Anantara Kihavah Maldives Villas

We stayed there for six nights for our honeymoon, and as someone who has traveled to 20 countries in Asia, I can say that Anantara Kihavah was the best resort hotel I've ever stayed in, with its island beauty, the richness of the beach and underwater life, the quality of the food, and the dedicated butler service. Where can I even begin? Upon landing at Male Airport, we were greeted impeccably and taken to their lounge at the seaplane terminal. They have a lounge on the third floor with a beautiful view, offering a wide variety of dishes, and you can see the seaplanes taking off and landing from the terrace. After a 35-minute seaplane flight, you arrive at Kihavah. They greet you with their private boat and welcome you to the port with their local drums, creating a delightful and energetic welcome. On board, your butler greets you, introduces himself, and becomes your primary contact throughout your stay. We were very fortunate to have Ifoo as our host; he was a kind and generous man. Ifoo took us to our room and had prepared and printed out all the activities I'd requested, which I'd previously communicated to the hotel. He introduced me to all the hotel facilities and showed us our room in detail. He was very professional, planning everything we wanted to do, picking us up on time, and was very helpful in adjusting our plans, which were affected by the weather. The incredibly beautiful designer dining and the movie Under the Stars program were wonderful. The stargazing and underwater scuba diving were also fantastic. I was amazed by the diversity of fish and coral in the hotel's house reef. We even saw stingrays. Stingrays and turtles even visited us in our overwater villa; it was an incredibly beautiful experience. We also went snorkeling twice: the first time with a manta ray and the second time with a nurse shark. We saw two giant manta rays, and filming them with a GoPro was fantastic. Snorkeling with over tens of nurse sharks, although it felt intimidating, was an incredible experience. The entire dive center team is very professional and provides excellent guidance. Regarding the food, we had both a four-course lunch and a five-course dinner at the underground restaurant, SEA. It felt so good to be accompanied by fish and other extraordinary dishes under the sea. Every dish was meticulously crafted; we sampled every type of caviar there, and the wines and service were exceptional. Mazlaan, the waiter there, is an extraordinary character, perhaps the funniest waiter I've ever seen. He introduced the dishes very well, his service was impeccable, and his style made us laugh so hard. Definitely meet Mazlaan at that restaurant; he'll definitely make you laugh. Regarding other restaurants: Definitely try the Teppanyaki at Fire; the Western food at Manzaru is delicious and of high quality; the breakfast variety at Plates will surprise you. Just tell the waiters Aboo and Hafiz what you want there; they'll take care of the rest. My favorite restaurant, though, was Spice, with its variety and quality of Asian cuisine. Kudos to Maya, who welcomed us there and made us feel right at home. Yusuf, the waiter, was also very professional. For those seeking both luxury and authenticity, this hotel might be the best in the Maldives. I've never seen a hotel that combines Asian and European cuisine so well. Finally, having experienced many different massages in Thailand, Indonesia, and China, I can say that the Spa Center was also excellent. Find Tini there; she gives a fantastic massage with her thumbs, not her elbows. Nur at the spa reception was also very kind. We will definitely choose Kihavah again in the future. My wife cried when we left; we felt like family here. Best wishes again to our Ifoo brother (the last picture we are kissing him:)) and thanks to the hotel management for making this stay unforgettable. Best, Sadik & Nesrin

