·         Accommodation: Budget between €400 and €700 per night, per person, with breakfast, if you want to stay in a private villa on the beach or on stilts in the very best resorts on the islands, such as the Four Seasons. At the Anantara, budget around €450 per night in low season for a private 110m2 villa on the beach, and add around another €100 for a beach villa of 165m2 with a private pool. Both prices include breakfast.

·         With package tour operators, a package including boat transfers and three nights with breakfast is often available for between €700 and €1000 (for the cheaper villas), depending on the season and not including flights, for good four-star accommodation. In order to book into a five-star hotel such as the Huvafen Fushi, the Soneva or the Taj Exotica, budget between €1000 and €1500 per night, depending on the season.

·         One night for four persons in the Presidential villa at the Taj Exotica costs between €4600 and €13,800 per night with breakfast, depending on the season.

·         Massages and Treatments: for individual treatments, the price is quoted in Dollars and is usually equivalent to what would be charged in the best spas in the capital cities of the world. At Soneva, for example, a “Spa Journey” lasting ninety minutes would cost $360, and would consist of a facial treatment, foot bath and body massage. Massages (Shiatsu, Thai, Balinese, Swedish etc) cost around $190 for fifty minutes, and ninety minutes of Hot Stone Therapy will cost around $170.

·         Activities for Well-Being: some are free, such as meditation sessions (a free thirty minute course in Dhyana meditation, for example, is available twice a week at the Conrad Rangali). Some other activities cost money (around $20 for a Tai Chi lesson lasting one hour). The five-day programs with a lifestyle consultant, at Soneva Gili and Soneva Fushi (see “Sanctuaries for the body and mind”), expect to pay around 750 Euros, plus accommodation. 

·         The Maldives Anantara Resort: on the South Malé atoll, this resort consisting of 110 villas opened its doors in August 2006 on the island of Dhigufinolhu. It offers a selection of both beach and stilt villas from 110m2 to 182m2entirely kitted out with the latest technology (plasma screens, MP3 players etc), and each suite has its own pool, facing the open ocean. It was built in a style which mixed traditional Maldivian with contemporary architecture, and it offers a wide selection of beauty treatments, courses and techniques across several days.

·         Coco Palm Bodhu Hithi: on the North Malé atoll, this resort offers 100 villas on stilts or beach built in the style of a traditional village, each with its own private pool. The interior design is contemporary, with round bathtubs, pebbles and clean lines. Villas both on the beach and on stilts are available from 144m2 to 188m2, and the hotel contains the Coco Spa, a spa like no other.

·         Four Seasons Landaa Giraavaru: on the Baa Atoll, this is a resort consisting of 102 villas opened at the end of 2006, and is the second Four Seasons resort to open in the archipelago, the other being the Four Seasons Kuda Hura. The new complex has more of a contemporary feel to it, and includes a sanctuary dedicated to Ayurveda, named the Ayurvedic Retreat, inside the Landaa Spa, which occupies one hectare. The therapists are from Kerala (the area of India where Ayurveda was born) and also from Sri Lanka. The spa also offers a detoxifying and purifying panchakarma course (only available in a two-week session), and a yoga master, resident within the resort, is always available to give lessons to those wishing to learn or just improve.

·         W Maldives Retreat & Spa: opened in 2006 on the Ari atoll, this is the first W resort on the islands. It consists of 78 individual villas, each with a private pool, set on stilts, and fitted with glass floors. Equipped with the latest gadgets, including plasma screens, mini wine cellars, exterior and interior bathrooms and much more. This resort is notable for the 15 Below bar, an underground bar offering an impressive selection of wines and spirits. And, of course, a spa.

·         Naladhu: opened in March 2007, this development consists of 19 exclusive villas, each comprising 225m2. The style mixes retro with certain influences from Sri Lanka’s colonial past. Each villa has its own private pool, solarium and landscaped garden.

·         Le Diva Resort and Spa: The former White Sands Resort and Spa was re-opened in 2006 by the Mauritanian group, Naїades Resorts, with new developments and a wide variety of improvements to the original design. Full of novelties, it offers stilt and beach villas and a skin-renewing spa, all set along a stunning 2km beach.

·         The most modern and luxurious resorts in the Maldives offer a choice between individual villas or semi-detached houses in a variety of styles. The “beach” option usually consists of a private pool between the lagoon and the patio, which is perfect for privacy. Rooms and villas on stilts are often equipped with vast Jacuzzis on their balconies or patios.

·         Stilts or sand is really a question of taste: if scuba diving is what you’re after, sleep on stilts above your own giant pool complete with calm breezes and the sound of the sea. If you prefer palms, gardens and patios, keep your feet in the sand with a villa.

·         A range of accompaniments: it is worth mentioning that several villas offer a variety of extra options with rooms, (including massage tables, Jacuzzis, king-size bathtubs and even private treatment rooms). One spa known to do this is the Village Spa in Conrad Rangali. Another is the Beach Villa Suites at the Taj Exotica, which offers personal treatment rooms for total privacy.

