Lux South Ari Atoll

Our first time to the Maldives and choosing Lux* was absolutely the best decision. Not only is it an absolutely beautiful island but it is really good for families. Our teenagers thoroughly enjoyed our time there, so much to see and do if you want to. The wildlife was great to see, if you snorkel in the right spots there is definitely a fair amount to discover. We found that to the left of the seaplane jetty where the new coral was being planted was one of best from the resort. My husband and son did the free house reef trip and were lucky enough to swim with a turtle. Our first visit to the jetty at night we saw a manta ray - so special. We were on the full board package and for us this was ample. You can basically order whatever you like and soft drinks during your meals are also included. In the day there are water and sunscreen stations that you can help yourself to. The food was really good everywhere but our favourites were Veli Bar & Beach Rouge in the day and Senses and Allegria in the evening. Allegria is an additional extra but is well worth it, the food is incredible and the setting and service were amazing. We stayed in two Beach Pavilions which they kindly allocated next to each other which are connecting. This was perfect for us - a few steps from the gorgeous beach and not too far from Reception which was ideal, especially for picking up morning Frappe Luxs from the coffee shop! The only thing I would say about the room was that there were some small things that could be done to improve the overall impression. For instance the toilet roll holder was old and hanging off and there were some loose tiles in the bathroom. The staff were generally all excellent - right from the second you are greeted at Male airport to the moment you leave you feel completely looked after. Everything is so well organised and there is just a can do yes attitude. We came away completely relaxed and so grateful we were able to experience such a wonderful place.

The Lux hotel, Maldives, is absolutely amazing. The island is beautiful and the hotel service, food and overall holiday experience is first class. We would like to thank Sameeh, our butler, for taking such grate care of us during our stay and Mark, marine biologist, for helping us to get out to see the Mantas. We unfortunately had a few days of poor weather and for very understandable safety reasons had boat trips cancelled. The hotels team worked really hard to rearrange our trips during the last couple of days of our stay. Thank you. All of the accommodation looked lovely, and the resort has a very relaxed atmosphere. We really enjoyed the evenings on the pier watching the sharks and rays.

The resort is beautiful, everything is immaculately clean, maintained and yet somehow in tune with the surroundings. Staff are friendly, genuine and kind. We travelled with a family member with specific dietary needs and couldn’t have found it easier. Like so many of the repeat guests we encountered, we had personalised and exemplary service from so many of the wonderful staff - from Kayla as our personal contact throughout our break to Pong, Esther, Delwar and Ezekiel in East market and Mawtyn who serviced our room - thank you. 🙏🏻 While we had some mixed weather towards the end of our stay, we had a truly memorable visit - thank you 🙏🏻

Good hotel, little overrated , average food , great service! Best management! Special thx. to Elena , best concierge ever in my experience at Maldives, she make our stay unforgettable! Greetings to all the staff! Kahn is the bed waiter at the hotel, kind and very professional! The bad side is the atoll there is no underwater life, and I'm disappointed of that. The villas is small and far away from expectation! Talking about the villas another great employee named Khalid, perfect!

The Lux is a wonderful hotel and a fantastic escape; you can't go wrong choosing to stay here. However, there are some considerations. First of all, it is very expensive, even compared to other 5* hotels. My family stays at resorts a couple of times a year at a similar level, and we tend to spend our money on the same activities. We typically do about 20 dives and have 10 spa massages, and since we don't drink much, we opt for full board. Diving at hotels in the Maldives typically averages 100 USD per dive, so we normally spend around $2,000. However, at Lux, we spent around $3,500. This amount included a 15% discount for booking 10 or more dives and for completing an advanced course, but it was still the most we've spent at any hotel in the Maldives for diving by a long way. The spa treatments were similarly expensive. I did 11 dives and it cost around about 1700 USD so thats 154 USD, per dive (all in, 15L and, boat charges, gear etc). Also the kids club is not open until 9 am so you will need to use their baby sitter services if you want to dive which is a major annoyance, they kids club and diving in the Maldives should align, so as a family if you and your wife both dive and your have kids I would select another resort that offers kids club and diving opening hours that are aligned e.g. 8 am like many of the hotel in the Maldives. Its a pattern I have seen with all inclusive hotels, so they can get extra revenue, typically non all inclives resorts tend to have opening hours that support you spending money on diving etc. they need to change this. They must be losing more money that it costs to open up the kids club at 7:45 as we nearly did not dive at all because of it. They did very nicely come to an arrangment with us but it still cost us and additonal 500 USD. Our villa manager, Rachael, was brilliant. She constantly checked in on us, ensuring that our holiday was going as we wanted. Nothing was ever too much trouble for Rachael, and her efforts made our holiday a success. The food at the resort was generally of a very high standard. The Maldivian Night was enjoyable but too spicy for the children. There was some music and dancing, which was nice, but it did not compare to themed nights at other hotels in the Maldives, which were more extravagant. Still, we really enjoyed it—thank you! My children love buffets, so we mostly stuck to that option, as they like to choose what they eat and how much they want. We can’t comment much on the wider restaurants, but I found the desserts a bit disappointing. I have a sweet tooth and noticed the variety was limited or very Asian, and the fruits were the same every day. After a while, I got a bit tired of the same options. At a 5-star resort, I expected more effort in this area; tropical fruits are very varied, so providing more variety would be great. Perhaps offering a hot pudding as an option would help, as I found the desserts too light and suspect they were not freshly made but rather frozen or brought to the island. We spent a significant amount of time at the Veli family pool and restaurant, not only because it was lovely but also because of the amazing staff members. Khan, Arun, and Shifaz took exceptional care of us. Diving: We completed 11 dives during our holiday, and my wife earned her Advanced Open Water Diver certification with Dustin and Jhang as instructors. We would definitely recommend them, as my wife’s SCUBA skills improved dramatically following their training. To explore the truly spectacular dive sites around Lux, one needs to be a certified advanced diver due to the depth and currents. So open water is not really an option at this location, advanced is needed. Kids Club: The Lux kids’ club is hands down the best we have encountered during our travels. They offer a diverse program with many interesting activities, and there are always 2-3 staff members caring for the children. The staff actively engage with the kids rather than simply supervising them. Our children (5 and 10 years old) loved the kids’ club and wanted to attend every day. We also hired Ella from the kids’ club as a babysitter while we went diving early one morning. We highly recommend her! Yoga: We recommend Sudir’s yoga classes. If you’re at an intermediate level and looking for a challenge, try the floating yoga class. We would also like to thank Azaam for keeping our villa beautifully tidy. This review is balanced, and please don’t focus solely on the negatives. The Lux gave us a wonderful holiday, but for those looking to book, just consider that the costs of activities such as the spa or diving were about 150% higher than at other 5-star resorts, and the kids club opening at 9am not 8am or 7:45 to meet with the diving was a major issue.