A four-star island in Laamu Atoll with a saltwater lake in the middle, a large lagoon and beach villas facing the ocean or the lake.
Rahaa is a four-star resort on Kudafares in Laamu Atoll, in the south of the Maldives. The island has a saltwater lake inside it and sits in what the resort calls one of the biggest lagoons in the Maldives, with one of the longest house reefs. Getting there takes a domestic flight to Kadhdhoo and a speedboat.
There are two kinds of villa, both on the ground. Ocean View Villas (77 m²) are on the beachfront among palms, with an outdoor daybed, and Lake View Villas (75 m²) face the lake, with a terrace, daybed and dining table and an en suite bathroom with an outdoor shower. Each sleeps three.
Meals are at Kaagé, a beachfront restaurant with buffets and an à la carte menu, live cooking stations on theme nights and a Maldivian night. Dhirun'Bar looks over the ocean and turns into a cocktail bar with music at night, Ko'Bar serves drinks and pizza at sunset with hammocks to lie in, and Kream makes its own ice cream. There's the Rahaa Spa and a fitness room, PADI diving, water sports from kayaks to wakeboarding, and dolphin, sunset and stargazing cruises.
The website is thin and gives no transfer details or villa count. It mentions private pools, but neither villa page nor the booking engine lists one, so don't count on a pool. There are no overwater villas.
On the beachfront among palms and lush foliage, with views of the Indian Ocean, an outdoor daybed and a terrace. Sleeps three.
King bed
Facing the island's saltwater lake, with a terrace with a daybed and dining table, an en suite bathroom with an outdoor shower, and sunsets over the palms. Three adults, or two adults and a child.
King bed
The same resort and the same villa, booked through people who live here.
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International buffets for breakfast, lunch and dinner plus an à la carte menu, with theme nights, live cooking stations, live music and a Maldivian night
Cocktails, beer, wine and spirits; relaxed by day, a cocktail bar with music and dancing at night
Drinks, handcrafted cocktails and a signature pizza at sunset, with hammocks
Homemade ice cream, from classic flavours to local ones
Treatments by in-house therapists, plus a fitness centre
PADI instructors, equipment for all levels, and reefs with manta rays and turtles
Kayaks, paddleboards, windsurfing, tubes, water skiing, wakeboarding, jet skis and glass-bottom boat rides
Sunset, stargazing and dolphin cruises, local island visits, sport fishing, speedboat trips and moonlight sailing
The shape comes from OpenStreetMap, simplified: a guide to the layout, not a survey. © OpenStreetMap contributors.
A domestic flight from Malé to Kadhdhoo in Laamu Atoll, then a speedboat. The resort's website doesn't give times; travel sites put the flight at about 55 minutes and the boat at 20 to 30.
Dates, budget, who is coming. We will come back with three resorts that fit, and why.
