February 2020

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Yeah so I probably wouldn't suggest Maldives to you.

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...because then you're never going to want to go anywhere else! Like me!

Oh my word. Stunning. Breathtaking. Secluded. Romantic. Warm. Sunny. Just amazing.

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We stayed at the JW Marriott Maldives and it was just insane from front to back. Although it took us about 24 hours each way to get there, it was unlike anything I've ever seen. The resort was pristine. Our bungalow was decked out with an infinity pool, outdoor shower, and a multi-level deck with stairs into the water. The inside was just as luxurious; open floor plan, tall ceilings, humongous bathroom with a gorgeous bathtub facing the water. We just kept pinching ourselves because the views inside and out were just unbelievable. I need whatever interior/exterior designer who planned all that to come to my house, although it probably wouldn't look as cool in Connecticut 😉

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Typically I like to share our must-see spots, but the resort is the only thing on the tiny little island! With that said, I do have a few tips for anyone interested in heading here! (How could you not be interested, I mean come on)

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Tips:

-Give yourself plenty of time for connecting flights even though you want to get there ASAP. We flew JFK to Dubai to Male and then had to take a seaplane to our particular Maldivian Island, Vagaru Island. Our flight from Dubai to Male left about 30 minutes late and customs took forever, and long story short, we missed our sea plane by a couple of minutes and it was the last one of the day. The sea planes can't fly once it's dark out, so they have limited hours of operation. Our option was to take a boat 6 hours to the island (after flying for the previous 24 hours) or stay in Male for the night. We opted to stay in Male even though I was very cranky about not finishing our marathon travel day in the over-the-water bungalow we had long been looking forward to staying in. Long story short, not worth the trouble, give yourself extra time.

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-Bring FOOD. I don't know about any other hotel besides the one we stayed in, but food was pricey. Understandably so, as they have to use cargo ships to deliver food to all of the island resorts every week, but still, whoa. Luckily breakfast was included and I brought some snacks, so we tried our best to binge eat at breakfast and then hold off eating until dinner to keep the price of food down. Let me put it to you this way, a glass jar of M&Ms the size of a can of tuna was $18 USD. Pass. The food we did eat though, amazing.

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-The water was so warm and crystal clear. Our first time in the Indian Ocean! We brought our own snorkel gear we bought for cheap off Amazon and boy did it come in handy. If you can fit a small set in your suitcase, I would definitely recommend bringing your own snorkel set because every day we went out snorkeling! Because this resort is fairly small and there weren't hundreds of snorkelers out and about everywhere, the sea life was undisturbed and just incredible. I'm used to being on snorkeling tours with tons of people, but here, it was just us! I got to swim with sea turtles almost every day for hours by myself (maybe this is my only child coming out, sorry haha). We saw so many fish, a manta ray, friendly reef sharks, and even two octopi! So cool.

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-Bring a book and relax. I mean, we did nothing and barely left our room (why would we!?). It truly was what we like to a call a relaxation vacation. 

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-Don't forget your sunscreen! Maldives was a little too close to the equator for Andrew and his nose. Despite our repeated sunscreen applications, his nose bled from the burn!

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-Eat mango! All of it. As much as you can.

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I just want to say that we feel incredibly lucky to have had this experience. Andrew had Marriott points leftover that we were saving for our honeymoon and didn't fully use and that is the only way we were able to reasonably get here. Between the flights and food alone, this place was priiiiicey. I'm not sure we would have wanted to splurge had we had to pay full price for the room, but I'd be lying if I said I don't say approximately every week that we need to go back. We want to go to new places, but this one's gunna be hard to top. Vacation of a lifetime for sure. Whether it's this resort or not, try to get yourself to the Maldives. My mind wanders here all the time.

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