Soneva Jani

Soneva Jani sits in a lagoon in the North Province of the Maldives, about as far from the capital as the archipelago allows. The resort holds twenty-six overwater villas and reserves — larger units the property calls reserves — all built on stilts above the lagoon water. Every villa has a private swimming pool, a wine cellar, and a sound system, and each is looked after by a dedicated butler alongside daily housekeeping. The water is accessible directly from your deck.

The resort runs several restaurants and bars, a spa with sauna and steam rooms, a gym, and a yoga pavilion. Two facilities set it apart from most Maldivian resorts: an observatory for stargazing and a dedicated cinema. There is also a library, a garden to walk through, and a full watersports operation using the lagoon.

Access to the North Province typically involves a seaplane transfer from Velana International Airport in Malé — the standard arrangement for resorts this far from the capital. The lagoon is ringed by beaches and dense tropical vegetation, which shelter the water villas from open-ocean swell and keep the lagoon calm for swimming and watersports year-round.