Paradise on Earth

We had such an amazing time in the Maldives, it was truly paradise! We had lots of people reaching out asking logistical questions, questions about the resort, and if we’d ever go back.

We are answering all your questions around the Maldives and the resort we stayed at and our personal recommendations below!

Travel:

This was the longest journey we’ve ever taken. It was about 34 hours each way, with a few layovers. Our journey to the Maldives went from PDX to Seattle, to Qatar, finally landing in the Maldives. Our flight from Seattle to Qatar was the longest flight we’ve ever been on, 17 hours! We flew Qatar Airlines and were served lots of meals, snacks, and beverages to help us pass our time. They even offered “movie snacks” after dinner to enjoy through the evening. At great as the service was, by the time we landed, we were grateful to stretch our legs.

Our longest layover was in Qatar, about 10 hours. Thankfully the Qatar airport was stunning. There were so many luxury shops, restaurants, and a literal garden/forest in the middle of it! We had so much fun exploring, but after a few hours we were ready to check into a lounge. There were a few lounges available, but only one we could personally access because we had economy tickets. It was about $60/person for a 4 hour duration at the lounge. A few things about the lounge: First, it had showers, which was incredible! After a 17 hr flight from Seattle to Qatar, a little shower was more than necessary! They also had some sandwiches, desserts, coffee, beer, and wine available for free. Comfy seats, wifi, and power chargers were also included throughout the lounge. Another tip with the lounge, the 4 hour time limit was a little loose. There was no one walking around checking on people, so you can be a little flexible with that time. I think we ended up staying in it closer to 5 hours to pass the time.

Our journey home was about the same time frame, going from the Maldives to Delhi, India, to Amsterdam and back to Portland. Our longest layover was in Delhi, with an 8 hr layover. Thankfully we killed some time by getting lost, going the wrong direction in the airport and having to locate the connecting flights terminal. Once we were in the right terminal, we made our way over to McDonalds to try some regional items (this is one of our favorite things to do)! We have found that each country offers unique McDonalds items, and it’s been super interesting to taste each country’s specialties, and compare prices. I will never forget spending $20 on a 20-piece chicken nugget meal in Switzerland! As for India, as you might imagine, there were no hamburgers as they don’t eat beef. Their items were mostly either chicken or paneer, which is a non-melting cheese that kind of looks like tofu. We ended up getting some chicken wings, a snack wrap alternative, and Masala fries. All in all, it wasn’t bad! Once again we found a lounge to kill some time. This lounge claimed it was limited to 2 hours, but no one went around checking times or removing people from the lounge. We stayed for a few hours, walked around and looked at some shops and made our way to our flight. Our Amsterdam layover was only 55 minutes, which is tight, but we somehow made it in time, barely!

To be honest, both journeys were long, but it didn’t feel quite so bad with some layovers to split it up, and it was much more manageable since we didn’t have the kids!

The Resort:

Once we landed in the Maldives we were almost immediately greeted by a hotel staff member who took our baggage and led us to the departure lounge where we waited for our boat to the resort. Brad had found an incredible deal for a brand new resort in the Maldives, SO/ Maldives. Upon arrival to the resort, we were greeted by the general manager, our butler, and a handful of other staff members. It felt like a VIP Treatment from the moment we landed in the Maldives! We were handed a welcome cocktail, formally introduced to our butler, taken on a tour of the resort and dropped off at our room, which already had our luggage and some anniversary treats in it.  The room we stayed in was immaculate! It had it’s own pool, hanging net, and stairs into the Indian Ocean. The resort had quite a bit of amenities as well. There was a spa, fitness center, pool, kayaks to use, snorkel gear, and a complimentary photoshoot included! The package we bought came with a couples massage which was the perfect addition to a romantic anniversary trip.

We opted for the half-board option when booking our room. Half-board comes with Breakfast, Dinner, and 2 sunset cocktails each night. In all honesty, it was a perfectly fine amount of food. We’d load up on breakfast and it would keep us full most of the day. A few times we headed down to the pool bar to get some French fries for a little lunch treat. But for the most part, it was enough food. To upgrade to full board, which just adds lunch was around $150/day. That felt a little insane for just the lunch. A few orders of fries here and there was much more economical! The food was incredible though. The breakfast was a typical buffet, along with a hot menu that you could order food from. The buffet had typical pastries, meats, cheeses, yogurt, but also had a Middle Eastern flair to it, which was new to use, but delicious. Brad discovered how much he liked smoked duck, I had never even heard of smoked duck! The hot menu also had elevated breakfast items, including things like Eggs Benedict topped with caviar, lemon curd waffles, and fancy avocado toast. We made the most of breakfast and pretty much had to be rolled away each morning. There were a few dinner options: a Middle Eastern restaurant, pool restaurant, and the main dining room. Most nights the main dining room offered a delicious Asian inspired menu, but a few nights during the week they do a special seafood feast and an Italian feast. Both those specials were included in our half board and once again were incredible.

Crossroads:

One inclusion for our resort was roundtrip boat trip to Crossroads, which is a “shopping” area connected to two resorts, including the Hard Rock. We did not feel like it was worth it. Most of the shops were either closed down for the season, or had been vacated. There was a small market that we stopped into to grab some snacks, but that was the only shop we stopped in to. The one cool aspect of Crossroads was that there is a Hard Rock Café that you can only access if you’re staying there, or one of the neighboring islands like ours. So it did feel pretty unique and exclusive. But we definitely didn’t spend much time over in that area. If you’re considering checking out Crossroads, just go to the café and make your way back to the resort.

Culture:

This was the first time we had traveled to a Muslim country. Both our layover in Qatar and the Maldives are strict Muslim countries. As someone who is not familiar with Muslim laws, it was definitely a bit nerve wracking making sure that we weren’t going to break some law. I had done some brief research that mentioned making sure your clothing fully covers you, no swearing, no PDA, things of that nature. But we weren’t aware of all the laws that might pertain in those countries. I am being a bit dramatic as both the airport and the actual resort were gray areas when it came to Muslim laws. But, I wasn’t willing to risk it and still felt a slight bit of stress to make sure we were adhering to Muslim culture.

Another interesting aspect is that alcohol is illegal in Muslim countries. Unless you are at a resort in the Maldives, alcohol is not located in the country. We found this first hand when we walked around Crossroads. We went into a mini mart and found that they had several “beer” and “wine” options available, however upon further investigation we realized that they were all alcohol free .

Our Recommendation:

I’ll start by saying that we had an incredible time! The resort was stunning, food was amazing, atmosphere was mind-blowing. We would definitely recommend the Maldives, and specifically this resort. However, if you haven’t been to Bora Bora yet, we’d recommend Tahiti/Bora Bora before the Maldives. They are very similar vibes, costs are similar, but Bora Bora was only a 16 hr journey each way, and the time change is only 3 hours compared to a whole 12 hours with the Maldives. With either country, you’ll feel like you’re in paradise!