Evaluation: JW Marriott Resort & Spa, Maldives

The JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa opened up in 2019 and has been a strong contender among the many luxurious properties within the archipelago. But 6 years later we needed to know if it’s nonetheless on high of their sport trigger the competitors in fierce and new resorts are popping up sooner than ever earlier than. Being branded as a household pleasant resort we felt this was the proper event to try it out.

So following our keep at Le Méridien Maldives we flew onwards to the gorgeous JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa. To be clear, this isn’t the brand new JW Marriott Kaafu Atoll Island Resort which equally appears spectacular but remains to be on our ‘to do’ listing.

The welcome

From the second the doorways of your seaplane open, it feels such as you’re stepping right into a James Bond film and everybody on the island heard about your arrival. Actually an exquisite welcome by a small military of staff that clearly have unlocked the key of being pleased at work trigger you couldn’t wipe the smile of their face, even if you happen to tried.

The room

We stayed in a duplex seashore pool villa. A mouth full however so is the villa. Tons of house, 2 bedrooms, an higher degree which is sort of a tv-room that may double as an additional bed room in case your husband snores or your spouse is nagging about why it took this lengthy earlier than coming over right here.

From the second you stroll in you’ll discover the practicality of the villa. An enormous dressing the place you may simply retailer all of your baggage, excessive ceilings, 3 bogs (there are by no means sufficient if you happen to keep as a household of 4), a great deal of home windows to absorb the verdant gardens and pool surrounding the villa and an enormous backyard with a number of seating preparations simply to be sure to and everybody else in your loved ones finds their very own favorite spot within the solar.

The direct seashore entry is in fact perfect however to be truthful, it’s equally enjoyable simply to hold round your personal non-public pool and sit back within the privateness of your personal backyard.

The toilet

The bogs are bathing in pure gentle and all of the little toiletries you would possibly consider are at your disposal, thoughtfully introduced in eco-friendly packaging. Bathrobes for everybody, slippers for inside, slippers for out of doors, the listing goes on and on however suffice to say that the whole lot is properly taken care of.

The services

As with many luxurious resorts within the Maldives, there’s a plethora of services on the island, beginning off with the kids-and teenagers membership. Already splitting the 2 is a good way to make everybody pleased. See, my youngest is 6 and my oldest is 11. Whereas the primary one loves group video games and all that jazz, my oldest feels he’s too cool for that and fairly hangs out between the PS5 and the air hockey desk. Each golf equipment are actually welcoming and it allowed us as dad and mom to extend our personal free time considerably.

It’s not onerous to crack the code of a very good youngsters membership, trigger it all the time comes all the way down to the workers working with the children with a purpose to hold them entertained and engaged. Nonetheless too many resorts hold pondering that an overload of toys and house will hold any youngster pleased, however fortunately JW Marriott obtained it proper over right here. Add to {that a} huge pirate ship within the backyard, proper subsequent to the pool and you’ve got the proper combo.

So what does a middle-aged couple do after they get some kids-free time on a tropical island? Certainly….first cease is the spa! Spa by JW is good for {couples} that includes 6 couple’s remedy rooms and even an entire deluxe remedy suite. After all went for the latter, I imply who wouldn’t?! And to be truthful, it was essentially the most spectacular remedy suite I’ve seen and skilled within the Maldives with a plunge pool, wonderful views exterior, expertise showers, rest space,….to not point out the therapeutic massage itself which was completely executed.

Subsequent cease? The wine room! JW Marriott Maldives actually has a formidable wine assortment with over 300 labels which in a distant location as this, isn’t a given. A lot of alternative from each the previous and new world. We even discovered wines from the South African wine property the place we obtained married, so you may already guess which one we picked.

Drinks are nice however what in regards to the meals choices? Nicely, I’m pleased to report that none of us even remotely remembered what’s was to really feel hungry once we left the resort because the meals is persistently of very top quality. There are 5 completely different eating places starting from Italian and Thai to worldwide and Japanese. Every of them providing a variety of meals choices, and for the children there’s equally an adjusted menu in every outlet which is way appreciated as a guardian and sometimes missed by rivals. My favorite was Hashi, the Japanese restaurant. I immediately felt like I used to be again within the streets of Tokyo, attempting out every kind of yummy dishes.

An honourable point out goes to Kasha, the Thai restaurant. Not solely due to the out of doors kitchen that jogged my memory of the numerous open kitchens in Bangkok, however primarily due to the design of the restaurant. It’s positioned on stilts in between the bushes, with small suspension bridges in between, making it really feel like you might be in a real jungle restaurant a number of toes up.

