JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa Review: Water Villas, Reef Sharks & Treehouse Dining on Vagaru Island

Seaplane to Shaviyani Atoll: Barefoot Pilots and the Finest Commute on Earth

JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa sits on private Vagaru Island in the Shaviyani Atoll, around 200 kilometres north of Velana International Airport in Malé. This is the Maldives as it must have looked before anyone thought to build a spa on it. The lagoons are the clear turquoise of a freshly polished decanter, the coral reefs fizz with marine life, and the white sand shores are so pristine you feel you ought to apologise to them for your footprints. Up in these northern reaches of the archipelago the busier atolls around the capital feel a world away. The neighbours here are resident sea creatures and protected conservation zones, which makes Shaviyani a superb choice for diving, snorkelling and the serious business of undisturbed tropical idleness.

As long-time readers of IX Magazine will know, the seaplane is my favourite form of transport, and this was a 50 minute flight with the customary barefoot pilots, cool as a glass of chilled Sancerre, taking us across the most beautiful sea in the world. Our pilot on this occasion was a woman, and I ask you, is there anything more romantic than a woman flying a seaplane to whisk you away to a tropical desert island? Amelia Earhart with a pedicure. Quelle élégance.

She landed with the delicacy of a sommelier setting down a Montrachet, and we taxied in to the wooden decking out on the stunning pier, where the island team welcomed us with drums and cool drinks. This may well be the most exciting moment of any Maldives holiday: that instant when you step from the seaplane onto the island and the holiday you have always dreamed of begins. It is a timeless moment, and despite having done it a few times now, I remember every arrival in photographic detail. Even months later I can see the dhoni and the speedboat bobbing off to the right, the island stretching away to the left, and the incredibly luxurious and vast water villas perched over the lagoon like a flotilla of thatched galleons that decided to drop anchor for good.

The One Bedroom Duplex Water Villa: Uber Luxury

An electric buggy escorted us out along the 1.2 km boardwalk to villa 159, our home for the stay. The front door is huge. So tall, in fact, that you feel like a Lilliputian who has wandered onto a Hollywood film set built for giants, and you half expect a director to shout "Coupez!" when you ring for more ice.

The one bedroom duplex water villas are enormous. Seriously, magnificently massive, with a footprint that would make a Chelsea estate agent weep into his flat white. The design is inspired by the dhoni, the traditional Maldivian boat, turned upside down, so the soaring thatched roof above your head is where the hull would have been. Clever, and rather beautiful.

Downstairs is the master bedroom, with an en suite bathroom bigger than most apartments. There are his and hers sinks, a marble bath set by the windows so you can soak while gazing out to sea, and a separate shower and loo. Upstairs is a further room, and outside a large terrace with a private pool and a seating area purpose-built for doing absolutely nothing with great distinction. The bed deserves its own paragraph, but I shall restrain myself: it is super comfortable, the kind of bed that turns an early morning snorkel into a genuine test of character. The minibar, bien sûr, is extra.

A black stone seawall protects the villas from the open ocean, so you have a choice. Find the nearest gap and swim straight out onto the reef, or stay corralled in the calm water around the villas like a well-mannered goldfish. I leave you to guess which I chose.

Sunrise or Sunset, Sand or Sea: Choosing Your Villa

Every villa here is a private pool villa, overwater or on the sand, facing sunrise or sunset, in one bedroom or two-storey duplex form, and for the genuinely indecisive, and I say this with admiration, the Overwater and Beach Escape split stay hands you half a holiday above the lagoon and half on the sand: two villas, one holiday, no compromise. Only in the Maldives is having your cake and eating it a bookable category. Whichever you choose, you get a private pool, direct access to sea or sand, that vaulted dhoni roof, acres of polished timber, a deep soaking tub by the window, an outdoor rain shower and a terrace built for lounging rather than for show. C'est le vrai luxe.

Our bikes were ready and waiting outside the door, and our villa was next but one to the colossal water mansion at the very end of the boardwalk, a residence of such proportions I briefly wondered whether it had its own postcode. Our Thakuru, as the resort calls its butlers, was lovely and helpful, organising all our dinner reservations and sports by WhatsApp. Butlering for the twenty-first century: discreet, instant, and no one has to put on shoes.

That first afternoon we had a wander round the island to get our bearings, in our chauffeur-driven concierge buggy piloted by Xena, a name that inspires total confidence in one's driver. The sports centre sits just along from reception and the dive centre at the start of the jetty. We ended the day lounging in our pool as the sun went down, which is exactly as tiresome as it sounds.

