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Review: NIYAMA Maldives Resort

May 4, 2014 by Jean Holy Smithereens 14 Comments

There are people who vacation to “get away from it all” and do mean it quite seriously. No reminders of things at home like television, music, or the internet.

And then there are people like me who do want get away, but not from everything. I still want my entertainment and to be connected to the world while in the Maldives.

Having just been awarded by Spain Conde Nast Traveller as Best International Hotel , NIYAMA Maldives perfectly understands the concept of modern luxury. And this is why I’m excited to show how one can truly ‘have it all’ in paradise, where modern design and comforts meet the wonders of nature.

GETTING THERE

You need to take a 40 minute seaplane journey from Male. Upon arrival in Male Airport, NIYAMA has their own private lounge where you can wait in style (Fashion TV, Mac desktops, massage)

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NIYAMA Airport Lounge in Male
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NIYAMA Airport Lounge in Male

I have written a FULL review of the NIYAMA Airport Lounge if you would like to see it in detail.

We departed around 4:30pm, so we had a lovely sunset arrival in NIYAMA.

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the 40-minute seaplane ride to NIYAMA Maldives from Male
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Welcome to NIYAMA Maldives! Our welcome party

As soon as our seaplane landed on water (this still sounds funny to me), we could see the delegation of welcome party for arriving guests. It consisted of the Management team, and respective villa hosts for every individual room.

We were all greeted very warmly (think: presidential line-up introductions but more chillaxed and much more warmth), given drinks and cool towels. Soon, a young lady introduced herself to us as Evelyn, and she was to be our personal villa host for our entire stay.

We hopped on a buggy with Evelyn driving, and she gave a very quick tour of the grounds while on the way to our room.

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sunset among watervillas at NIYAMA Maldives

I did mention that we arrived at sunset right?  This was the view we had while heading to our room.

THE ROOM

We were checked in at a Deluxe Water Studio with Pool

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Deluxe Water Studio with Pool, NIYAMA Maldives review

At 200 sqm, I can definitely describe the studio as the perfect modern man’s playground..and more.

The King sized bed faces the balcony opening up to a private pool with jacuzzi, and the Indian Ocean.

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the view the next morning! Deluxe Water Villa with Pool, NIYAMA Maldives review

I spent many , many hours in this sofabed next to the pool.  The following morning, I discovered the room’s entertainment system. There was a HUGE library of movies and music, and I played Gipsy Kings in surround sound, had the balcony doors open and just lay on the pool sofa with a tub of ice cream.

Such bliss that morning was!

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Deluxe Water Studio with Pool . NIYAMA Maldives review

And just when you think the personal pool / overwater balcony is the best part of the room, their entertainment system will also keep you wanting to stay indoors:

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In Deli and Entertainment system in the room. NIYAMA Maldives review

They have the latest movies, tv shows and music complimentary and on-demand. It was so hard to choose a film but I did see The Butler one evening.

The room is also equipped with a surround-sound system, so it felt like a private theatre experience. Most especially when the mini bar comes with your very own popcorn maker:

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A must-have minibar item: Popcorn Maker! NIYAMA Maldives review

This is part of the Deli In experience in the room, where the mini-bar doesn’t just come with your normal tea and coffee-making facilities, but a popcorn maker with popcorn seeds refilled every night, and also complimentary ice cream in the fridge (which is a standing full sized fridge, btw), and also a serving of cassava chips every morning.

There’s also an Ipad in every room where you can check all the scheduled activities in the resort, and also have ideas what to do / where to eat.

Almost everything is remote-controlled in the room, including the balcony curtain, and even the phone is sleek and very tiny.

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remote controls inside the room NIYAMA Maldives review

BATHROOM

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Bathroom at a Deluxe Water Studio . NIYAMA Maldives review
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Bathroom at a Deluxe Water Studio. NIYAMA Maldives review

Consistent with the modern / minimalist style, the bathroom is quite spacious, with a stand alone tub that overlooks the sea , a coral chandelier, and a Tiffany-shade turquoise mirror. The separate shower and toilet are on the opposite end to the bath and the floors overlook the water.

