JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa

It is the third time I go to this Island and the 2nd time under the JW Mariott management. Every single time it has been a memorable and wonderful experience and I loved every single moment. Since JW Mariott management, it’s even better. I have already said a lot in this review: https://fr.tripadvisor.ch/ShowUserReviews-g6697230-d15100939-r866873499-JW_Marriott_Maldives_Resort_Spa-Vagaru_Island.html So what could I say more? Why, despite spending days after days in screening all the Maldivian resorts, do I keep ending there, while, basically, I’m absolutely ready to experience a new island. It’s my 8th visit to the Maldives and I keep thinking that’s the best place for me and my family in the Maldives. Any island in the Maldives will look beautiful and for first timers, that will surely be a memorable experience with a pretty high standard in service level and resorts facilities all over the country. But it does not mean that what I am looking for is what others are as well looking for. So I thought I would do this review my listing all the criteria I look at for a stay in the Maldives and why I keep ending in that beautiful place. My criteria are the following - A resort away from airport and other Islands: I don’t like to see planes/airplanes/boats all around. In my opinion, the Maldives is a hidden gem that brings a feeling of privacy and “Robinson” experience and that is what I am looking for when going there. I want to feel away from the my daily life and problems and I want to see only the necessary signs of civilisation. Thus, I avoid all the hotels that are close to Male Airport. I also don’t like to see the next island just a hundred meters away and see boats connecting or tourists visiting for the day. JWM is far North and away from any visible Island. - “Big Island” but limited number of bungalows: For the same reasons as above, I like this feeling of exclusivity and privacy. I like to have to walk a bit to go from one place to another. It’s part of the adventure. I don’t like tiny places or large islands with lots of people. This is a big and long island, with a very limited number of villas (around 50). There is plenty of space, you rarely bump into others and it’s very quite. All that I love. - Lagoon and Corrals: while being a certified diver, I still love snorkelling. For me, it belongs to the experience. If all the corrals are dead and if you don’t see the marine life, this is definitely not the same for me. The marine life at JWM is good. The coral reef is very long. One side of the island is more for beach activities and the other side is more for snorkelling, though for more experienced snorkellers/swimmers. The general state of the Corral is rather good, especially on the sunrise side of the island. I would say it’s maybe not the best I have seen in the Maldives, but it’s close to the top. Because the corral reef is so long, you might be lucky to see some big things like Ray, Manta, sharks, turtles, etc, but you might also be “unlucky” by seeing only smaller fishes. It’s wildlife and it’s like a safari. Sometimes you are lucky, sometimes not. But you can spend hours at snorkelling and there are always new places to discover (even after the 3rd time there…) - Beach and Colours: the colours of the lagoon, the contrast with the white pristine beach and the vegetation are absolutely incredible. The pictures do not represent the truth. This place is really special. Every single day, from sunrise to sunset, even after more than 30 days there, I’m still amazed and can’t help myself thinking I want to stay there for ever. I probably have 20 times the same picture. And I still find it amazing and I’m still taking additional pictures. Every day, the colours are slightly different, depending on the sun, the wind, the waves… beautiful. I couldn’t imagine being on an island without a beach. Some islands have only overwater bungalows. Not for me. I need and want a beach. For the pictures, for the view, for the peace of mind, for the colours, for everything. At JWM the beaches are large, long, super clean, with super white thin powder sand, no people, and I can stay there for days without being bored. - Spacious (double) room bungalow and privacy: the double room is because I now have two children, but the first time I was there I had none, and I loved the space we had. There is a lot of privacy between the beach villas, and I love it. You feel like you’re at home, alone, without neighbours. You also rarely see other people on the beach or on the island, so that’s really nice and you really do feel like you’re (almost) alone on the island. Some might want to find animated places with loud music and ambiance. This is not what I am looking for going to the Maldives and this hotel is perfect for me. The beach bungalows are large, all with a swimming pool and large deck. The double room beach bungalows are the best for me in the Maldives if you look at the cost/benefit ratio. I am not interested into the overwater bungalow because of two reasons. First, I have children, and they want space and a beach to play. Second, I also enjoy moving from beach to sunbed to swimming pool, to shower and back at it. It can be very hot on the deck of an overwater bungalow. Everyone sees it differently. Though I understand a couple may prefer the experience of an overwater bungalow. But I truly love the beach and the colours of the beach at the JWM are amazing. Just one thing on that: the beach is cleared multiple times per day by very attentive staff. This is a massive effort by all the staff to keep the island absolutely clean of anything and a great round of applause to them for all their work and dedication at it. - Kid’s club: this was not on my list a few years ago, but it is now. This one is really special. It’s large, it’s modern, it’s beautiful, inside or outside, great staff, quite flexible and no brainer, love it! - Choice of restaurants/quality of food: for me, having a nice food experience is also an important part in the global rating of the holiday. There are multiple restaurants on the island, the quality of food is very high, and all staff is very friendly, attentive, passionate and dedicated. I truly felt like home and want to thank again the whole team at the various restaurants and the chef for making it special again. Big thanks to Raoof for the 6 star service and friendliness. I particularly love the Thai restaurant up in the tree and the sushis at Shio, on top of all the fantastic special dinners on the beach or in the main restaurant. Note that there is no buffet for lunch/dinner, everything is a la carte and that’s a strong statement from the management for providing top quality food only. Breakfast choice is amazing and really diversified with all food styles being represented. - Facilities: I usually have diving, spa & fitness on my list. Tennis court is a plus. JWM has no tennis court, but a multisport terrain which is nice and friendly to use. The fitness is great with great equipment and splendid location. The treatments at the Spa are excellent and the staff is attentive. The spot is beautiful. Only maybe the decoration of the outside of the Spa could be a bit enriched. But that’s a detail. The staff at the diving centre is really competent, friendly and attentive. Big thank you to Hugo, super diving instructor. They have like 15 diving spots. I think that, if you’re a dive fanatic, the south of the Maldives is a bit better. The spots are good to ok around the JWM, but I have been to more colourful places. Though this has nothing to do with the JWM nor with the staff or selection of dives. That’s just how it is in this region. It’s good. But if you want to dive 3x per day, you may consider places more in the South. They now also have a play lounge, which is new, where you have games like snooker, karaoke, video games, etc. We had a lot of fun there to start the day. They have also other facilities like infinity pools, boutique, water sports, library, various bars (loved the Rhum Baan!) etc. If you fancy. And I think that is about it for my criteria. You may notice I have not mentioned service quality. First, I think that as a standard, service quality is very high in the Maldives generally. Maldivian people are very kind people, and you can feel that their best reward is to see a smile on your face. My only expectation going into such a place is to have no major problem. Something can always happen and no one is perfect, so even if it’s one of the top in one of the most expensive places in the world, I’m absolutely ready to accept that a few things go wrong with the service here and there over a 12 days stay. Though, I must say, for the second time in a row, there has not been ANY default and ANY issues with the four of us, thanks to, as already mentioned 3x, but I will repeat it again, super attentive and friendly staff, always at the top of everything and caring for its guests. Special thanks to Najaah for being so helpful and proactive. This is a JEWEL in the Ocean. Extremely hard work and efforts are put in place by everyone to keep it like this. There are continuous efforts to maintain the island and its facilities in top conditions, inside and outside. Everyone is dedicated to make you experience the best. It has a price, that’s clear. Obviously, there are cheaper places in the Maldives. But hey, I went through weeks of extensive research. For the criteria I have above, there is simply NO other island/resort that can match it for the price you have at the JWM. I scanned the whole of the Maldivian resorts. There is none. Read less

