If you’re looking for a luxury Maldives Hotel then I recommend the unspoilt, quiet luxury of the Park Hyatt Maldives Hadahaa. We wandered this tiny island, swam and snorkelled in the most incredible blue water I’ve ever seen, sailed in glass bottom canoes across coral and white sand lagoons, were pampered at the spa, ate delicious meals and spent time with the on-site marine biologist learning about the underwater life surrounding us.

It’s everyone’s Maldives dream right? Arriving at a beautiful resort on a dazzling white sand island in the middle of an atoll, surrounded by hues of aqua and turquoise that become more vibrant as the sun rises each morning.

Relaxing in luxury. Snorkelling with a kaleidoscope of fish, turtles, mantas, sharks, octopus and stingrays. Having your very own personal host to oversee your stay and make sure it’s exactly as you dreamed.

We had an amazing stay at the Park Hyatt Maldives Hadahaa and it really was absolute heaven. Let me tell you all about it.

 

But first, Emmie says:

“I loved the snorkelling and the glass canoe. My favourite was the outdoor shower, riding in the buggy, swimming with sharks and making potions with my friend Nesta.”

Getting there:

Once you arrive at Male Airport you can turn on autopilot because everything is managed for you. You will be met by Park Hyatt Hadahaa host who will do everything for you. Our host was the ever-smiling Ali who was so lovely and kind. He took our bags and us down to the domestic terminal and into the resort lounge where we waited and ate lunch while he checked us onto our next flight and took care of our luggage and made sure we were happy.

Distance

The Park Hyatt Hadahaa is a little further away than the other resorts  – it’s only 55kms from the Equator – and I feel like every mile equals extra white beach and extra blue water. But it’s really not that far. It’s about an hour by domestic plane – you won’t even notice the time cause you’ll be staring out the windows at the most unbelievable island views. You will however have to splash out a few dollars for the domestic flights to and from the island, around $700 US per adult.

After landing you’ll be taken in a buggy to the port and will then travel 45 minutes by speedboat…but this is not your average speedboat.

We boarded the speedboat and relaxed into soft covered lounges with white towels provided in case a drop of water touched us. We were given cold refreshing towels, welcome drinks, a choice of savoury or sweet snacks and fitted with life jackets. After a safety briefing we were off – only to be joined by pods of dolphins who raced across our bow. The Captain slowed so the guests could go up the front and watch the dolphins paying and swimming alongside us. What a welcome!

During the journey the Captain invited Emmie up front to steer the boat and she absolutely loved it and was made to feel very special by all the crew. And then we were there!

See,  it didn’t take very long at all.

Check in at your villa

It’s a lovely welcome from the staff as we arrived at the jetty, jumped into our white buggy and were driven to our villa. The island is small enough to walk around, there is one sandy walkway that circles it with villas on the shore and the staff quarters within.

If you check in at reception it’s more like a club lounge than a reception area. You can just recline and sip your drink in air conditioned luxury while everything is looked after for you.

About the resort:

Hadahaa is unusual in that it is an island within an atoll, so it is surrounded by a lagoon with its very own house reef that surrounds the island – only a few metres out from the main lagoon.  It actually circles the island and is so amazing – we didn’t see any turtles but we saw so many fish, and reef sharks and octopus! I wish we had spend more time snorkelling, i think we didn’t realise how amazing we had it until we had left.

There are only 50 villas at the resort which is really not many – and you hardly see anyone! Mostly you’ll see others at breakfast and dinner, but you can go hours and hours on the island without bumping into any other guests. The resort has beach villas and pool villas-  both with private beaches – and overwater villas. They’re all amazing.

Blue lagoon beach:

The sand is the whitest I’ve ever seen, the water is incredible shades of blue and absolutely crystal clear. Laze in cabanas and order a drink from the beach bar and wander down for a dip. I would wake up early and wander a few steps to our patch of sand and watch the sunrise. Then when Emmie woke up we would go for a swim and then wander barefoot to breakfast. Total bliss.

 

Snorkelling:

The snorkelling is so wonderful and it’s just right there at your fingertips. And it’s really, really good. The House Reef circles the island – you can easily reach it from the beach and it is full of fish and marine life like octopus, turtles and colourful fish – and there are so many reef sharks! Every afternoon they swim into the jetty and feed on the schools of fish that hug the shoreline and eat the plankton or whatever it is they eat. It’s just incredible.

 

Snorkeling gear is free to hire and once you’re kitted out you keep it with you for your stay.

The island also boasts a dedicated marine biologist who educates guests about the marine environment and will take you on a snorkel tour off the main jetty. There are also educational videos about the environment around Hadahaa which are so important when teaching guests how to protect it.

There are lots of other activities like yoga, cooking classes, island visits and dolphins sailing to add to your days.

