The most natural roof in the Maldives has to be the Ritz Carlton Maldives teletubbyesque “Ritz Kids” kids club. Its living turf dome provides a rare hill-like impression for its youngster haven. Its circular portal opens to an extensive playground of activities and features (see below) all protectively coddled in this knoll-y corral.
Ropes courses are a classic team building activity in the corporate world, and for those budding executives, Ritz Carlton Maldives’ “Ritz Kids Club” offers and indoor and outdoor net-protected rope climbing (and clambering) frame. With the number of these “Climbing” features going higher and higher, I’ve added a tag for them with this post.
For all the budding young Gladiators looking to burn all the excess energy of from the excitement of arriving in paradise, Emerald’s Dolphin Kids Club offers a fun obstacle course to scamper through for hours on end so when Mom and Dad pick them up they are all spent and ready to sit calmly during cocktail hour.
For those looking to burn a bit of their kid’s energy so they will be a bit more like the tranquil seas around them, Emerald’s Dolphin kids club features an in-ground trampoline (which makes it a bit safer than raised units where any tumbles fall that much further).
The Ritz Carlton Maldives kids club has come up with a way to turn all that energy from the holiday sugar-rush to productive use. The “Ritz Kids” features as a stationary bike where the pedals drive a blender to make healthy and refreshing fruit smoothies. The inspired concept made me think of a brilliant way to limit device use by children – rig one of these up to a generator and let your child use their phone as much as they like…as long as they charge it with pedal power. It could nurture a generation of Tour de France champions.
The Maldives have come a long way from when it was mostly a destination for divers and honeymooners neither of which brought along little ones. Now (except for a few resorts positioning themselves as “adult only” or “children restricted”), the vast majority of resorts not only welcome children, but cater to them with a range of treats and activities some of which make the adults envious. The centrepiece of family-friendliness is the pervasive “kids club”. These havens of youthful and safe play spaces include all sorts of exciting features, but even the most lavishly equipped and designed tend to be tucked away somewhere in the interior of the island. SAii Lagoon’s Koimala & Maalimi’s Junior Beach Club and Camp has treated its young guests to seaside venue as picturesque as the one their parent’s are enjoying with keenly savoured peace and quiet.
Rain doesn’t have to ruin your day in the Maldives. For the youngsters at Joali, the Muramas kids club (ages 4-12) has a Rainbow Stairs Room. A colourful and unique play area for jumping around, tumbling or just chilling out until the rain passes and the real rainbows come out.
Octopus Day today celebrating one of our favourite creatures (with whom we shared a particularly thrilling encounter during this summer’s tour). This year’s Maldives octopus feature is LUX North Male Atoll’s octopus sprinkler at their kids club.
If that’s not charming enough, then check out this video of an octopus sleeping and dreaming (!) that’s been going a bit viral lately…
