Soneva Jani features bright stars above inside even when the roof is closed. I like the entangled vines so faithful mimic the starfish texture.
Best of the Maldives: Carpet – Velaa
Design is about creating a feeling with ingredients. Some might consider a carpet at a Maldives resort an unnecessary extravagance. The typically stone floors feel cooler to the touch in the hot climate so why spring the expense for something so seemingly extraneous. Well, it’s all part of the Velaa vibe which is possibly the most homey of any resort we have been too. Which is not surprising since the very genesis of the resort was as the resort owner’s private vacation home that eventually grew to a resort in its own right.
Most hotel properties try to get by with spartan décor to cut costs. This approach is why do many hotel rooms seem to sterile and uninviting even if they are done with panache and style. Velaa’s villas feel like someone’s home you are visiting. Only at a home would you put so much care into adding so many details which I’ve highlighted before. The rugs are not cheap industry bulk buys, but really elegant orientals that add a distinctive touch of style as well as warmth.
Best of the Maldives: Seaside Pitches – Kandima
As the football season winds down caped by Liverpool’s win last night, more and more footie stars are heading to the Maldives for some post-season recuperative therapy. Bunyamin’s legendary feed is packed recently with star players invading paradise over the past week.
If they start to miss kicking around the ball, then the most idyllic venue would be Kandima’s seaside pitch. Kind of evokes the luxurious coastal cachet of AC Monaco’s Stade Louis II (while the infrastructure is undoubtedly more modest, one could argue that the scenery is even better). Yes, most of the players are resident staff, but guests are always welcome to join in. Most of the time, these football grounds are sequestered in the interior of the island in the staff area. But Kandima has kindly situated its pitch right by the beach. So for the spectators, if the match gets boring (like most of last nights Champions League final), they can always gaze out on the picturesque ocean. Of maybe, amble over to the adjacent badminton court with the same seaside positioning some racquet fun.
Best of the Maldives: Football Pitch Profile – Hurawalhi
Everyone will be clamouring for the best seat in the house (or pub) to watch the culmination of the football season with the Tottenham vs. Man City Champions League game today (though it will be tough to match the excitement of the semis which got them both here). Fortunately, at Hurawalhi, all the guests are treated to a fine view of the periodic staff matches. Unlike most resorts, the pitch is not segregated in the back out of sight in a sequestered staff area, but front and (literally) center (of the fitness facilities) that makes it all the more encouraging for guests to join in or watch. And the grounds themselves are as high standard as the 5-star property itself with state of the art flood lit astro turf.
Best of the Maldives: Table Grill – Finolhu
If the walk from the buffet grill to your table is just too many seconds where your food can cool off. Or if you want to take a hands on control of getting your food grilled precisely to your liking (with the opportunity to conveniently pop it back on for a bit if not quite right), then the “table grill” at Finolhu’s Kanusan restaurant is the place for you.
Not the pokey tea lamp warmers, but a proper mini-grill on your table. The charcoal used is made on the island from waste wood and is accented with sprigs of lemon grass for a bit of exotic infusion.
Best of the Maldives: Fish Cooking Class – Park Hyatt Hadahaa
You don’t get much more fresh or more local than reef fish caught with your own hands a few hours earlier in the ocean just yards away. While many resorts will grill up the catch from your fishing excursion, Park Hyatt Hadahaa lets you take the “by my own hands” vibe a step further with a fish cooking class so you can take it all the way from sea to seasoning yourself…
- “Learn how to create the perfect marinade and discover the secrets behind grinding and mixing traditional Maldivian spices used to prepare local fish. Our chef offers this culinary class amid the Maldivian surroundings of The Island Grill.”
The class is available on request from 3:00 – 4:00 pm at The Island Grill with a $75 USD per person charge.
Best of the Maldives: Fresh Pasta Station – Cocoon
Best of the Maldives: Maldivian Cuisine Night – Makunudu
Over two decades I have been to countless “Maldivian Nights” at resort restaurants, but none so extensive as Makunudu’s lavish and authentic spread. Sometimes “Maldivian Night” is primarily little more than a bunch of reef fish curry. But Makunudu’s included all sort of delicacies and ingredients (the photos here provide a sample of the cuisine on offer). My favourite had to be the Fried Tapioca Chips which I had never sampled in all my years visiting despite being a huge tapioca fan.
Best of the Maldives: Coconut Spa Treatments – Vakkaru
If you want to not just wear, but infuse yourself with the blossoming fruit of paradise, then Vakkaru’s Signature Journey at Merana Spa will immerse you in the soothing and regenerative oils of the coconut in nearly every manner imaginable…
· “Our signature treatment at the overwater Merana Spa is a 150-minute immersive full-body journey inspired by the finest natural healing and moisturising elements of the coconut. Treatment includes a 15-minute coconut haircare experience, followed by a coconut and sugar body scrub, milk bath with coconut-based nourishments served during your bath and finally, this unique ritual includes a body massage with steamed coconut shell to leave you feeling relaxed, balanced and rejuvenated.”
This cuckoo for coconuts extravagance actually harkens back to the island’s heritage as a coconut plantation with over 1400 coconut trees before it was made into a resort.
Best of the Maldives: Jewellery – Vommuli
Taking inspiration from the Maldives is a range maker of jewellery inspired by the tapestry of dappled colours both twinkling across its gentle waters, adorning the schools of tropical fish underwater, and filtering through the canopy of swaying palm trees. Ritika Ravi is part of the St. Regis Vommuli family herself and her visits there sparked her design
- “Ritika Ravi’s jewellery line gives precious stones like polki and sapphires a contemporary, sea-inspired makeover Cartier’s perennial favourite, the stackable rings, meets Gucci’s enamelled and bejewelled ones, but with an Indian aesthetic, in Ritika Ravi’s Ivar Jewellery. The inaugural collection, 10.18, is a combination of gems with white and rose gold, ‘inspired by a vacation to the Maldives’. Ravi used polki (uncut diamonds) and sapphires from Sri Lanka to mimic the crystal clear waters and the many shades of blue of the sea surrounding the tropical island… While she largely retails online, her only brick-and-mortar store is, quite fittingly, at her family-owned The St Regis Maldives Vommuli Resort.”
Prices range from $300 – $400 and can be bought at her online shop at Ivar Jewellery.
This latest example of “Maldives Inspired Design” has in turn inspired me to add a tag for it.
