Baros Maldives

Short version - go here. Long version - below. We stayed here for 7 nights, in March-26. From start to finish, it was absolute perfection. For clarity, we had an overwater villa (308) and were on bed and breakfast basis as had booked via points with Hilton & on our arrival, the island was around 75% capacity according to our host. Our main desires for this trip was somewhere quiet, with great food, good service and with a super coral for easy snorkelling - and we got all this in absolute abundance. All the staff were super friendly and we enjoyed several conversations about their life on the island and their respective homes around the world. There is simply too many staff to mention by name, but everyone from the gardeners doing a super job on keeping the island looking pristine, the room staff making the room up twice a day, the breakfast staff serving the morning "eye opener" juice shot, the kitchen staff slicing fresh fruit for you at breakfast, the marine staff helping with gear/tips/super trips off island, the restaurant staff going above and beyond where allergies are concerned to our fantastic butler, Bonan, organising everything and anything for us and really making our stay memorable - I say thank you. Everything just seems "easy" and the island seems to run like clockwork, but it must take a lot of organising and hard work from all the staff to make it so. We enjoyed sitting on our deck in the morning and seeing the marine life swim by - from untold amounts of reef sharks, to sting rays & diamond rays, it was an absolute pleasure to watch them with our morning tea and coffee. We typically went down to the beach down by the restaurants after breakfast to relax/swim/snorkel there - there is around 8-10 double loungers here and typically there was always a couple free. The breakfast - as a couple we tend to still talk about how good the breakfast was in a hotel we stayed in around 10 years ago in Italy - and this is the first one since then to not only beat it, but blow it away. There is so much variety, food from different cultures, and it's all done brilliantly. The bread....wow. I could eat bread and butter from here for the rest of the days quite happily. Lots of different fresh juice, fresh fruit cut right in front of you, differing types of salads and dressings, pastries, curries, dim sum, sushi, fresh fish and cooked meats....it has it all - and that's just the buffet! Most days I never ordered from the al la carte breakfast as there was simply no need - but when I did, it was fantastic also. Plenty of choice for those who are gluten free also, but it does help to order the night before for things like gluten free pancakes. We ended up not having lunch at all during our stay (usual for us with the larger than normal breakfast, the heat, and the fact we tend to have an early dinner) so cannot comment on that aspect. Dinner - we ate twice in Lime, twice in Cayenne, twice at Lighthouse and we also did the Teppanyaki menu at Cayenne. As a guide, for the two of us, most nights having 2 or 3 courses, normally just having water but having 4/5 cocktails/mocktails in the week we spent about $1700 (including GST and Service charge) - so about $125 per person per meal. Considering the location, the service and and the standard of food, I think this is fantastic value. I would put both Cayenne and Lighthouse on par with any Michelin star restaurant we have dined in, and Lime would be on par with a "good" restaurant. There was ample choice for gluten free (perhaps a little bit more restricted at Lime, however the staff were always offering to further adapt dishes or to make anything we wanted!) and the gluten free dishes/adaptations never felt like missing out - some restaurants it often feels like an after thought, not here. We had superb meals all round, however special mention the Teppanyaki experience, the Jack Daniels infused Wagyu beef and the Crispy Skin Game Duck Breast - exceptional dishes. The marine centre staff were great - very helpful, and despite us being relative novices were more than happy to offer advise, help with kit (we had our own snorkelling gear, but we ended up borrowing their kit also (FOC). We ended up taking two trips with the dive team - one to see Turtles and one to see Manta Rays. Both were superb - we saw 3 turtles and about 10-12 mantas. Both trips the guide(s) were great, made sure everyone were comfortable and safe and were clearly experts in their craft. Both of these were pinch yourself moments for us and are moments we wont forget. The location, as other note, is perhaps not ideal with it's location to Male. However, we did not mind at all seeing Male, seeing the odd tanker etc. And the fact that were in our room on the first day 2 hours after the plane touched down, and then on our departure day (flight at 11.40 am) were able to have a leisurely breakfast before the short 20 minute speed boat - means the location also has its advantages. That on top of the fact it is a natural island and has a real history to it, makes it a special location. We snorkelled every day, it's a great reef. Perhaps not as colourful as some of the reefs we have seen in the likes of Egypt, but it had an abundance of marine life and is very accessible for those (like me) who are not part fish but enjoy a simple float in the lovely warm water with good visibility. We were not lucky enough to see a Turtle here, but as mentioned did see them on the Turtle trip. All in all, we simply cannot recommend this place enough. If you want somewhere where you can just relax, have great food, have people properly look after you, on a dream like island with super soft sand and perfect swimming beaches - this will tick every box and then some. We came here for our 10th wedding anniversary, and will love nothing more to come back in the future for other special occasions. Thank You, Baros, for giving us a holiday of a lifetime.

I stayed in Villa 208. It has a great location, lots of greenery around, and is very private. For swimming, you only need to step out to the beach, which is a 15-meter walk. If any issues or questions arose, our butler Saeed solved them very quickly. We really enjoyed everything, and I recommend this hotel for a quiet and quality rest.

My wife and I absolutely loved this experience. It is more than a hotel or resort, this is an experience. The island is the resort. The rooms were outstanding and the staff over the top. The butler handled everything from reservations to room issues. Food was expensive but terrific. Honestly, even the cheeseburger on the beach was outstanding. Breakfasts were perfect. Beach great. I highly recommend this experience. Over the top.

This is an exceptional resort. It is on a small island but idyllic and of the highest quality. It is only 20 minutes from Male by boat. The villas are well appointed and have beautiful views of the ocean. Food is real quality. Staff are outstanding. We had the luxury of a butler Saeed who looked after us very well and made sure we didn’t miss out on what the resort had to offer. Shafeed looked after our villa each day so well. The sandy beach is stunning, the water the warmest and bluest you could even imagine. We had 6 terrific days.

Baros! What a wonderful, delightful experience. Our concierge, Sujata was the very best we had experienced ANYWHERE in the world. Her professional, warm, detailed and attentive style made our over-water-villa stay special. Wherever we went on the Baros campus (restaurants, bars, cocktail parties, and dive shop) the staff called us by name (how do they do that?!). Our out of this world accommodations provided a private, cozy, romantic get-away and food choices were wide and delicious!