Honest review
The new Le Méridien Maldives Resort & Spa, which opened in September 2021, gives its guests every chance to savour a holiday in one of the most picturesque places on the planet. Under the motto 'travel is an art!', the French hotel and resort brand has prepared engaging, event-filled entertainment programmes for its guests, blending the culture, nature, art and traditions of the archipelago with the romance and European chic that defined grand travel in the middle of the last century.
The resort of 141 villas sits on the island of Thilamaafushi in the southern part of Lhaviyani Atoll, just a 35-minute seaplane flight from the airport. In this secluded spot, surrounded by lagoons of sun-shimmering water, guests can set dull routine aside for a while and give themselves over to a holiday full of romance, aimless strolls and unforgettable impressions!
Bicycles can be hired on the resort grounds. Cost: $10 to hire one bicycle for a full day, from 6 am to 6 pm. All money earned from bicycle hire goes to charity.
The name Thilamaafushi translates from the local Dhivehi language as 'island surrounded by a wide lagoon'. This nine-hectare natural island has kept its rich flora and fauna even as a popular resort. It is ringed by coral reefs, seagrass meadows and mangrove forests — a unique environment that sustains the biodiversity of the entire local ecosystem. It is easy to feel like Robinson Crusoe here, but there is an even more interesting option for those who love complete seclusion: on Bodu Finolhu, the resort's private uninhabited island nearby, a wealth of activities awaits. You can picnic on the ocean shore, admire a fantastic sunset, count the stars in the sky, or relax in the company of a photographer who will capture the brightest moments by drone or camera.
Enjoy every minute of your journey and discover the Maldives through special entertainment programmes. For example, the weekly 'Au Soleil' culinary events at Le Méridien Maldives Resort & Spa bring summer moods and new flavours in the rays of the setting sun: during the 'golden hour' before sunset, guests can sample canapés specially prepared by the chef and signature Rosé-based cocktails, along with handmade Le Scoop ice cream or sorbet from Le Méridien, to live music and the sound of ocean waves. Romantics can bask in the last rays of the sun in the open-air pavilion of Tabemasu, the resort's signature Japanese restaurant, enjoying the many-coloured sunset and a masterfully prepared omakase-style menu. Family travellers will love the edutainment programme in the resort's huge greenhouse, where visitors learn the finer points of hydroponic growing and are then invited to join a cooking master class and lunch at The Greenhouse restaurant.
To bring children, teenagers and adults closer to the environment around them, Le Méridien Maldives Resort & Spa has launched the Thilamaafushi Marine Master's course in partnership with dive operator and resort partner Sub Oceanic and the resident marine biologist. With their help, guests can learn about the atoll's topography, observe the health of the corals and learn to identify species of turtles, rays and sharks. The programme consists of short modules that can be taken together or separately. The modules are adapted for all ages, from small children to teenagers and adults. Especially interesting are the 'Mangroves 101' module, in which guests visit the mangrove forests preserved on the island and learn about marine life and birds, and the 'Sea Jumper' module, whose participants head out to the seagrass meadows together with the marine biologist.
