world i


was floating 40 metres above an abyss, yet I’d never been more relaxed. Here, the knobbly house reef of the Oblu Nature Helengeli by


Sentido resort falls away into the depths of the Indian Ocean. I wasn’t the only creature enjoying the warm Maldivian waters; a turtle munched on brain coral below, while reef sharks wiggled lazily past. For all its beauty, the Maldives had never


previously appealed to me. I prefer going out to staying in, and after a couple of hours of relaxing solo, I fidget and make to-do lists. With no historic landmarks or specific attractions to see, I had visions of being marooned – nay, bored – on a desert island. As Ken said in the 2023 Barbie film, the Maldives would be ‘just beach’.


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DESTINATIONS MALDIVES | INDIAN OCEAN


A ROOM WITH A VIEW The 153-room resort is well situated for Maldives novices, as it’s just a 50-minute speedboat ride from the airport in Malé. Walking to my overwater villa, I quickly found myself marvelling at slow-moving stingrays beneath the jetty. Once inside, glass panels in the villa floor turned it into my own aquarium. Helengeli’s reef is home to more than 200 marine species, as the island is positioned at an entrance to the North Malé Atoll, with flowing channels on either side. My morning routine switched from catching trains to catching the lagoon at its most active, before I headed to the dive centre to compare notes with the enthusiastic instructors. Clients new to the underwater world can head ²


26 MARCH 2026


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