Name: Ja Manafaru
Address: Haa Alif Atoll, P O Box 2062, Male, Manafaru Island, MV

10/10

Exceptional

14 Jan 2026

Asad Saulat

Our honeymoon at JA Manafaru was nothing short of magical. From the moment we arrived, the staff went above and beyond: warm, attentive, and genuinely caring. The all-inclusive package was phenomenal, letting us enjoy every restaurant and experience incredible food throughout our stay. The complimentary honeymoon upgrade was the true highlight: floating breakfasts and relaxing spa massages made it unforgettable. The water was absolutely pristine, perfect for snorkelling, scuba diving (my first ever and an amazing experience!), and a wide range of motorized and non-motorized water sports. Serene, luxurious, and wonderfully memorable, an absolute dream destination we can’t wait to return to.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

25 Sep 2025

Umaru

The property was clean, quiet and eco-friendly. The staff were friendly and willing to be at our service at any given moment.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

06 Sep 2025

Susan Cee

Amazing resort - couldn't have asked for a better all inclusive stay. Staff is super friendly and welcoming. House cleaning happened twice a day and during meal hours so you're not disturbed. Great food options that are absolutely delicious - better than your typical resort meals. Complimentary snorkeling and water equipment are a plus.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

25 Mar 2025

Melanie

Dream Trip

The most wonderful trip! Amazing hotel and staff. Would highly recommend. Our only negative of the trip at all was an issue with the hotels:com booking and their customer service. Hotels.con refused to fix it so JA did. They are the absolute best!

Friends_and_family Friends

10/10

Exceptional

16 Feb 2025

Gareth

A masterclass in 5-star hospitality from start to finish.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

02 Feb 2025

Pratik

Peaceful laid back resort. Amazing fine dining experience with receptive service. Food spread is posh, especially at theme nights. Presentation is very visually appealing. However, the a-la-carte menu is limited and the taste is not up to the level of the presentation.

Not a lot of night life or night time activities. That is the main pain point. Everything shuts down by 6pm. There is not even an indoor/night swimming pool open after this time. This resort mostly targets people in their mid-late thirties or higher. Not for younger couples as much.

Upon arrival, they insist you download the JA Manafaru app but this app misses critical features such as navigation.
A suggested itinerary either by host or in the app would have been super useful but was missing.

The water villa was very beautiful and the views were stunning. Mini bar was well stocked and included in the all-inclusive package. The ocean access ladder in water villas need to be better maintained. They were rusty and caused cuts and bruises when we tried getting in and out of the water.

It rained for 2-4 hrs everyday during daytime during our stay. That’s when we realized that the resort has very little to do except dine when the weather is unfavorable. Water activities are limited.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

19 Sep 2024

Jorge

I had an amazing experience at JA Manafaru. The people here take care of you from the moment you arrive at the airport, to the moment you get on the plane to leave. The staff felt more like family and friends than staff, taking care of every want and need. The food was amazing and the scenery was beautiful. This is an experience I would never forget! I would recommend this place to anyone and everyone. I cannot wait to come back to this place. Thank you Mangal, Ibbe and Vipan for the wonderful experience.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

13 Jul 2024

Saqr

Beautiful

10/10

Exceptional

10 May 2024

Jose

Excellent and beautiful property. The staff, to include the General Manager, are very friendly, welcoming, and accommodating. The food and drinks are very good. I recommend getting the all inclusive with food or it can get expensive. The snorkeling on the island is amazing. The Ja Manafaru is a true paradise.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

31 Mar 2024

Kendra

Gorgeous location. Amazing staff.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

28 Dec 2023

Lisa

We had the pleasure of staying for a duration of six nights and would have loved to have had the chance to extend our stay further. I had the pleasure of working with my personal attendant, Firdavs, who consistently demonstrated exceptional professionalism as well as a strong commitment to meeting my needs. He consistently went above and beyond to ensure that my requests were promptly addressed and taken care of. Victoria and Mark ensured a personalized experience for each guest. The water villas are truly impressive. The island provides a Maldivian ambiance, offering numerous home-like comforts. I will definitely return

Dr. Brown

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

03 Nov 2023

Karlwin

Crystal clear ocean. Incredibly accommodating staff. A relaxation paradise!

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

09 Jul 2023

Verified traveler

Absolute paradise - complete perfection from beginning to end, hugely recommended.

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

02 Jul 2023

Russell

The staff was Top notch. Nishan took care of our every need. Chef Moosa was the unexpected highlight of our stay. We had a wonderful culinary experience with him that we will never forget. The food was the best ive eve had. We went during monsoon season expecting alot of rain. The rain was not a hindering factor, just a few showers on and off and one day where ut rained all day. I highly recommend this resort to anyone wanting to escape life for a moment. As an extremely busy individual, this resort allowed me to reset and relax, which was exactly what i needed.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

31 Aug 2022

Terrell

What is not to like. Even in the monsoon season it was paradise. The staff was so attentive without being overbearing. The food was delicious and the accommodations were superb. Thanks to Mangal, Umar, Nizam, Rosa, Paveen, Isse, Shaad and of course Coco for taking care of our every need.

Leisure Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

28 Nov 2021

Rehana

This is a stunning property and is set up brilliantly for a relaxing stay, with gorgeous settings and lovely staff. Our host Rafu was exceptional - both polite, helpful and great with our toddler.

The one area to improve is to be more proactive with arranging guest transfers. The island is located at the edge of the Maldives so transfers are less frequent and can be unsociable hours; we would have appreciated better upfront planning or at least notification of potential timing challenges.

All in all, do pick this hotel as it is fabulous but ensure you know your plans in detail for transfers to avoid a bumpy set of discussions

Leisure Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

13 Oct 2021

Molly

This property was AMAZING!! The staff was as friendly as can be. I stayed in one of the water bungalows, which was a top-notch accommodation. All the non-motorized water sports were included, the food was terrific, and the water and beaches were gorgeous. My only issue was they did not have the breakfast buffet, but you are able to order whatever you want for breakfast, and it's all included. Also, it is quite far from the Male airport. It takes an additional 3-4 hours to get from there to the island through a domestic flight (not the nicest transportation) and an hour long boat ride. However, it was all worth it!

Leisure Self

8/10

Excellent

20 Feb 2020

Verified traveler

Great Place

Overall was an amazing time & great employees! That is besides the GM Karen who was unprofessional and did not fix 1 or 2 problems we had.

Friends_and_family Friends

2/10

Poor

13 Feb 2020

alyaa

not going to that resort again

it should not be under five star, maybe four. The water villa was nice but the pool water was super smelly and the ladder/stairs going into the water was not safe- the screws were out and could fall off any minute. We asked for coconut water and were told we have to wait a day for them to provide it. Usually it is available at all times at other resorts and for free. At JA we they charge you for that. The food not so great, especially the presentation. They did not have so many options on the SPA menu too. Not worth going to that resort and it is 1.5 hrs on seaplane.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

12 Dec 2019

Verified traveler

This resort is really awesome, in terms of the friendly atmosphere and staff. The restaurants there served a very delicious food, since am vegan I found the restaurant vegan friendly. The cleaning services also was very good.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

18 Nov 2019

Verified traveler

This review is long overdue. My wife and I spent a week of our honeymoon at JA Manufaru back in 2016. We could not have had a more wonderful time in a more wonderful place. Manufaru will always hold a special place in our heart. The island is completely magical and the resort staff did an amazing job of being ever available yet allowing us to experience the island for our selves.

Both my wife and I are very well traveled and Manufaru remains our favorite destination. When we left, we were looking forward to going back on a future anniversary.

I would personally vouch for this place. It was that good.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

10 Nov 2019

Verified traveler

Extremely well maintained given that this has been around for many years.

Pros
1. Bathroom amenities are all by Elemis. Love the conditioner, because it's not diluted.

2. Housekeeping comes in a few times a day, room is very clean. They draw the curtain when it's sunset, cools down the room so you can rest right away after dinner.
They even put extra bottles for us knowing we finished up the water on the first day. Very observant and thoughtful

3. Water around is clear. No rubbish.

4. Water villas are not joined together which means you have all the privacy you need.

5. Water pressure in shower is awesome

6. Breakfast was full of options. Good for 3 days stay.

7. In villa dining is 24 hours

8. Free snorkel equipment rental in half board.

9. Dinner options are just enough.

10. Very polite and efficient staffs all around the resort.

11. Lobster dinner was delicious. Fresh and tasty.

12. Seaplane transfer was the cheapest I see, comparing to other resorts.

13. Smoked trout, smoked mackeral, omelette, pancakes and waffles were our favourites every morning.

14. Fresh juices and very delicious passionfruit daiquiri

15. Last but not least, minimum to zero mosquitoes. It really helped a lot to not have any mosquitoes especially when dining along the beach. 2 thumbs up.

Cons
1. Overpriced Spa. It's comfortable and quality massage, just really overpriced.
We are talking about 550usd for couple. 80min massage with 40min scrub. Which definitely wasn't that

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

02 Oct 2019

Antoine

The resort was paradise. The room, the gorgeous beach and ocean, impeccable service and friendly smiles everywhere you go made the stay an unforgettable experience. The only thing that i wasn’t a fan of was having your experience host calling or knocking on your door to remind you of restaurant reservations. Us personally do not like to be bothered on vacations and are fully capable of setting up reservations on our own. Nonetheless place still gets 5 stars as everything else makes up for it.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

14 Aug 2019

Khalifah

Every thing is perfect only one thing to consider it’s far and expensive
Thanks to morad was agood help

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

12 Aug 2019

Verified traveler

The staff, the services and the room were fantastic. Eating in the restaurants was a pleasure.
We will remember this hotel all of our life.
Especially thanks to Urana, Santos and Sathees.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

28 Jul 2019

Verified traveler

The location was amazing! Staff were fabulous. Service was amazingly ng. Our room was cleaned twice a day and kept beautifully. Great food in all restaurants.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

24 Jun 2019

Verified traveler

Amazing hotel, brilliant staff and we had an amazing time. Small point I would make is that the open toilet/shower in the water villas are not as comfortable in monsoon season. :)

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

29 Nov 2018

Verified traveler

If you are looking for a 5 star property in the Maldives, look no further. This property is absolutely amazing, the staff executed perfectly and created a lifetime of memories. Our over water villa on the sunset side was absolutely beautiful a ladder with access to swimming and snorkeling right off the private deck. The villas include a private infinity pool that we used every day while watching the sunset. The beaches on the resort were picture perfect with powder white sand and crystal clear turquoise water. The property offers many activities ranging from a day trip to their private island and dolphin watching. Ultimately the property creates a tranquil, quiet and relaxing experience for each of it’s guests. We were personally met by the property general manager upon arrival who introduced us to Jameel who was our dedicated guest services manager. Jameel was at our beck and call and did an outstanding job ensuring our experience was perfection I was pleasantly surprised to have been met at the Malé airport by the property staff who escorted us and our baggage over to the seaplane terminal, the property has a private lounge in the seaplane port to relax prior to departure to the island. The hour and 10 minute or so seaplane flight was picture perfect and allows the passengers to view the hundreds of beautiful atolls that dot the sea making up the Maldives. For the return trip home we opted for the 40 minute boat ride to Hanimaadhoo Island which connects to a dom

10/10

Exceptional

06 Mar 2018

Tycho

Paradise on the water

My wife and I went to JA Manafaru on our honeymoon. It was paradise on earth!
We flew in from Dubai to Male. Once we arrived there was a representative of JA Manafaru waiting for us to guide us to a special lounge where we waited for our seaplane. They had drinks and food available, and the wait was around 1hr but no issue. They weren't able to take all our luggage in one go (2 of the 4 didn't make it), but that was fine since there are multiple plans arriving and really very delay when we finally got to the resort.
After a 75min seaplane ride arrived in Manafaru. Amazing views flying in, and then the staff was waiting at the dock when we got off the plane. Nice welcome refreshing drink with refreshing towels. Introduced to our \"experience host\" who was there to help us and attend to any requests or questions we had and take us to dinners and drop us off. Thanks Jaleel for all your great help, you were fantastic!!
Resort is awesome!! Restaurants are great (we liked White Orchid and Ocean Grill - amazing lobster!!). We had the all-inclusive package which I would recommend since otherwise the menu prices were quite steep. Beaches and water are unparalled, so beautiful with blue crystal clear warm water and white sand. Service was great in all the restaurants, very attentive and kind.
Activities are plentiful, we did the CastAway Island and Private Beach dinner, which were both great. You do have to pay for these activities but well worth it!
All in all, amazing place!!!

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

05 Feb 2018

Verified traveler

Amazing hotel with attentive staff and great food

We stayed in the sunset overwater bungalow and it was just amazing. A huge villa with your own pool just above the turquoise ocean and fishes. The breakfast buffet is great with lots of options and the chef even made almond milk for me. For dinner you have several options - we tried the italian restaurant with amazing pasta, the ocean grill with super tender meat and a delicious vegan chickpea dish. We also had a castaway dinner where they bring you to an islands to have a candle light dinner just by yourself. Not gonna tell too much but it is very romantic :)
The staff is very attentive and if you have a wish, they make sure it comes true.
Overall and amazing experience for us

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

27 Dec 2017

Verified traveler

very nice hotel to stay

very friendly staff, service is very good, especially recommend for families

10/10

Exceptional

20 Aug 2017

angela

An amazing vacation!

The staff is super accommodating and welcoming. The water villa experience was amazing. We snorkeled outside our room and relaxed in the pool.

10/10

Exceptional

05 Aug 2017

Carlos

Simply Paradise

Our stay at JA Manafaru was amazing, from reception to checkout. It begins from booking with them as they will stay in contact all the way up until your trip. Upon arrival in Male there will be someone waiting for you to take you to the JA Manafaru personal lounge where there is food and refreshments that are complimentary. Then they will expedite you through everything whether is doing the Sea Plane or Domestic/ Luxury Speed Boat travel which are both amazing. Upon arrival at the resort you will be met by the General Manager and staff with refreshments. You will then meet your personal concierge who will always be readily available to make your stay amazing. Ours was Jameel who knew exactly what we needed and even made reservations to the restaurants prior to us saying a word. Food and drinks are phenomenal, and the selection is great as well. Overall staff and everything was amazing and highly recommend it.

10/10

Exceptional

22 Jul 2017

Pranishen

An Amazing Piece Of Heaven

My stay was absolutely amazing. From the Transfer arranged by the Hotel to my stay, this was nothing short of being treated like a celebrity.

Family

10/10

Exceptional

11 Jul 2017

Verified traveler

Beyond perfect service

This hotel had make my summer vacation ever better... best service you've ever expected..

8/10

Excellent

01 Jul 2017

shawn

Excellent service

We had a wonderful 3 night stays in JA Manafaru , the most impressive experience is how dedicated hotel staff are to making our stays happy .when we were in the island , the Italian restaurant was still under refinement ,but hotel manager instructed chef to make pizza for us anyway, and we even had our first one for free ;in another dinner occasion , my wife ordered the sushi (we live in Japan ) ,which was not as we expected, in the next morning , we were told that our last dinner was discounted 50% off. Not even to mention the friendliness of hotel staff.
But there is one thing I have to admit : I assume because this is a luxury hotel located in a remote island , the excellent service comes with price , the average food price is twice above the regular one in Japan . And 75 minutes flight from Male is a noisy jounery .

10/10

Exceptional

29 May 2017

Alexey

Incredible

Amazing resort, food and staff

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

15 Mar 2017

Kevin

The only island to visit

What an unbelievable experience we had at JA Manafaru. The staff was incredible. There was not a single request that wasn't attended to, from pillow comfort and softness to unique requests for special occasions. Everything was handled with care and precision.

I would highly recommend this special place over any other island.

8/10

Excellent

04 Mar 2017

Verified traveler

Excellent resort

An amazing resort for couples and families. Lots of food options, activities and entertainment within the resort. Great service from friendly staff members and from your dedicated resort host.

If you choose to stay at this resort - stay in a water villa! They are absolutely beautiful.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

17 Jan 2017

Arjun

Amazing service at Maldives resort

Amazing service. Room was especially comfortable.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

11 Dec 2016

Saud

outstanding

Perfect

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

27 Oct 2016

Adam

The Perfect Vacation

Amazing stay thanks to fantastic amenities and a phenomenal staff.

Family

10/10

Exceptional

26 Oct 2016

Zheshen

Best resort in Maldives

This is our 3rd time traveling to Maldives. We have stayed in JA Manafaru for 5 nights, with 3 nights on over the water villa and 2 nights in 1 bedroom suite, thanks for the discounted upgrade offered by the reservation team. With JA Manafaru, we have been given a private concierge, if we have any requests we can contact our concierge directly, which is very handy.

The room is very tidy and the size is much bigger than the average room size in Maldives. The staff on the island is very friendly.

There are 4 restaurants on the island offer variety type of beverage. Normally we don't have too much of expectation on the taste of food as from our past experience with the first two resorts that we have stayed, the food were overpriced and very average. However, the beverage offered in JA Manafaru has given us full of surprises, it is tasty and well presented. Award winning restaurant The Cellar is definitely one of the must try restaurant on the island.

Overall we are very happy with our stay in JA Manafaru. We have enjoying the service, the water quality & food. This is a resort I would highly recommend to anyone who is planning a trip to Maldives.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

23 Aug 2016

martha

Amazing experience

The hotel, the staff, the service, the food, the villas, the amenities was excellent ,, is an amazing hotel,,,and we was before in many diferents hotels in Maldives and this one is the best,,, super complet ,, we want to repet again the experience

10/10

Exceptional

20 Aug 2016

hazim

Trip to paradise!

Friendly staff, beautiful resort, amazing water villa... and wonderful memories!

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

25 Jun 2016

Daniel Rodrigues

Most beautiful place.

Great. The resort is simply perfect and the staff was amazing.

8/10

Excellent

17 Jun 2016

Qihong

A top Maldives hotel

excellent hotel, top service! a great place for Maldives vacation. starting from airport pick up to escorting all the way thru check-in to departing gate, the service was no issue. a top class hotel. the only problem is the marine life around the hotel wasn't ideal. it lacks the coral reef and marine life life fish, etc. compared to some other hotels in Maldives, this is an under average one. I was told the hotel is consulting marine biologist to solve the problem, but it won't improve for a long time.

Family

10/10

Exceptional

19 May 2016

william

Fabulously relaxed, very attentive staff and superb service in all respects
Thoroughly recommended without reservation
Great place to flop, read books and swim.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

10 May 2016

cody

Awesome honeymoon experience

Traveled as couple on honeymoon in late April early May 2016. World class service at a world class resort. Food and beverage selection and service was the best I've ever had. Water villa was amazing, always clean and the view was out of this world. Staff and villa host went above and beyond, picked up on your every need before you even knew you needed it. Especially the crew working the infinity pool and bar, those guys were amazing. They were ready and waiting on us day after day. Cannot say enough about the service, 5 stars. I would recommend this resort and hotel chain to anyone, great honeymoon experience. We were there for 10 days and never tired of the restaurants or food. Pretty far to travel but well worth the time. Island is very remote and isolated because of this. Hardly and disturbance from other islands or resorts. Plenty of privacy in villa, on island and while on excursions. Spa and other excursion options were wonderful, for sure book a massage and a snorkeling trip, these will not disappoint, marine life is off the charts. Only regret is not diving. Next time I guess... At times it felt like we were the only guests on the island. The only drawback that I could mention would be the heat during this time of year, very warm pack accordingly. 90% of the restaurants and facilities are open air and can get pretty warm. However, there is a pretty steady breeze throughout the island and makes it tolerable. It is an island in the Indian Ocean so that is to be expected

10/10

Exceptional

14 Apr 2016

A

Amazing stay at Manafaru

JA Manafaru is the furthest north resort in the Maldives. Overall - excellent experience. The restaurants are all delicious, our favorite being the White Orchid (Asian/Indian/Thai). Their Paratha bread was unreal - along with their tuna/salmon sushi and chicken makhani.

All of the staff are incredible and the water/views are absolutely stunning. We visited for 6 nights in our honeymoon and couldn't have been more delighted with the overwater sunrise villa. I did the scuba course and was also extremely pleased.

The only diapleasure was the charge of $9 for each bottle of water with dinners. But then again, you're in the Maldives and I've read that many other hotels are similar in pricing. All in all, value was excellent.