Four Seasons Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru: Where luxury meets conservation
Did you know that the Maldives hosts the world’s largest population of reef manta rays, and the third-largest population of oceanic manta rays? To see these magnificent creatures, I head to Landaa Giraavaru, a 44-acre island in the Baa Atoll of the Maldives.
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I opt for the resort’s Manta on Call service, which provides guests with a resort-issued phone that can ring anytime between 9 am and 6 pm when researchers spot mantas. One morning, I am walking along the island’s tree-lined pathways, and the next minute I am on a speedboat to Hanifaru Bay, which is a key aggregation site for manta rays. Guided by expert marine biologists at the Trust, I snorkel into the belly of Hanifaru Bay where I witness these stunning creatures up close.
The resort’s Manta on Call service provides guests with a resort-issued phone that can ring anytime between 9 am and 6 pm when researchers spot mantas
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Coconut plantation to luxury resort
Ali Suaidh recalls visiting Landaa Giraavaru with his grandfather to collect coconuts two decades ago.
“The island historically served as a coconut plantation where locals would visit to collect the drupe that they then traded. We were 26 cousins, and our grandfather used to bring us on a boat every Saturday,” Ali (fondly called Ayya), the resort’s Sales and Public Relations Supervisor, reminisces, as he drives me on a buggy across the island that has been home to the Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru since 2006.
Landaa Giravaru is home to 103 villas spread across the oceanfront and the beachside
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Over the next three days, I get to experience Landaa Giraavaru in all its glory, with the turquoise, cyan and deep blue waters for company. Now a protected island within a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve, it blends luxury with marine conservation.
Something for everyone
Landaa Giravaru is home to 103 villas spread across the oceanfront and the beachside.
Choose from sunrise water villas, sunset water villas, sunrise family water villas, sunset family water villas, premier oceanfront bungalows, and beach villas.
There are also speciality suites: sunrise two- and three-bedroom water suites, sunset two- and three-bedroom water suites, a two-bedroom royal beach villa, a luxurious four-bedroom Landaa Estate, and a three-bedroom land and ocean suite.
The property offers a range of outdoor experiences such as snorkelling, swimming with manta rays, alongside experiential dining. At their in-house spa Ayur Ma, guests can choose from a range of therapies and massages built around the four pillars of Ayurveda, yoga therapy, wellness, and planetary well-being.
Landaa Giraavaru, meaning ‘moving sand’, is an ode to the region’s changing currents and reflects the many changes the island has undergone over the last 20 years.
On a quick tour of the property with a bottle of lomi lomi (a soothing blend of ginger juice, lime juice, and honey) in hand, Ayya tells me how the resort will always be a work in progress: regular upkeep of the property, new villas and categories being added, and expanding their marine initiatives. Our conversation is interrupted by the sighting of an eagle ray, followed by a shark — the most pleasant of interruptions given we are safely a few metres above water.
Coral frames being planted by the Reefscapers’ team
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Swim with the manta rays
No visit to the island is complete without experiencing Baa Atoll’s thriving marine life, and Landaa Giravaaru’s Marine Discovery Centre (MDC) ensures I have had my fill.
Led by a team of passionate marine biologists, the on-island research centre is home to a fish lab, Turtle Rehabilitation Centre; a Reefscapers programme helmed by the Madivian marine consultancy specialising in coral reef restoration and marine research; and the Maldives Manta Conservation Programme (MMCP), which turns 20 this year.
Al Barakat offers hearty Eastern Mediterranean cuisine
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Sophie Owsianka, Project Manager, Manta Trust, explains that while the Trust has 30 affiliate projects worldwide, “it all started here, in Landaa”. In addition to Manta on Call, they offer manta safaris, private trips, and a range of child-centric experiences. “Every Friday, we host an interactive presentation on manta rays that includes fun quizzes. We also have a comprehensive Trainee Marine Biologist Programme targetted at 13 to 18-year-olds wherein they get to research on everything from corals to dolphins,” says Sophie. You can also adopt a Manta ray and get the chance to name it. “This August, we are also launching a new website to track the manta rays, and will unveil Manta Story, a free app aimed at being a learning resource with AR and VR.”
A snapshot of the Tales From The Treetop Table experience
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Forage for your dinner
If you love the outdoors, opt for Tales From The Treetop Table, where you join the team’s gardeners and chef to forage fresh herbs, microgreens, and mushrooms from the property’s gardens. These go into a specially curated Vietnamese meal served in a tree house.
For ocean‑to‑table seafood, Fuego Grill offers marinated Scottish salmon, black angus strip-loin and dry-aged reef fish crudo
At Blu Beach Club, try the Italian fare: gnocchi alla sorrentina with tomato, buffalo mozzarella; grilled scallops with osetra caviar, green apple; grilled Maldivian lobster; grilled guinea fowl breast; handmade agnolotti with local pumpkin, scamorza cheese; and more.
For a Eastern Mediterranean meal, Al Barakat’s hearty menu features octopus carpaccio with coriander and garlic; eraïdis with red prawn carpaccio, pink peppercorn; Lebanese-style baked lobster with couscous; rose osmeliye: a kunafa pastry with askar rose; Lebanese nights with orange blossom semolina, white chocolate; and a range of sorbets.
At Café Landaa, lunch features a selection of Asian and Indian dishes. The dal makhni, in particular, is impressive, as is the specially curated vegetarian breakfast platter by Chef Shyam.
Beyond marine conservation, the property’s sustainability-focussed vein extends to engineering and property management. On a tour of their backend operations, Adam Moosa, chief engineer, explains that they consume 380 cubic metres of water every day, which includes 1,200 bottles of drinking water for guests.
At their in-house spa Ayur Ma, guests can choose from a range of therapies and massages
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As we walk past their employee barber shop, gym, and recreational area, Adam talks about the property’s focus on alternative power sources. “We have incorporated solar power since 2017, and an ongoing pilot project for floating solar panels is ongoing.” Other sustainability initiatives, he says, include recycling 100% of their landscaping waste and composting 30% of food waste. “The rest goes to the food digester. In addition, we are 100% self-sufficient in microgreens, oyster mushrooms, and aromatic herbs like mint, basil, and lemongrass, which are grown on-site. We are also conducting trials for growing gourmet German mushrooms,” says Adam.
Landaa Giraavaru is a 44-acre island in the Baa Atoll of the Maldives
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As I pass by off-duty staff relaxing in their lounge or getting a quick workout, the path leads us to Cafe Umabe. This employee cafe, Adam says, is named after Umabe, a local who was integral to creating the resort. “He educated the team about the island: its vegetation, how the property should be designed, and how we must maintain the island’s ecological balance when landscaping. He welcomed the first guests, and sadly passed away a year after we launched,” says Adam.
Ayya refers to Umabe as a “legend”. “He understood the island more than anyone. I still remember his muscular build and our interactions when I was a child. I used to visit Landaa Giraavaru with my cousins and climb palm trees for their fruit. Even if we’d cut 1 from the hundreds of trees, he would just know. He was silent, observant, and cared deeply for the island,” concludes Ayya.
The writer was in the Maldives on invitation from The Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru