Anantara Kihavah Maldives Villas

Below the surface of the lagoon at Kihavah Huravalhi, in Baa Atoll, diners at SEA eat lunch and dinner with reef fish passing the glass, and the wine cellar shares the same underwater space. Above the water, on the deck of the overwater bar, a telescope turns the night sky into the evening's entertainment. Anantara Kihavah Maldives Villas opened in 2011 and built its reputation on those two ideas, on a pool-villa island inside a UNESCO biosphere reserve.

History

The resort opened in 2011 as Anantara Kihavah Villas, the same year UNESCO declared Baa Atoll a biosphere reserve in recognition of its reefs and marine life. It belongs to Anantara, the resort brand of Minor Hotels of Thailand, which launched the name in 2001 and also runs resorts closer to Malé, in South Malé Atoll. Kihavah was conceived as the brand's all-villa address in the country, set apart from its larger sisters by distance and by the decision to give every villa its own pool. The later change of name, adding Maldives to the title, did not change the formula.

Architecture and design

Villas are spread along the beach and along a long jetty over the lagoon, built in timber with sloping roofs and wide decks, and the public buildings follow the same palette of wood, thatch-coloured tones and open sides. SEA was built as a glass-walled room below the waterline, reached by stairs from above, so that the reef forms the walls of the restaurant. SKY sits on top of the overwater bar, open to the night, with seating arranged around the telescope.

Rooms and suites

Every villa has a private pool. Beach villas open onto sand and garden, overwater villas stand on the lagoon with steps into the water, and the residences add more bedrooms for families and groups. Interiors are in timber and soft colours, with large bathrooms and decks that serve as outdoor living rooms. The island is small enough that every villa is close to the restaurants and spa.

Dining

SEA serves lunch and dinner beneath the lagoon, with the reef on the far side of the glass and the underwater wine cellar beside the tables; booking ahead is wise, since seats are limited. SKY, the overwater bar, has an observatory deck with a telescope for guided stargazing on clear nights, far from the light of any town. The island also has an all-day restaurant, an Asian restaurant and a beach bar, and private dinners can be arranged on the sand or in a villa.

Wellness

The Anantara Spa offers Thai and other Asian treatments in pavilions over the water, along with yoga and fitness sessions. The dive centre runs trips across the atoll, and the house reef around the island is within reach of the beach for snorkellers.

Location

Baa Atoll lies north-west of Malé, about 35 minutes away by seaplane from Velana International Airport. Its best-known site is Hanifaru Bay, a small protected area where manta rays, and sometimes whale sharks, gather to feed on plankton during the south-west monsoon, roughly between June and November. Snorkelling there is regulated and guided, and the resort arranges trips in season. Outside those months, the atoll's reefs, coral gardens and channels still offer turtles, reef sharks and large schools of fish. For a luxury resort in Baa Atoll, the combination of biosphere reefs, an underwater restaurant and a stargazing deck sets Kihavah apart from its neighbours.