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Bathroom at a Deluxe Water Studio. NIYAMA Maldives review

I’m very thrilled that the toiletries are from REN, a brand that I absolutely love. I normally bring my own shampoos, conditioner and lotion but for our stay here, I happily used up what was provided in the room.

I first started using REN when I discovered their No.1 Purity Cleansing Balm and since then explored their other facial and body care line.

Extra extra plus points to NIYAMA for their choice of toiletry brand.

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REN Cosmetics as the toiletry line. NIYAMA Maldives review

ROOM TOUR VIDEO

And because photographs are not enough to show how the room really is, watch this room tour we created in HD:

One of the best parts of the resort is the ROOM KEY. Yes, the room key:

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Smart Room Key system at NIYAMA Maldives

Waterproof wristbands that you just swipe in and out of the room. Very practical and thoughtful of NIYAMA. No more losing or misplacing your key card, especially when you’re out swimming!

SPA

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LIME Spa in NIYAMA Maldives

I was booked for a Signature LIME Spa Massage at NIYAMA Maldives’ LIME Spa.  The spa is located in a lush garden setting, and I was given lime sorbet prior to the treatment.

Lime Spa overwater treatment room. NIYAMA Maldives review
LIME Spa overwater treatment room. NIYAMA Maldives review

The massage was done in one of their overwater treatment rooms, and the scent of lime is quite different from the usual resort spa coconut-y smell, and I quite like the change. Guests need not worry about time and scheduling if they want a spa treatment, as LIME Spa offers treatments 24 hours. (The Spa is physically open 9AM- 10PM and any After Dark treatments should be booked in advance with additional 25% surcharge)

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Ren Products in LIME Spa, NIYAMA Maldives

DIVING

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Float – NIYAMA’s dive and water activity centre. NIYAMA Maldives review

NIYAMA’s diving centre, called Float, offers all ranges of water activities for guests. Zombie joined them for a morning of scuba diving and here’s how their dive went:

Visibility was very good and Zombie described it as one of the calmest drift dives he’s ever had.

SUBSIX – UNDERWATER NIGHTCLUB

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Subsix Underwater Nightclub in NIYAMA

When in NIYAMA, it is a must to visit Subsix, the world’s first underwater nightclub. Located 50 metres from the main resort, NIYAMA offers chartered speedboat transfers.

I have written a FULL review of NIYAMA’s Subsix here if you would like to view it in more detail.

DINING

EPICURE

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Epicure Restaurant. NIYAMA Maldives review
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Epicure Restaurant. NIYAMA Maldives Review

Epicure is an all-day dining that offers international buffet and ala carte choices. Every night they have a food theme and on our first dinner, the theme was Asian so we were really spoilt with a lot of sushi, seafood, and even pizzas.

The location of Epicure is just next to the resort’s infinity pool, and during the day, the view makes it worth staying longer at your table and ordering seconds.

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Infinity Pool at NIYAMA Maldives
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Epicure, all-day dining at NIYAMA Maldives

The Deli

When it’s not quite lunch or dinner time and you feel like a snack in -between, there’s The Deli.

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The Deli. NIYAMA Maldives Review
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The Deli. NIYAMA Maldives review

Grilled sandwiches, espressos, lattes – The Deli offers your usual city comforts while in the Maldives.

As for me, it was these types of comforts that called out the most:

Ice cream bar at The Deli. NIYAMA Maldives review
Ice cream bar at The Deli. NIYAMA Maldives review

TRIBAL

Tribal is NIYAMA’s specialty dining restaurant. Open only for dinner, this again is a showcase of how NIYAMA has mastered the art of combining elements perfectly. While this is the resort’s formal dining option, it also has an innovative campfire theme.

To me, this is ‘glamping’ in the dining sense. Open dining, with a feeling of being in the bush yet having this almost whimsical Safari lodge setting .

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Dining at Tribal. NIYAMA Maldives review
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Tribal at NIYAMA Maldives

Serving South American and African dishes, we indulged in a lot of seafood, and also abit of meats and vegetables. If you like a lot of heat and spice in your food, Tribal is the place of dining for you in NIYAMA.

For those afraid of chillies (like me and Zombie), there are milder options to choose from and our waiter also took note of our spice tolerance (or lack thereof)

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Dining at Tribal. NIYAMA Maldives

This is truly one of my memorable dining experience in the Maldives, and would highly recommend booking a table in Tribal when you are checked in at NIYAMA.

ACTIVITIES

Now it isn’t all about consuming food in NIYAMA (though I don’t see anything wrong with that!).

To make more room for the wonderful food, there’s PUMP, the resort gym that also offers classes.

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Pump – gym at NIYAMA Maldives

And then there’s ACTIVE, which served as playground for Zombie and I one afternoon.

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Active Simulator Room in NIYAMA Maldives

Active is a place for small and big kids alike to have fun indoors. Yes you are in the Maldives but inside the simulator room, you can be in the middle of a Florida golf course , a Montana hunting range, or even somewhere in the Bronx to shoot hoops:

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Simulator Room in Active. NIYAMA Maldives

It was a fun afternoon, and I’ll be honest — this is more my kind of workout! If I am to be in an enclosed area trying to sweat off what I ate, I’d rather do it this way than inside a gym 🙂

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Active centre in NIYAMA Maldives

STAFF and SERVICE

It’s worth noting that the staff of NIYAMA are also consistent with the resort’s brand – Young, hip, friendly, and overall enthusiastic to help.

Even before I physically arrived at the resort, the email correspondence have been warm and friendly. More so when we stepped foot in the resort. Evelyn, our personal villa host has been most accommodating in arranging our activities and itinerary. Nothing is too impossible  for her and the reservations staff. This was specifically proven true when we had a little bit of a ‘situation’ the night before we checked out of NIYAMA.

Zombie had gone scuba diving and needed at least 24 hours before flying to avoid decompression sickness. Now it sounds silly but all seaplane departures are only confirmed the night before the flight.  We found out that the seaplane company had us booked at 6AM the next day, well under the 24 hour time frame. Evelyn and the reservations team of NIYAMA liased and coordinated with the seaplane company in order to move our flight to a later time.

Everything was sorted without any hiccups and I do commend NIYAMA’s reservations team and Evelyn, who went out of their way to make sure Zombie would be safe to fly. Thank you 🙂

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The staff and management of NIYAMA: hip, young, and cool

Everyone from management level to the villa hosts and the wait staff– all are genuinely friendly in a sincere manner (not automated or resort-mode), and Zombie and I can tell that they actually really like being there doing their jobs.

CONCLUSION

It’s evident, NIYAMA is luxe, modern and convenient. It’s perfect for those who like to travel far away but still want to have their city comforts, and more. The consistency of the brand is impressive – from the Airport lounge, the rooms, the resort grounds, food and the staff – they all carry and evoke the same theme.

The rooms offer much more gadgets and entertainment than most urban sophisticated pads have, and it can be a daily struggle deciding how to spend your day: getting entertained inside, or jumping in the waters outside.

Those who like to literally “get away from it all” and not be reminded of the modern life that they are getting away from may not be up for this lovely nature meets modernisation type of combination.

As for me? That is just my kind of cocktail, and I’ll take it  any time.

Now this has got me thinking, 

Are YOU the modern kind of traveller? or are you the type to leave everything behind?

