W Maldives — Hotel in North Ari Atoll

*Bathroom floor glass does not even see through to the ocean so its useless. *Why ask me at the seaport how i want to be address during my stay only to find that only 30% of the staff knew of this or my name at all? *Food was overpriced in comparison to other resorts I have stayed in Maldives and quality was below average for that kind of price you charged, *one particular staff that delivered food was extremely lazy and didnt even want to clean stuff before setting food on our table. *since most staff there are on a 3 month rotational basis they almost act as if THEY are on vacation more than working. *Your outdoor activities were way over priced and you guys need to do some marketing *The wood on the deck of the room and around the room was all falling apart due to the humidity and the debris was found at the plunge pool on a daily basis without anyone cleaning it up. It was also dangerous because my wife caught a huge splinter on her hand during our stay. Your so called valentines day/private beach/in retreat special dinning set up charge without the food is RIDICULOUS! How can the above share the EXACT same menu and only thing different is the location? I think this is just plain stupid whoever thought of this. Spa who was ran by some people from Bali was very poorly trained. I believe thats the worst massage i have ever had at a 5 star hotel in my life. Spa hygiene was disgusting. The baskets to leave our clothes in was molding. The 2 blue tubs where i am supposed to bath my feet before the massage had black inner mold rims because they were made of plastic. Spa staff was working as if she was in a hurry to go back to Bali and used different pressure levels throughout the entire massage. Spa staff was literally resting her OTHER arm on the pillow of my head while massaging my wife and I causing our head to tilt down non stop, she also rubbed a lot of her oils all over my face and head while she rested herself. Food at fire to be put on the grill basically tasted like charcoal with no seasoning or skill whatsoever, it felt like I was eating at a primitive cave. For US$110 per person I expect a lot more. The hole in the room so you can look at fish was basically pointless, at other hotels at least they put some corals there so fishes will stay around that area but yours was basically a hole on the floor. Staff answered the phone pretty slow but i can understand this since it was peak season and you guys were busy. Staff should tell anyone that was speaking as if they were trying to announce a global message to quiet down as a courtesy to other guests at the hotel. We dont pay all this money to be on a deserted island to hear them talk. This goes for all nationalities. The pesticide car/boat that goes around the island to mist down the bugs should be notified to guests when this will be done because I was literally having a cocktail and eating snacks with my wife when I was basically inhaling that stuff in my lungs at the same time. Your price list was updated in your own system but was not updated for all the menus inside the room, this is very poor because I basically got charged for different pricing for items on the menu several times. If I wasn't a careful spender, i wouldn't have noticed and instead probably think you guys are trying to rob me. The lagoon area wave was very very heavy, this could have been just because the current weather we were there but since the person cant even stand on the sea bed wouldn't you guys think adding some more sand in that area would benefit your guests so they don't have to swim against the current constantly but instead enjoy that area to its full potential? All outdoor areas including restaurants were closed if there is large wind/ potential rain weather, shouldn't you guys think of a plan where you can still have guests enjoy your restaurants but still be ok with some sort of shelter above them and the outdoor air? All your bread/nuts basically tasted like soft wet stale goods. I think you need better storage compartments because humidity is not something that only happens on that part of the world and yet we still get some pretty damn fresh snacks everywhere else. Your cocktails basically all tasted they poured sugar water in all of them and the way how they made them differed everyDAY, everyTIME and every bar. For US$20 a cocktail comeon, at least try a little harder cuz W is meant to be famous for their drinks too. You shouldnt get staff to call your guests about the return of their rental gear the day before their departure for a before 2pm return because if you havent noticed, if they can afford to stay at the W, the chances of them stealing or not paying for the gear is pretty minimal I think and even if you dont find it in the room after they leave, you can always charge their credit card no? Not all staff smiled and greeted.

I can go on for days but then that would be a waste of my time...

The W Maldives is paradise on earth. We had such an amazing experience here...we can't recommend it enough! The property is stunning, the rooms are beautiful, and the views are incredible.

I'm sure all of the properties in the Maldives are breathtaking, based on the setting alone, but the team at the W Maldives is what makes it so unique. Everyone we met was beyond friendly and helpful. They took great care of us during our stay, and even though we definitely weren't the only couple there celebrating our honeymoon, they made us feel incredibly special. They were happy to answer all of our questions, and with most of the staff being native Maldivians, they knew everything about the area. One of the highlights for me was learning about the fish of the Maldives from our server at Fish Restaurant. She not only gave us great descriptions for all of the local fish on the menu, she took the time to tell me all about the fish we could see in the ocean from the deck!

The activities available at the resort are outstanding! They have something for every interest. The list of water based activities go on and on, from sailing to scuba to jet skiing. We took part in a guided snorkeling trip that was so much fun. We love that the dive shop gave us snorkeling gear to keep and use for the week, free of charge. It made us so happy to be able to jump in the water any time of day and check out the amazing aquatic life right under our room. The staff at the W Maldives take a lot of pride in having one of the best house reefs out of all the Maldives resorts, and they have good reason for it! We loved exploring the coral and fish just outside of our lagoon side room, but the house reef was really stunning.

The food and beverage offerings are divine. We usually plan our trips around visiting specific restaurants, and you might say we have very high expectations when it comes to food, cocktails, and wine. The W did not let us down! The breakfast buffet is out of this world. We really looked forward to it every morning. Not only do they offer a huge selection from many different cuisines, they also make just about anything you can think of as far as breakfast foods go. The pastries were beautiful and delicious...which is a great compliment coming from a pastry chef!

During our stay, we visited all of the restaurants and also had the BBQ in our room. The food and service at the restaurants was perfection. We especially enjoyed the "street food" night on the beach. It was a beautiful setting and had so many yummy options. Our tummies were so full after every meal...we were thankful for all of the water activities to balance out the eating! Our favorite meal was the private BBQ dinner in our room. It was really special to have dinner alone overlooking the water. And how often do you get to eat a fancy dinner in your bikini with pool breaks in between courses?! All of the prepared sides were delicious, and the meats we cooked ourselves on the grill were excellent.

We also loved the bars at the W! We spent a good few afternoons at the poolside Wet Bar. The guys working there created any cocktail we requested, and they took great care of us. It was one of our favorite places to spend time...it doesn't get any better than sipping cocktails over a game of Jenga or Scrabble. The Fish bar cocktails were also excellent, and the sunset views were unbelievable. And we had such a fun night in Fifteen Below, the underground club!! It would've been great to have more people there, but at the same time, it was kinda cool to have the entire club to ourselves. The bartender looked after us, and the superstar DJ played all of our requests. It made our last night in the Maldives something we'll never forget.

Our lagoon side room was beautiful. We had everything we could possibly need and more. They kept us fully stocked on bottled water, and the mini bar drink options were great. We were really happy with our room choice, and we were glad we picked the lagoon side room over the ocean views. It was very private and beyond peaceful. We definitely recommend choosing one of the overwater villas. It's amazing to be able to climb down from your deck right into the water any time you wish.

The W Maldives is obviously pricey as are all of the resorts in the Maldives, but based on our amazing experience, we would say it's worth every penny. It was a once in a lifetime experience that I think would be impossible to beat. We are so thankful to all of the staff for making our honeymoon such a memorable and special experience. I can sum it up by admitting I had tears in my eyes waving at all of the staff from the seaplane when we had to leave! Thank you W Maldives!! We hope to see you...

My experience with this property was so awful I am not sure where to start.

Just so you know I am a frequent traveler for pleasure and business. Not just to the Maldives but around the world. So I feel qualified to write a review about this experience. No doubt the resort is beautiful but so are others in the Maldives. If you have not stayed in some of the other properties in the Maldives and don’t have any benchmark to go with then of course this would be exceptional. However it is far from it. I have never walked away so disappointed before and I am really quite easy going.

On arrival we were pleasantly greeted and this was pretty much the only warm welcome we got during our entire stay. During the tour of the property the (talent) mixed up our room with another guest. He was showing around just 2 couples including us. So much for talent. When I pointed it out to him about the mix up from the obvious welcome letter addressed to someone else and not us. He said, all the rooms are the same and that he will sort it out. Obviously due to this our bags took forever to come. During the entire stay we had to log in to the internet with the wrong room number. They said this would be corrected but it was tedious to keep asking.

Food: This is possibly my biggest complaint. It is also overpriced and way below average. The three restaurants one the island alternate in terms of when they are open. The pretty much rotate the same menu around with a few things different here and there which are all below average anyways. With Fish (Restaurant) being the worst. The have a limited wine list and the “talent” told us that we can order from the main restaurant wine list but would that “very long” to get there. Clearly discouraging us from ordering. I understand that it’s on an island and everything has to be imported but clearly when you have reef fish it’s local or locally sourced. One of the evening at Kitchen we ordered some drinks and were sitting and talking to other guests when they just shut shop with us still there. Turned off the lights and literally told us they need to leave. Not like there was any other option since all the bars close at 11:30 pm. They even said the only place for us to get any drinks would be the mini bar in the room. W is known for their parties and we were there over a long weekend and we choose W so that maybe we could enjoy ourselves in the evening with some music and lively environment. Boy were we wrong. The DJ was on a break OVER THE WEEKEND??? We live in 2015 and you don’t necessarily need a DJ. Maybe she/he could have left a playlist? So if you want to enjoy a drink post 11.00 PM go to your room. The breakfast was very good and the best meal with a very nice spread. However the coffee tasted like detergent.

I could go on about the service of their staff (Talent) but the less said the better.

The housekeeping is very inconsistent with their turn down service and daily cleaning.

You shouldn’t have to call the room and inform guests to return rental gear the day before departure. We did not come all the way to Maldives to steal old snorkels and fins. Besides you can always charge us with the credit card you have of us if you find it missing?

There is no privacy for a property such as this. We have random staff walking by the wonderful beach oasis checking on the pool etc. As much as I appreciate people trying to keep everything working and looking nice. Why not make them come through the front door instead of accessing the pool from the beach area?

To top it off when we checked out not a single “talent” asked us how our stay was. I left my sunglasses behind. I am not very attached to it but I just don’t want anything to do with this property and W Maldives has offered to ship it back for USD 65. Thank you.

I can go on but this is a waste of my time. This was probably the only time I was on a long weekend break and was happy to go home instead of wanting to stay longer. That’s a shame as SPG properties was always my first preference and as SPG Gold I expected better. So in line with the W theme NEVEREVER...