Sunset on the Terrace: The Loneliest, Loveliest Address in the Indian Ocean

One evening I stood on our wooden terrace looking out to sea as the sun set. Not a soul around. It is insane, really, standing in the middle of the Indian Ocean, miles from anything bigger than an island barely a kilometre long, with an endless transparent sea of green glass stretching out in front of and all around you. It is an extraordinary feeling, somewhere between perfect serenity and the delicious suspicion that the rest of the world has quite forgotten you exist. Tant mieux. Sod social media.

Mornings are every bit as good. There is nowhere more romantic than an early breakfast on the prow of that wooden terrace, watching the waves roll in and slide beneath the villa. Endless sea rising to meet the sky, nobody about, and nothing more pressing on the agenda than a second glass of exotic fruit juice.

Dining at JW Marriott Maldives: Too Many Restaurants, Not Enough Stomachs

Aailaa: Poke Bowls, a Tropical Storm and a Wine Cellar Below Sea Level

Aailaa is the resort's main beachfront, all-day dining venue, serving international and local flavours, with a daily breakfast buffet and live cooking stations. Our first lunch here looked out over the arrival lounge and the boardwalk curving across the bay: a salmon poke bowl and yellowfin tuna, both as fresh as the morning tide.

One morning the heavens opened in true tropical style and we were ferried to breakfast by electric buggy, rain drumming on the roof. Even a storm in the Maldives is warm, which rather takes the sting out of it, and the buffet is fantastic enough to make you forget the weather entirely. Afterwards we walked it off with a stroll around the island.

Later in the stay, after watching the sunset from our villa terrace, we returned for a champagne dinner on the Aailaa terrace. Beneath your feet lies the resort's subterranean Wine Room, an extensive private collection of labels from around the globe. A wine cellar dug into an island this flat strikes me as a triumph of both engineering and priorities. Santé.

Hashi and Wabi Sabi: Teppanyaki, Wagyu and Service Fit for Royalty

Hashi is the resort's overwater Japanese speciality restaurant, housed in a signature ship-like villa and built around a dramatic teppanyaki grill, with sushi and sashimi to match. The Japanese food is superb. The sashimi is pristine, the sushi quite incredible, and the Australian Wagyu from the grill is of amazing quality, the sort of beef that melts before you have finished admiring it.

Our waitress, Reni, dressed in traditional geisha style, was outstanding, looking after us as if we were royalty. She served great mocktails and fine wines, placed every morsel onto our plates herself and brought refreshing towels after our mains. I have been attended to less graciously at embassy dinners.

Next door is Wabi Sabi, an overwater lounge offering Japanese-inspired cocktails, rare whiskies, sakes and teas. The name refers to the Japanese art of finding beauty in imperfection, which is ironic, because I could find precious little imperfection anywhere.

Kaashi Treehouse and Rum Baan: Thai Dining in Never Never Land

Lunch at the Kaashi Treehouse, overlooking the infinity pool and the sea at the point of the island, is pure magic. Rope bridges lead to different nooks and crannies, each with its own tables and bars, and walking across the wide, perfectly safe footbridge as it wobbles gently beneath you feels like a scene with the Lost Boys in Peter Pan. Captain Hook, happily, was nowhere to be seen. The Thai food is sublime, prepared freshly by a Thai chef in the main part of the treehouse, so you can watch a master at work while you wait.

We returned for dinner one evening, when the menu roams across Asia with Burmese and Thai influences. Amazing fresh fish, little nibbles with light curry sauces, night lights glittering in the branches, a live saxophonist and the waves crashing on the beach below. Magnifique.

Positioned alongside Kaashi in the treetops is Rum Baan, a rustic-chic bar specialising in rum-based cocktails made with a curated collection of international rums. Yo ho ho, as they say in the better Parisian salons.

Fiamma: Pasta, Pizza and a Dutch Bike

We cycled the 1.2 km along the boardwalk to lunch at Fiamma, the open-air Italian restaurant by the larger pool, where the classics come with a Maldivian twist: handmade pastas, risottos and wood-fired pizzas. You have not lived until you have cycled a lovely Dutch bike along a deserted sandy path across a Maldivian desert island, framed on all sides by the most beautiful sea in the world.

RIHA, Hio and Horizon: Curry, Steak and Swinging Seats

The resort was launching RIHA during our stay, a new restaurant by the main pool offering an eight-course tasting menu exploring the regions and flavours of India with an elevated twist, served in what they describe as a hidden oasis.

For those who need a good steak to keep their strength up for all this relentless luxury, there is Hio, an overwater fine-dining grill specialising in premium cuts of meat and freshly caught seafood cooked over an open flame.

And for sundowners, Horizon is a relaxed poolside bar with swing seating, ideal for sunset cocktails and casual refreshments. Swinging gently with a cocktail in hand as the sky turns pink is, I can confirm, very good for the soul.