太爱躺平式度假了！ 撇下老公，带上儿子，和朋友一起选了Anantara Kihavah。简直是太满意了！更何况这还是我们第一次到马尔代夫，第一次体验纯粹度假式的岛。 AKV属于中等岛，我觉得这样的大小正正好，不会像大型岛屿那样，房间数和人数太多、内容太分散，也不会像小型岛屿那样，没什么逛头。并且，它还是个有原始植被覆盖的岛屿，树林真是绝！结构主要分为陆地上和水上：陆地上有37间沙屋、Manzaru餐厅、Plates餐厅、水上活动中心、陆地活动中心、儿童中心、兰花园、草本园、医务室、商店；水上有42间水屋、SPA、Spice餐厅、Fire餐厅、Sea餐厅、Sky酒吧。 沙屋和水屋的风格差异很大。沙屋像极了森林中的幽静小屋，白天光影斑驳，后门庭院深深，保障私密性，前门外的小径两边是矮木丛，叶子是新嫩的绿色，到沙滩时豁然开朗，灌木丛里的窸窸窣窣声被大海拍岸声取代，很妙~。水屋就是极度的明朗和开阔，大门一开，眼睛就像电影感，直接穿越门廊、大床、甲板，聚焦在大海，忍不住wow！然后就是充分享受阳光吧，别计较是不是要晒黑了~ 餐饮方面，选择很多。早餐都是在Plates吃，点餐+自取相结合，果汁、鸡蛋品类丰富，每天换着花样吃喝。Manzaru原始版吃了一顿，三道式，很管饱，味道很不错，甜品精致；Manzaru沙滩海鲜BBQ版吃了一顿，五道式，食材新鲜、很美味，就是量实在是太大了呀，忍不住跟chef说，我们真的不是不爱吃，而是太撑了才剩下的。Sea是海底餐厅，中午时阳关投过海面撒下来，小鱼们闪闪发光，四道式餐食还是挺好吃的，全程鱼子酱主题。Spice是亚洲餐厅，泰式和印尼式菜品好美味，我们有两个晚上选择在这里就餐。 兰花园和草本园都小小的，可爱精致~。在兰花园中参观时，遇到了园主回来，送了一朵灰色兰花，很少见（戴着墨镜看时，以为是干枯的花，摘下墨镜后看，被惊艳到了，灰色调好高级）！儿童中心很好，活动丰富，小朋友参加了做冰激凌、做实验的活动，小朋友每天都要去，工作人员会很有耐心得陪伴做游戏、做手工，给我腾出了自由自在的时光~ 本次因为我划了一跤，脚底磨掉一块皮，就没敢下海，朋友去水上活动中心，报了个一对一的浮潜活动，回房间后看视频，虽海底多彩度不太够，但海底的震撼感还是有的。我们报了落日巡航+追海豚的活动，坐游艇出海，很快乐~很惬意~。 服务，超级好！每个工作人员都会很热情得打招呼，能记住每一房间的游客组合（超厉害！）。我们的管家是tingting，中文交流很方便，我第一天脚磨掉一层皮，tingting就叫上了clinic的工作人员来给我消毒、止血、上药；岛上的活动，也能根据我们喜好，给建议、安排报名，甚至我懒得出门去儿童中心接孩子时，也都是tingting帮我去接。我们已经回来3天了，孩子还在说“我想tingting姐姐了”！ 哦对了，AKV的公共洗手间，我也超爱！我印象特别深刻的是Manzaru和Plates中间的一个洗手间，大棵的绿植顶上是玻璃天花板，阳光洒进来很美好；Spice、Fire、Sea、Sky那一片的洗手间，有玻璃地板，那一带鱼很多。洗手间里有椰子味的香薰，冷气很足！ AKV的美好，是照片、视频拍不出的。甚至我觉得照片视频拍出来有点老旧，但实际处处是大气和精致。 我下次还要再去AKV，真的。 I’m totally obsessed with laid-back vacations! This time, my son and I, and joined friends for a trip to Anantara Kihavah (AKV). It exceeded all my expectations—especially since it was our first visit to the Maldives and our first experience of a pure resort island. AKV is a medium-sized island, and its size is absolutely perfect in my book. It avoids the downsides of large islands (too many rooms, overcrowding, and scattered amenities) while not feeling as limited as small islands (where there’s barely anything to explore). What’s more, the island is covered in lush, untouched vegetation—the forests here are simply breathtaking! The resort is divided into two main areas: land and overwater. On land: There are 37 beach villas, Manzaru Restaurant, Plates Restaurant, a Water Sports Center, a Activities Center, a Kids’ Club, an Orchid Garden, a Herbal Garden, a clinic, and a boutique shop. Overwater: You’ll find 42 overwater villas, a SPA, Spice Restaurant, Fire Restaurant, Sea Restaurant, and Sky Bar. Beach villas and overwater villas have drastically different styles. Beach villas feel like serene cabins nestled in a forest—during the day, sunlight filters through the leaves in dappled patterns. The backyard courtyard offers complete privacy, while the path outside the front door is lined with low shrubs in fresh, vibrant green. When you reach the beach, the view suddenly opens up: the rustling of leaves in the bushes is replaced by the sound of waves crashing against the shore—it’s absolutely magical. Overwater villas, on the other hand, are all about brightness and openness. As soon as you open the door, the view feels straight out of a movie: your eyes glide past the porch, the king-size bed, and the deck, finally fixing on the endless ocean. You can’t help but gasp, “Wow!” Then you just soak up the sun—who cares if you get a little tanned? When it comes to dining, there’s no shortage of options. We had breakfast at Plates every morning, which offered a mix of à la carte dishes and a buffet. The selection of juices and egg dishes was huge, so we never got bored of trying new things each day. We dined at Manzaru twice: once for its original three-course menu (filling and delicious, with exquisite desserts) and once for its beachside seafood BBQ (a five-course feast with super fresh, tasty ingredients—though the portions were so massive, we had to tell the chef we didn’t leave food because we disliked it, but because we were simply too full!). Sea Restaurant is an underwater dining spot. At noon, sunlight filters through the ocean surface, and small fish glint in the water. The four-course meal, themed around caviar, was delightful. Spice Restaurant serves Asian cuisine—its Thai and Indonesian dishes were amazing, so we chose to eat there two nights in a row. The Orchid Garden and Herb Garden are small but incredibly charming. During our visit to the Orchid Garden, we happened to meet the gardener, who gave us a rare gray orchid. At first, I thought it was a dried flower when I looked at it through my sunglasses—but when I took them off, I was stunned. The gray hue was so elegant! The Kids’ Club was fantastic, with a wide range of activities. My son joined ice cream-making and science experiment sessions, and he wanted to go back every day. The staff there patiently played games and did crafts with the kids, giving me precious free time to relax on my own. Unfortunately, I slipped and scraped a piece of skin off my foot, so I didn’t dare go into the sea. My friend, however, signed up for a private one-on-one snorkeling tour at the Water Sports Center. Later, she showed me videos from her trip—while the underwater scenery wasn’t as colorful as expected, it still felt awe-inspiring. We also booked a sunset cruise with dolphin watching: sailing on the yacht was so joyful and relaxing. The service here is exceptional! Every staff member greets you warmly, and they even remember the composition of each guest’s group—it’s incredible. Our butler was Tingting, and being able to communicate in Chinese made everything so much easier. On my first day, when I scraped my foot, Tingting immediately arranged for the clinic staff to come and help me clean the wound, stop the bleeding, and apply medication. She also gave us recommendations for island activities and helped us book them. Once, I was too lazy to go to the Kids’ Club to pick up my son, and Tingting even went to get him for me. It’s been three days since we got back, and my son still says, “I miss Tingting so much !” Oh, and I absolutely love AKV’s public restrooms! One restroom between Manzaru and Plates stands out in my memory—it has a glass ceiling with tall green plants underneath, and sunlight streaming in makes it feel so lovely. The restrooms near Spice, Fire, Sea, and Sky have glass floors, and there are tons of fish swimming below. All the restrooms have coconut-scented diffusers, and the air conditioning is nice and cool! Pictures and videos can’t capture how beautiful AKV really is. In fact, photos and videos sometimes make it look a bit dated, but in person, every corner feels grand and elegant. I definitely want to go back to AKV someday.

