Wed, 12/05/2018

In the unending competition for exotic luxury resorts, it appears that the newest extravagant trend is all about sleeping underwater, not in a submarine or in any kind of boat but in a fully operational underwater resort. It is called “the Muraka” or Coral in the Maldives’ local language, Dhivehi, far from Conrad’s beach villasand over-water bungalows allowing for maximum privacy.

Presented as fully ecological and respectful of the environment it is available at a price of $50 000 per night with a minimum stay of 4 nights including a private boat. This underwater villa was dreamed by Ahmed Saleem, also the architect of the very first underwater restaurant named Ithaa where we can find five stars food at 5 meters of depth at the Maldives’ Rangali Island Resort, he said that “The underwater restaurant, Ithaa, has become very famous. From there, we did a lot of research and saw the need to have an undersea villa. We had to build a lot of technologies into the villa to make sure they are 100% safe at all time the guests are sleeping underwater”.

Rangali Island remains at the heart of innovation when it comes to sea side, and now sea ground resorts, it was the first hotel resort in the Maldives to offer stilt houses above water, and also the first to offer an underwater restaurant and now once again the first to offer a residence sitting at the bottom of the sea.

Built on land by Japan’s Nippura Co and made waterproof by using Shin Matsu Marine sealant already used in the building of Ithaa, the villa was assembled in Singapore and transported on a specialized ship that could moor it to the reef without causing any kind of damage, submerge it into the water and attach it to ten concrete pillars that ensure it will not move or shift during high tides or rough seas, a feat realized by architect Yuji Yamazaki and his firm who also designed a upper level made of glass to observe the waves and the minimalistic interior design; he is quoted as saying “I want guests to feel the solitude, the quietness. They are going to be the only ones sleeping with a view of the ocean”.

To access the residency itself, the guests will be either flown to and enjoy a private sea plane ride landing at their own private jetty or picked up by speedboat that will stay at their disposal until the end of their stay, once arrived, they have the choice between an elevator or a spiral staircase leading them 16 feet down to the bottom of the ocean where their underwater residence awaits them, there they will find a bedroom, a shower, an ocean-facing bathtub, a bar and all other typical components of a hotel room and additional services including a full time butler, a professional chef for all their cooking needs, an infinity pool, a personal gym, a private deck, therapists of all kind, facialists and more, all of that under the sea of course, not to mention the fact that guests instantly receive Hilton Diamond status for staying in the Muraka resort.

The Ithaa was already a technological and architectural marvel allowing guests to enjoy luxury food while watching sharks, fishes and the acrylic underwater fauna of the Maldives, but now the guests can now enjoy Mr. Saleem’s dream: an hotel room entirely made of glass where they can spend the night sleeping under the sea and wake up under the waves of the Indian ocean with their own private amenities, specially dedicated staff and round-the-clock services, for a hefty price tag of course. If people can’t afford it, they still can rent one of the floating villas within the Conrad, which are a bit more cheaper.

Rui Ren