A certain memoir once sent a generation in search of itself through pasta, prayer and a love story, the hunger for good food, inner calm and a little romance still runs as deep as ever Eri Maldives is reframing the formula for today’s couples, with two places set at the table.

This February, the North Malé Atoll hideaway unveils Eat, Play, Love from 12–16 February 2027,, made for couples and kindred spirits ready to trade the prix-fixe-and-roses routine for lingering meals, saltwater adventures and spontaneous moments worth keeping. The programme is built less around a place than a state of mind, in step with Booking.com’s 2027 Travel Predictions, which found that 81% of global travellers would now choose a holiday primarily by how they want to feel, rather than where they want to go.

Eat: The Way to the Heart

Valentine’s night proper belongs to A Valentine’s Feast, a five-course aphrodisiac menu served on 14 February with a glass of sparkling wine, at the kind of leisurely pace that makes phones feel optional. For something more tucked away, Dinner Beneath the Stars lays a table under a wide-open sky, opening with a signature cocktail and ending with a villa turndown.

Between courses, Sips for Two takes over the bar at Sip & Dip, pouring jumbo Valentine cocktails and swoon-worthy infusions made for sharing, best ordered with two straws and no rush.

Play: Making Waves

For pairs whose love language is quality time spent slightly out of breath, the reef does the matchmaking. Dive in Together is a guided scuba session for two, equipment included, an easy first step beneath the surface for newcomers and seasoned swimmers alike, with underwater camera for hire to capture that first shared descent.

Thrill-seekers can take the fast lane with Chase the Blue, a jet ski dash to a secluded reef followed by a guided snorkel, with photo kit and extra reef time for those not quite done with the water.

Love: Slow Hours and Soft Landings

As afternoon tips into evening, Love at Golden Hour carries lovebirds across the lagoon with sparkling wine in hand and a mellow soundtrack, while the sky pulls off what no filter ever could.

Physical touch takes centre stage at EsKape Spa with In the Ocean’s Rhythm, a 90-minute side-by-side ritual inspired by the tide’s ebb and flow, using sweeping palm strokes and bespoke aromatherapy oils to quieten busy minds. For those wanting the best for both, An Island Ritual for Two fills the hours from late afternoon to nightfall, carrying the calm of a shared massage into a dusk cruise and an intimate dinner, before a villa turndown closes the night.

Partners booking two massages also leave with a parting gift: A Lasting Touch, a complimentary massage oil or essential oil that keeps the spa-day glow alive long after the tan fades.

The Main Character Edit

For those after the full rom-com arc without lifting a finger, The Perfect Day for Love strings every chapter together: a private breakfast, a spa interlude, a twilight sail and a Champagne supper with live music, with a personal photographer capturing enough content for a relationship hard launch, or a camera roll to revisit on the next anniversary. In the end, the itinerary is just the frame; the real story is everything in between. That, above all, is what the island makes room for at Eri.

Rooms start from £321 per night on a Full Board basis when booking directly. All experiences run daily from 12–16 February 2027 unless stated otherwise, some requiring reservations at least six hours ahead.

This Valentine’s, The Nautilus Maldives invites guests to embrace Love Freely, a celebration centred on freedom, presence, connection and time for one another. On this ultra-luxury bohemian private island hideaway, love finds its own rhythm through quiet mornings, shared discoveries and intimate evenings that invite you to linger.

Time to Rediscover One Another

Set sail as the sun goes down, sipping champagne as live music accompanies your journey and your private chef prepares a bespoke five-course dinner. Beneath the stars, linger over each course, with time for conversation, laughter and quiet moments together as the evening unfolds at your own pace. Beneath the Surface, Together invites beginners to discover scuba diving as a couple, followed by an unhurried dinner. With Roots of Our Story, coral or coconut-tree planting offers a living expression of a journey shared. These experiences, along with the specially curated rituals at Solasta Spa, are available from 11 to 17 February 2027.

Stillness and Connection at Solasta Spa

Solasta Spa embraces the spirit of Healing Unscripted. An Unhurried Embrace pairs a couples massage with a hibiscus milk bath, champagne and chocolate-dipped tropical fruits. Stillness, Shared brings together a body scrub, Tao’an tea bath and sound healing, while Love in Bloom combines Balinese massage and a nourishing facial. Enjoyed together or individually, each ritual invites a gentle return to yourself.

A Table for Two, A Moment to Keep

On 14 February, A Horizon for Two brings a secluded sandbank dinner with sunset cocktails, five courses and a live serenade, followed by floating breakfast the next morning. A Moment in Thyme pairs beachside dining with breakfast in bed, while Together Beneath the Stars offers a champagne dinner at Zeytoun. At Naiboli, Nautilus Rising: A Toast to Connection welcomes guests to share cocktails, canapés and easy conversation.

Love, at Your Own Pace

At The Nautilus, Love Freely is an invitation to reconnect through shared discoveries, thoughtful gestures and the pleasure of simply being together.

To discover Love Freely: Valentine’s 2027 and begin crafting your own romantic escape to The Nautilus, visit the resort’s website or contact hello@thenautilusmaldives.com.

When Frank and Heike Reestorff returned to Villa Nautica for the third time, they had one rather unusual plan for their 25th anniversary: to get married underwater.

The couple had mentioned the idea to the diveOceanus team during a stay the previous November. Both are divers, and what they had in mind was relatively simple: a small ceremony at a shallow site, with their family and closest friends alongside them.

For their return, the team settled on Maagiri Reef, where a sandy section of the top reef provided the setting.

The ceremony itself was built around a heart-shaped frame, with streams of bubbles rising around the wedding party from cylinders positioned nearby. As talking underwater was obviously out of the question, Frank and Heike’s wedding words were engraved onto wooden plaques in German.

Their son and his girlfriend joined them, as did two close friends who had never dived before. The pair completed Discover Scuba Diving with diveOceanus at Villa Nautica before the wedding so they could take part rather than watch from the boat. diveOceanus Villa Nautica is a PADI 5 Star Dive Resort, with programmes ranging from first-time scuba experiences through to further dive training.

Villa Nautica Dive Center Manager Mohamed Arzan officiated the ceremony underwater. Earlier this year, Arzan was named Diving Personality of the Year at the Hotelier Maldives Awards 2026, where he was recognised for his leadership of dive operations, marine knowledge, mentoring and service quality.

The wedding spread beyond the dive site. Back on the island, the Villa Nautica team helped prepare the boat for the occasion, arranged details for the couple’s return and made sure the day was recorded underwater and from the air.

For a resort used to honeymoons, anniversaries and weddings, the setting was new. This was Villa Nautica’s first underwater wedding.

It also came with a nice sense of continuity. Frank and Heike were not guests who had chosen the island from a wedding brochure; they had already stayed twice, had dived there before, and returned with an idea they had first discussed with people they already knew.

Villa Nautica’s romance credentials extend beyond this one ceremony. The resort has received three consecutive nominations for Indian Ocean’s Leading Honeymoon Resort at the World Travel Awards from 2023 to 2025, and was selected for National Geographic Traveller (UK)’s Luxury Collection 2025 and 2026. Its pool was also named Best Resort Pool in the Maldives at the Travel + Leisure Luxury Awards Asia Pacific in both 2025 and 2026.

The couple’s verdict was shorter.

“Everything was simply perfect and beyond expectations.”

Heike was moved to tears when she saw the underwater setting. When the couple left Villa Nautica, the German wedding plaques and congratulations banner went home with them.

For the resort, it was a first. For Frank and Heike, it was how they chose to mark 25 years together.