Meyyafushi Maldives doesn’t ease you in. It makes its intentions clear within minutes.
An overwater padel court. Suspended above the lagoon. Not a concept or a future promise, but the first of its kind in the Maldives and already in play. You rally while fish drift beneath your feet and the sea shifts colour mid-point. It’s ridiculous. It’s brilliant. And it immediately signals that this is a resort with confidence, humour, and no interest in playing it safe.
I arrived from neighbouring Fushifaru and went straight to lunch at Fili, which quickly revealed how time behaves here. Meals don’t really end. They loosen. Tables linger. Nobody rushes you along. That sense of ease runs through the entire stay, helped enormously by Mutti, our island host, who operated somewhere between magician and mind-reader. Water appeared before I knew I wanted it. Plans rearranged themselves. Everything felt handled, without ever feeling managed.
Premium all-inclusive usually makes me wary. Too many rules. Too many laminated schedules. Too little spontaneity. Meyyafushi quietly bins all of that. Days unfold according to mood rather than obligation. Lamha, part of the on-island team and a natural guide to how Meyyafushi really works, floated in and out with suggestions that felt less like direction and more like insider tips you actually want to take.
The island itself is long, open, and intelligently spaced. Ninety-five villas sounds busy on paper. In reality, it feels expansive and calm. Pathways curve. Sightlines stay open. There is always somewhere quieter to disappear to when the mood strikes. And then there’s the villa. Which, frankly, ruins you.
This isn’t somewhere you return to at the end of the day. It is the day. Wide decks become living space, the private pool turns into a constant temptation rather than a feature, and everything is arranged to make staying put feel like the smartest decision you’ve made all week. Shoes disappear early. Plans dissolve. The outside world stops feeling particularly urgent.
The overwater villas lean fully into joy. Proper slides. From deck to lagoon. No pretending they’re subtle. I slid in before breakfast more times than is reasonable, usually when the water is at its most unreasonably blue and the only witnesses were passing fish and my own poor impulse control.
One morning, breakfast arrived floating in the pool. Coffee stayed upright. Pastries drifted obligingly. I ate barefoot, half-submerged, wondering at what point this became my life and whether it would be rude to refuse to leave.
Dining across the island is strong, varied, and refreshingly low-pressure. Fili proves dependable at any hour. Thaana delivers Mediterranean flavours with confidence and restraint. Baa eases you into evenings that feel social without being overproduced. Nothing insists on being a highlight. It simply becomes one.
BUBBLE, the underwater restaurant, could easily tip into novelty. It doesn’t. Even viewed ahead of dining, it’s calm and oddly grounding. Fish glide past at eye level. Coral shifts beyond the glass. No theatrics, no forced awe. Just the quiet understanding that you’re beneath the ocean and that this is, apparently, normal now.
Veyoge Spa continues the theme. Set over the water, hushed and cocooned, it delivers the kind of treatment that makes thirty minutes feel suspiciously restorative. Wellness here isn’t sold or signposted. It’s simply there when you want it.
By day three, the island’s playful side fully shows itself. Bowling turns unexpectedly competitive, followed by a return to the overwater padel court for a full hour of playing above the lagoon as the light shifts beneath your feet. It is completely absurd and genuinely exhilarating. You will talk about it afterwards. Often.
Evenings never tip too far in any direction. Music hums. A white party appears, behaves itself, and disappears again. At one point, karaoke happened. A Taylor Swift song was sung. Enthusiastically. My husband aged visibly in real time. I remain unrepentant.
This is where Meyyafushi gets it right. Slides into the lagoon sit comfortably alongside wine cellars and underwater dining. An overwater padel court exists alongside a spa designed for stillness. Playfulness and polish coexist without competing.
Meyyafushi doesn’t ask you to do everything. It simply makes everything available and trusts you to choose. That confidence is what makes it work. Luxury here isn’t about excess. It’s about freedom, timing, and those moments you didn’t plan for but won’t stop talking about later.
Sometimes, that moment really is just sliding straight from your villa into the bluest sea you’ve ever seen.
Meyyafushi Maldives, 07020 Faidu, Maldives
