About

About Safari Island

Safari Island is located in North Ari Atoll, just 60-kilometres from Male’s international airport and a 25 minute seaplane ride away. The resort is home to just 84 bungalows across the entire island, ensuring guests enjoy a relaxed and personalised experience at all times. Accommodation is available either directly on the beach or above the lagoon, and for those that simply can’t decide, Safari Island also features a selection of semi-water bungalows which boast both beach and lagoon access.

During their stay at Safari Island, guests can enjoy gourmet dining and drinking, sports and fitness facilities, and an onsite spa. Some of North Ari’s best scuba diving can also be found nearby, including the famous Fish Head dive site, just ten minutes from the resort. But, this resort’s marquee attraction is its fleet of luxury Maldivian dhonis available for charter - opening up the entire Ari Atoll for exploration. Available for experiences of all kinds - lasting from a few hours to days - these elegant vessels allow guests to visit far-flung highlights including the famous whale sharks of South Ari. 

Explore the resort

Floating above the water beneath the shade of a magnificent white roof, Safari Island’s Lagoon Restaurant serves a selection of all-you-can-eat buffets for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Beside the main restaurant, the Palm Bar and coffee shop offers a choice of indoor and outdoor seating with sea views. The Pool Bar serves refreshing drinks and snacks beside the beachfront swimming pool and when the day draws to a close, the Sun Down Bar provides the ultimate sunset experience.

Safari Island’s onsite spa aims to promote inner healing and balance using a fusion of Eastern and Western philosophies and treatments. If you’re in the mood for a little more excitement, have a go at stand-up paddleboarding, windsurfing or catamaran sailing. Guests looking to burn some energy can make use of the onsite gym and tennis courts, or beach volleyball and football. A 24-hour games room and library are also available.

One of this resort’s defining features is its fleet of luxury safari boats for the exclusive use of in-house guests for an additional charge. These traditionally constructed wooden dhoni vessels come equipped with everything you could need for a first-class charter experience - be it an hour or two sailing in search of dolphins, or a multi-day scuba diving adventure.

Diving from Safari Island

Safari Island’s partner dive centre, Joy Dive Maldives, is a professional and well-organised operation with more than 20 years of experience within the country. Thanks to this resort’s fantastic location, divers can explore some of North Ari’s best dive sites, including Fish head, Maaya Thila, Hafsa Thila, Manta Point, and Fesdu Wreck. And, as if that wasn’t enough, the resort’s own house reef features four entry points - each well-marked with buoys and lines to a depth of 20-metres - and can be explored by experienced buddy teams. House reef tanks can be transported by the dive centre staff and collected again upon surfacing.

To deliver the most personal and customised service for divers, dive schedules are planned on a day to day basis. Typically, guests can choose between daily one or two-tank half-day trips, or full-day excursions with up to three dives, as well as early morning and night dives. And, as a relatively new dive centre, guests can rest assured that all rental equipment is up-to-date and in good condition. But, one of the real highlights of diving from Safari Island is the possibility of an exclusive dive charter experience on one of the resort’s luxurious, traditional boats - enabling guests to reach spots throughout the whole of Ari Atoll, with a good chance to see mantas and whale sharks.