Jetty jumping:

As well as being lovely spots to watch the sun rise and set the jetties are super fun for jumping off into the water and snorkelling around. You can spot reef sharks from the jetties and the walkway along the overwater bungalows has a cafe on it where you can treat yourself to afternoon tea.

The swimming pools

There are two swimming pools here, one at the beach and one at the spa. When we weren’t at the beach or snorkelling we were in the pool, playing and having so much fun. The main horizon pool is big enough to do a good set of laps in and has a small shallow area that’s perfect for kids.

 

The Vidhun spa

We had a wonderful massage in our own personal villa at the Vidhun Spa. It was one of the best massages I’ve ever had. The technique was a little different to usual, using two hands and really long strokes. It’s all about the connection with local communities here and we were given a small gift following our massage – a bracelet made out of local timber. The spa also has its own private pool for guests.

 

The glass canoe

This has to be one of our super dooper favourites – the glass canoe! Although poor Emmie did have to deal with me wanting to take so many photos in the incredible canoe – it’s just so amazing, the corals and fish below look so close and you can see everything beneath you and to the sides. It costs $55 US per hour to hire the glass canoe, other canoes are complimentary.

 

Our beach villa:

Our beach villa was beautiful with a huge open bathroom and living area.

 

The villas are so private it’s really peaceful and secluded.

The bathroom probably was our highlight, we loved the outdoor shower and bath and we also loved the little sandy pathway down to our beach where we swam each morning.

Overwater villas

The overwater villas are amazing and one of the few designs that are single sides along the curved wooden walkway that leads out over the water.

 

Many resorts have the overwater bungalows facing each other on double strands but the Park Hyatt Maldives Hadahaa has only one line of villas guaranteeing space and privacy. The rooms are large with views out over the atoll and a ladder down into the water. Spectacular!

If you look closely you can see that one villa doesn’t quite fit the perfectly aligned curve of the overwater- that’s because during construction a giant table coral was discovered and the then owners refused to continue the build unless the design was altered to ensure the coral was protected.

 

Your personal host

Every guest at the Park Hyatt Maldives Hadahaa has their own personal host to help with anything you need – our wonderful personal hosts even helped with fixing my mobile phone and computer. All you have to do is pick up the phone and dial and you’ll be connected to your host. The thing is everything is so wonderfully done for you at the resort that you don’t really need to to ask for anything but it sure makes you feel special having someone to help should you need it.

Dining

There are two restaurants on the island – The Dining Room where you will enjoy breakfast, lunch and dinner and the Island Grill which is the islands signature restaurant.

 

The food really is amazing and it’s incredible how they chef and staff can create such delicious dishes when their stores are only stocked every 10 days.

You will love the food here. You can also organise private dining on the beach or in other private locations around the island.

Saturday night management cocktails and beach BBQ:

We had the most amazing time at the management cocktails on Saturday night down on the beach. Local villagers perform and it’s such an emotional and authentic experience. Every single guest was so touched and inspired by the performance, the joy and the the dancers desire to share their craft and have everyone join in the dancing. It was so much fun. A seafood bbq follows the dancing and drinks, and is usually held on the beach.

Sustainability and environmental protection:

With supplies arriving every 10 days by boat it’s super important to strictly manage food and other items. Water is produced on the island through reverse osmosis (desalination) and provided in glass bottles to all guests – either sparkling or still. By doing this, and not using plastic bottles on the island the Park Hyatt Hadahaa has eliminated the use of more than 100,000 plastic bottles each year.

Back of house tour:

Every week or on demand the resort offers a back of house tour where guests can enter the staff and operational quarters and see how the resort runs so efficiently. Everything from staff quarters and social areas, to the desal plant, energy generation and the laundry and stores. It’s a brilliant tour that shows guests how the island is managed and the effort the resort goes to so it has as little impact as possible on the beautiful environment it operates in.

Health and safety:

The island has a gym and yoga classes, and the pool is big enough for laps. An island doctor is on hand should you need any assistance – as I did when I got a splinter in my foot. I only mentioned it to one of the staff as it was hurting and within minutes the doctor had arrived at the pool, removed the splinter and gifted me bandaids and betadine.

Price:

Yes it is more expensive than your budget options but it is absolutely worth it to experience the dream Maldives. You could combine a stay here with with time at a budget resort or on a local island. I think three nights at a minimum. You can check rates here.

Who should go:

This resort is perfect for couples and families although it doesn’t have a kids club so your children need to be able to be interested in and occupied by the incredible nature on the island and in the water. There is enough to do to keep kids entertained, and the resort will be extending two of its bungalows to cater for families, making two-room villas where parents and children can have separate bedrooms.

But its very important for the Park Hyatt Hadahaa to maintain its vibe and so families are very welcome on the resort but facilities for smaller children are limited. The Sun Siyam Iru Fushi has an incredible kids club and adults only facilities, as does the Kuredu Resport and Spa.