The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands

Our second stay at The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands was somehow even more special than our first. From the moment we arrived, it did not feel like checking into a hotel. It felt like coming home. People remembered us. Everything felt familiar, warm and genuinely welcoming. My husband, our 5 year old daughter and I have been fortunate to stay at many wonderful hotels and resorts. But this experience went far beyond beautiful villas, exceptional food and the Maldives setting. What made our 7 days unforgettable were the people. We left feeling known, remembered and genuinely cared for. Daia, Naturalist Daia was exceptional and one of the people who stood out during our stay. During our previous visit, we planted coral. Daia made a special effort to take us back to see how it was doing one year later. She also arranged private snorkelling experiences so we could revisit the coral, explore the reef and swim together. More importantly, she was incredibly patient and reassuring with Ying Xi. Seeing our five-year-old feel completely safe, happy and excited in the water meant so much to us as parents. Tia, Rhona, Ritz Kids It is difficult to express how much Tia and Rhoana meant to Ying Xi — and to us. Our daughter loved Ritz Kids so much that she practically wanted to spend every waking hour there. But it was not simply the activities or facilities. It was the genuine love and connection Tia and Rhoana built with her. They did not just look after Ying Xi. They made her feel seen, valued and loved. Even after returning home to Singapore, she constantly talks about them, says how much she misses them and asks if she can send them messages about what she has been doing. That says everything. One of our most treasured moments was Ying Xi’s birthday. With less than 12 hours’ notice, Tia, Rhona, Katya and the team created a beautiful celebration, complete with decorations and a unicorn birthday cake. Watching her face light up is something we will remember forever. The La Locanda team - Mini, Shuga, chef Lorenzo, chef Jo, and the chefs who prepared dim sum for us every morning The restaurant staff remembered our preferences, anticipated what we might enjoy and made every morning feel personal. Mini was outstanding. He was warm, attentive and always noticed the smallest details. Nothing felt routine. We will remember him for a long time. The team even prepared special off-menu dishes for us, including fried kway teow, laksa and dim sum. Having familiar Asian flavours in the Maldives was a wonderful surprise. Ford, Our Butler Ford was a major reason our stay felt so seamless and personal. He was always one step ahead, yet his service never felt intrusive. Ford arranged our villa upgrade midway through the stay, created handmade sand drawings, sent us fruit when he noticed we had skipped lunch, and even made personalised name tags for our bicycles. Individually, these might seem like small gestures. Together, they made us feel that someone was genuinely looking after our family throughout each day. Faiz, Housekeeping (and the secret sand painter) Our villa was always impeccably prepared, and we came back to the room with different sand paintings daily. We are sincerely grateful to him. To Oscar, Musto, and the Entire Ritz-Carlton Maldives Team Oscar, you should be incredibly proud of the team you have built. Beautiful resorts can be designed. Exceptional villas can be built. Great food can be created. But culture is much harder to replicate. At The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, we experienced a culture where people genuinely care — about their guests, the smallest details and creating meaningful human connections. Daia, Tia, Rhona, Mini, Ford, Faiz and so many others did more than perform their roles exceptionally well. It genuinely felt like coming home. Thank you to everyone at The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands for giving Athen, Ying Xi and me another unforgettable family holiday. You have set an exceptionally high benchmark for luxury hospitality. More importantly, you have created something much harder to achieve: a place that feels like home. We already miss everyone deeply and cannot wait for our third visit. With our deepest appreciation, Athen, Ying Nee & Ying Xi Singapore

This is probably one of my all time favorite resorts! I couldn’t more highly recommend this resort! The over the water villas were spectacular! The villas was spacious and comfortable. It was truly relaxing laying in bed watching the water. The food and drinks were all incredible! The duck was so good we had it multiple times. But the best part of this resort was the wait staff. Our main attendant was Aslim. He provided exceptional service to our group of two couples. He always seemed to know where we were and what we might need. He truly made our trip an exceptional experience! I couldn’t more highly recommend a resort!

A Wonderful Family Stay in the Maldives We stayed at The Ritz-Carlton Maldives for our first Halloween together as a family of three, with my husband and our son, and it was a truly wonderful experience. The hotel was beautiful, our suite was very spacious, and the level of service and cleanliness was excellent throughout our stay. One of the most important things for me was the childcare. I requested a nanny for our son, and I was extremely impressed by how well-trained, professional, and caring the nannies were. It gave us complete peace of mind. Our son had also just started eating solid food at the time, so I ordered all three of his daily meals through the hotel. The team took great care of every request and prepared everything perfectly for him. For families traveling with a baby or young child, I genuinely think The Ritz-Carlton Maldives is one of the best choices. The attention to detail, professional childcare, and the way the team looked after our son made our stay especially comfortable and memorable.

Very good hotel, the most amazing experience was with the staff: starting with Muneef the gentleman uncharge of our villa, he was always paying attention to details and that everything went smoothly. The ones we contact most and were amazing as well: Svetlana, from eau bar, Marina and Samil (I don't remember his name but he was a gentleman with poney tale), anoos at the beach shack, and so many that I don´t remember their names.

From the moment we arrived we were greeted at the airport and were escorted to the ritz lounge at the doc then they proceeded to take us on Their private yacht to the island! I was blown away the yacht ride to the island was everything!! When we arrived to the resort I knew I was in paradise!!! I actually cried leaving!! Everything about this place is absolutely perfect. Their attention to detail is insane. Our Butler Ford was amazing. He was like a ninja every time we would leave he would always have some sort of sand decoration on on our dock right in front of our door saying some kind of sweet message like happy anniversary or good night Josh and Ashley. Every request we had he was on it. I cannot say how grateful I am for all the bartender staff on the island they were ableto make my favorite drink the Ramos gin fizz!!! Very cool of them!! all the food on the island is very very good you get for what you pay for! Our favorite restaurant was the Asian one the dumplings were to die for! We did the trip to the other island for Indian food. The boat ride and island was neat but the food fell short. I would stick to the restaurants on the resort. The breakfast buffet was out of this world if you can’t find something to eat at their breakfast, then you are one picky eater. They had every single cuisine and everything was just delicious. It was very hard not to eat everything! one of my favorite things Is that all the items in the mini bar in your villa are complimentary and they fill up every day in your villa. we were in Villa 116 over water snorkeling wasn't the best because they just set up their resort and their reef is not quite established yet but I will say there was plenty of sea turtles rays and sharks and I saw one eel overall the property is just stunning. They have plenty places to hang out snorkel, white sand beaches if you have children, they have a huge play area for them. I was a little jealous lol. the bikes they have are awesome. You can ride around the whole island overall we had the best stay!!! Cannot thank Ford enough the was the VIP!! He really made our stay special! I would go back to this resort in a heart beat! Oh forgot to mention the diving Thomas and the dive center is awesome. Really felt safe and comfortable with him. Highly recommend their diving team some of the most extraordinary diving places I’ve ever seen. Book this resort!! Villa 116 was awesome very private plus to the right is a little beach area you can hang about on. 116 for the privacy win!!