Is V Villas Maldives at Mirihi worth it, and is it the same island that used to be Mirihi Island Resort? Yes to both, and I would definitely go back.
It’s a small barefoot island in South Ari Atoll where you snorkel straight off your villa steps, and the house reef is probably the best I’ve swum from a villa.
Picking a Maldives resort is a big spend on one island you can’t leave once you land, so you want to know what you’re getting before you commit. We stayed five nights in an Overwater Villa on full board and ate at the buffet every night by choice. By the end of my review you’ll know whether V Villas suits you, which side of the island to ask for and what the room rate doesn’t cover.
Is V Villas Maldives at Mirihi worth it? My verdict
From me and my partner, a resounding yes. The reef gave us sharks, turtles and eagle rays on every swim and a manta on the last morning. The food, which we’d expected to be the compromise of a small island on full board, turned out to be the opposite. The rest is the island.
It’s small enough to walk round in 15 minutes. The resort took our shoes off us as we stepped onto the boat at the seaplane and that was the last we saw of them until the boat back. It’s offered rather than enforced, but we didn’t see a single person in shoes all week. Most of the main areas have sand floors, with little water buckets dotted about so you can rinse your feet before going somewhere sand isn’t wanted. On the last morning they handed us towels for our feet on the boat, and putting shoes back on felt like the holiday ending.
It’s quiet by design. No motorised water sports, no screens, the bars stay open until midnight or later if people are still drinking, but nobody is partying. That’s part of the appeal.
Two things to know before you go
First, the side of the island. Both sides have water villas. The side away from the restaurant has the better coral, but the swim out to the drop-off gets too shallow at low tide. The restaurant side reaches the drop-off at any tide. More on that in the villa section.
Second, every single thing you buy on the island has 10% service charge and 17% GST added, the shop and the excursions included. That works out at about 29% on top of the printed price and it wasn’t as clear as it could have been on the cost sheet we were handed.
Book it if
You want to snorkel from your own steps every day without a boat, you care about food more than cocktails, and you’re happy for the evening entertainment to be sharks under the restaurant, rather than anything more raucous.
Look elsewhere if
You don’t like relaxing on a beach or in the sea and you don’t like snorkelling. There’s nothing much else to do here, and that’s kind of the point of the Maldives, full stop. If you want a kids’ club, a lively pool or a bar with a crowd in it, this isn’t your island.
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Mirihi Island Resort to V Villas: what changed
If you’ve been searching for Mirihi Island Resort and landed on V Villas, you’re in the right place. The island reopened in June 2026 as V Villas Maldives at Mirihi, part of Accor’s MGallery Collection, after a renovation that took the villa count to 42 and added four two-bedroom water suites with private pools.
Mirihi is the name of a small yellow flower that grows locally, and the name has stayed on the island and the spa. Everything else in this review is from the new version.
Getting there by seaplane
V Villas is a 30 minute seaplane flight from Malé with Trans Maldivian, no stops, and the resort’s boat meets the plane just off the jetty. The transfer is $620 (£465) per person return and it is not in your room rate. You can pay in advance or at the resort on departure. Check-in is in the main international arrivals building and you wait in the resort’s own lounge, with snacks, drinks and a balcony over the planes. We waited just under two hours because of a weather delay.
The baggage allowance is 20kg checked and 5kg hand luggage per person. Ours was weighed and the weight printed on the boarding pass, so it is enforced. Anything over is $6 (£4.50) per kilo, paid to the airline once for both directions.
The flight itself is a highlight. The pilots wear shorts and flip flops, and the flip flops come off so they fly barefoot. The cockpit is completely open, so sit at the front and watch. They hand out earplugs because the engines are loud.
If you land late
Seaplanes only fly in daylight, so book an international flight that lands between 06:00 and 15:15, which is the window the resort guarantees a same-day transfer for. Land later than that and you’ll need a night in Malé, so either pick an earlier flight or plan the night in from the start.
Our flights went wrong and we got in a day late, so we had a night at Amber Seaside Hotel in Hulhumalé, £68.86 for the room plus $6 (£4.50) tourist tax each. The resort organised the morning transfer from the hotel and had someone meet us.
Leaving on departure day
The seaplane leaves the island about two to two and a half hours before your international flight, and the resort guarantees same-day transfers for flights from 09:00 onwards.
Our bags were collected from the villa 45 minutes before the seaplane and were on the plane before we got on the boat. At Malé a V Villas member of staff met us, put us on a shared shuttle to the international terminal, brought the bags to us there and walked us to check-in. We didn’t touch a big bag once.
The house reef and where to snorkel
The house reef is exceptional and it’s the single biggest reason to pick V Villas over another island. There’s coral directly under the villa steps and the drop-off, where the reef ends and the big stuff lives, is about a three minute swim out. Most resorts need a boat to get you to snorkelling this good.
We snorkelled at least three times a day for five days in whatever conditions we got and found three spots worth knowing. Snorkelling gear is free from the dive shop, our butler asked our shoe size on arrival and left fins outside the door for the week, and there are no rules about where you can and can’t swim.
From your villa steps
My favourite spot was on the side of the island away from the restaurant, which is where our water villa was. Swim straight out from the steps to the reef drop, turn left and go as far as you want. We went a really long way several times and saw sharks, turtles, big schools of different fish and some of the most beautiful coral I’ve seen anywhere. On our last snorkel there we got lucky and a manta came past, which the dive shop told us afterwards does happen but is very rare. We saw six eagle rays on the same swim.
Going out from this side at low tide doesn’t work, because the way to the drop-off gets too shallow to swim over the coral comfortably. Check the tide chart the resort gives you on arrival and go out around high water, which is what we did after the first attempt. The first day was also choppy with a strong current from the wind, and we went out anyway and it was harder work than it needed to be.
My Top Tip! Use the two sides of the island as two different snorkels. The far side around high tide for the best coral, the restaurant side from the jetty whenever you like. You’ll get more out of the reef than people who only swim out from their own steps.
From the jetty
My second favourite was the restaurant side. Go off the jetty to the right of the overwater villas near Dhonveli, the main restaurant (not the jetty you arrived on), then head right along the reef edge as far as it goes. We made it to the two poles that mark the boat channel through the reef and saw sharks, turtles and eagle rays on the way. This is the easier of the two routes because the tide doesn’t matter, and it only came second because the coral on our side was better.
If you’re not a confident swimmer, or snorkelling isn’t normally your thing, jump in off the end of that same jetty and look under it. Every day there were big batfish, big sweetlips, trumpetfish and schools of smaller fish right there, without swimming anywhere. Anyone can do that one.
Guaranteed sharks under Muraka
Muraka is the overwater restaurant and sunset bar, and the water beneath it is where the sharks gather. At sunset it looks like a Bond villain’s lair from the deck, except the sharks are nurse sharks and small blacktip reef sharks.
They light the underside of the restaurant after dark, which brings in even more fish and sharks while you have a drink or dinner above them. If you’ve struggled to see a shark on other trips and want a guaranteed sighting, snorkel under Muraka in the late afternoon. They were there every single day.
Which villa to pick
There are five villa categories, and water villas sit on both sides of the island. The choice that matters most is which side you’re on.
Overwater Villa: what you get
We had an Overwater Villa, which is the standard water villa. Steps go straight from the deck into the water with coral directly beneath them. We saw a reef shark from the deck and had two crabs living on our step for the week. Inside it’s a good size and nicely done, with an indoor-outdoor bathroom that we loved, and we didn’t close the sliding doors once.
The air conditioning was good and quiet, the bed was big and very comfortable with a proper choice of pillows, and my other half was delighted by the free coffee selection in the room. There was a fruit bowl on arrival, a pot of small snacks (mostly sweet) topped up daily, several bottles of water when the room was made up and two more at turndown while we were at dinner. No TV, which suited us.
Which side of the island to ask for
Our villa was on the side away from the restaurant, which has the better snorkelling but needs the tide. If I was booking again I’d still ask for that side, because the coral won. But if you’re not a strong swimmer, or you want to reach the drop-off at any time of day without checking a chart, ask for a water villa on the restaurant side near the jetty.
Whichever you want, say so in the booking notes and again by email before you fly. We booked last minute, took what we were given and got lucky.
