Tabemasu
The resort’s Japanese restaurant, where art meets cooking: teppanyaki at the counter with the chef cooking in front of you, from 6 to 10pm, closed on Wednesdays; smart casual (restaurants).
Le Méridien Maldives Resort & Spa
Le Méridien Maldives Resort & Spa, on Thilamaafushi in Lhaviyani Atoll: 134 villas, 97 of them over the water, 35 minutes by seaplane from Malé.
A week here, month by monthLe Méridien Maldives suits couples and families who want teppanyaki, a free Kids Hub and an adults-only pool bar: booked together as 7 nights from 16 November 2026, the lowest seller Google listed on 12 October asked $686 a night for 2 adults, the resort’s own listing the same. Anyone after a doorstep reef or a silent island may prefer elsewhere.
Official siteDoes it suit you?
5 pairs of hotels, and the guide tells you whether this one suits you.Like a regular
The villa to ask for
I would ask for the One Bedroom Overwater Pool Villa: a private infinity pool on its deck, direct access to the ocean below and 180-degree views of the sunrise or sunset, according to the resort’s villa page.
Seaplane, Green Tax and GST
The seaplane is $605 per adult and $303 per child, return. The Maldives Green Tax is $12 per person per night, with infants aged 0 to 2 exempt, and GST is 17% of the rate.
Rosé at sunset, every day
Ring the bell and sip: every day from 5pm to 5.15pm the resort pours a complimentary glass of chilled rosé, so that you can unwind and watch the sun set.
What Le Méridien Maldives is
The resort opened on 1 September 2021, the first Le Méridien in the Maldives, built with the Singapore developer Chiu Teng Enterprises (PR Newswire, Frequent Miler). It stands on Thilamaafushi, a natural island of 9 hectares in the south-eastern corner of Lhaviyani Atoll, 130 km north of Malé’s airport (official site).
There are 134 villas: 37 on the beach and 97 over the water (official site). They run from the Beach Villa to the Overwater Villa with Pool, 100 m², up to the 2-bedroom villas, 165 m² on the beach and 270 over the water, and the Thilamaafushi Villa, 3 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms in 280 m² with its own beach (villas).
For meals there is Turquoise, the international room for breakfast and dinner; Tabemasu, Japanese with teppanyaki; Riviera, Mediterranean on the beach; Velaa Bar + Grill; Waves Café; and La Vie, the adults-only bar with a pool (restaurants). The menus start from the 430 m² hydroponic greenhouse, in the resort’s words one of the largest in the Maldives (official site).
The house reef has green and hawksbill turtles (experiences), but several guests write that it lies far from the shore (Google). On 5 October 2026 it scored 4.8 out of 5 on Google from 453 reviews and 4.9 on Tripadvisor from 984, and guests praise above all the staff, the cleaning and the breakfast (Google).
One Lume
Lumina Guide 2027
Gives more than the other hotels of its place and price range.
Le Méridien Maldives is a big resort by Maldives standards, 35 minutes by seaplane from Malé: 134 villas, 97 over the water, 6 restaurants and bars, a Kids Hub and an overwater spa with a glass floor.
How Lumi are awardedGuests (exceptional)
385 reviews read: breakfast pleases 9 guests in 10 who mention it, the room 9 in 10.
Ours
In the resort’s own pages we found a 430 m² hydroponic greenhouse that supplies the menus, teppanyaki at Tabemasu, an astronomer and a Marine Hub, on a natural island of 9 hectares that opened to guests in 2021.
Our reading, point by point
What we found reading the hotel’s own pages, one thing at a time.
Location
35 minutes by seaplane from Malé, in Lhaviyani Atoll; the seaplane flies by day only.
Character
A 2021 resort, big and lively, with art, an astronomer, a greenhouse and a Marine Hub.
Rooms
134 villas on the beach and over the water; many without a pool, the largest 280 m².
Food and social life
6 restaurants and bars, Tabemasu’s teppanyaki and the greenhouse; lunch is ordered à la carte.
Wellness
An overwater spa with 6 rooms and glass floors, a gym open around the clock.
