May Santa fill your stockings with many days in the Maldives! And may all your holidays be cheerful and bright.
Best of the Maldives: Floating Jacuzzi – The Rania Experience
Usually you have a relaxing float in the Jacuzzi, but at The Rania Experience your float can float.
Whatever floats in your boat!
Best of the Maldives: Paddleboard Yoga – Four Seasons Kuda Huraa
In the Maldives, it’s all about the water. Many yoga sessions are often at water’s edge. But Four Seasons Kuda Huraa has taken that aquatic intimacy one step further.
“Resident yogi began offering Paddle board Yoga about 5 months ago and has been doing this on a guest request basis here at Kuda Huraa.” GM Tulio Hochkoeppler
I’ve always been intrigued by those big exercise balls which provide a soft, unsteady platform which target the core muscles used for stability. If you thought balancing on land was tricky…
While FSKH’s sessions are literally as close to sea level as you can possibly have a yoga session, if you prefer the other extreme, check out Slovenian climber Martina Cufar’s nosebleed sessions.
Best of the Maldives: Breathing – Kanuhura
Happy Birthday Lori!
My devoted partner in adventure, my dive buddy, my sunset companion.
In honour of her special day, today’s post was selected by her. Very often I just can’t see and do everything on a resort in our short visits and so she ably and enthusiastically (most of the time) steps in to check certain things out. When Kanuhura suggested their ‘Pranayama’ yoga class focusing on breathing, she was not only keen, but also quite the expert on the subject. Lori recently finished her third graduate degree in the voice (Masters of Music, Masters of Voice Pathology, Speech Language Therapy Diploma) and knows a fair amount about the old wind pipes. When diving, most of the time she comes up with more air remaining in her tanks than the seasoned dive masters (so I would recommend the class not just for yoga enthusiasts, but especially for divers who want to improve their air usage).
Kanuhura describes the class as…
“Controlled breathing technique positively influence and release the flow of energy channels purifying, regulating and activating them creating physical and mental balance.”
Her assessment – “Brilliant introduction to basic yoga techniques focusing on the breathing.” If it impresses Lori then it is truly distinctive.
Best of the Maldives: Backpack Lunch – LUX* Maldives
High or low, near or far, you can find you own ideal eating spot with LUX* Maldives gourmet picnic hamper. On some of the other resorts, Lori and I would sometimes order room service and then take the tray out to to the beach for an ocean-side meal. But LUX* makes such a mini-adventure a standard offering…
“Fancy a change of scenery? How about settling down somewhere secluded with a picnic basket brimming with tasty snacks and chilled drinks for a leisure lunch in plein air. Seek out your own private spot or ask directions for to a hidden corner and we’ll take care of everything else. Unfold a straw beach mat and enjoy a variety of plates showcasing local ingredients, fresh breads, crisp salads, hot and cold courses, wines from both old world and new, indulgent desserts and fresh fruit.”
Best of the Maldives: Top Table – Soneva Fushi
No collection of tree top vistas would be complete without one of the first, Soneva Fushi’s ‘Fresh in the Garden’ restaurant. Sort of Sun Island ‘Zero’ on steroids. And in the open air. Instead of a canopy of tropical plants, you get a canopy of sparkling stars. And if any provoke your curiosity in particular, the Soneva Fushi observatory is conveniently attached by an elevated walkway.
Best of the Maldives: Jungle Treehouse Restaurant – Sun Island
The Maldives is turning out to be an eight-year old boy’s paradise with all of the treehouses going up, up, up. The Sun Island rendition graces its ‘Zero’ restaurant set in a plush copse of dense tropical jungle. I’m so used to the dappled blues of the ubiquitous ocean, that I was struck by the shifted palette of greens of all shades and hues backdropping this exotic dining venue. Appropriately, the restaurant specialises in ‘greens’, especially salads freshly picked from its adjacent hydroponic garden.
Very Swiss Family Robinson chic.
Best of the Maldives: Beach Treehouse Restaurant – Viceroy
Things are looking up in the Maldives.
Another newcomer, Viceroy Maldives, introduces an elevated aesthetic to their resort (eg. Soneva Fushi) with the height of culinary distinction at their Treehouse restaurant…
“Our Treehouse is an Arabic lounge; perfect venue for pre or post dinner drinks, serving Shisha, Arabic sweets and traditional Arabic cuisine mezze style. It has a distinctive middle east feel at atmosphere, Arabic music plays in the evenings and the lounge seating is decorated with multiple cushions in a traditional Arabic way. The Treehouse lures guests with its exotic flavors of the Middle East and features a selection of hot or cold mezzes from the region. The Treehouse has an ideal location at the island's southernmost tip; generous cushions and loungers are artfully placed to allow guests to choose an intimate or livelier setting. While some will sip drinks before dinner during the drama of a Maldives sunset, others may choose to climb up for a more scenic seating overlooking the lagoon for an unparalleled view of the starry sky. The Treehouse is the perfect spot for pre and post dinner drinks, smoking a shisha, and savoring some sweet delights.”
Given more resorts offering this raised perspectives, I’ve gotten a bit more granular in my distinctions. They all seem worthy of mentions and all vary in some manner. Viceroy’s treehouse is located right near the water offering lovely views across the lagoon (see below). And it is a true tree-‘house’ with a sun (and elements) shielding roof.
Best of the Maldives: Room Height – Paradise Island / The Haven
Check out the post the time on this entry. How cool is that?
Looking for something to mark this unique moment of ‘12’, I’ve chosen Paradise Island’s Haven Suite doors which are 12 feet tall. So are the showers. The drench showers do really feel like rain from heaven. In England, we moved to a converted barn just to get that vertical, cathedral-like spaciousness.
Big island means big stuff, The spaciousness is as vertical as it is horizontal in places especially The Haven Suites. Spa rooms were bigger than many gardens in the UK. And there were 15 of them. The spa seemed to go on for acres. And the spa entry itself had 3 distinct and distinctive water fountains with water cascading down.
I guess combined with their basketball supremacy and their super sized Haven Suites, Paradise Island is the also best for tall people.
Best of the Maldives: Bread – Lily Beach
Give us this day our daily bread. And you could have a different bread every day for nearly a month at Lily Beach. They bake 23 types of bread in the buffet but also used in dishes like the mini mushroom pizzas (see above). They also feature a Tandoori oven to cook fresh nan bread (the garlic and butter nan is amazing).
