01: CHASING THE SUN
We suss out the factors to picking your dream Maldives getaway spot.
FOUR SEASONS PRIVATE ISLAND VOAVAH | SONEVA JANI | KANDIMA MALDIVES | |
ROOMS | Seven bedrooms split among a beach villa, two water villas, and two mezzanine suites, available for one group booking. | Stargaze from the bed in one of the 25 villas that have retractable roofs. There are over 50 villas in total. | Take a dip in the Indian Ocean from your own private deck in one of the Aqua Villas. |
DISTANCE | 45-minute seaplane flight to Four Seasons’ Landaa Giraavaru hotel, and then a 20-minute boat journey to the island of Voavah. | 40 minutes by seaplane from Male International Airport to the island of Medhufaru. | 30 minutes by seaplane to Dhaalu Atoll, then a 20-minute boat ride. |
THAT LITTLE EXTRA | Guests have a 19m-long yacht at their disposal to explore surrounding Unesco territory. | Put on headphones for a private movie experience at the overwater Cinema Paradiso. | With 274 studios and villas, a host of activities and various social spaces, this is a village for trendy travellers. |
02: THE EEL DEAL
Chef Teppei Yamashita’s buzzing Man Man in Keong Saik Road may offer high quality freshwater eel from Mikawa Isshiki region, but the hour-long wait (they don’t take reservations) can get tedious. Why wait? Satiate your unagi cravings at 200-year-old restaurant Nodaiwa in Tokyo, which recently got a Michelin star. Run by fifth-generation chef-owner Kanejiro Kanemoto, it serves wild-caught eel drenched in sweet soya-based sauce accompanied by wasabi and rock salt. 1-5-4 Higashiazabu, Minato-ku, Tel: +81 3 3583 7852.
03: ONE-STOP SAMSONITE
Following a series of acquisitions that included premium label Tumi, US luggage company Samsonite has launched an e-shop offering various brands like Lipault, Hartmann and High Sierra, saving customers the hassle of transporting their new luggage home.
PHOTO 123rf.com