Six Senses Laamu
This gorgeous island has won my heart with incredibly warm hospitality and exceptional activities. We spend a week at Laamu and had an incredible program to keep us busy and interested. Some people think that there isn’t a lot to do in the Maldives; that can certainly be the case if that’s what you choose, but for those looking for activities you could stay busy from morning to evening.
Getting to Six Senses Laamu
This island resort is located on Laamu atoll, a 35-minute domestic flight from Male. A positive about a domestic flight transfer is that you can get to the island in the evening (seaplanes fly only until 3.30pm) but a negative is that there might be a long wait in the airport for a connection between international flight and domestic. It’s very hard to know if there will be a convenient connecting flight at a time of booking as airlines plan domestic flights only a few days ahead. I would suggest combining Six Senses with a resort close to Male to avoid any inconvenience or long wait times.
On arrival Six Senses representatives will greet you after luggage collection and escort you to the domestic terminal. They would assist with check in, help with luggage, settle you in the lounge until it’s time to board. They will also be waiting for you in Laamu airport, ready to whisk you away on a speedboat to your personal paradise. The holiday starts on a 10-minute boat ride when staff tell you about ‘barefoot luxury’ concept promoted on the island and place your shoes in a cotton bag to return to you on departure.
The Island
Island’s natural beauty and eco-friendly initiatives by Six Senses make Laamu a very special place. The house reef is stunningly beautiful, full of life and a perfect place for snorkelling or diving. Sea grass area is home to sting rays and green turtles – you’d find them roaming around every time you’d jump out of your water villa with a mask and snorkel.
A little bit about sea grass – many islands have been covering sea grass in Maldives with plastic, preserving the turquoise colour of the water. Eco friendly resorts are reversing this process and cultivating the sea life that is native to sea grass – green turtles and various species of fish. Of course balance is important and Six Senses has both – sea grass lagoon and beautiful azure waters on the other side of the island.
I loved the layout of the island. The heart of the island is an overwater complex with various restaurants, bars, relaxation decks, snorkelling hub, dive club, ice creamery, chocolate shop, boutique, reception and library. That’s where everyone comes together at dinner time or for group excursions. This club area is connected to the main island by a jetty and the way you get around the island is by a bike. Every villa comes with personalised bikes with your initials on it.
Accommodation
Six Senses Laamu has a great selection of overwater and beach villas. We stayed in a very romantic Ocean Villa With Pool. These boho chic villas are located at the end of the jetty, in the deepest water, and feature good size private pools, canopy beds, outdoor bathrooms and beautiful shady decks for watching the sunsets.
The villas are very private, no one can look into your space unless they come swimming right in front of your villa, which never happens.
Family beach villas are excellent choice for families with two adults and two kids. Children sleep in their own private bedroom and share the outdoor living space with the parents. Beach villas also have a gorgeous outdoor and oversized bathroom in the garden.
Presidential Four-Bedroom Villa is a highlight of the resort. All en-suite bedrooms in this complex are completely private making it a perfect space for friends travelling together or multi-generational families.
Dining
The food in Six Senses is outstanding! Not something that every resort in Maldives could boast. Six Senses got their cuisine down pat, starting from gourmet breakfasts served overwater, buffet style, complemented with an a la carte menu and daily specials. Lots of very healthy dishes on the menu, starting from adaptogenic coffees, detox juices, home made kombucha, kefir and eggs from Six Senses chickens. If you’d like to personalise your eating plan, island’s Ayurvedic doctor offers personalised consultations to enhance your wellbeing and build some new habits.
Lunch is served Poolside at Sip Sip or at the main bar. You would find exceptional home made pizza here and lots of healthy options – homegrown salads, soups, sustainably caught seafood.
For dinner there are lots of options, each one more delicious than the other. Japanese food lovers will enjoy loungy Zen serving a gourmet selection of sushi and sashimi. For a unique treehouse dining experience head to Leaf, adults only restaurants serving farm to fork cuisine.
Twice a week Six Senses puts on a gourmet themed buffet dinner – we had an Asian night and Mediterranean, both exceptional with a multitude of live cooking stations and very generous selection of fresh seafood. For Mediterranean night we had boullabaniese , freshly shucked oysters, scallop risotto – all prepared on demand at the live cooking stations.
Activities
There is as much or as little to do at Six Senses as you’d like.
I was travelling with my 12-year old son and we like to be active and staying off the devices. Many teenage kids’ parents would know exactly what I mean.
Laamu kept us busy with an exciting program that included daily dives, snorkelling trips, chocolate making workshops, gym, yoga. We learned about island’s sustainability programs on an island tour and found time to relax in the spa with a beautiful massage.
My son learned to play on singing bowls and tried out water sports.
More adventurous travellers would love to try surfing. Six Senses is one of the very few islands in the Maldives close to four surf breaks, two of them being amongst the best in the Maldives. Both complete beginners and advanced surfers will find a perfect wave to ride in Laamu.
PADI certified dive centre runs diving trips every day and as my personal achievement, I’ve completed PADI open water here. All you need is five days on an island and a passion to get close and personal with the magical underwater world.
The Lux Traveller Loves
We loved the gorgeous island, the people, sustainability programs, appreciation for health, wellness and many initiatives to protect Maldives’ eco-systems and our planet in general. If more people and companies in the world had the same philosophy we would live in a very different world.
The food is also exceptional, a real highlight. Kids loved the ice cream shop with 42 flavours and a challenge to try them all during the holiday.
A multitude of family activities is an absolute joy for parents.
Splitting Hairs
The only potential downside is domestic transfer that is very difficult to plan ahead and potential might result in waiting times on either side of the journey.
All In All
Exceptional little island, my personal little paradise. I can’t wait to return and bring my family here again!
