Big Mac

Yes yes I know... not another bloody Maldives thread!!!

So I'm looking for a quick 3 nights getaway to the Maldives (from Singapore) but I'm having a hard time finding the "perfect" resort.
Can someone help me narrow my search?

My requirements are:
1. An overwater bungalow (or the illusion of one)
2. Turquoise water... lots of it and not of the rocky (reefs?) or murky variety
3. A great beach (equal or better than Amanpulo)
4. Not breaking the bank like the Cheval Blanc (I'm fine with a Four Seasons/Aman or similar type of resort)

Other than that I do not have any other requirements (maybe not rustic/old looking).

Thanks in advance.
Gavin

scented

Cheval Blanc Randheli would fit your requirements interestingly -- it is a splendid resort, although expensive.

What struck me though was the fact that on almost all of the dates I checked FS Landaa was about the same rate as CBR. Although FS was a bit lower in terms of incidentals, F&B...

It is really useful to check specific dates and offers. Maldives are becoming increasingly expensive, almost as fast as those island sink back into sea.

ridefar

Well they aren't sinking... yet. (Which makes me want to start a new thread: luxury resorts with no coral bleaching; or luxury resorts with scenery threatened by global warming. Seriously.)

If you like a more modern design, Amilla Fushi would meet your requirements, OP. I would imagine the new St. Regis would too; although I can't recommend it personally (never stayed there) and it goes a totally different direction design wise than Amila.

Flyloha

Welp... haven't been yet, but booked Kandolhu in November and checks all those boxes for us at least. We're going with the Ocean Pool Villa and it's AI as well, but a la carte unlike most others.

kmd0506

I've mentioned Baros in other threads, as we have had 2 great experiences there in their overwater villas. Some of the reasons we like it is that it is only a 25-ish min boat transfer from the airport which saves a ton of time on a short trip with no daylight limitations on transfers, and there are no kids under the age of 8 allowed.
If you are looking at a short trip, I would recommend looking at resorts with boat transfers as I have seen reports of hours waiting and stops on seaplanes which can take a big piece of your vacation time on a short trip.

DSI

If you're going for three nights I would not recommend a seaplane. Get something with a boat. If waiting around for a seaplane uses up a quarter of a day on both ends, that's a sixth of your vacation. Not worth it even if the place is spectacular.

Unlike most posters in this forum, I've only been to two resorts in the Maldives. I really liked COMO Cocoa Island when we went.

Unlike Aman hotels, the food is very good. Unlike Aman, it's not overpriced.

MikeFromTokyo

Gili Lankanfushi

chinmoylad

As nice as the beaches in Maldives are, you're going to struggle with #3 .

I echo the sentiments - if only staying for 3 nights, I would seriously consider forgoing anything that requires a seaplane, which means you may have adjust some of your expectations accordingly as well.

tcmb99

try jumeirah vittaveli, much cheaper than CB, 20 min boat ride, large island, great villas.

there are certain names here like FS, CB, OORR but honestly I was surprised with what Jumeirah Vittaveli had to offer. As a brand name they are not in the same category, but the product they offered was very good.

grumbler

For 3 days - FS Kuda Huraa. Easy access from MLE. The beach/coral part is not as good as what one might get in a seaplane accessible resort, but you won't have time to do that.

kzap

I would say Cocoa Island has a good house reef, over water, and good food. Beach is nice also but hard to compare to Pulo. Also it will be cheaper than most just do not expect huge villas.

0bsidian

Kuda Huraa is a great choice, we loved our time there. Landaa is also great.

chinmoylad

I've only seen the photos - but the villas look neither very big or nor very impressive - quite a few steps down from what's considered luxury on this forum I'd imagine. Anyone been/reviewed?

chinmoylad

Not sure where to post this - but useful to have.

Details/compares some basic room info - if you click into them, some of them even give you a basic render of what the villa looks like (from a layout perspective - different from a black+white layout or a proper photo):
http://maldivescomplete.com/maldives...spx?resort=508

@Kagehitokiri - something to store away?

ridefar

I have been. The beach villas and OWB are certainly large enough to be considered luxury (250 sq m). Photos do a poor job of conveying the size I guess. We stayed at a beach villa with pool, and it was absolutely at or above the standard of other luxury properties. The design (white, modern) may not be to everybody's taste, and in that sense is probably much like Six Senses properties -- you either really like it or really hate it. Service, food, etc. were all up to luxury standards.

BTW... just to offer a comparison. We have been to Amanpulo a few times, and while not Amanpulo, Amilla is at least somewhat comparable. But a comparison wouldn't be ridiculous, and which I would choose would have more to do with travel times and logistics first, and activities/amenities second, as opposed to saying: Amilla doesn't compare to Amanpulo so Amanpulo is going to win every time. Not the case at all. In that sense, I would guess it ranks with OORR, or FS Maldives properties. It isn't CBRH or Velaa or Soneva Jani (and doesn't charge those rates either). But the flip side of that coin is it has very good snorkelling on the house reef (CBRH doesn't), isn't uptight (CBRH is). While I would love to have the time and money to offer a better comparison to other Maldives resorts, I would hazard to guess that it ranks in the top 10, and talking to other guests and a couple TAs while there they shared the same opinion (actually everybody there who had stayed at multiple resorts ranked it as their number one choice.)