·         Tranquillity as standard: the layout of the Maldives makes it one of the most exclusive destinations in the world for those seeking total solitude. The island hotel system makes it extremely challenging for the paparazzi, and the private villas with room service permit visitors to remain undisturbed. Because of this the Maldives remain prized by celebrities seeking to get away from it all, and also for anybody who desires a feeling of calm during their holiday.

·         The largest villas are situated in the Private Reserve of Soneva Gili (1400m2, enough space to easily accommodate eight to ten people, situated on stilts); also very exclusive are the two “Sunset Villas” of the Conrad, situated on stilts far away from the other villas. On the island of Reethi Rai, the priority of One & Only was to place each villa as far away from the next as possible, allowing every guest their own private space, whether on the beach or in the gardens. This gives the feel of effectively doubling the size of the island.

• In the Maldives islands, luxury living is divided into two distinct types: trendy or natural. Each has a similar level of comfort and services, but it’s all about style. The islands have something for those who wish to dine out in Prada or Jimmy Choo, but also for those whose idea of fashion is linen trousers and bare feet on the sand of atolls.

•  For a feeling of island life or for an escape the time of holidays within sprawling plants and natural surroundings, we recommend the Coco Palm hotels, or perhaps Cocoa Island. For chic styling and contemporary surroundings look no further than One & Only at Reethi Rah, or Huvafen Fushi, where DJ Ravin spins the tunes for free…

·         Organic food and detoxifying cocktails: when it comes to eating, the luxury resorts of the Maldives are up to date with the latest gastronomic trends. You can eat freshly caught fish prepared painstakingly by Japanese master chefs or enjoy healthful food developed by nutrition specialists, perhaps washed down with a deliciously detoxifying seaweed cocktail…

·         Or perhaps ditch the diet and enjoy some of the finest cheeses, wines and cooked meats! On these tiny islands the cellars are full to bursting with some of the worlds finest foodstuffs, alongside stunning fresh organic food. For organic produce we recommend going to Soneva Fushi and Soneva Gili, or Cocoa Island.

·         Everywhere you walk there are candles, divine scents, ambient music and carefully arranged gardens, all of which are signs of the perfect attention paid to detail in order to create an ambience of Zen and well-being in synchronisation with the environment.

·         Coconut oil and pandanus flowers are just some of the ingredients found in the list of locally-inspired treatments offered by the resort spas which make use of beneficial plants and flowers which grow abundantly on the islands. These include massages and scrubs using grated coconut, coconut oil, and papaya and pandanus leaves, and they are all naturally great for you. Sometimes the best remedies are the sand and the sea breezes…

·         The ever-present sea: with treatment suites set upon stilts (a feature unique to Polynesia) whose floors open onto an incredible natural aquarium, and Jacuzzis with a view of the vivid ultramarine ocean beyond the coral reefs, the ever-present sea is the jewel in the island crown. The vast majority of facilities extend down to wide, unspoilt beaches, and have a stunning mix of interior and exterior spaces as a result of the balmy climate, which is set constantly at a comfortable 30˚C.

·         The latest styles: The hotels in the Maldives pride themselves on being at the cutting edge when it comes to construction materials and design. Ironically, even isolated as they are, the Maldives comprise some of the most innovative examples of seaside development, including the Underwater Spa 12 metres below the surface of Huvafen Fushi, and the Conrad Rangali’s incredible two-spa design.

·         Some resorts have a different kind of spa, where well-being is promoted through all aspects of service and amenities. These are known by the title of Sanctuaries for the body and mind.

·         One example of this is the Conrad Rangali (formerly the Rangali Hilton), which is made up of two spas. One of these is essentially a hotel within the hotel, named the Village Spa. The Village Spa has its own restaurant, treatment rooms and therapists dedicated solely to a select few villas and their privileged guests. Another spa built on similar principles is the Ayurvedic Retreat within the Four Seasons at Landaa Giraavaru, which notably offers a patchakarma cure.

·         Pilates and Yoga: Created as complete courses, these programmes offered by some resorts aim to help you build a new lifestyle in every aspect by use of stress management techniques, sensory renewal, increased self-awareness, improved diet and physical exercises based on Yoga and Pilates.

·         In the Six Senses Spa, if you feel in need of something more profound than simple massage therapies or beauty treatments to relax and de-stress, you are invited to participate in “Lifestyle Programmes” conducted over five days on any one of several themes, such as “De-stress and balance your life”, Meditation demystified”, or “Harmonise with a healthier lifestyle”. These and others are available on certain dates at Soneva Gili and at Soneva Fushi.

Another alternative is offered by the Conrad Rangali, which has a programme of 13 different activities ranging from open-air Tai-chi and candle-lit meditation sessions to Dhyana meditation (of Indian origin, this consists of dance, music therapy, Pranic healing and Yoga mantras). 

The spas offer a number of specialised cures (anti-stress, detoxifying and others) using techniques usually found only in Thalassotherapy centres, and these are generally available in courses of two to seven days.

Shorter Sessions are also available, consisting of a series of short treatments ranging from one and a half hours to three hours linked together to maximise their effects. One example is the Anantara Detox at the Anantara Resort in Maldives Islands, which offers a flower foot-bath, then a clay wrap, then a body scrub and finally a cleansing massage followed by a session of relaxation with refreshments. Meet the new you!