34 Maldives resorts you possibly can guide with factors and miles

I’ve stayed at nine different Maldives resorts over the last four years. During these stays, I discovered that — more so than in any other destination I’ve visited — each resort has its own vibe and activities. I like to say that each Maldives resort is likely the best for someone. As such, it’s incredibly important to research when planning a Maldives trip to ensure you pick the best resort for you.

I have a few favorite Maldives resorts, including Six Senses Laamu for its vibe, snorkeling options and rustic villas, Park Hyatt Maldives Hadahaa for its easy-to-access 360-degree house reef and Holiday Inn Resort Kandooma Maldives for its affordability and easy access from Velana International Airport (MLE). But these resorts may not be best for you, as you may have different preferences and priorities.

To help narrow your search, here are your best options for using points and miles to stay at a Maldives resort.

Related: Where is the Maldives, and is the long journey worth it?

You can book nine Maldives resorts through the Marriott Bonvoy program. However, the soon-to-open JW Marriott Maldives Kaafu Atoll Island Resort isn’t offering award bookings yet.

Marriott Bonvoy prices its properties dynamically, so the award rate for any night will vary depending on when you stay and book.

Here’s a list of the Maldives resorts you can book with points through the Marriott Bonvoy program:

Some of these resorts feature award rates that are low enough on select dates to be a good use of a free night award certificate (certain hotels have mandatory resort fees). For example, earlier this year, I redeemed an up to 40,000-point free night award and 152,000 points for a six-night stay at the Le Meridien Maldives Resort & Spa.

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Remember that you’ll get one night for zero points for every five nights that you redeem Marriott points due to the “stay for five, pay for four” perk.

You can earn Marriott points via various methods, including Marriott credit cards. However, if you need to boost your points balance quickly, you may want to buy Marriott points or transfer points to Marriott from American Express Membership Rewards (1:1 ratio), Chase Ultimate Rewards (1:1 ratio) or Bilt Rewards (1:1 ratio).

Related: 5 ways to maximize Marriott Bonvoy award night redemptions

You can only book two Maldives resorts through the World of Hyatt program: Park Hyatt Maldives Hadahaa and Alila Kothaifaru Maldives.

However, a Hyatt Regency will open in the Maldives by late 2027. Hyatt also recently acquired Standard International Hotel group, so The Standard, Maldives, should eventually become bookable with Hyatt points.

Award pricing for Park Hyatt Maldives Hadahaa and Alila Kothaifaru Maldives follow the standard Hyatt award chart. Both resorts are Category 7 properties, so you can redeem Hyatt points for a standard room — a beach villa at the Park Hyatt and a beach pool villa at the Alila — at a rate of 25,000 points per night on off-peak dates, 30,000 points per night on standard dates and 35,000 points per night on peak dates.

You have many options for earning Hyatt points, including the World of Hyatt Credit Card and World of Hyatt Business Credit Card. But, if you need to quickly earn Hyatt points for a redemption, you’ll usually want to buy Hyatt points, transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards (1:1 ratio) or transfer Bilt Rewards Points (1:1 ratio).

Related: When and how to transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to World of Hyatt

You can book nine Maldives resorts through the Hilton Honors program, including five SLH properties that you can book with Hilton points.

Hilton Honors uses dynamic award pricing, so the award rates for each resort will vary depending on when you book and the dates you want to stay. However, award nights for standard rooms top out at 150,000 points per night.

Here’s a list of the Maldives resorts you can book with Hilton points:

If you earn Hilton free night certificates from Hilton credit cards, these resorts are often a good use of these certificates. But if you need to earn Hilton points for an upcoming redemption, you can buy Hilton points or transfer points to Hilton from Amex Membership Rewards (1:2 ratio) or Bilt Rewards (1:1 ratio). If you have Hilton elite status, you’ll get every fifth night free when you redeem points for standard room awards (up to four free nights per reservation).

Related: 8 ways to redeem points with the Hilton Honors program

Five Maldives resorts participate in the IHG One Rewards program, although the Vignette Collection Noku Maldives isn’t set to open until Dec. 15, 2024, and wasn’t taking award bookings at the time of publishing.

IHG uses dynamic award pricing, so award rates depend on when you book and want to stay. Here’s a list of the Maldives resorts you can book with IHG points:

Cardholders of the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card, IHG One Rewards Traveler Credit Card and IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card get a fourth night free when redeeming IHG points for stays of four nights or longer.

You can earn IHG points via many methods, including IHG credit cards. You can also buy IHG points or transfer points from Chase Ultimate Rewards (1:1 ratio) or Bilt Rewards (1:1 ratio) if you need to accrue IHG points quickly.

Related: Why you should get (and keep) the IHG One Rewards Premier card

You can book eight Maldives resorts through the Accor Live Limitless program.

This program ties its award rates directly to cash rates, so 1,000 points are worth 20 euros (about $22) toward your stay. As such, the award price of your Accor Live Limitless stay will vary depending on the paid rates when you book.

Here’s a list of the Maldives resorts you can book through Accor Live Limitless:

• Angsana Velavaru
• Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru
• Dhawa Ihuru
• Mercure Maldives Kooddoo Resort
• Movenpick Resort Kuredhivaru Maldives
• Pullman Maldives All-Inclusive Resort (this resort offers mermaid experiences)
• Raffles Maldives Meradhoo Resort
• SO/ Maldives

During the off-peak summer season, you can often book the Mercure Maldives Kooddoo Resort for around $351 per night. At current conversion rates, you could redeem about 16,000 Accor points per night on these off-peak dates.

You can quickly earn Accor points by transferring Capital One miles (2:1 ratio), Citi ThankYou points (2:1 ratio) or Bilt Rewards points (3:2 ratio).

Related: These are the best all-inclusive resorts in the Maldives, from overwater bungalows to family-friendly getaways

Leading Hotels of the World Maldives resorts

The Leading Hotels of the World program has five Maldives resorts, although two (Constance Halaveli Maldives and Sirru Fen Fushi Private Lagoon) weren’t bookable with points on any of the dates I searched.

The Leading Hotels of the World program ties its award rates to paid rates, but you’ll usually get about 8 cents per point. Here’s a list of the Maldives resorts you can book usually book with points through the Leading Hotels of the World program:

During the off-peak summer season, I found nights at the Emerald Maldives Resort & Spa bookable for $652 or 9,016 points. You can transfer Citi ThankYou points to the Leading Hotels of the World program at a 5:1 ratio, so you’d need to transfer about 45,000 Citi points per night for this off-peak stay.

Related: The best ways to get to the Maldives on points and miles

I didn’t discuss Maldives resorts you can book with Radisson Rewards, as there’s no way to earn Radisson points through transferable rewards earned by U.S. credit cards. Likewise, although you can book just about any Maldives resort with points if you book through a credit card travel portal, you’ll almost always get better value when you transfer points to a hotel loyalty program and then book your award stay.