The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands

Seen from the air, the overwater villas of The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands, form a long curve on the lagoon of North Malé Atoll, round pavilions strung along a jetty like ripples spreading on the water. The design came from Kerry Hill Architects, the practice of the Australian architect behind Amankora in Bhutan and Aman Tokyo, and the resort opened in 2021 as the first Ritz-Carlton in the Maldives.

History

The resort was planned as the anchor of the Fari Islands, a cluster developed by Pentland Properties of Singapore around a shared marina village. Its opening, in 2021, came after pandemic delays, in the same year that Patina Maldives opened on the neighbouring island. Kerry Hill, born in Western Australia in 1943, built his reputation in Asia with resort and civic buildings, and died in 2018, so the Fari project was completed by the studio he founded, which has kept his low, horizontal style and his preference for natural materials. For Marriott International, which owns The Ritz-Carlton brand, the resort added its top name to an atoll already crowded with rivals.

Architecture and design

Hill's team worked in circles and curves. Villas are round or curved in plan, roofed in timber, with walls of glass that slide open to the decks. The spa stands over the water in a ring of treatment rooms, and the overwater bar continues the circular theme. Materials keep to timber, stone and woven fabric, and the colours stay close to sand and driftwood so the turquoise of the lagoon does the work. Even the jetties curve, so walking to a villa feels less like following a pier and more like crossing a garden laid on the water.

Rooms and suites

Every villa has a private pool. Overwater villas sit on the lagoon with steps into the sea, beach villas stand in gardens behind the sand, and the largest residences add several bedrooms, more space and staff of their own. Each villa is looked after by an Aris Meeha, the resort's name for its personal butlers, who handle bookings, dining and transfers. The round plan means that beds, baths and decks all turn towards the water.

Dining

The restaurants cover Japanese cooking at Iwau, Italian at La Locanda and long lunches at a beach venue, while EAU Bar sits out over the water for sunset. Fari Marina, close by, adds a beach club and further restaurants, so guests can vary their evenings without leaving the islands. In-villa dining and private dinners on the sand are arranged through the butlers.

Wellness

The Ritz-Carlton Spa, set over the water, offers treatments in its circular pavilion with views across the lagoon, and the fitness programme includes yoga. Children have their own club under the Ritz Kids programme. The dive centre runs snorkelling and diving trips into the atoll, where turtles, reef sharks and rays are regular sights, and the house reef is close to shore.

Location

The Fari Islands lie in North Malé Atoll, roughly 45 minutes by speedboat from Velana International Airport, which spares guests the cost and weather risk of a seaplane. The marina takes private yachts, and boat excursions reach sandbanks, dive sites and inhabited islands across the atoll. North Malé was where Maldivian tourism began in the early 1970s, and it still holds many of the country's resorts. For a luxury resort in the Maldives, the combination here is unusual: architecture by one of Asia's most respected practices, a short boat transfer and a small village next door with its own restaurants and shops.