Beach villas and the suites
All five categories side by side. The pool water suites are the ones added in the renovation.
| Villa | Beach or overwater | Size | Private pool | Sleeps | Minimum age | Pick this if |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beach Villa | Beach | 53 m² | No | 2 | None | You’re travelling with a child under 8 or want to spend less |
| Overwater Villa | Overwater | 53 m² | No | 2 | 8 | You want to snorkel from your own steps. This is what we had and what I’d book again |
| Two Bedroom Water Suite | Overwater | 160 m² | No | 4 | 8 | Two couples or a family with older children who all want the water |
| Two Bedroom Water Suite with Private Pool | Overwater | Not published | Yes | 4 | 8 | You want a pool as well as the reef |
| Three Bedroom Beach Suite with Private Pool | Beach | 180 m² | Yes | 6 | None | A bigger group or a family with young children |
Food and drink on full board
Three places to eat and drink. Dhonveli is the main restaurant, a buffet with sand floors, and it’s the only one included on full board, for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Akoya Sea Lounge is the bar next door to it, with a bar food menu. Muraka is the overwater à la carte restaurant and sunset bar. Full board covers Dhonveli and water, nothing else, and there’s an all inclusive plan if you’re going to drink a lot. We opted against it.
Dhonveli: the buffet
The buffet was the bit we were most worried about, because we love our food and dinner is a big part of our evenings on holiday, I’m also a bit of a buffet snob for my sins, preferring à la carte.
It turned out to be one of the best buffets I’ve had anywhere, and I don’t say that often. Huge choice, good quality ingredients, quickly restocked. About 95% of it was at least ‘great for a buffet’ and every night I found a handful of dishes that were just great, full stop.
There are two live cooking stations at every meal, a pizza oven with one veg and one meat pizza each sitting, homemade kombucha, fresh juices and iced coffee at breakfast, all included. Lunch is more limited but still very good.
Dinner has a different theme every night of the week (Tex Mex barbecue, East Asian, Mediterranean, Pacific Rim seafood, Maldivian, East meets West, South American), so the food changes a lot across a stay, and some nights there’s a small show, with bodu beru drumming on Maldivian night. Neither of us had a disappointing meal.
Muraka: sunset drinks, sharks and à la carte
Muraka does sunset drinks from 18:00 and à la carte dinner from 19:00 to 21:30, and you should book. Full board and half board guests get 30% off food. We liked the buffet so much that we never ate there. The menu is steak and seafood: starters $23 to $31 (£17 to £23), fish and seafood mains $48 to $69 (£36 to £52), the signature Maldivian lobster flambéed at the table $79 (£59), all plus service and GST.
Sunset drinks are where we spent our money. Cocktails are listed at $18 to $35 (£13.50 to £26), and a signature cocktail came to $43 (£32) all in. Wine starts at $14 (£10.50) a glass. The first round each evening came with a couple of hors d’oeuvres, the second never did. The view is sharks below you and, at dusk, Indian flying foxes the size of big seagulls. They were the biggest fruit bats I’ve ever seen.
Akoya Sea Lounge
Akoya is the bar next door to Dhonveli, with cocktails, mocktails and a bar food menu, and it’s where the live music and the weekly cocktail party happen. The drinks menu and prices are the same as at Muraka.
Beers are $9 to $13 (£7 to £10) depending on brand and cider is $7 (£5). Still and sparkling water is free all day and at every meal, chilled, and we never once went short.
Is full board worth it?
If you’re booking bed and breakfast, the resort will sell you the buffet lunch for $64.35 (£48) and dinner for $154.44 (£116) per person, or upgrade you to half board for $112 (£84) or full board for $138 (£103.50) per person per day.
On those numbers full board costs less than buying dinner on its own. My recommendation is full board, with one caveat: it includes water only, so budget separately for anything else you drink, or look at the all inclusive plan if drinks are a big part of your holiday.
If you do bed and breakfast and plan to eat dinner at the buffet most nights, you’ll pay more than full board would have cost. Book full board and treat Muraka as a one-off with the 30% discount if you fancy it.
What everything costs on top
Service charge and GST
Every purchase on the island, drinks, excursions, spa and the shop included, carries a 10% service charge and 17% GST. Together that’s about 29% on top of any price you see printed. It’s in the small print of the menus and the weekly programme, but it isn’t obvious on the cost sheet you’re given and it’s the one thing I’d have liked spelled out before we arrived.
We ran out of sunscreen and paid $38 (£28.50) plus the extras for a bottle in the shop, which is our own fault, but pack enough. You settle everything on a card at checkout and it was painless.
