In Conversation with Celine Pezel from Milhaidhoo

Milaidhoo is, by Maldivian standards, a small resort. There are only 50 villas set both on the island and across the water, each of which has its own private pool and decking area. What does this mean for guests? ‘It means that they have total privacy’, Celine says, ‘because although the resort is small, the villas are actually very big’. Retaining a sense of where Milaidhoo is in the world means one thing in particular: romance. The Maldives, I say to Celine, are about as romantic a place as we can think of. She agrees, and it’s clearly something that the hotel draws upon. There are no children under the age of 8, the curved design of the villas means that neighbours are invisible, and most of the guests are couples: honeymooners, yes, but also elderly couples who ‘want to escape reality for a little while’.

In order to help them do that, Milaidhoo provides an array of otherworldly activities. The Baa Atoll is a designated UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, no mean feat when others include Uluru, Komodo Island and the Galapagos, and, as mentioned, the experiences both on top of and beneath the waves are second to none. There are an assortment of sunset, dolphin and general cruises, diving amongst the reef’s inhabitants, snorkelling direct from the villas and the chance to see the ocean’s biggest fish, the whale shark, in one of its largest breeding grounds.

What stands Milaidhoo apart, though, is its proximity to one of our planet’s most beguiling creatures: the manta ray. These winged fish of the sea gather in huge numbers in nearby Hanifaru Bay, a place where boats are not allowed and in to which the only way is swimming. Guests are alerted when mantas are spotted, whisked to the outskirts of the bay by boat, before hopping overboard and swimming alongside up to 200 rays. Celine says there’s not been a single guest who hasn’t returned ‘with stars in their eyes’, and that the experience can be a transcendent one.

Back on shore, experiences at Milaidhoo can be equally beguiling. Celine talks us through the concept of the ‘Milaidhoo Moment’, an idea that guides how her and her team – or ‘family’, as she calls them – go about their business. ‘A Milaidhoo Moment doesn’t need to be expensive’, she says, ‘instead, it’s about reading our guests, many of whom we know from previous trips, and providing them with the small touches that help to reinforce the link between guests and team, and make their stay totally memorable’. I wonder aloud how this might look for someone staying at the hotel and Celine rattles off a number of ‘moments’. ‘Perhaps it’s freshly-prepared bath with champagne after a manta swim, or a surprise room decoration for an event, a framed photo from an experience displayed in the room, a creative chef who knows a guest’s taste preparing a special dish’, there are no rules about what a Milaidhoo Moment is, and the team is empowered to do their bit to make guests happy.

The guests certainly seem happy. The hotel has been open since late 2016 and most of the guests staying there now have been up to 7 times before. In fact, one set of repeaters like Milaidhoo so much that they’ve visited 20 times, clocking in a visit every 4 months and spreading the word far and wide about the beauty of the island. It’s because of this astronomically high number of repeat guests that Celine and the team can be so thoughtful towards them. She describes – rather wonderfully – the standards of operation as ‘guidelines, not straight up rules’. That goes for the chefs in any of the 3 restaurants, the butlers, the marine staff – anyone working at Milaidhoo can interpret them as they please to provide guests with a personal, tailored experience.