We had the chance to visit Rah Gili shortly after its opening and check out this highly expected property. Here’s our in-depth review of Rah Gili Maldives just a few weeks after its opening.
Class:
★★★★★
Location:
South Malé Atoll
Transfer Type:
Transfer Duration:
Speedboat
40 minutes
Island Size:
Medium
Total no. Villas:
74
Highlights:
Reviewed by Florian– April 26
Rah Gili Maldives is one of the newest additions to the Maldives luxury scene, having just opened at the end of February. With 74 villas and located only 40 to 45 minutes by speedboat from Malé, the resort offers relatively easy access compared to many remote properties in the country.
In this review of Rah Gili Maldives, it is important to understand that the resort is still in its early stages. While it used to be a natural island, a lot of artificial work and extensions have been done, which currently impacts the overall look and feel of the island.
Rah Gili is also the first property of the Six & Six Resorts group in the Maldives, with more developments expected in the coming years. This makes it an interesting project to follow, as it clearly has the ambition to become a major player in the luxury segment.
This review of Rah Gili Maldives will therefore give a very honest perspective of what to expect when visiting a resort that has just opened, with both its strengths and areas that still need improvement.
The arrival experience at Rah Gili Maldives starts very well.
We were welcomed at Malé Airport by our butler, which is always a great touch and immediately sets a more personalized tone for the stay. From there, we were escorted to the speedboat.
The speedboat transfer takes around 40 minutes, and it is honestly one of the best speedboat experiences we’ve had in the Maldives. The boat itself is extremely comfortable, with some dedicated suites featuring very comfortable seats, making the journey much more enjoyable than standard transfers.
Despite the sea being quite choppy during our transfer, the ride was super smooth and very comfortable, which is something we really appreciated.
Another nice touch was that a fresh coconut was already waiting for us on the boat, which made the journey feel more relaxed from the start.
Upon arrival at the island we were welcomed with some champagne, and a bottle of Prosecco was also waiting for us in our villa, which added a celebratory feeling to the arrival experience.
Overall, the transfer and arrival are definitely one of the strong points in this review of Rah Gili Maldives, combining comfort, efficiency and some thoughtful details.
We stayed in the Sunset Water Pool Villa number 203, and this is clearly one of the highlights of the resort.
The villa is absolutely stunning, especially when it comes to the interior. It is very spacious for a one-bedroom category and offers a high level of comfort.
The bedroom is beautifully designed, with very high ceilings, which creates a great sense of space and openness. The walk-in closet is extremely large, something you don’t always see in this category.
The bathroom is also very impressive, featuring a huge showe and a beautiful bathtub overlooking the ocean.
The outdoor area includes a large private pool and one of the fun features of Rah Gili: a slide directly into the ocean, which adds a playful touch to the villa experience and puts Rah Gili among the rare luxury resorts with slides in the Maldives.
That said, in this review of Rah Gili Maldives, we need to be honest about the layout. While the interior is stunning, the outside area is not the most impressive we’ve seen in the Maldives, and the layout could definitely be improved to make better use of the space. Having the pool on the side is not something so convenient and we much prefer when it is at the front of the villa.
Still, overall, the villa is very enjoyable and clearly one of the strongest elements of the resort.
During our stay, we had the opportunity to visit several other villa categories.
The Sunset Beach Pool Villa number 131 is very spacious and beautifully designed. It features a lovely outdoor shower, a bathtub and a large indoor shower. However, one downside is that the beach access is not ideal, as you need to walk quite a bit before reaching the actual beach.
We also visited the 2 Bedroom Beach Pool Villa number 111, which is a great option for families. It is spacious and comfortable, with a nice private pool. However, the view in front is quite open but not particularly impressive, especially compared to the best beaches in the Maldives.
The 2 Bedroom Sunset Overwater Pool Villa number 210 is a very strong product. It features a large pool and a much better outdoor layout than the one-bedroom water villas. Like all overwater villas at Rah Gili, it also comes with a slide, which is a fun and unique feature.
Overall, the villa offering is strong, especially in terms of interior design and space.
This is probably the biggest weakness at the moment.
Because the resort has just opened, you can clearly feel that the island is still in a transition phase. While it used to be natural, the extensive works and extensions have impacted its current state.
The sand is not very soft, and there is still quite a lot of debris around, which takes away from the typical Maldives feeling.
The lagoon itself looks very beautiful, with nice shades of blue, but the water can sometimes appear slightly dirty due to ongoing construction nearby.
In this review of Rah Gili Maldives, it is clear that the island has strong potential, but it will require at least 9 to 12 months to fully recover and reach the level of beauty people expect when traveling to the Maldives in any luxury resort.
