wealth centres; there will be no plastic bags; no plastic straws; islands will have their own water bottling plants; no guesthouses or resorts will serve water in single use bottles,” Sonu Shivdasani, CEO and Founder of Soneva, says.
Ongoing initiatives
At the start of the last decade, Soneva partnered with PATT Foundation in Thailand to plant over 500,000 trees covering 300 acres in the Chiang Mai region of northern Thailand.
The plantations, covering three main sites, use a Framework Species Methodology, with guidance from Forest Restoration Research Unit of Chiang Mai University.
Ninety species of trees were planted in 2011-12 and since then, seed-disbursing birds have increased the number of species further to create a rich biodiverse forest.
Over 40 years, the project will mitigate an estimated 255,000 tons of carbon dioxide.
Neighbouring Myanmar has one of the fastest rates of deforestation in the world with most of the wood used for domestic cooking. Pollution from indoor cooking on open fires leads to the premature deaths of over four million people a year, mostly women and children, which is more than HIV/AIDS and malaria combined.
Soneva has subsidised the distribution of fuel-efficient cook stoves to around 150,000 people through the Myanmar Stoves Campaign. Each stove saves 2.5 tonnes of wood per year and reduces air pollution by 80 per cent, improving the health and safety of the whole community.
“At Soneva, we believe that luxury and sustainability don’t compete; they complement each other. I have always believed that businesses must be a positive force for change, so if you support businesses that create jobs in their communities and protect the environments in which they operate, this can be very beneficial,” Shivdasani says.
In 2016 Soneva hosted The Soneva Dialogue: Transformative Risks and Opportunities for the Global Seafood Industry.
The dialogue was the first in a series of Keystone Dialogues, in partnership with The Stockholm Resilience Centre and Forum for the Future.
The dialogue resulted in the establishment of Seafood Business for Ocean Stewardship (SeaBOS). The ambition is for scientists and the world’s largest seafood companies to join forces to lead a global transformation towards sustainable seafood production and a healthy ocean.
The initiative will actively contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and in particular Goal 14 – Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources.
Soneva’s top 25 community projects:
- Soneva Namoona
- Myanmar Stoves Campaign
- Darfur Stoves Project
- Soneva Forest Restoration
- Soneva Wind Turbine
- Soneva Clean Water Projects
- SLOW LIFE Symposium
- WHOLE WORLD Water
- Soneva Dialogue
- Soneva Ocean Stewards
- Soneva Eco Camps
- Care for Children
- Restaurants Against Hunger
- Baa Atoll UNESCO Biosphere Reserve
- Coral Reef Restoration
- Soneva Junior Master Chef
- SHE Thalassaemia
- Soneva Medical Camp
- Care Development Center
- FINished with Fins
- Kudarikilu Waste Water Plant
- Dharavandhoo School Science Laboratory
- Bahiyya Pre School Reconstruction
- Green School Scholarship
- IUCN Mangrove Conservation project
For more details on Soneva’s sustainability initiatives and the Host Changemakers series, please visit sonevachangemakers.com.
Kudadoo Maldives Private Island by Hurawalhi has been named a ‘Best of the Best’ winner in the prestigious 2025 TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Awards. This elite honour places Kudadoo among the top 1% of hotels worldwide, a distinction earned through consistently outstanding guest reviews and ratings over the past year.
Building on its legacy of excellence, Kudadoo also secured the #18 position in Asia’s Small & Boutique Hotels category, recognised for its unparalleled approach to ultra-luxury hospitality, eco-conscious ethos, and personalized all-inclusive experiences that redefine exclusivity.
Akira Shiota, General Manager of Kudadoo Maldives Private Island, emphasised that every detail at Kudadoo is designed with purpose to offer unparalleled freedom, tranquil privacy, and an intimate connection to nature. He stated that receiving the ‘Best of the Best’ award once again validates the resort’s commitment to exceptional, conscious luxury, crediting the dedicated team and loyal guests for inspiring continuous elevation of the experience.