As a world traveler many times over we booked the he JW Marriot Maldives as part of our 2 month travel extravaganza . I generally do not like a big hotel but thought The JW could offer options on an island for 10 days. Our initial Impression was good. The people are very friendly and over several days we got to know the food and beverage director who was exceptional.Also the over villa room was clean and comfortable . The excitement quickly faded after several days.The prices are absolutely gouging! A cheese plate with 5 to 6 small chooses of cheese was 40 usd “plus/ plus”. This is insulting , if they have to overcharge so much it should not be on the menu . I clearly felt their strategy is to charge on everything way beyond its value .I am very familiar with island(own a place in Turks and Caicos ) pricing this was gouging . There were several issues with the hotel which made us pack up forfeit our paid over water villa for the last 3 nights to go to another hotel and pay there. 1. The excessive price gauging as mentioned 2. The water is so rough it is dangerous. They claim there are snorkeling areas I wish I found them . Nothing to see and I got nausea fighting the waves . 3. There is no comfortable place to hang out and /or see the sunset. There small bar has the most uncomfortable swinging seats and rocking chair . Couldn’t wait to get out of there although I was looking for a place to chill - [ ] Drinks were poorly made and after 2 the bill is $50 dollars . I am use to NY prices but even the spa treatment was $450 .Are u serious ! You could also buy a day food and spa pass for 500 a day ! Another rip off .I do not eat 3 meals a day and my massage cost $150 even in my favorite best place in London . 5. The staff was very attentive maybe too much so . For dinner and breakfast we were asked 8-10 times if everything was good, give us time to eat …… and enjoy and then we will know how it is . There is nothing to do there ! Several days it down poured we stayed in our room. No night jazz horn at the pool , the excursions were all canceled due to weather. No options They completely downplayed how rough the waters are. We had an over water villa I was afraid to go in t he water because it was so rough ,so disappointing ,that’s why I got the over water villa . I personally believe they always have this rough water problem. A lot of the time it seemed to me that there shouldn’t even be a resort in that location because of the rough waters. Guaging ,no added value for the guest ,dangerous waters . I hope this was helpful Read less

This place is amazing! The service from the staff is top-notch - I've never experienced such a personalized experience. Our personal assistant, Gasim, was available anytime we needed him (and even at times when we didn't know we needed him). We had one of the over-water villas, and it did not disappoint! The private pool was nice to have, although we didn't use it much. We spent a lot of our time snorkeling right from the back deck of our villa. We swam with a large variety of fish and got to see several eagle rays and sharks. We even saw a huge painted rock lobster and a large sea turtle while snorkeling. Although a bit expensive, the food was excellent. One of our favorite restaurants was Kaashi, the Thai restaurant that is open for lunch. Service at all of the bars and restaurants was excellent - we often had the same servers that would remember our names and drink preferences. Some of the other services at the resort were also excellent. The spa was amazing. The photography studio was fun and left us with a few beautiful portraits to take home. Overall, this was a once-in-a-lifetime type of experience for us and we couldn't have expected anything better. Read less