The Maldives has no shortage of overwater bungalows and we had the toughest choice deciding which resort to book for our honeymoon. After what seemed like weeks of research, we settled on LUX* in the beautiful South Ari Atoll thanks to their gorgeous overwater bungalows and rave reviews from previous guests! LUX* is one of the larger resorts in the Maldives, being able to accommodate up to about 300 people and even though we visited during peak season when they were at capacity, it never felt busy and most of the time we were completely on our own. Guests are able to choose between a number of different beach and water villas, ensuring the perfect villa for you and your loved one! As we were on our honeymoon we decided to treat ourselves to a Romantic Pool Water Villa which came complete with infinity pool, love nest and home theatre system! In our opinion, it was the ultimate in overwater bungalows and we wanted to move in… forever!
If I’m ever asked to think about my happy place, it would either be in magical, snowy Grindelwald or in the Maldives. LUX* has the most beautiful overwater bungalows with their pool water villas located at one end of the island, and their other water villas located at the other end.
The water in the Maldives is teeming with colourful fish and is like no where we’ve ever visited. The photos also really don’t give it justice, it is pure heaven!
I squealed with joy when we stepped inside our villa! It was light, breezy, so wonderfully spacious and stylish! I loved the use of whites and natural fibres with the occasional pops of blue, which reflected the blues of our surroundings! The romantic pool water villas are over 100 square metres in size and were impeccably planned and designed. We loved the walk in robe and dressing room where we could unpack all our clothes for the week. The bathrooms were stylish, with separate double rain-showers and toiletries from the wonderful LUX* spa range. The linens and towels were divine and we slept so soundly each night in the LUX* signature ‘Sleep Tight’ bed. The air-conditioning made the whole villa feel like pure bliss after spending hours in the sun and we loved the pampering robes and complementary beach bag and thongs (flip-flops)! The thongs were a lifesaver as I broke mine in Sri Lanka and hadn’t managed to find a good replacement.
We loved the special treatment we received from our lovely room attendant. He was so kind and very attentive, servicing our room twice a day to the highest standard, and decorating our bed for our honeymoon. We were provided with two large bottles each morning and evening and as we were on the all-inclusive plan we could enjoy the drinks (beer, wine, soft drink and juice) from the mini-bar. We really enjoyed this as it was nice to be able to enjoy a drink on our deck during the afternoon before we would go out for cocktails and dinner.
Our room was equipped with a TV and also a drop-down home theatre system! We almost died and went to heaven the minute we saw this! Whilst we only got the chance to watch one or two movies throughout the week, it was such a special addition to the villas that all guests would love! There was a fantastic range of movies available to watch as well.
While the interior of the villa was spacious, comfortable and stylish, the moment we opened the doors to the outside we were lost for words. Stepping out onto the deck for the first time and seeing the magnificent views is one of those honeymoon memories we’ll never forget!
The love nest was huge and a great place to relax and read a book. I’m trying to convince Dan we should get one for our house… but I don’t think it would have the same appeal as one on an overwater villa, looking out at the stunning blue waters.
We had stairs from our deck into the inviting waters below and there was also an outdoor shower so you can wash the salt water off when you are done. Trust me, one of the toughest decisions you will have in the Maldives is whether to swim in your pool or in the sea! We tried to do both as much as possible. You could borrow flippers, a snorkel and mask from the dive shop each day and we loved snorkelling straight off our stairs onto the reef.
One of our favourite aspects of our villa was our private infinity pool! It was absolutely gorgeous and the perfect honeymoon indulgence. We spent hours in our pool each day, watching either sunset or sunrise, reading books and of course, drinking champagne! I could never get sick of the endless blues from the pool, lagoon, sea and sky…
We didn’t shut our blinds when we would go to bed of a night as we wanted to be woken up naturally to this incredible view! We caught as many sunrises and sunsets as we could during our week in the Maldives and it was so lovely sitting in the basking heat, watching the sunrise and then sliding into the pool or sea to cool down before starting our day in paradise.
Whilst LUX* certainly isn’t the cheapest of overwater bungalow options, from our research it was one of the more luxurious, five-star resorts, which also included an all-inclusive option. Some of the top five-star resorts in the Maldives don’t provide all-inclusive options but we knew that we wanted all-inclusive for our honeymoon. Our stay at LUX* was not sponsored or discounted in any way through the blog, we paid for it ourselves and our 7 nights stay on their ‘Honeymoon Package’ was USD$7,400 (for our fellow Aussies, everything in the Maldives is in USD but our stay worked out to be about AUD$9,500). It seems like a lot but we were happy to splurge for our honeymoon and we honestly think it was worth every cent!
Also, does life really get much better than sipping champagne in your own private infinity pool in the Maldives with your new husband? I don’t think so.
Our honeymoon was everything we had dreamed of and more and our overwater bungalow truly blew us away! We loved every single aspect of the villa and wouldn’t change a thing. We’d return in a heartbeat to LUX* and our romantic pool water villa, which very quickly felt like our very luxurious home away from home. I’m sure every resort in the Maldives is absolutely incredible but LUX* without a doubt, has our heart.