The stay as a whole
From $800 to $916 a night for 2, taxes and seaplane included, in the stays read on Google.
The 5 things that matter, as guests tell them
What do Le Méridien Maldives’s guests say? They write it in their reviews, even those who only came for a drink or dinner: we read every one and tell the 5 things that matter, from the location to the bill.
Location
9 in 10 guests who mention it are happy with it. Guests write about the island and its lagoon: the beach, the sunsets, and snorkelling among turtles, rays and small sharks.
Room
9 in 10 guests who mention it are happy with it. Guests write of large villas made up twice a day, the bathtub looking onto the lagoon and, in the overwater ones, the ladder down into the sea.
Staff and service
9 in 10 guests who mention it are happy with it. Guests remember the staff by name and tell of the surprises for birthdays, anniversaries and honeymoons, the massages at the spa and the buggy that takes them round the island.
Breakfast
9 in 10 guests who mention it are happy with it. Breakfast is the international buffet at Turquoise, from 7am to 10.30am: guests write about the choice, with Asian and European dishes and fruit.
Price
6 in 10 guests who mention the price find it fair. The choice runs from breakfast only to half board and All-Inclusive; lunches, drinks and extras go on the bill when the meal plan leaves them out.
Where Le Méridien Maldives leads
- Breakfast
On breakfast it shares first place with Hurawalhi Island Resort among the 5 hotels compared in the Maldives.
The numbers, and how we count them
| What | Score out of 10 | Guests who mention it | Happy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Location | 8.7 | 183 | 86% |
| Room | 8.5 | 173 | 88% |
| Staff and service | 8.8 | 331 | 88% |
| Breakfast | 8.2 | 63 | 92% |
| Price | – | 66 | 58% |
The scores come from 385 Google reviews with text, left from 16 September 2021 to 27 September 2026. The other hotels are the ones weighed for a stay in the Maldives: for each we read its latest 500 Google reviews with text, or all of them where there are fewer, as of 5 October 2026. The score is the average of what they say, from 0 if they speak of it very badly to 10 if they speak of it very well. Where only a few mention something, the score stays close to the guide’s average: a handful of voices does not make a reputation.
The hotels we weigh it against in the Maldives:
- Hurawalhi Island Resort
- Six Senses Kanuhura
- Atmosphere Kanifushi Maldives
- Cocoon Maldives
Price: for two on the night of 11 January 2027, from $417 (seen on Google Hotels on 12 October 2026).
Tabemasu and La Vie, a glass-floored spa, the Marine Hub, the greenhouse and the Kids Hub
Teppanyaki over the water, an adults-only bar with a pool, massages above the lagoon, the marine biologist, a hydroponic garden and a children’s club open every day.
La Vie
The adults-only bar with its own infinity pool, open from 11am to 11.30pm; the pool, with a lifeguard, from 10am to 6pm (restaurants, official site).
Explore Spa
6 rooms above the lagoon, 2 for couples, with glass panels in the floor to watch the coral below (spa); Ayurveda-inspired treatments, open from 9am to 9pm. In 2025 it joined National Geographic Traveller’s Spa & Wellness Collection (official site).
The Marine Hub
The base of the resort’s marine biologist: the Marine Master programme, coral restoration, the mangrove walk and talks on protecting turtles and manta rays (Good Travel, official site). Diving is with Sub Oceanic, among more than 50 sites in the atoll (experiences).
The greenhouse
430 m² of hydroponic beds that supply the kitchens (official site); on Family Foraging you pick, learn about composting and finish with a cooking class and lunch (experiences).
The Kids Hub
Free, from 9am to 6pm, with games, art and nature; a babysitter costs $20 an hour until midnight and $25 after (official site). Young explorers can also camp out on the island for a night (experiences).
Good to know before you book
The Trans Maldivian Airways seaplane costs $605 per adult and $303 for ages 2 to 11, return; the prices read on Google already include it. Source: marriott.com
Lunch is ordered à la carte, at Riviera or Velaa Bar + Grill: Turquoise opens for breakfast and dinner (restaurants). Lunches, drinks and extras are charged on top when the meal plan leaves them out, and they are the costs guests write about when they discuss the bill (Google).
