So/ Maldives Resort

I can’t even begin to describe how amazing this place is. Get ready for a novel. My two sisters and I came for a sisters vacation and this trip knocked all the rest out of the water. The best part of this resort? Definitely the people! We have never become so emotionally attached to people so quickly. Everyone is friendly and funny and the service is so above and beyond. Our GEM, aka guest experience manager, was Ahsan. We love him!!! Beyond being at our beck and call 24/7, he was patient with our craziness and made us feel like we were the most valued guests on the resort. Anything we needed, and he made it happen. Huthu, who helped coordinate our many excursions, is the sweetest, calmest presence. We wanted to see whale sharks, manta rays, sharks, dolphins, and sea turtles, and he made private excursions for us to see them all! Thank you to the entire Ocean team who made our excursions unforgettable: Ibrahim, Bilal, Nayeem, and Imdhadh. As soon as they heard of a sighting of something we wanted to see, they booked it there for us. The food was ridiculously good. We did half board since we don’t drink a lot, and by eating a late breakfast and early dinner, it was plenty for us. Hadaba served Arabic food different from anything we have ever tried, and super delicious. Highly recommend the truffle hummus and the lamb ribs. Citronelle had Asian fusion foods that were amazing. My favorites there are the massaman wagyu curry and the chocolate mousse. Chefs Mahmoud and Robbie are not only culinary geniuses, but the absolute sweetest. Multiple times they accommodated special requests, came out to speak with us personally, and made specific recommendations. Even though the menus don’t change, we didn’t get bored of the food at all. Best resort food we have ever had because they don’t shy away from their flavors. Even the servers went the extra mile, remembering what we liked and where we liked to sit and listening to stories from our day. Thank you Luna!!! We had an over water bungalow with a view so indescribable we felt we woke up in heaven every day. The lagoon outside the villa is shallow and periodically we would see rays, large fish, squid, even sharks come by. However, if you want to see a lot of fish, coral, and large sea creatures, you will be better served booking excursions. The room itself is so luxurious and we appreciated that the resort tries to be as eco conscious as possible. Close to the airport, which is a plus, and we were so thankful for our room stylists Naaji, Shifaz, and Rimon for always leaving our rooms flawless and leaving beautiful hand crafted art on our beds for that extra special touch. The island is small, but we were provided with bikes to get around independently, which was a cute vibe. Anytime we didn’t feel like walking or biking, we could ask Ahsan for a buggy to pick us up and take us where we wanted to go. Luke was our most frequent driver and somehow kept up with our excited banter. We didn’t realize until our last couple days that we had been chitchatting with the general manager of the resort and his wife the last week. They were just roaming and chatting unobtrusively with guests to make sure we had a great experience, so you can tell that they really care and still continue to make changes and improvements. Overall, best resort experience we have ever had, and we are well-traveled. If you’re looking for a less crowded/quiet resort where you are treated like family and royalty at the same time, that still has all the options for adventure, this is the place for you.