One culinary expertise I haven’t talked about but is the most recent addition Riha. Think about a sunken eating and kitchen space on the seashore the place you go on a culinary 8-course journey by India. Due to the centuries of buying and selling between the Maldives and India, this expertise is one to not be missed. I might counsel making reservations on time trigger seating may be very restricted.

And did I point out the floating breakfast which seemed extra like a floating market as a result of quantity of meals that was introduced? It didn’t even match on the floating system, leading to our complete out of doors space being lined in essentially the most yummy breakfast unfold I’ve seen in a really very long time.

Let’s discuss how one can attempt to depart at the very least of few of all these gathered energy on the island. There’s a fitness center with gorgeous views over the lagoon and we noticed an abundance of marine life swimming proper beneath it. Identical goes for the yoga deck which is positioned close by and the place you may apply your downward going through canine within the morning whereas the solar gently rises on the horizon. In the event you can collect a couple of associates, or need to cheat and bribe the kids within the teenagers membership, you may present your soccer expertise on the sector which is positioned proper behind the children membership. And naturally you’ll additionally discover all doable water-sports obtainable if you happen to’re bored with enjoying on land.

All of this makes you thirsty isn’t it? Fortunately there’s this cool JW Backyard the place you, accompanied by the in-house mixologist, can forage your personal elements to create your private cocktail (or cocktail for the children). I actually appreciated this backyard to glass idea, and it’s a enjoyable exercise for the entire household which finally finally ends up with a cocktail in your hand. That’s a win-win in my books!

The situation

The JW Marriott Resort & Spa is positioned within the Shiviyani atoll, a few 90-min flight with the seaplane from Malé. It’s a bit additional than many of the different resorts which you fly to BUT….as a result of it’s a little bit extra distant, it additionally feels somewhat bit extra tropical island. Let me clarify.

Most resorts in and round Malé have planes flying over and ships crossing your horizon all day lengthy. I don’t thoughts that, however many individuals do. Nevertheless, if you happen to go someplace a bit extra distant like this resort, you’ll have infinite views with hardly any ships passing by, and the one planes you’ll hear and see are the seaplanes dropping or choosing up visitor which is most a handful of occasions a day.

One last bonus of its location is the truth that you get a barely longer flight on one of many Trans Maldivian Airways (TMA) plane, permitting you to soak in a number of the most gorgeous surroundings on the planet at no cost. And also you get to expertise what might be the one airline on the planet whee the pilots rock up in shorts and slippers.

Different good touches

One other benefit of the extra distant location is the truth that you may go on excursions the place few different folks come. For instance, we went line fishing with the native workers on a dhow close to a abandoned island within the late afternoon. Actually simply 20-Half-hour out, dropping anchor and beginning to fish with some good camaraderie and banter amongst everybody. Experiencing this in such a distant location is just not all the time a given however right here it’s comparatively straightforward to do.

Finest a part of all of it? No matter we caught can be dropped at the cooks on the island and they’d put together it for us as dinner or lunch, relying in your choice. My son obtained fortunate and as a lover of Japanese delicacies he had one of the best sashimi for dinner and lunch due to his huge catch, placing me to disgrace in entrance of everybody.

Price

Surprisingly the associated fee for staying at this luxurious resort within the Maldives begins from round 470 USD per evening for a 1 bed room seashore pool villa. After all, taxes, charges and transfers nonetheless should be added (and so they do add up), however for that worth you get a strong product in one of the crucial high-end locations on the planet.

Our 2 bed room duplex seashore pool villa begin from round 700 USD per evening with out the taxes, charges and transfers. After all being a Marriott Bonvoy property you may ebook an evening right here from as little as 79.000 factors which in my view is a steal!

The most effective bit

The folks….no query about it. An expertise I’ll cherish was the one throughout our last night the place we organised a seashore dinner and swiftly a dozen of workers members got here to carry our Maldivian feast however stick round to sing and make music underneath the gorgeous evening sky. Merely wonderful and an absolute deal with for the entire household.

The ultimate verdict

Whereas there’s a new JW Marriott resort simply opened up, the unique one remains to be shining brilliant with tons of actions, very spacious and well-appointed villas and a thriving culinary scene. Very household pleasant however completely appropriate for {couples} too.

Disclosure: Our keep was sponsored by JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa.