Maldives for Kids: Top 10 Child-Friendly Resorts

A luxury destination on many peoples’ bucket lists, Maldives is a perfect island getaway for a family with children. If you’re travelling with kids, then you’ll definitely want to stay at one the very best child-friendly resorts in the Maldives that has its own kids club and children’s swimming pool. Contrary to belief, The Maldives doesn’t solely appeal to honeymooners and loved-up couples. As a destination, Maldives offers an abundance of family-friendly activities, and is absolutely ideal for kids who love dolphins, tropical fish, beaches, treasure hunts, swimming and snorkelling!

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If you’ve just started planning a Maldives adventure for your family, you’ve probably wondered “what are the best family-friendly resorts in the Maldives?” or “which Maldives resorts have the best kids clubs and teens clubs?”. Without further ado, here are 10 of the very best kid-friendly resorts in the Maldives…

1. Bandos Maldives

Distance from Male airport: 15 minutes by speedboat (North Malé Atoll)
Kids pool: Yes
Kids club age-range: 3 – 12 years old
Babysitting service: Yes, $20 USD per hour
Our rating: 4.5 out of 5

When our daughter Layla was just 15 months old, we stayed at the Bandos Maldives resort. We felt at home as soon as we arrived on the island, following a short 15-minute speedboat ride from the airport. In addition to us all enjoying the adults pool, the children’s pool and the beach, Layla had a blast on Bandos’ glass-bottom boat and at their Kokko Kids Club (open from 8am to 5pm). The kids club is equipped with an outdoor adventure playground and indoor playrooms; and it also offers interactive activities such as cooking lessons and treasure hunts. We found so many aspects of this resort to be family-focused; from the restaurants’ waiters always bringing us a high chair and kids cutlery, to the hotel staff encouraging us as a family to take a guided tour of Malé and a sunset dolphin cruise – which we loved!

If you really want to see how much fun we had at Bandos Maldives as a family of three, just watch this short video…

As you can see, we couldn’t have asked for a more family-oriented, child-friendly resort in the Maldives 🙂

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2. Soneva Fushi

Distance from Male airport: 30-40 minutes by seaplane (Baa Atoll)
Kids pool: Yes, 2 pools
Kids club age-range: 4 years and above
Babysitting service: Yes, $25 USD per hour

This family-friendly private island resort offers spacious villas to accommodate the whole family. Self-styled as “an adventure playground for children and teenagers alike”, the 5-star Soneva Fushi resort provides its younger guests with a world-class, 1,300 square metre kids club (The Den). If that alone doesn’t impress your little ones, they’ll be spoilt for choice with two children’s pools, a spiralling red water slide, a pirate ship, a Lego & Duplo room, an ice cream room, a chocolate room and more! Open daily from 10am to 5pm, The Den hosts nature bike rides, kids pool parties and a pirate treasure hunt; as well as a stargazing workshop and movie night in the evening.

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3. Six Senses Laamu

Distance from Male airport: 35 minutes by seaplane, plus a 15-minute speedboat ride (Laamu Atoll)
Kids pool: Yes, with each family villa
Kids club age-range: 3 years and above
Babysitting service: Yes, $15 USD per hour

Six Senses Laamu is a luxury 5-star resort, located in southern Maldives’ Laamu Atoll. Thinking along the same lines as Soneva Fushi, Six Senses’ kids club is also called The Den. The kids club supplies children’s toys such as building blocks, cars and puzzles; and playground apparatus such as monkey bars, swings and climbing ropes. The kids can also get involved in culinary activities by baking cookies, cakes and pizzas. Children up to the age of 5 eat for free at this kid-friendly resort, and children between the ages of 6 and 11 get a 50% discount on their food. There’s also a complimentary ice cream bar for all the family, offering more than 40 different flavours. Six Senses also encourages all members of the family to snorkel at their house reef, where the little ones and grown-ups can all enjoy mingling with turtles, tropical fish, reef sharks, stingrays and crabs.

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4. Niyama Private Islands

Distance from Male airport: 40 minutes by seaplane (Dhaalu Atoll)
Kids pool: Yes, with each family beach suite and family beach studio
Kids club age-range: 1 – 12 years old
Babysitting service: Yes, $20 USD per hour

Describing itself as “Nature’s Playground”, Niyama Private Islands is comprised of twin islands dubbed Play and Chill. Connected by a small bridge, the two islands are intended to be used for what their names suggest. Embracing its desert island roots, Niyama’s kids club is named Explorers Kids Club (open daily from 9am to 6pm). To keep children’s imaginations stimulated with activities suited to their age, the kids club cleverly groups its guests into four different “tribes” – Globetrotters (1-2 years old), Adventurers (3-4 years old), Voyagers (5-7 years old) and Pioneers (8-12 years old). Explorers offers a vast array of fun experiences, such a rock climbing wall, a splash park, a trampoline, a performing stage and Master Chef classes.

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5. Atmosphere Kanifushi

Distance from Male airport: 30 minutes by seaplane (Lhaviyani Atoll)
Kids pool: Yes
Kids club age-range: Not specified
Babysitting service: Yes, up to 4 years old

At 2 kilometres long, this slice of paradise is one of the largest island resorts in the Maldives; and families will love that this all-inclusive resort is often described as offering a “hassle-free beach holiday”. The 5-star Atmosphere Kanifushi also offers a choice of 132 detached villas and suites, each with direct access to the beach. Open daily from 9am to 9pm, the kids club features an exciting daily activity schedule that includes coconut painting, island treasure hunts, kids Zumba, leaf tracing, sand castle making, henna tattoo painting, pizza making and movie night. Please note, the resort has two swimming pools – The Liquid and The Sunset – with the latter being adults only.

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6. Four Seasons Resort at Kuda Huraa

Distance from Male airport: 25 minutes by speedboat (North Malé Atoll)
Kids pool: Yes
Kids club age-range: 4 – 12 years old
Babysitting service: Yes

The Four Seasons brand is globally recognised for its luxury 5-star hotels and resorts, and the Kuda Huraa Resort doesn’t fail to maintain this exceptionally high standard. This island resort located in the North Malé Atoll is tastefully styled as a traditional Maldivian village. Keeping families with children in mind, the resort generously provides children with personalised welcome gifts; as well as a wide range of fun activities at their Kuda Mas Kids Club. Keeping with the traditional Maldivian theme, Kuda Mas means “small fish” in the Maldivian Dhivehi language, and the kids club is open daily from 9am to 5pm. Popular kids activities at the Four Seasons Kuda Huraa include bubble making workshops, a dolphin cruise, surfing lessons and fish feeding. The resort also comes complete with a Marine Discovery Centre and its own marine biologist.

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7. LUX South Ari Atoll

Distance from Male airport: 25 minutes by seaplane
Kids pool: Yes
Kids club age-range: 3 – 12 years old (PLAY club)
Teens club age-range: 12 – 17 years old (Studio 17 club)
Babysitting service: Yes, $18 USD (+tax) per hour

Set on the picturesque private island of Dhidhoofinolhu, this 5-star resort boasts 8 restaurants, 5 bars, 193 private villas, 1 outdoor cinema and 2 kids clubs. Catering to families with children of all ages, LUX South Ari Atoll offers not one, but two exciting kids clubs; PLAY for younger children (3 – 12 years old) and Studio 17 for teenagers (12 – 17 years old) – both open daily from 9am to 7pm. The children’s clubs include island treasure hunts, local dance and language classes, beach sports, art classes and educational “Teddy Tennis” lessons. The resort also offers a unique whale shark experience for the whole family, where the resort’s resident marine biologist takes guests on a Dhoni (a traditional Maldivian fishing boat) to witness the world’s largest fish.

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8. Centara Grand Island Resort & Spa

Distance from Male airport: 25 minutes by seaplane or 90 minutes by speedboat (South Ari Atoll)
Kids pool: Yes
Kids club age-range: 4 – 9 years old (Camp Safari Kids Club)
Teens club age-range: 10 – 17 years old (E-Zone)
Babysitting service: Yes, for 3 years and older

Opening the first of its two resorts in The Maldives, the Centara hotel chain – which is well-known in Thailand – launched the all-inclusive Centara Grand Island Resort in 2009. Located on the private island of Machchafushi, the Centara Grand offers unique, family-friendly over-water villas that include separate children’s bedrooms with PlayStation video games. To cater to families with children of all ages, the resort offers the Camp Safari Kids Club for children aged 4 to 9 years old; and the E-Zone for children aged 10 to 17 years old (open daily from 8:30am to 6pm). Whilst younger children enjoy painting, reading kids books and playing at the outdoor playground, the E-Zone includes the latest video games available on the Sony PlayStation, Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii. The resort also offers adventurous, ocean-based excursions for the entire family, such as a snorkelling safari and a sunset dolphin cruise.

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9. Sun Aqua Vilu Reef

Distance from Male airport: 35 minutes by seaplane (South Nilandhe Atoll)
Kids pool: Yes
Kids club age-range: 3 – 12 years old
Babysitting service: Yes, $15 USD (+tax) per hour

Describing itself as the place “where luxury and decadence meet”, this 5-star luxury resort is home to 4 restaurants that suit all tastes; from Western favourites and flavoursome Eastern delights, to freshly-caught fish from the sea. Situated on Meedhuffushi island, Sun Aqua Vilu Reef has proudly won several awards including the 2017 World Travel Award for the Indian Ocean’s Leading Water Villa Resort. The kids club at Sun Aqua Vilu Reef (open daily from 8:30am to 6pm) comes equipped with its own private pool, games room and a programme of entertaining activities such face painting and coconut art. You’ll even find a bungee trampoline that can be enjoyed by older children and adults! Featuring excursions that the whole family can enjoy together, Vilu Reef offers cultural visits to local inhabited islands, dolphin-watching cruises, traditional Maldivian hand-line fishing and more.

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10. Constance Halaveli

Distance from Male airport: 25 minutes by seaplane (North Ari Atoll)
Kids pool: Yes
Kids club age-range: 4 – 11 years old
Babysitting service: Yes, $20 USD (+tax) per hour

The Constance Halaveli resort couldn’t be more rooted in The Maldives if it tried, as the island itself is shaped like a Dhoni (a traditional Maldivian fishing boat). This 5-star luxury resort boasts 3 restaurants, 2 bars and its own sand-floored sushi bar. As a leading family-friendly resort, every beach villa comes complete with its own private plunge pool – enjoyable for family members of all ages. The Constance Kids Club is open daily from 9am to 9pm, offering the little ones a range of fun activities such as pizza-making, crab hunting (and racing), sand mosaic-making and a mini disco. Baby strollers are also available upon request.

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