Designed by acclaimed Japanese architect Yuji Yamazaki, Kudadoo is a fully solar-powered sanctuary crafted for effortless luxury and meaningful indulgence. The island is home to just 15 exclusive Ocean Residences, each positioned above the crystal-clear waters of the Indian Ocean, offering a personalized escape with 24/7 private butler service.
Guests at Kudadoo can enjoy a wide range of curated experiences, from swimming with manta rays to bespoke beachside barbecues, tailored to meet the desires of discerning visitors—many of whom return year after year for the resort’s signature blend of serenity, sophistication, and sustainability.
Mohamed Solah, CEO of Crown & Champa Resorts, the management company behind Kudadoo, remarked that the award celebrates the essence of what the resort offers: freedom, privacy, and pure indulgence. He noted that being recognised by global travellers year after year is a remarkable achievement and a testament to the passion, dedication, and outstanding service delivered by the resort’s teams daily.
Kudadoo is accessible via a scenic seaplane journey or a domestic flight followed by a speedboat transfer, ensuring a seamless and stress-free transition into paradise.
This milestone adds to Kudadoo’s growing list of accolades, including its status as a 2024 TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Winner, which placed the resort among the top 10% of hospitality businesses worldwide. With an unwavering focus on innovation, wellbeing, and elevated service, Kudadoo continues to set the standard for private island living in the Maldives.
Kuredu Island Resort & Spa has been honoured with the prestigious ‘Best of the Best’ accolade in the 2025 TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Awards, ranking it among the top 1% of hotels worldwide. This distinction represents the highest level of excellence awarded by TripAdvisor, celebrating destinations that consistently provide exceptional service, outstanding value, and unforgettable guest experiences.
Selected from millions of traveller reviews and ratings collected over the past year, the Travellers’ Choice ‘Best of the Best’ Award reflects Kuredu’s unwavering dedication to exceeding expectations and crafting joyful, memorable stays. Guests worldwide have praised the resort’s warm Maldivian hospitality, extensive range of activities, diverse dining options, and idyllic island setting that seamlessly balances excitement with tranquility.
Mohamed Solah, CEO of Crown & Champa Resorts, commented that Kuredu’s vibrant charm, variety of adventures, and heartfelt hospitality continue to captivate guests. He emphasised that the award not only recognises the resort’s exceptional service but also the emotional connections the team fosters with every guest. He expressed deep pride and gratitude toward the Kuredu family and loyal visitors for helping achieve this significant milestone.
Situated in the turquoise waters of the Lhaviyani Atoll, Kuredu Island Resort & Spa is one of the Maldives’ most beloved and iconic destinations. As the sole resort on Kuredu Island, it offers an exclusive sanctuary welcoming families, couples, and solo travelers alike. The resort features 389 villas and bungalows, ranging from beachside retreats to overwater hideaways, blending rustic charm with luxurious comfort.
Guests can enjoy a wide variety of experiences catering to all preferences and tempos. Activities include world-renowned diving at nearby coral reefs, water sports, sunset dolphin cruises, yoga sessions, full-service spas, and culinary journeys across multiple restaurants and bars. Kuredu aims to offer more than just a holiday — it provides stories worth sharing.
The resort’s family-friendly amenities, including kid-focused activities and multi-generational villa options, make it a top choice for travellers with children. Couples are attracted to romantic beach dinners, secluded sunset spots, and the peaceful O’ Resort area designed for adults seeking intimacy and calm.
Jorge Amaro, General Manager of Kuredu Island Resort & Spa, highlighted the resort’s deeply personal approach. He explained that it is the small gestures — such as remembering a guest’s favourite drink or sharing a genuine smile — that create lasting memories. He noted that the award reflects the passion, dedication, and authenticity of the entire team, who strive to make every guest feel truly at home on the island.