In one of the Water Pavillions.NIYAMA Maldives review
NIYAMA Maldives: where the luxuries of modern life meet nature

 

NIYAMA Maldives

Dhaalu Atoll, Republic of Maldives

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We were guests of NIYAMA Maldives. There is no obligation to write a favourable review and  this has not influenced my thoughts and views about the brand and property. All opinions of this blog post are my own.

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Filed Under: Hotels, Luxury Travel, Maldives, Resort, Travel Reviews, Travels

About Jean Holy Smithereens

Jean is a lover of luxury travel and adventure, always looking for that "Holy Smithereens"-inducing moment on her travels. Follow the blog and other social media pages of Holy Smithereens to get the ultimate travel ideas for the luxurious adventurer!

Comments

  1. Sam @Travelling King says

    May 14, 2014 at 11:31 am

    Fantastic review !!
    This hotel has it all! wow!

    Reply
    • Jean Holy Smithereens says

      May 14, 2014 at 2:14 pm

      Yup yup, definitely everything you could ever want and more! I was sad to check out :/

      Reply
  2. Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella says

    June 20, 2014 at 12:53 am

    What a stunning destination Jean! Thanks for taking us there. It has always been a dream of mine to visit the Maldives and do it in style like this 🙂

    Reply
    • Jean Holy Smithereens says

      June 20, 2014 at 8:06 am

      Thanks Lorraine! So glad you enjoyed the post! I too hope you get to visit the Maldives as I’d love to see your culinary finds there and what you think of it 🙂

      Reply
  3. Anush says

    August 29, 2014 at 7:00 pm

    Hey! Thanks for the great review!

    My wife and I trying to decide btwn the Deluxe Water Stuidio with Pool and the regular Water Studio with Pool. As far as I can see, the main difference is the inclusion of a jacuzzi, right? I assume its slightly bigger as well but can’t tell if pools are same or not.

    We are going in December and not sure if its too warm to even use the jacuzzi at night. Did you get much use out of it or was the weather still hot at night for you? Not sure if its money worth saving towards spending on other things (like at spa, etc.) on the island.

    Please let me know if you have any info / suggestions! Thanks again!

    Anush

    Reply
  4. Francois says

    September 7, 2014 at 10:16 am

    Great article! I love the underwater nightclub, I already seen the underwater restaurant of Conrad Maldives but this one looks amazing!

    Reply
    • Jean Holy Smithereens says

      September 7, 2014 at 12:43 pm

      Hi Francois! I’d love to see the underwater restaurant of the Conrad Maldives one day 🙂 The highlight for me in this Maldives trip was the underwater spa at Huvafen Fushi !

      Reply
  5. Francisco says

    April 23, 2017 at 4:57 am

    Strange. You review a tropical island hotel, in the Maldives at that, where the hotel is the whole island and in fact two whole islands joined by a bridge in this case, and yet you do not mention nor describe the environment, the beaches the lagoon, the reef.

    Reply
    • Jean Holy Smithereens says

      April 23, 2017 at 5:40 am

      There’s a section, and even an entire video dedicated to diving at NIYAMA which shows much more than the reef. I guess you overlooked that. Strange.

      Reply
  6. Kai says

    August 21, 2017 at 2:31 pm

    That sounds amazing! May I ask how much a trip like this would cost?

    Reply
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    April 15, 2018 at 4:20 pm

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  8. Steph says

    October 7, 2018 at 12:44 am

    Thank you for a very detailed review–this helps other travelers a lot!

    We’re planning on booking but wanted to know more about the deli-in experience–is it included in the payment of the room or is it like a standard minibar that you “pay for what you get from the fridge” situation?

    Reply
    • Jean Holy Smithereens says

      October 11, 2018 at 5:16 pm

      Hi Steph, when we were there, the mini bar items were included. They even refill it every night!

      Reply
  9. scuba tank holder says

    October 12, 2018 at 2:36 pm

    I love this information! I read your blog often and I
    shared this post on my facebook and mmy friends thought it was great.

    Keep up thee aweskme work.

    Reply

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