Excursion prices
From the weekly programme, before service and GST. Every excursion needs a minimum of four people to go ahead.
| Excursion | When | Price per person |
|---|---|---|
| Whale Shark Seeker | 09:30 to 15:00 | $310 (£232) full board, $330 (£247.50) other boards |
| Manta Snorkeling | 09:30 to 12:30 | $235 (£176) |
| Reef Explorer | 09:30 to 12:30 | $235 (£176) |
| House Reef Discovery | 10:00 to 12:00 | $95 (£71) |
| Night Snorkeling | 19:00 to 20:00 | $80 (£60) |
| Local Island Visit | 16:00 to 19:00 | $175 (£131) |
| Sunset Fishing | 18:30 to 20:30 | $140 (£105) |
| Moonlit Cruise | 21:00 to 22:30 | $150 (£112.50) |
| Sunset Cruise with Live Music | 17:30 to 19:30 | $190 (£142.50) |
| Wine Tasting in the Sea | 18:30 to 20:00 | $105 (£79) |
| Cocktail Class | 15:30 to 17:00 | $85 (£64) |
Daily 08:00 yoga, the marine biology talk, cinema on the beach, football at 5pm with the staff, the live music and the bodu beru drumming on Maldivian night are free.
The manta snorkelling trip
The manta trip was the one paid excursion we did and it was well worth it. It’s a three hour trip from 09:30 to 12:30 on the resort’s own sailing yacht, the Mirihi Thari, which is a lot more comfortable than the dive boat you might be picturing. There’s a captain and two spotters, cold drinks included and a toilet on board, towels provided, and free snorkel kit from the dive shop if you don’t have your own. There were eight guests on our boat and three crew.
Where the mantas are changes with the season, and for us the cleaning stations were less than 30 minutes away. We tried four different spots and saw mantas at every one of them. The crew knew exactly what they were looking for, where to look and how to position the boat so you could get in easily, even when the current was strong. Nobody on our boat wore a life jacket, but jackets and floats were there if you wanted one.
One of the crew had an iPhone in an underwater case and took photos and video of the mantas, then shared them with everyone by AirDrop for nothing. They also took photos of us on the boat with our own phones. Without your own underwater camera you’ll come home with no manta photos of your own, so ask the crew at the start whether they’re filming and get the AirDrop before you get off the boat.
Things to know before you book
What the weather did in late October
We were there for the last week of October and it didn’t rain once at the resort in six days. We had a mix of full blue sky days and part cloudy days, warm throughout, and it was only raining in Malé as we left. The first day was windier than the rest, which made the sea choppy and the current strong on the house reef, and after that it settled.
Is it good for families?
Children are welcome, and we saw a few, but only at meals. The minimum age for a water villa or the two-bedroom water suite is 8, so a family with younger children is in a Beach Villa or the three-bedroom beach suite. There’s no kids’ club and a quiet pool. A child who loves snorkelling will have the week of their life off the end of the jetty. A child who needs entertaining will not. Wi-Fi is free, fast and solid everywhere on the island.
What else is on the island
Enough for the odd hour out of the water. I used the gym twice: a good range of Technogym kit, strong air conditioning, water and free snacks laid out, an outdoor rig with bars for pull-ups, and I never saw another person in it.
The staff play football on the pitch at 17:00 every day and guests are welcome to join. Kayaks, paddleboards and a see-through canoe for two sit by the beach with their paddles, free, any hour, no signing out, you just take one.
There’s a table tennis table next to the dive centre, and a pool with loungers by Akoya. The Mirihi Spa sits in a garden in the middle of the island with a long treatment list, which we didn’t get round to.
What happens if your flight is delayed
Ours was, badly, and we arrived a day late. The resort wouldn’t refund the missed night, which I completely understand, but they offered to refund the full board element or offered to move the lost night to the end of our stay for nothing. We managed to move our flight home and took them up on it. If your flights are problematic, phone the resort before you assume the night is gone.
Would I go back?
Yes, and I’d book the same Overwater Villa on the same side, because the snorkelling from our steps was the best of the trip and the manta on the last morning is the kind of thing you don’t forget. What surprised me most was the buffet. I expected it to be the compromise of a full board stay on a small island and it was the opposite. Budget for the seaplane, the service and GST on everything and a manta trip, ask for the side of the island that suits your swimming, and you’ll have a very good week.