After years of dreaming, my best friend and I finally embarked on our Maldivian getaway with our families at Anantara Kihavah Villas (AKV). Our travel agent made perfect choices for our family trip. AKV offered complimentary stay for children under 12 and a scenic seaplane transfer. From the moment we landed in Male, the seamless service began. We experienced the Maldives in all its moods. While days were mostly sunny with turquoise waters, a pre-dawn thunderstorm offered a dramatic spectacle. As our butler Tingting assured us, the island emerged fresher and more vibrant after the rain. We stayed in a private Beach Villa surrounded by lush gardens before a wonderful upgrade to a Sunset Water Villa. This overwater haven, with its glass floor and netted bed, was pure magic. A highlight was the underwater restaurant, 'Sea', where we dined surrounded by marine life. A sunset cruise gifted us with playful dolphins against a golden sky. The most appreciated gesture was a late 5 pm checkout, arranged by Tingting, which gifted us a full final day. As our seaplane departed at dusk, we watched AKV fade away, already dreaming of our return to this blue paradise.

If you are 1) considering Maldives, 2) considering Anantara Kihavah, do NOT hesitate, go to Maldives and stay at Anantara Kihavah. Best experience ever :-)

-很激动，在水屋看到了鲨鱼，生态很好 -管家Naomi非常热情专业，随叫随到，感觉她好像24小时都在待命 -出海活动的教练很专业，带我们看到了海龟 -健身房的教练也很友好，在我们玩游戏的时候帮忙录了很长时间的视频 -Spa没有超出预期，这个价格下好像没有想象中舒服 -spice和manzura餐厅口味偏咸，房间内room service午餐选择比较少。Sea餐厅出品很不错。 -skybar的调酒师做的鸡尾酒非常美 I was very excited to see sharks in the water house. The ecosystem is very good The butler Naomi is very warm and professional, always on call. It feels like she's on standby 24 hours a day The coach of the sea activity was very professional and showed us sea turtles The gym coach was also very friendly and helped us record a long video while we were playing games The Spa didn't exceed expectations. At this price, it doesn't seem as comfortable as I imagined The spice and manzura restaurants have a rather salty taste, and there are relatively few options for lunch in the room service. The food at Sea Restaurant is very good. The cocktails made by the bartenders at skybar are extremely beautiful