The 12 Best Places to Eat and Do in the Maldives
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The best places to eat and do in the Maldives, according to the experts: the World's 50 Beaches, Vogue, and the Forbes Travel Guide have all weighed in, and their honors are what rank this list. Dhigurah comes out on top, and the good stuff runs deepest in Dhidhdhoo.
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AyurMa at Four Seasons Resort Maldives and Soneva Soul at Soneva Fushi hold the next two places. The Forbes Travel Guide shows up on more of this list than any other guide, with Vogue next.
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A narrow sandbar pushes far out into the lagoon at the northern tip, shallow turquoise water on both sides, almost no shade, nowhere to be except present. The beach itself is long enough that you can walk until the village feels theoretical, and the reef sections nearby draw enough marine life to make a snorkel mask worth packing. Ranked seventh on the World's 50 Best Beaches list, and easy to reach on foot from the village.
The awards
- World's 50 Beaches World's 50 Beaches: #7 · The World's 50 Best Beaches
- World's 50 Beaches #7 · The World's 50 Best Beaches
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Ayurvedic medicine practiced properly in the middle of the Indian Ocean turns out to be less of a contradiction than it sounds. AyurMa is the dedicated wellness spa at Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru, drawing solo travelers and multigenerational families alongside the honeymoon crowd. Treatments follow traditional South Asian healing traditions, and the team has been refining the program long enough that it doesn't feel like an afterthought bolted onto a beach resort.
The awards
- Vogue 100 Best Spas in the World
A Tie
Three places have the exact same Score, so they share #2. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #2 AyurMa at Four Seasons Resort Maldives (this place) 88.536
- #2 Soneva Soul at Soneva Fushi 88.536
- #2 ŪRJĀ Naturopathy Island at Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa 88.536
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Shoes go into a canvas bag at arrival and aren't seen again until departure, which tells you everything about the register here. Soneva Soul is the spa at Soneva Fushi, a sprawling wellness operation on a private Maldivian island where the treatment philosophy mixes old-school holistic ritual with genuinely high-tech programming. Vogue named it among the 100 best spas in the world, and the barefoot-on-white-sand setting makes it hard to argue.
The awards
- Vogue 100 Best Spas in the World
A Tie
Three places have the exact same Score, so they share #2. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #2 AyurMa at Four Seasons Resort Maldives 88.536
- #2 Soneva Soul at Soneva Fushi (this place) 88.536
- #2 ŪRJĀ Naturopathy Island at Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa 88.536
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A private island dedicated entirely to naturopathy, set apart from the main Four Seasons resort so the separation feels literal, not just branding. The program leans on Ayurvedic roots rather than the usual resort-spa menu of hot stones and cucumber water, which gives it a different weight. Vogue named it one of the 100 Best Spas in the World. You leave having done something, rather than just relaxed.
The awards
- Vogue 100 Best Spas in the World
A Tie
Three places have the exact same Score, so they share #2. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #2 AyurMa at Four Seasons Resort Maldives 88.536
- #2 Soneva Soul at Soneva Fushi 88.536
- #2 ŪRJĀ Naturopathy Island at Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa (this place) 88.536
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The awards
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Travel Guide: Forbes Four Star
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Four Star
A Tie
Three places have the exact same Score, so they share #5. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #5 Javvu Spa and Wellness at Amilla Maldives (this place) 85.680
- #5 Lux* Me Spa 85.680
- #5 Ritz-Carlton Spa 85.680
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The awards
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Travel Guide: Forbes Four Star
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Four Star
A Tie
Three places have the exact same Score, so they share #5. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #5 Javvu Spa and Wellness at Amilla Maldives 85.680
- #5 Lux* Me Spa (this place) 85.680
- #5 Ritz-Carlton Spa 85.680
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The awards
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Travel Guide: Forbes Four Star
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Four Star
A Tie
Three places have the exact same Score, so they share #5. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #5 Javvu Spa and Wellness at Amilla Maldives 85.680
- #5 Lux* Me Spa 85.680
- #5 Ritz-Carlton Spa (this place) 85.680
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The awards
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Travel Guide: Forbes Five Star
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Five Star
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Rank 9. Saoke
Japanese
The awards
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Travel Guide: Forbes Four Star
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Four Star
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Rank 10. Aragu
Modern European
The awards
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Travel Guide: Forbes Recommended
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Recommended
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Rank 11. Aragu
Pan-Asian
The dining room sits over the water, 36 seats wrapped in blue and gold with the reef visible below. Aragu is Velaa Private Island's fine dining restaurant, where the chef, Sri Lankan-born Gaushan De Silva, who once cooked privately for the Queen of Jordan, runs European-Asian menus that earned a spot on Asia's 50 Best extended list. Dressy, remote, and priced accordingly, this is dinner as occasion.
The awards
- The 50 The 50: The 50 Discovery
- The 50 The 50 Discovery
A Tie
Two places have the exact same Score, so they share #11. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #11 Aragu (this place) 71.400
- #11 Carne Diem Grill 71.400
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Rank 11. Carne Diem Grill
Steakhouse
The grill itself is a good conversation starter: Dharshan Munidasa, the chef behind Nihonbashi and Ministry of Crab, designed it himself, modeled on Japanese yakitori rigs, to reverse-sear Australian wagyu on skewers with no grill marks in sight. The steaks then rest in Sri Lankan salt. It's a steak restaurant in the Maldives with a very specific thesis, and the chef is committed to arguing it.
The awards
- The 50 The 50: The 50 Discovery
- The 50 The 50 Discovery
A Tie
Two places have the exact same Score, so they share #11. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #11 Aragu 71.400
- #11 Carne Diem Grill (this place) 71.400