This is an other area where Rah Gili really stands out.
The food has been phenomenal, honestly some of the best we’ve had in the Maldives, which is quite surprising for such a new resort. We are being quite hard on Rah Gili in this review, but we really need to express how impressed we have been with the food offering.
Even though not all restaurants were open yet, everything we tried was consistently excellent.
A special mention goes to the duck spring rolls, which were absolutely incredible and clearly one of the highlights of our stay. Yes…as crazy as it may sounds! They were literally to die for!
The drinks at the main bar (Amrit) located by the pool, were also very good, with great presentation and quality.
Breakfast was also excellent. At the time of our stay, there was no buffet yet, and everything was served à la carte. In the coming months, the resort plans to introduce a buffet as occupancy increases.
Overall, in this Rah Gili Maldives review, food and beverages are already operating at a very high level, which is impressive for such a new property.
As expected from a newly opened resort, the service is not yet fully polished.
Our butler, Jawad, was extremely friendly, responsive and always available, which made a big difference during our stay.
However, in the restaurants, the service was sometimes inconsistent. For example:
That said, almost all staff members were extremely friendly and welcoming, which is a great foundation.
In this review of Rah Gili Maldives, it is clear that service will improve significantly with time, as the team gains more experience and training. For now, the experience with the service can sometimes be a bit frustrating.
Housekeeping, though, was excellent during our entire stay. We’ve never seen them, they were always coming at the right time and the cleanliness of our villa was 10/10.
The main pool is currently one of the best areas of the resort.
The atmosphere is absolutely fantastic, with great music and a very relaxed vibe. There is almost always a live DJ playing, which adds a lot of energy without being overwhelming.
You can easily spend the entire day by the pool, enjoying drinks, music and the overall atmosphere. We’ve been told that they are planning to make it a 24/7 opened bar so people can stay there and enjoy some drinks until 3am is they wish. Let’s see if that actually happens once the resort runs at high occupancy.
The Amrit pool bar and lounge is clearly the best spot in the resort at the moment, combining great drinks, good music and a very pleasant setting in a beautifully designed area.
The gym is one of the most impressive we’ve seen in the Maldives.
It is very spacious, beautifully designed and equipped with brand new Technogym machines.
The air conditioning works perfectly, which is not always the case in tropical destinations, and there are also cold towels available in the fridge, which is a nice touch.
The views are also excellent, with almost a 300° panorama over the lagoon, making workouts much more enjoyable.
The resort is also planning to add a padel court, but it was not yet available during our stay.
An other area to cover in this review of Rah Gili Maldives is the spa.
We visited it but unfortunately did not have the chance to try a treatment.
The spa rooms are very nice and located overwater, which creates a beautiful and relaxing environment.
The staff was extremely friendly, but since we did not experience a treatment, we cannot comment on the quality of the massages.
For snorkeling, Rah Gili is unfortunately not a strong destination.
There is no proper house reef, which means you cannot expect great snorkeling directly from the villa.
There is a Dolphin Sanctuary nearby, and we were lucky enough to see dolphins jumping from our villa, which was a great experience.
However, for guests who prioritize snorkeling, this is clearly not the best resort to choose.
At this stage, it is quite difficult to assess the value for money.
Since the resort has just opened, it is not yet operating at full potential, and many elements are still being finalized.
The prices in April 26 are already quite high, which makes it harder to justify given the current state of the island and the fact that some facilities are not fully ready.
We believe that pricing will evolve over time and better reflect the experience once the resort is fully completed.
Pros
Beautiful and very spacious villas
Outstanding food quality
Excellent main pool atmosphere
One of the best gyms in the Maldives
Smooth and comfortable transfers
Cons
Island still under development
No snorkeling reef
Service not fully polished yet
Pricing already high for a new resort
To conclude this review of Rah Gili Maldives, we are very grateful to have experienced the resort so soon after its opening.
It is clear that Rah Gili has huge potential to become a great resort in the Maldives, especially considering the quality of the villas, the excellent food and the strong atmosphere around the main areas.
However, at this stage, there is still a lot of room for improvement, particularly in terms of service consistency, island conditions and overall readiness.
With time, training and a bit of patience for the island to fully recover, Rah Gili could become a very strong contender in the Maldives luxury market and maybe one day position itself among the best resorts and hotels in the Maldives.
For now, it is a great preview of what’s to come, but not yet a fully polished 5* experience.
If you are planning a trip to the Maldives, feel free to contact us for exclusive rates and offers.