The house reef is a swim from the beach, but it lies far from the shore (Google). At high tide it is a long swim with a noticeable current, several guests wrote between 2022 and 2026, and less confident swimmers pick low tide or the dive centre’s guided snorkelling.
The seaplane flies by day only: arriving, you must land in Malé by 3.30pm; leaving, your flight cannot be before 9am, and the last seaplane from the resort usually goes between 2 and 3pm. Hold luggage is 20 kg a head, plus 5 kg in the cabin (official site).
Between October 2022 and August 2026, 3 Google reviews describe the air conditioning in their villa not working or not cooling (Google).
Marriott’s own rates exclude 17% GST and a green tax of $12 per person per night, free up to age 2 (official site, MIRA); the prices read on Google already include them. Breakfast at Turquoise is charged when it is not in the rate (restaurants).
La Vie, bar and pool, is for adults only (restaurants); the rest of the island is for everyone, and children are allowed in the overwater villas too (official site).
Beach villas, overwater villas and family villas, up to the Thilamaafushi Villa
Getting here
By seaplane from Malé, 35 minutes north: there is no speedboat transfer.
| Seaplane | Trans Maldivian Airways, about 35 minutes shared (official site); the return trip costs $605 per adult and $303 from 2 to 11 (official site, Booking.com). |
|---|---|
| Times | Flights run between 6am and 4pm: you land in Malé by 3.30pm and fly out after 9am (official site). |
| Luggage | 20 kg in the hold and 5 kg in the cabin per person (official site). |
| The unexpected | In bad weather the seaplane may leave from another island: one guest reached it by speedboat on departure (Google). |
Sources read on 3, 4 and 5 October 2026.
From Thilamaafushi to Malé
The resort, in Lhaviyani Atoll, and Malé’s airport, 130 km to the south. Tap a place for details.
Loading map…
Recommended for you
A day at Le Méridien Maldives
On arrival
Land in Malé by 3.30pm
The seaplane transfer is arranged for international flights landing by 3.30pm and, on the way home, flights leaving at or after 9am.
7am
Breakfast at Turquoise
Breakfast runs from 7am to 10.30am at Turquoise, which lists it for a fee.
9am
Explore Spa opens
The spa opens at 9am, with 6 treatment rooms over the lagoon and glass panels in the floor.
11am
A drink at La Vie
La Vie, the adults-only bar with a pool, opens every day at 11am and closes at 11.30pm.
6pm
Dinner at Tabemasu
Tabemasu serves from 6pm to 10pm every day except Wednesday, when it is closed.
Le Méridien Maldives Resort & Spa reviews
Platform scores and what guests write about the reef, the food, children and upkeep.
Scores read on 5 October 2026
Guest voices
From the resort’s Google listing, August and September 2026: the reef, a return visit, a family, the 2-bedroom villas and lunch.
GoogleAbove the reef
A couple in September 2026, travelling on a set budget, write that snorkelling was free and the best they had ever done, with the resort sitting above a reef shelf, and that the local island opposite is a cheap place to buy groceries.
Google · September 2026Read the review
GoogleThe second year
A couple back in August 2026 went down from their overwater villa onto the reef every day: rays, turtles, sharks, moray eels, and more fish than the year before.
Google · August 2026Read the review
GoogleThe children’s room
A German family, 4 nights in September 2026, describe a villa in perfect order, a children’s room the little ones did not want to leave, and a timing problem solved by the general manager.
Google · September 2026Read the review
GoogleThe 2-bedroom villas
A guest in July 2026, 2 weeks in two 2-bedroom pool villas, found stains, fridges that would not cool and air conditioners out of gas.
Google · August 2026Read the review
GoogleÀ la carte lunches
A guest in August 2026 finds the lunches tasty but meagre, à la carte only, with little choice at breakfast and dinner compared with other Maldives resorts; the staff, he writes, are kind.
Google · August 2026Read the review
Questions before you go
Sources read on 3, 4 and 5 October 2026.
How much is a night at Le Méridien Maldives?
