A long South Ari island with a house reef on both sides, whale sharks in the atoll year-round, and separate family and adults-only areas.
Vilamendhoo is 900 metres long and 250 wide, in South Ari Atoll, a 25-minute seaplane flight from the airport. It's run by Crown & Champa Resorts and pitched at divers: the house reef is a short swim from the shore on both sides, there are more than 50 dive sites nearby, and the atoll is one of the few places with whale sharks all year.
The 184 rooms are simple island villas. Families take Tropical Villas in the garden, Beachfront Villas or Adjacent Beachfront Villas (two under one roof, 55 m² each); the Romantic Beachfront Villas and Romantic Ocean Villas over the water are for adults over 18.
Full board is always included: families eat at the Funama buffet, adults in the romantic villas at Ahima. Asian Wok, over the water, does Asian dishes and teppanyaki, and Faru is the seafood restaurant. There are four bars, including the adults-only Sunset Bar with an infinity pool, plus Euro-Divers, Duniye Spa and the Heron Kids Club.
The villas are simple island-style rooms rather than pool villas, and it's a big resort. Everyone is on at least full board, so there's no cheaper room-and-breakfast rate.
Villas in the gardens, otherwise the same as the Beachfront Villas, with a private porch and a partly open-air bathroom.
King bed
Two villas under one roof with separate entrances, on the beach, for families and friends.
King bed
Renovated individual bungalows a few steps from the beach.
King bed
Adults-only beach villas (18 and over) with a bathtub and a Nespresso machine.
King bed
Adults-only overwater villas (18 and over) with a bathtub; guests eat at the adults-only Ahima buffet.
King bed
The same resort and the same villa, booked through people who live here.
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Family buffet with live cooking stations and a Maldivian night every Friday, in an open-air, sand-floored building
Adults-only buffet for guests in the romantic villas
Asian dishes and teppanyaki over the water
Signature seafood restaurant
Adults-only bar with a freshwater infinity pool
24-hour bar on an overwater deck
Dive and water-sports centre
Spa treatments
Supervised indoor and outdoor play by the family pool
The shape comes from OpenStreetMap, simplified: a guide to the layout, not a survey. © OpenStreetMap contributors.
A 25-minute seaplane flight from Velana International Airport, 88 km away.
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