Business Traveller (Asia-Pacific)
MODERN GETAWAYS IN THE MALDIVES
Work, play and chill out at these luxury resorts in the Indian Ocean
After months of lockdown, escaping to paradise sounds better than ever – and the Maldives is about as synonymous with paradise as it gets. Dreamy white sands, overwater villas and dazzling marine life are just for starters. Get ready to explore new luxury resorts, holistic wellness retreats and eco-sanctuary havens, with everything from oceanfront offices to James Bond-style water toys. Whether you’re working remotely or on holiday with family, one of these eight luxury resorts is bound to have the right getaway option for you.
WFB (Work From Beach)
VAKKARU MALDIVES
Working from home is so 2020. Now, it’s all about combining work with inspiring scenery. Vakkaru Maldives, a pearl-shaped island located in the Baa Atoll, launched a dream ‘workation’ package in October 2020 that’s perfect for remote workers. Available to long-stay guests who book for 21 days or longer, Vakkaru’s Work Well package includes upgraded villas kitted out with an ocean view desk (either indoors or on your WiFi-enabled deck), a printer and stationery supplies. For any other needs, you’ve got your very own ‘Vacay PA’, who can help to manage your schedule, print documents, and book in complimentary daily sessions with your personal trainer, tennis coach or yoga guru. Free deliveries of brain-boosting foods – mini fruit kebabs, home-made granola bars, coconut milk smoothies – arrive every afternoon. vakkarumaldives.com Top tip: Ask for a villa on the southwest side of the island for easy access to the resplendent house reef.
The glitzy newcomer
RITZ-CARLTON MALDIVES RESORT AND SPA
Looking down from a seaplane it appears as if a fleet of flying saucers has landed in the North Malé Atoll – paradise doesn’t have to come with a thatched roof. The astonishing Kerry Hill design belongs to the new 100-villa Ritz-Carlton Maldives Resort and Spa located on the Fari Islands, a new man-made archipelago housing a swish marina and three luxury hotels (Patina opened in late May and Capella will follow in 2023). Some of the villas are on the beach and some are stilted over the water. All are perfect circles and perfectly private, with high ceilings, teardrop-shaped infinity pools, panoramic sliding doors and high-tech glazing to minimise the use of air-conditioning (just one part of the resort’s strong sustainability code). There’s also a dizzying choice of restaurants and a spectacular spa set in the lagoon. ritzcarlton.com
Top tip: Leave your bulky camera bag at home: the resort has a photography studio where you can rent tripods, lenses, cameras and even drones.
The hottest designer digs
PATINA MALDIVES
Patina Maldives, a haven on the Fari Islands, is a new brand from Capella Hotel Group, with a focus on high style and sustainability. Its contemporary Balinese aesthetic will appeal to fashionistas – razor-sharp lines, slatted wood panelling, rattan lampshades, soothing natural tones and large private pools the colour of opals – not to mention the hip art collection, which includes a wondrous light installation by James Turrell. The spa is another adventure; treatment rooms are open to the elements, there’s a watsu pool, a flotation zone and programmes that cover posture, sleep and immunity. Six restaurants – including plant-based Roots, Japanese-Nordic Koen, and a South American grill – stave off menu fatigue. Behind the scenes there are solar panels, zero-waste kitchens, a water bottling plant and ocean plastic recycling centre, the FabLab. patinahotels.com/maldives-fari-islands
Top tip: While an overwater villa might seem like the obvious choice, the marine life isn’t as plentiful here as other resorts, and the beach villas offer more privacy.
The barefoot classic SONEVA FUSHI
There are sanctuaries and then there’s Soneva Fushi, an imaginative island hideaway beloved by celebrities, including Madonna, Sir Paul McCartney, the Beckhams and Sonam Kapoor. It’s a magical space, large by Maldivian standards, and inhabited by a menagerie of chickens, bunny rabbits and fruit bats – and then there’s the surrounding Baa Atoll marine life, which counts more than 1,600 manta rays among its numbers. The architecture is Crusoe-esque – thatched roofs, sunbleached decks, and lemon, lime and cherry-coloured fabrics. New overwater villas feature glass floor panels, ceilings that scroll back to reveal the stars, and slides that whoosh straight into the Indian Ocean. Of the four restaurants, Fresh in the Garden is the most charming, set across a series of platforms and wooden walkways skimming the jungle canopy. A new wellness centre, with a dedicated Ayurvedic clinic, is due to land at the end of this year. soneva.com Top tip: Don’t miss a trip to the observatory to stare in wonder at the rings of Saturn.