The 2025 recognition adds to Kuredu’s impressive array of accolades earned over the past decade. The resort has consistently upheld its reputation as one of the Maldives’ most admired hospitality destinations, with multiple TripAdvisor honours including:
- 2024 TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Award — Recognised among the top 10% of hospitality businesses worldwide
- 2019 Certificate of Excellence — Awarded for consistently high guest ratings
- 2017 TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence
- 2014 Certificate of Excellence, UK — Based on outstanding guest reviews
- 2013 Travellers’ Choice Award, UK — Ranked #21 among the Top 25 Resorts in the Maldives for Best Service
- 2013 & 2012 Certificate of Excellence, UK — Recognised for consistent excellence in guest satisfaction
These honours reflect Kuredu’s longstanding commitment not only to meeting international hospitality standards but also to creating a sense of belonging, excitement, and wonder for guests from around the world.
Komandoo Island Resort & Spa has been recognised as a winner in the 2025 TripAdvisor® Travellers’ Choice® Awards, earning a place among the top 10% of hotels globally. This prestigious accolade reflects the boutique adults-only resort’s enduring charm, thoughtful details, and commitment to delivering exceptional guest experiences in an intimate and romantic setting.
As a member of the TripAdvisor Hall of Fame, Komandoo has long maintained a reputation as one of the Maldives’ most beloved resorts for couples and honeymooners. With just 65 villas situated along pristine beaches and above a shimmering turquoise lagoon, the island offers an idyllic retreat where love, serenity, and barefoot luxury thrive.
According to Mohamed Solah, CEO of Crown & Champa Resorts, “This recognition is a testament to the genuine care our Team of Champions puts into every stay. At Komandoo, hospitality is more than a service—it’s a heartfelt connection with each guest.”
Ahmed Naseem, General Manager of Komandoo Island Resort & Spa, added, “What makes Komandoo special is the soul of the island—our champions’ passion, the intimacy of the setting, and the heartfelt experiences created for every guest. Being honoured year after year by our guests and by TripAdvisor inspires us to keep delivering unforgettable moments in one of the most romantic corners of the world.”
Komandoo’s adults-only policy and tranquil environment make it an exceptional choice for honeymoons, anniversaries, and couples’ getaways. Guests enjoy uninterrupted serenity, romantic beach dining, curated experiences, and wellness offerings designed for reconnection and relaxation.
Komandoo’s inclusion in the 2025 Travellers’ Choice Awards continues a long-standing tradition of excellence celebrated by TripAdvisor and the global travel community. Among the numerous accolades the resort has received from TripAdvisor over the years are:
- TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Award Winner 2025 & 2024
- TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence – 2019
- Travellers’ Choice Awards – UK – 2018
- Certificate of Excellence – UK – 2016
- TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Awards – UK – 2015 – | #1 Romantic Resort in the Maldives | #7 Top Hotel for Service in Maldives | Top 10 Hotels in Maldives
- Certificate of Excellence – UK – 2015 & 2012
- Five-time Certificate of Excellence Winner (2011–2015)
- TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Award – 2009 (UK) | #1 Romantic Resort in Maldives | #1 in Asia | #7 in the World
These accolades highlight Komandoo’s unwavering commitment to guest satisfaction and its dedication to delivering memorable, personalised stays.
With its adults-only policy and serene setting, Komandoo offers an unparalleled destination for honeymoons, anniversaries, and romantic escapes. Guests are treated to uninterrupted tranquillity, bespoke beach dining experiences, wellness offerings, and curated activities designed to foster reconnection.
The resort features a variety of accommodations, from overwater villas with direct lagoon access to beach villas shaded by palms, each offering comfort, privacy, and luxury. Additional highlights include award-winning dining, indulgent spa treatments at Duniye Spa, and a vibrant house reef ideal for snorkelling enthusiasts. Komandoo seamlessly blends Maldivian authenticity with modern comforts and heartfelt service. As the island’s only resort, it offers guests a rare sense of exclusivity—where every detail is crafted to let love stories unfold.
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