On Google Hotels, read on 5 October 2026 for 2 adults and 3-night stays, the resort’s own site asked $916 a night from 16 November and from 7 December 2026, and $865 from 11 January 2027, for a Beach Villa; from 8 March the lowest price was $865, and from 7 June $800 on Booking.com.
The calendar on the same card gives figures that do not square with the sellers’: $461 for 16 November, half, and $1,671 for 8 March, double. The sellers’ figures include taxes and fees: for the stay from 16 November Booking.com’s link counts $1,609 of the $2,749 as taxes and fees, a sum that matches GST, service, green tax and the seaplane for 2. Marriott notes that its own rates exclude 17% GST and the $12 per person per night green tax (official site); on the Stay 5 Pay 4 offer, for Bonvoy members until 31 August 2027, the fifth night is free (offers).
Is there an all-inclusive plan? Which meal plans are there?
Rates run from room only to breakfast, half board and the All-Inclusive Indulgence, which Marriott lists from 4 September 2026 to 31 August 2027 (All-Inclusive Indulgence, rooms and rates). An all-inclusive guest in August 2026 describes the minibar restocked every day (Google). Without a meal plan, breakfast at Turquoise is charged (restaurants).
How do you get to Le Méridien Maldives? How much is the seaplane?
Only by seaplane, with Trans Maldivian Airways: about 35 minutes from Malé, $605 per adult and $303 from 2 to 11, return (official site, Booking.com). It flies by day only: you must land in Malé by 3.30pm and fly out after 9am; allowances are 20 kg in the hold and 5 kg in the cabin (official site).
Does Le Méridien Maldives have a house reef?
Yes, with green and hawksbill turtles and shoals of fish (experiences). It is a swim from the beach, but far from the shore, and the current is noticeable: less confident swimmers go at low tide or on the dive centre’s guided snorkelling (Google). From the overwater villas a ladder leads into the lagoon; a couple in August 2026 saw rays, sharks and moray eels there every day.
Which villa should you book?
As a couple, an overwater villa: the Sunrise or Sunset Overwater Villa without a pool, or the Overwater Villa with Pool, 100 m² with an infinity pool (rooms, villas). On the beach, the Beach Pool Villa has its pool towards the sand, the Beach Garden Pool Villa in a walled courtyard. As a family, the 2-bedroom villas, 165 m² on the beach or 270 over the water, for up to 6, or the Thilamaafushi Villa, 280 m² for 7 (villas).
Is Le Méridien Maldives good for children?
Yes: children of all ages are welcome, and from 12 they pay as adults (Booking.com). The Kids Hub is free, from 9am to 6pm; a babysitter costs $20 an hour until midnight and $25 after (official site). An extra bed costs $75 a night from 3 to 11 and $150 from 12 to 16 on Booking.com, $150 on Marriott; a cot is free up to age 2 (Booking.com, villas).
Are there adults-only areas?
Yes: La Vie, the adults-only bar with a pool, open from 11am to 11.30pm; the pool, with a lifeguard, from 10am to 6pm (restaurants, official site).
What is the spa like? Is it included in the rate?
Explore Spa stands over the water: 6 glass-floored treatment rooms, 2 of them for couples, plus a hair and beauty room (spa). It opens from 9am to 9pm, by appointment, and treatments are paid on top; the house treatments include Chakra Art, Four Hand Choreography and Discovery Massage (spa, official site). The resort publishes no price list on its site and no day pass for outside guests.
What restaurants are there? Is there a dress code?
Turquoise, international, breakfast from 7 to 10.30am and dinner from 6.30 to 10pm, no dinner on Mondays; Tabemasu, Japanese, from 6 to 10pm, closed on Wednesdays; Riviera, Mediterranean, lunch and dinner, no dinner on Thursdays; Velaa Bar + Grill, lunch and dinner, lunch only on Sundays; Waves Café from 8am to 5pm; La Vie from 11am to 11.30pm (restaurants). The dress code is casual everywhere, smart casual at Tabemasu.
Can you dive or play padel?
