Gili Lankanfushi
A barefoot-luxury private island in the Maldives: sustainably built over-water villas, a Thai-inspired spa, and a fully plant-based restaurant.
It is hard to resist the rustic-chic charm of Gili Lankanfushi, and we’ve stopped trying. The resort occupies its own private island in North Malé Atoll (vivid vegetation, a jade-blue lagoon, twelve minutes by speedboat from the airport), and it pioneered the over-water villa long before the format became Maldivian shorthand.
What sets it apart now is the way luxury and restraint sit together. First-class facilities and sumptuous cabanas speak to the indulgence of the stay; thatched roofs and outdoor bathtubs keep the whole thing barefoot and unhurried. There is no contradiction: that balance is the house style.
The sustainability credentials are substantive rather than decorative. Villas are built from sustainably sourced teak, palm wood and bamboo; the resort has been benchmarked by EarthCheck since 2014; and the Coral Lines project invites guests to adopt a coral and snorkel back to watch their reef regrow. Materials and ingredients across the island, including those used in the Thai-inspired Meera spa, are sourced with the same care.
Plant-forward travellers are well looked after: the Kashiveli restaurant runs a full plant-based menu, no negotiation required. And the days fill themselves: snorkelling tours, surfing lessons, tennis coaching, cooking classes. It’s the kind of place you leave with a new hobby and a slightly recalibrated idea of what a holiday can be.
The service, meanwhile, is beyond reproach. The staff anticipate every need, and somewhere around day three they stop feeling like staff and start feeling like friends.
