It’s a little warm and humid at 85 degrees on Maamutaa island, so I’m taking a dip outside my water villa at the Pullman Maldives Maamutaa Resort. The Indian Ocean is a balmy 80 degrees, just slightly cooler than the air, but refreshing instead of a jolt to my senses. Or, I could choose my infinity pool overlooking the ocean, which is a few degrees cooler than the ocean–perfect for the noon hour when it’s the warmest.
Bottom line: I’m in love and I never want to leave. In fact, I’m considering why we live in civilization when living on a deserted island is an option while still enjoying freshly pressed watermelon juice daily.
My husband and I were searching for a Maldives all inclusive resort and finally found quite a few generous all inclusives options. Of course, we couldn’t find one that had quite the blissful appeal that Pullman Maldives all inclusive offered with its south-of-maldives raw natural habitat.
The island feels like a cross between an untouched island, only found by shipwreck, and the magical world of Disney vacations. I never dreamed such a place existed. The water is so pristine it invokes the feeling of a calm natural lake more than a big blue ocean.
I had my reservations about going on vacation so far away just to rush on planes to do nothing for a week, but I can’t say enough what an absolute pleasure it was doing just that.
Yes, we could choose between water sports, from fishing, diving, snorkeling, jet skiing, and the like, but the highlight of our stay was in our private pool villa with a mini bar that was stocked twice daily–and trust me, you need it stocked.
The jet lag was real, but I was thankful for it! My favorite time at Pullman took place during the wee hours of 4-6am. This was high tide under our little bungalow when we could peak in our floor sea window and see turtles, tuna, nurse sharks, and more. Every single morning.
This peak time was also when the night lights on our deck went off and we could see the starry sky in all its glory, while waiting for the sun to rise to light up our deck. The experience was so private it felt like a show that was put on just for us.
After a quick dip, we would wander over to Sol Rising, accompanied by quite a few baby sharks on our way, for the most amazing breakfast with a view: soft and creamy feta with an egg white scramble. They claimed the feta was imported from Greece, but I have had feta from Greece in the States–the texture was completely different. It tasted homemade, almost like a farmer’s cheese, but with the sharp flavor I love in feta. Simply unparalleled. I still dream about my simple no carb feta scramble more than any of the fancy meals I had on the island.
I admit, the view at Sol Rising was worth it since you can make special food requests, but going to their all-you-can-eat buffet was our daily go-to since they have most of the other restaurant specialties minus the wait. The downside is the food was buffet instead of individual meal preparation, and the view was a pool, but I was on time for all our activities.
I loved dining at the Mélange buffet since I could experience both the Souq Oven and Sol Rising if I didn’t want to wait. The one special request I made was I wanted a fresh beef tartare made because it was so very hot and I was concerned about how long it was out. Let me tell you, it was worth the request with local and fresh caper berries, a squeeze of lemon, and exquisite presentation. The photo below is of the salmon tartare, which was kindly made special for me after I explained my love of their feta. I may have taken a bite before I remembered to snap a photo.
Visiting Phat Chameleon, their vegan dining, was a special dining experience on the island with a glowy romantic ambiance. I especially enjoyed the Ravioli appetizer with a basil sphere and the Red Capsicum Gnocchi. Five stars for their beautiful presentation, however, I was underwhelmed with their flavor profiles with many items of the menu. I skipped the bread so my stomach wasn’t overloaded from vegan cheesy goodness, but I did take a bite. Not worth ruining your appetite with the odd combination of matcha, chocolate, passion fruit rolls, and if I remember correctly, accompanied by a savory eggplant salsa and a balsamic and olive oil.
I do hope they switch this up and serve a savory bread with the eggplant next time and save the rest of their breads for a dessert with whipped coconut cream and berries for a delicious spin on a shortcake. Other than that, the Phat Chameleon’s chef is an artist, even if a bit experimental. Just look at that tartlette’s lace vegan cheese.
