Opening our weekend travel double bill, Karen Yates escapes to Milaidhoo in the Maldives, where manta ray encounters, over-water spa rituals and sunset-deck villas create a boutique island sanctuary devoted to wellness and barefoot luxury…
While September is wellness month at Milaidhoo, with thoughts of detoxing, living well and planning for the year ahead in most people’s minds, New Year is an ideal time to consider a trip to this beautiful small island on Baa Atoll in the Indian Ocean.
To reach this secluded destination, I took a flight to Malé, the Maldivian capital, followed by a 45-minute, 126km flight on a small Manta Air plane, during which you can look out of the window to see the clear blue sea dotted with turquoise reefs and tiny islands, including Milaidhoo, which is just 300 by 180 metres. How appropriate after all that travelling that I’m booked in for a Serenity Bespoke massage, designed especially for travel-weary bodies, one of the many personalised treatments on Milaidhoo’s new Serenity Spa menu.
The spa itself, tucked behind aquamarine wooden doors and foliage and set in four over-water villas with double treatment rooms, is where I meet Lona, my masseuse. Despite her petite size, Lona’s strong hands deliver 90 minutes of intense and soothing muscle release, which along with the sound of the sea and calming music leaves me feeling physically unlocked after the flights, rehydrated, recharged and ready to enjoy everything this enchanting small island has to offer.
I start by investigating my water villa. Milaidhoo was opened in late 2016 and the villas are modern, spacious and airy with lots of pale wood, a king-sized bed facing a large wooden deck with a private infinity pool, a swing couch, a large day bed, a table and chairs and a view out to sea and the sunset. Inside, there’s a freestanding bath, which one evening my butler (all guests have a dedicated butler), Abdullah, runs for me and fills with petals without me asking – I suspect he was feeling underutilised. The bathroom also has a sea view and a walk-in shower stocked with Acqua di Parma bath products. A complimentary half bottle of Champagne awaits all guests. As you’d expect from such an idyllic honeymoon destination, the villas and infinity pool offer an easy way to while away the time.
The following day, I attend a private healing session in the spa. Every September Milaidhoo invites a healer for a residency; when I visit (in late 2025) the resident healer is reiki practitioner Emilie Chanon, who is French but now lives in Hoi An, Vietnam. After a consultation, Emilie leads me to her serene treatment room for a reiki session, during which I lie on the table as she walks around me, sometimes touching me very gently, sometimes not, with the intention of shifting any stress and grief. Afterwards, I feel fresher and as if a weight had lifted. Emilie notes that I am standing taller and offers sage advice to take away with me.
My third visit to the spa is for a facial massage. The spa’s new menu includes the Diamond Inhibit Zero Gravity with LYMA; Milaidhoo’s is the only spa in the Maldives where you can experience this low-level laser therapy. For a heavenly hour my face is treated to all sorts of rituals (cleansing, toning, a mask, serums, creams) and massaged thoroughly using Natura Bissé products. The laser is used for about 10 minutes. Afterwards, my face feels clean, pampered and radiant, so much so that others tell me I’m glowing.
The spa is also home to the over-water yoga pavilion. Complimentary hatha yoga classes take place here daily at 8am, with the mats arranged to give guests a view out to sea, on the beach outside the Compass Pool Bar or in the pool – your butler can let you know where. Additionally, private yoga sessions can be organised on request for a fee.
As luck would have it, my visit coincides with the annual gathering of manta rays at Hanifaru Bay, so one afternoon I join marine biologist Nairika (Rikky), dive instructor Martina and a few guests to sail out on a speedboat for 20 minutes to reach the crescent-shaped bay in Baa Atoll UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and hopefully see these extraordinary creatures. As we jump off the boat and into the warm water, I put on my snorkel and eye mask and very soon see not only schools of fish swimming in huge swirling groups like murmurations of starlings but large numbers of manta rays, each the width of a double bed with open mouths that could easily swallow a human head.
