COMO Maalifushi Maldives
COMO Maalifushi
Thaa Atoll, Maldives
www.comohotels.com/maalifushi
HOTEL INFORMATION
Group
COMO Hotels and Resorts
Shareholders
Privately owned
Date of Creation
2014
Hotel General Manager
Mohamed Sobah
Hotel Positioning
5-star luxury resort
Development strategy
COMO Maalifushi is one of 15 properties by luxury hotel group, COMO Hotels and Resorts.
It is the only resort in Thaa atoll, which makes it a truly exclusive private island 5-star luxury resort.
COMO Maalifushi
History & Story
Headquartered in Singapore, The COMO Group represents Christina Ong’s unique vision of contemporary living. This encompasses the hospitality collection known as COMO Hotels and Resorts, the international luxury fashion retailer Club 21, the award-winning wellness concept COMO Shambhala and the philanthropic COMO Foundation In January 2014, COMO Hotels and Resorts — the name behind Cocoa Island in the Maldives and Parrot Cay in the Turks and Caicos — opened its second private island resort in the Maldives. Maalifushi — the first and only resort in the unspoilt Thaa Atoll. The pristine, expansive surroundings are over 100 miles from the busy city of Malé, allowing guest to relax while fully capturing the spirit of the Indian Ocean.
Designer
Koichiro Ikebuchi, Interior Designer: Japanese interior architect Koichiro Ikebuchi is defined by his sensitive approach to nature and respect for cultural authenticity.
Main Strengths, Special Touch
Maalifushi offers all the understated luxuries of a COMO private island resort, with a COMO Shambhala Retreat for holistic wellness, world-class yoga facilities and exceptional cuisine along with access to the Maldives’ vibrant marine life for diving, snorkelling and fishing. COMO’s signature service is here too, with staff whose warmth, discretion and passion for detail stand out from the competition.
Location
COMO Maalifushi is the first and only resort to open on the unspoilt Thaa Atoll, in the archipelago’s southern reaches well regarded for its diving and surf breaks. The resort is reached by a 60-minute private seaplane charter, or a 35-minute domestic air transfer from the islands’ capital, Malé, to Thimarafushi before a 25-minute speedboat journey. The Thaa Atoll, a beautiful ring-shaped reef, is one of the largest in the world, comprising more than 60 islands over 500 square miles, many of which are uninhabited.
Key sites/activities in the area
Maalifushi offers very good water-based activities from diving to surfing. The waters surrounding the islands are clear, calm and exceptionally beautiful. This is also why the Maldives are appealing to families, with children able to snorkel safely, while for divers, there are numerous chronicled dive sites, as well as large tracts of unexplored channels and reefs which makes the atoll popular with liveaboard dive boats — which aside from Maalifushi, is currently the only other way to access this region in comfort. The resort, therefore, provides a full range of diving experiences for different levels, from learn to dive PADI courses to night dives on nearby reefs. There are also some very good surf breaks in and around Thaa Atoll. Maalifushi has one particularly good break located on the atoll’s southwest side, which can be experienced on guided surf trips.
Fun Facts
Thaa Atoll also has a uniquely interesting history. The first settlers arrived here in the late eighteenth century as freed African slaves. They developed a dance, the Bodu Maali Neshun (Dance of the Giant Being), which incorporated their own folktales and rhythms. This dance is still performed during religious festivals and holidays with elaborate costumes conjuring mystical creatures.
Children’s Corner
Play by COMO is the service concept for how COMO Hotels and Resorts caters to families. Underpinning Play by COMO is a ‘whole property » approach and we seek to bring our brand pillars of wellness, great food and personalised experiences to the child’s and family’s experiences of COMO. Space caters to our younger guests between the ages of 4 and 12 years old.
HOTEL FEATURES
Accommodation
Number of rooms in all: 65 villas, 32 beach accommodations and 33 over water villas
• Land Accommodation:
6, Garden Rooms
13, Beach Suites
1, Two Bedroom Beach Suite
7, Beach Villas
2, Two Bedroom Beach Villas
1, Two Bedroom Beach House
1, Maalifushi Beach Villa
1, COMO Residence
• Water Accommodation:
17, Water Suites
13, Water Villas
1 Maalifushi Water Villa
2 COMO Villas
Restaurants & Bars
• Tai, Maalifushi’s Japanese restaurant
Offers sushi and sashimi in an over-water setting. There is also a cocktail bar offering stunning views of the Maldivian sunset
• Thila Bar, laid back music, pool table and an open-air pool bar with ocean views make Thila the relaxed and vibrant heart of the island life on Maalifushi
•Madi, menus at Madi are light and flavourful, with a range of local, Mediterranean, Indonesian and Thai-accented dishes served all day, from breakfast to last evening. Madi also holds themed nights each week, including a local seafood barbeque and a ‘thali’ evening focusing on South Indian specialities.
Wellness
COMO Shambhala Retreat at COMO Maalifushi is a place to relax, recuperate and feel well, guided by expert therapists. Eight overwater treatment rooms offer a range of signature facials, massages and body therapies. The Retreat also has an open-air yoga pavilion offering complimentary daily classes each day, a large pool, relaxation area and spa boutique selling
COMO Shambhala’s popular body care products and Active Living Collection. Private yoga tuition and guided pranayama meditation are available. There is also a gym with cardio equipment and weights.
Corporate & Celebration Events
• Small groups
• Island buyouts
• Weddings
• Birthday events
Extra Notable Features
• Yoga
• Diving
• Surfing
• Boating
Hotel & Restaurants Awards
2018
• Condé Nast Traveler — Readers’ Choice Awards 2018 – Indian Ocean Top 20 Resorts – Ranked 13th
2017
• Conde Nast Traveler – USA Reader’s Choice Awards – Indian Ocean Top 20 Resorts — Ranked 10th The Times and Sunday Times Travel Awards
2015
• Conde Nast Traveler’s (US) Hot List
• Conde Nast Traveler’s (UK) Hot List
• Conde Nast Traveler (China) Hot List
• Travel + Leisure Southeast Asia ‘IT List’
• Travel + Leisure China ‘IT List’ China
2014
• Luxury Travel Intelligence (LTI) ‘Best New Luxury Hotel ‘
• Five Star Alliance ‘Best New Hotel’
Number of employees
180