Diving and guided snorkelling are with Sub Oceanic Maldives, among more than 50 sites in the atoll; Scuba Schools International shot its training videos here (experiences). The padel court is open to all guests, with equipment, and there is a coach; from 13 to 23 December 2026 the resort hosts a padel retreat with Juani Mieres (experiences, offers).
Is the resort open all year?
Yes: it publishes no seasonal closure, and its offers run until 31 August 2027 (offers, All-Inclusive Indulgence). The only constraint is the seaplane, which flies by day: anyone landing in Malé after 3.30pm cannot reach the resort the same day (official site).
What happens at Christmas and New Year? Is there a gala dinner?
The festive programme is called The White Isle: a Christmas Eve dinner with live cooking stations, Midnight In White, an all-white beach party for 31 December, Orthodox Christmas with chef Dmitry Parikov and Santa arriving by sea for the children (festive season). The resort’s pages and Booking.com’s conditions read on 5 October 2026 give no prices and do not say whether the gala dinners are compulsory (Booking.com).
Can you get married at Le Méridien Maldives?
The resort hosts beach ceremonies and vow renewals, with a resident photographer, hair and make-up and a private dinner on Riviera Beach; groups of 10 or more get dedicated rates (events and weddings). It does not publish package prices.
When is the best time to go?
For the resort it rains less from November to early May; May to October is the monsoon, with showers of a few hours rather than whole days of rain, and 25 to 31 degrees all year (official site). Among the prices read on Google, June 2027 was the cheapest, at $800 a night (Google Hotels).
What are the check-in and check-out times? Any other rules?
Check-in at 2pm, check-out at noon; you must be 18 to check in, and pets are not allowed (official site). In-room Wi-Fi is free for Bonvoy members who book on the site (official site), and free on Booking.com’s listing (Booking.com).
Is the resort sustainable?
It has a 569 kWp solar array of more than 2,000 panels, covering 40% of daytime energy and 16% of the year’s (sustainability); it holds Green Globe certification for 2025 and lists itself as Maldives’ Leading Green Resort 2026 (official site).
What do guests say?
On Google it scores 4.8 out of 5 from 453 reviews, on Tripadvisor 4.9 from 984, on Booking.com 9.7 out of 10 from 49, read on 5 October 2026. Guests praise the staff, the cleaning, the breakfast and the reef. Also recurring in the reviews are the à la carte lunches, drinks and extras to pay for, the swim out to the reef and the hours of the seaplane, which flies by day only (Google).
Do I need a car, and is there parking at Le Méridien Maldives?
No road leads to the resort: the only way in is the seaplane from Malé, about 35 minutes, at $605 per adult and $303 from 2 to 11, return. You must land in Malé by 3.30pm and fly out after 9am.
Other hotels in the guide
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Kuredhivaru Resort & Spa Maldives
The former Mövenpick, on its way to Mondrian: 105 villas, all with pools, 45 minutes by seaplane, from $603 a night, with a chocolate hour.
Milaidhoo Maldives
50 pool villas on an island you can walk round in 20 minutes: the house reef, Ba’theli on its boat and Hanifaru’s manta rays 15 minutes away.
Lily Beach Resort & Spa
The all-inclusive resort par excellence: one plan with Champagne, 80 wines and 3 excursions, and the reef a swim from the beach.
Kagi Maldives Resort & Spa
A small island 15 minutes by seaplane from Malé, with a reef all the way round and 50 pool villas of 105 m², from $408 a night.
Kandolhu Maldives
30 villas on an island of 150 by 200 metres, the reef ringing it a few metres off the beach and 5 restaurants to choose from.
Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru
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Huvafen Fushi
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JOALI Maldives
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JOALI BEING
A whole island for wellbeing, with Three MICHELIN Keys: 68 pool villas, Areka and KAASHI, programmes of 5 to 10 nights and a centre that cares for turtles.
Conrad Maldives Rangali Island
2 islands joined by a bridge in South Ari Atoll: Ithaa, the first undersea restaurant, the Muraka with its underwater bedroom and whale sharks all year.
Hurawalhi Island Resort
90 adults-only villas on a small island, a reef a few strokes off the beach and dinner 5.8 metres under the sea.