But these are friendly creatures, here to feed not on us but the plenteous plankton surrounding the fish. Despite their huge size, the mantas are graceful as they swim around us, sometimes in a line as they pass but also in random patterns, occasionally inquisitive about our presence and swimming up to us. We stay in the water for around 45 minutes until the sea begins to swell, then swim back to the boat, everyone amazed by what they have seen and aware of how lucky we are to have experienced the manta rays in such large numbers and at such proximity.
Milaidhoo also offers excursions on a dhoni (traditional Maldivian boat) to see the spinner and bottlenose dolphins that live on the reef. As with the mantas, nothing is guaranteed but you might be lucky. Far closer to home and with no boat required, snorkelling is possible on the house reef, just a few metres from the beach, and where you can see plenty of tropical fish including Maldivian clownfish, yellow and black angel fish, butterfly fish, oriental sweetlips, wrasse and plenty more, many dazzlingly colourful and all as graceful as the mantas as they feed on the healthy reef. Guided turtle or night snorkelling sessions are also available.
Ba’theli restaurant, named after the traditional cargo boat used to take spices between the islands it’s housed in, is the world’s only fine-dining restaurant serving Maldivian food as well as the only one set in a dhoni. We start with cocktails on the deck outside, surrounded by the peace of the lagoon under a starry sky. Inside the glass-bottomed boat, my dining companions order the Maldivian heritage degustation menu while I opt for a Maldivian coconut salad and a mildly spiced southern Maldivian chicken curry with steamed basmati rice from the à la carte menu. All the dishes work well with the sommelier’s choice of a chilled Riesling.
A more casual option is the Compass Pool Bar, where we sip wine chosen by the sommelier (a chilled Chablis, the perfect match for seafood) with fresh fish caught by waiter Shamveel, who enjoys fishing in his spare time. His catch includes mahi mahi, ruby, sail fish, red and white snapper and local tuna. Sustainably sourced mussels, crab and salmon imported from Australia are also an option. I choose a selection of fresh local fish with steamed rice and salad. Starters and puddings are available from the buffet, along with cheese and an impressive wine collection stored in a chilled room.
Fresh fish is also plenteous at Shoreline Grill; we opt to try the chef’s table where we gather around to watch the chef as he preps and cooks a huge selection from sushi, salad and soup to start, followed by wagyu beef striploin and New Zealand salt bush grazed lamb, plus torched tiger prawns, local line-caught fish, salmon and lobster, all served with vegetables and fried rice.
Ocean Restaurant is another great choice for lunch and dinner. To start, I choose a flavourful Milaidoo salad made with organic hydro leaves from the chef’s garden, watercress, avocado, tomato, mango, peppers and hazelnut emulsion; for the main dishes my table choose fish of the day – a mixture of locally caught fish including lobster, squid and shrimp along with sea bass served with more fresh salad and rice, with lamb chops and chicken for those who want it.
There’s much to choose for lunch at Ocean Restaurant but with so much food in the evenings I order sushi most days – the screwpine (a local fruit) brûlée served with ice cream is also a winner. Finally, Ocean is the perfect breakfast venue, with its view out to sea. There’s a vast choice from fresh juices, bread and cakes (gluten free if you prefer), cereals and fruits, plus an à la carte menu with healthy options including chia pudding with blueberries, honey and coconut, granola and mixed berries; plenty of egg dishes – I love the egg white omelette with baby spinach, topped with feta cheese, tomato and olive relish; and a traditional Maldivian breakfast of green chilli and shallot omelette, tuna coconut sambal, snapper curry and chapati.
Milaidhoo’s new spa menu with full-body and facial massages including LYMA laser, yoga studio, beachside dining options that are as healthy or indulgent as you choose, snorkelling on the reef and the possibility of swimming with manta rays makes this is one of life’s more memorable wellness offerings.
Milaidhoo is a member of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World. Room rates at Milaidhoo start from US$1,025 per night for a water villa for two people on a B&B basis. For more information, visit www.milaidhoo.com.
Return Manta Air flights from Malé airport can be arranged by the hotel and cost around US$680 per person.
In Part II, Karen travels to Baros, where the Maldivian magic continues — this time beneath the surface…
