Deep-sea
includes food, beer, wine and spirits, as well as a diving session or spa treatment.
It also includes access to the gym, unlimited snorkelling excursions and equipment, non-motorised water sports (windsurfing, catamaran, canoe, kayak and stand-up paddle board), one adventure excursion and one sunset fishing excursion.
But you will have to pay extra for activities such as jetskiing, big game fishing, a dolphin cruise or visiting nearby islands – as well as the £200 return speedboat trip for adults from the airport at Malé.
Guests have a choice between an Earth Villa (with or without pool) on the island, with the beach about 15 yards from your front door and only a couple of bean bags and sunbeds in your way.
There are also Wind Villas (with or without pool) – the over-water wooden chalets stretching into the blue ocean.
Pools really are an unnecessary luxury. The lagoon –the shallows surrounding the island before it drops off into the reefs – is perfect for swimming.
There is a ladder straight into the water – and rooms have glass floors, so you can keep an eye on the tropical fish and rays from inside, including at night with spotlights.
The Earth Villas have an outdoor shower and bath, with probably better space and more privacy in their outdoor areas (though the Wind Villas all face the ocean, not each other or inland).
Larger versions are available for families, and guests can drop kids off at a babysitter for €15 for two hours. All rooms have a butler who is in charge of their stay and the minibar and champagne rack were restocked twice a day.
We ate and drank so much at the restaurants there was little need for it, but it’s nice to know you won’t run out of pinot grigio.
There are four main restaurants: The Palms is the main site for breakfast, lunch and dinner, with a self-serve global buffet for starters Post-dinner bathing indulgence Luxurious villa and desserts, with cooking stations dotted about, where chefs prepare a selection of delicious mains. The smaller R.A.W opens for lunch and offers sushi platters and other healthy food and drink options.
The Indoceylon restaurant is open for dinner, serving high-end South Asian and Chinese cuisine. The M6m underwater restaurant is a treat Each guest staying four nights gets one visit to the M6m underwater restaurant, for a fantastic fivecourse seafood degustation menu with matching wines.
It could be a gimmick but the quality of cooking (the buttered lobster and the crème brûlée martini were highlights) and service delivered a wonderful experience – all while we watched colourful underwater wildlife during feeding time (theirs and ours!).
The resort’s main pool bar served hot snacks in the afternoon and evening, while a new gin bar served top cocktails at night.
One night a week everyone on