MICE in paradise INTERCONTINENTAL MALDIVES MAAMUNAGAU
Team-building exercises on the beach, meetings in a lighthouse, inspiring community and environmental projects, sand-between-your toes power lunches and sociable sunset soirees – the Intercontinental Maldives Maamunagau on Raa Atoll has got your MICE needs covered. There are all sorts of accommodation options too – beach pool villas, lagoon pool villas, overwater pool villas, and three-bedroom family villas, with kitchens and indoor/outdoor dining spaces to host gatherings. Executive club benefits include afternoon tea, evening aperitifs and all-day soft drinks by the pool. Nonmotorised watersports – snorkelling, stand-up paddle boarding, kayaking, windsurfing – are free, and there’s a James Bond-worthy stash of aqua toys – jet skis, X-jet blades, parasailing – for those with a large expense account. maldives.intercontinental.com Top tip: The AVI Spa has a TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) practitioner who can help busy execs to destress using acupuncture, cupping and reflexolog y.
Wellness wonder FOUR SEASONS LANDAA GIRAAVARU
From daily earth blessings to pranic healing to deepreaching Panchakarma programmes, the Four Seasons Landaa Giraavaru stands out as a singular luxury resort with a wellness offering to rival anything you might find in Bali, Thailand or India. A welcome consultation with the Ayurvedic doctor will help you plot an itinerary perfectly suited to your needs, whether that’s working to improve your sleep, unravelling your crunched-up laptop neck, boosting your gut health or finding spiritual purpose. Yoga lovers will be in their element, with an ever-revolving choice of hatha, ashtanga vinyasa, aqua yoga and yoga nidra. Ayurvedic cuisine can be arranged in your villa, but you’ll find healthy options in all four of the restaurants, from reef fish crudo with yuzu and miso-crusted aubergine at the Fuego Grill, to reef fish sashimi platters and Thai green papaya salad at the Poolside Bar. Supersized villas are presented in calming creams and blues. fourseasons.com
Top tip: For an immersive experience of a completely different kind, book a ride in the resorts DeepFlight Super Falcon 3S submarine, which can descend to a depth of 120 feet (36 meters).
The ultimate all-inclusive KUDADOO
At upwards of US$4,000 a night, it might seem pricey, but when you consider how much it costs for a snack, a bottle of wine, a spa treatment, a snorkelling trip, at a typical top-end Maldives resort, Kudadoo almost starts to look like a bargain. Set on the glorious Lhaviyani Atoll, the resort has just 15 overwater villas – all with sunset views – and feels more like a private members club than a hotel. When they say you can have “Anything. Anytime. Anywhere”, they mean it. Minibars are stocked with your favourite tipples, there are six types of champagne to choose from, gourmet picnics can be taken on the sandbanks, and you could spend a whole day in the cheese and wine cellar if you wanted. Wellness treatments are unlimited, including private yoga sessions, spells in the pink Himalayan salt chamber, Tibetan singing bowl meditations, Reiki and Thai massage. Watersports are included – kiteboarding, diving, jet ski safaris and dolphin-spotting cruises. How will you fit everything in? kudadoo.com
Top tip: Ask your butler to book you an anti-oxidant rich Glow Facial on the day of your departure. It will help revive your sun-scorched complexion and keep your face hydrated on the flight home.
The multigenerational getaway JW MARRIOTT MALDIVES RESORT AND SPA
Kids will love buggying along sandy paths to rambling beaches, and the life-sized pirate ship at the Little Griffins Kids’ Club. Parents will love the unfailingly friendly service and the chance to sprawl by the adults-only infinity pool or hit the spa, where treatment suites come with plunge pools, steam rooms and saunas. Grandparents can enjoy complimentary yoga and meditation classes, or quietly read a book under a palm tree with a birdsong soundtrack. Everyone will adore the variety of restaurants, space, light, wide white beaches and giant villas. The Shaviyani Atoll is rich in marine life: look out for spinner dolphins, stingrays and grumpy looking stonefish. marriott.com
Top tip: Elite Marriott Bonvoy members can book the more expensive overwater pool villa on a standard redemption.