The JW Garden: Six Basils and a Bartender Called Satyam

Drinks in the JW Garden were a revelation. This is a beautiful and surprisingly rich, fertile herb garden, which on a coral island is a small miracle in itself. Satyam, the head bartender and garden cocktail maker, introduced us to six types of basil, each smelling completely different, with notes of lime, lemon, aniseed, curry and mint among them, all powerful and sweet. A cocktail picked from the flower bed ten minutes earlier tastes like nothing you will find in Mayfair.

The Floating Breakfast: Survival Rations for the Seriously Spoilt

The floating breakfast by the pool is a work of art in food form, and enough to survive a week in the villa if the rest of the island blew away. It is difficult to express quite how good this is: a breakfast of Michelin-star calibre, and incredibly healthy, if not for the sheer quantity. Everything is fresh, every fruit in the world seems to be present, and the list of ingredients goes on forever. Even the granola is honey-dipped, and quite simply the best I have ever eaten. Le petit déjeuner des rois.

Watersports at JW Marriott Maldives: Sharks, Seaplanes and an Elephant on Rollerskates

Snorkelling the House Reef: Stingrays and a Camera-Shy Black Tip

Our first snorkel was a two-hour swim from the villa out around the sea wall. New coral was growing everywhere, in every variety, surrounded by every manner of fish, and we met a teenage black tip reef shark before spending a happy while simply playing in the waves.

A few days later I spent another two hours snorkelling off our reef, just a few metres outside the sea wall. I immediately came across a stingray, then passed the rest of my time playing with a medium-sized black tip reef shark whose territory this very clearly was. He loved to circle up behind me, but was terribly shy and fled every time I got my camera out to film him. For the nervous, black tip reef sharks are timid creatures, and the Maldives has no recorded history of fatal shark attacks.

Windsurfing with Best Dives Maldives: Racing a Seaplane

I windsurfed with Raif, and it is great fun when you get two boards racing in tandem across this crystal blue sea. The highlight: I managed to windsurf right alongside a seaplane as it took off, literally in parallel with it and the beach. I was winning, briefly, for perhaps four glorious seconds.

Mono Skiing Off a Jet Ski: Sheer, Inelegant Joy

After yet another two hours of snorkelling and a swim in the infinity pool, I went mono skiing with my friend Raif towing me off his jet ski. We had a little trouble getting up at first, as the tow rope was sitting low, but eventually I sprang out of the water and was sliding along the glassy surface like an elephant on rollerskates, my usual style. Mono skiing in the Maldives, passing the water villas at speed, with nothing but endless sea and a desert island as a backdrop, is always an unsurpassable thrill.

Hussein and Raif: Reason Enough to Come Back

Hussein and Raif at the dive centre are brilliant, and a reason in themselves to come here alone. They are willing to try anything, keen to have as much fun as you are, and happy to share every moment. The watersports team is always the make or break of an island resort, and these two were fabulous, helping in every way possible.

The Spa at JW Marriott Maldives: Where Every Muscle Surrenders

The wellness spa is probably the standout of the entire resort. For a couples massage you are given your own private spa, with two masseuses, your own plunge pool, a steam room and a massage suite, all with views out to sea. The spa itself is designed with terraces like ships' prows jutting out over the water.

The head-to-toe massage is marvellous and lasts an hour, sorting out every muscle in your body, including several I did not know I owned after the mono skiing. At the end, your super comfy beds are raised so you can enjoy the view without moving an inch, which is fortunate, because you are so relaxed it is nigh on impossible to move at all. Happily, there are spa beds to recover on, either by the plunge pool or out on the balcony. Ratna and Indah were our massage gurus, and I would trust them with my spine before any osteopath in Harley Street.

For those who prefer their serenity with a little more effort, there is yoga in the evening on the platform by the outdoor pool.

Verdict: Is JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa Worth It?

The villa designs are superb, the staff are lovely and friendly, and the watersports team are wonderful. Our Thakuru was a delight, handling every dinner reservation and activity by WhatsApp with effortless efficiency. The one bedroom duplex water villa is enormous, with a gorgeous bathroom, an upstairs room, a large terrace with its own pool and a bed so comfortable it ought to come with a warning. All the beaches are pure powder sand, so no shoes required, ever.

On the dining front, the sushi at Hashi is incredible, the Kaashi Treehouse is truly unique, the Aailaa buffet is fantastic and the Italian food at Fiamma is very good, even if its decor is on the plain side. The minibar is extra, as ever. The spa is the jewel in the crown.

JW Marriott Maldives is le grand luxe with bare feet and a snorkel, and I would go back tomorrow.

Frequently Asked Questions: JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa

Where is JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa?

JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa is on Vagaru Island, a private island in the Shaviyani Atoll in the far north of the Maldives. It lies around 190 to 210 kilometres north of Velana International Airport in Malé, in one of the most secluded and unspoilt regions of the archipelago.

How do you get to JW Marriott Maldives?

Guests fly from Velana International Airport in Malé by seaplane, a scenic flight of around 50 minutes. The seaplane lands in the lagoon and taxis up to the resort's pier, where staff welcome arrivals with drums and cool drinks.

What are the water villas like at JW Marriott Maldives?

The one bedroom duplex water villas are very large overwater villas styled after an upturned dhoni, the traditional Maldivian boat, with thatched roofs. Each has a downstairs master bedroom, a bathroom with a marble bath by the window, his and hers sinks and a separate shower, plus an upstairs room, a large terrace, a private pool and a seating area. They are reached by a 1.2 km boardwalk, with electric buggies and bicycles provided.

What restaurants and bars are at JW Marriott Maldives?

The resort has a wide choice of dining. Aailaa is the beachfront all-day restaurant with a breakfast buffet, live cooking stations and a subterranean Wine Room. Hashi is an overwater Japanese restaurant with teppanyaki, sushi and sashimi, and Wabi Sabi next door serves Japanese cocktails, rare whiskies, sakes and teas. Kaashi Treehouse serves Thai and Asian cuisine, with Rum Baan, a rum bar, alongside it. Fiamma serves Italian dishes by the pool, Hio is an overwater grill for premium meat and seafood, RIHA offers an eight-course Indian tasting menu, Horizon is a poolside bar with swing seats, and the JW Garden serves cocktails made with herbs grown on the island.

What is the floating breakfast at JW Marriott Maldives?

The floating breakfast is a lavish breakfast served on a tray in the pool. It features an enormous spread of fresh fruit, healthy dishes and treats such as honey-dipped granola, and is one of the most memorable dining experiences at the resort.

Is the snorkelling good at JW Marriott Maldives?

Yes, the house reef offers excellent snorkelling. Guests can swim from the water villas through gaps in the protective seawall straight onto the reef, where there is healthy new coral growth, abundant tropical fish, stingrays and black tip reef sharks. Those who prefer calmer water can stay in the sheltered area around the villas.

Are there sharks at JW Marriott Maldives, and is it safe to swim?

Yes, black tip reef sharks live on the house reef, including juveniles. They are shy animals that tend to swim away from people, and the Maldives has no recorded history of fatal shark attacks. Snorkelling and swimming at the resort are widely enjoyed safely.

What watersports can you do at JW Marriott Maldives?

Watersports at the resort include snorkelling, diving, windsurfing and mono skiing towed behind a jet ski, organised through the dive centre, Best Dives Maldives, at the start of the jetty. There is also a sports centre near reception and evening yoga on a platform by the outdoor pool.

What is the spa like at JW Marriott Maldives?

The spa is one of the highlights of the resort, set over the water with terraces shaped like ships' prows. Couples massages take place in a private spa suite with two therapists, a plunge pool, a steam room and sea views, with a one hour head-to-toe massage and loungers to rest on afterwards.

What is a Thakuru at JW Marriott Maldives?

A Thakuru is the resort's personal butler. Your Thakuru arranges dinner reservations, spa treatments and activities, and can be contacted by WhatsApp throughout your stay.

Is JW Marriott Maldives good for couples and honeymoons?

Yes, it is an exceptionally romantic resort. Highlights for couples include private water villas with their own pools, breakfast on the villa terrace, sunset views over the ocean, couples massages in a private spa suite, the floating breakfast and candlelit dinners at the Kaashi Treehouse with live saxophone.

Do you need shoes at JW Marriott Maldives?

No. The beaches and paths are soft powder sand, so most guests go barefoot for the whole stay.

How long should you stay at JW Marriott Maldives?

Two weeks is ideal. It is tempting to think there will not be enough to do on a small island, but there is plenty to fill a fortnight.

How do you get the most out of a desert island holiday in the Maldives?

Stay for two weeks and pace yourself. Spend the first two days doing nothing but exploring the island and recovering from the long flight. Then get going on the watersports and activities: snorkelling, windsurfing, mono skiing, diving, cycling and yoga. In the second week, truly relax as the fresh food, the spa and the sea take your health from zero to hero. Take time to enjoy the island itself and the people who work there, because they make the experience. Then comes the sad day you have to leave.

What is not included at JW Marriott Maldives?

The minibar in the villa is charged as an extra. It is best to check with the resort directly for current package inclusions before booking.

Is JW Marriott Maldives worth it?

For travellers seeking a remote, luxurious Maldives island with huge water villas, varied restaurants, an outstanding spa and excellent reef snorkelling, JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa is well worth it.