In their marketing, they mention the Phat Chameleon restaurant is special partially because of their garden they use for their menu development, which is accurate, but after doing a little research, I came to realize that most of the resort’s food, including their delicious bee hive honey, is cultivated on the island.
In fact, I found Maamuutaa Island to be pretty independent, from their garden, to local fisherman and even guests providing the catch of the day for their buffet, to local artisans that make special pieces for their gift shop. I left with a couple of mango wood and coconut bowls that were hand-carved.
Happy hour was served at their wine bar called the Saffron Affair daily, complete with hammocks over the ocean. Tip: Unless you plan to spend hours reading, I wouldn’t trade your private bungalow’s pool villa for an ocean villa, which offers a double hammock instead of a private pool. You have access to many hammocks at the Saffron Affair. But do note the time of year you are traveling since the pools are not heated.
What We Did
There was surprisingly more activity under our private bungalow than out in the big blue ocean, but we did go snorkeling and saw some beautiful coral and fish. We also saw a turtle while snorkeling, but it was too far down underwater for me to get a good look. My one regret was not booking their turtle reef snorkeling activity on day one, but luckily we had quite a few turtle sightings under our bungalow. We also went fishing with a sunset view.
The Spa
We enjoyed a couples massage at their spa, which was well worth it. They start out with a traditional foot washing, then we had a traditional Madivian massage, and ended in a steaming hot bath with a view to relieve any last muscle tension. I loved the fresh ginger tea served to reduce inflammation afterwards.
The Bungalow
You’d expect waking up in bed to the ocean would be the highlight of the space, but I was most impressed with the bathroom; a truly Polynesian experience. With an emphasis on form and function, the design of the bungalow flows indoors and out with only large sliding doors in between. The outdoor private bathroom can be enjoyed with a view to both the starry sky and the ocean floor where a lavish modern bathtub and shower are centerstage. But if that isn’t enough, there are two showers in the bathroom (one under the roof and one under the stars) as well as a shower on the deck for going in and out of the pool and ocean. Needless to say, we spent most of our time enjoying our bungalow where nature meets luxury.
My Top Tips
1. Bring your own snorkelers: you can borrow them at the resort, but the pandemic has made me reconsider these types of hygiene decisions. You can also borrow fins. We didn’t bring any because of weight rules on the Maldives flight. It was about $10 per Kilo (about 2.2 lbs.) if over weight on the small seaplane/jet.
2. Bring a Go Pro: We used ours non-stop and under our bungalow to capture stingrays, starks, quite a few schools of brightly colored fish, and even the sunrise.
3. Book your activities the day you arrive. Do not wait or the activities you want to do will be booked. Half of the activities we wanted to do were not possible for us due to choosing the day we wanted to do them. This should be the first thing you decide when you get into your bungalow.
4. Bring water shoes because the Gaafu Alifu Atoll ocean floor is extremely rocky. My husband brought these Keens and these are similar to the ones I have (mine are from a couple years ago). We were pretty cut up the day we forgot to wear them in the ocean.
5. Bring a couple band-aids for outdoor mishaps, your highest SPF waterproof sunscreen, aloe gel, mosquito repellant and/or bracelets, dramamine for the boats, and antihistamine for the airport.
Though we were never bitten on the island itself (they spray 2x daily for mosquitos around sunrise/sunset), we were bitten many times at the Maldivian airport and while waiting for our speedboat. They spray the entire plane down (with you on it), so wear a hoodie on the plane if you don’t want insecticides on your face.
How We Got There
We flew on Qatar Air from LAX to Doha, Qatar, and then onward to Malé International Airport in the Maldives. We then flew Maldivian Air from Malé to Kooddoo Island, where we took a speedboat to our resort.
The resort helped arrange the Maldivian Air and speedboat, which is customary. Depending on when you arrive to Malé International Airport, you may luck out and get a seaplane to take you straight to the resort.
If you don’t live in a major metropolitan area, you may need to start by taking a domestic flight to a major metropolitan area. We were lucky we didn’t have to add those hours into our travel!
Overall, my stay at the Pullman Maldives was one to remember. My regret? Not staying longer.
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