When you have spent nearly 40 years designing travel, you sleep in a lot of very good beds. You see a lot of infinity pools, taste a lot of tasting menus, and walk through a lot of grand lobbies. But there is a difference between a fine hotel and a memorable one.

The architecture of memory

When we asked Panache World Founder-Director Sanjar Imam to name the five hotels he has fallen in love with, his answer revealed something interesting about how discerning travellers actually evaluate luxury. It is rarely just about the marble. It is about the context.

“I tend to fall in love with most hotels that I stay in, and that has to do with choosing them well,” Sanjar says. “But the ones that are most personal to me are defined by the experiences I had there.”

Notice how many of his picks are lodges rather than full-blown hotels, and how often a stay is anchored by a specific view, a meal, or an emotional surprise. Here are the five properties around the world that have stayed with him long after checkout.

1. Huka Lodge, Taupo (New Zealand): Artistry on a plate

Located on the banks of the Waikato River near Lake Taupō, Huka Lodge is practically royalty in the world of luxury lodges. What started in the 1920s as a humble fisherman’s camp has been transformed into an 18-villa sanctuary that regularly tops global award lists (including Oceania’s Leading Boutique Hotel). It has hosted everyone from Queen Elizabeth II to Bill Gates.

But for Sanjar, it wasn’t the guestbook that left an impression—it was the quiet, meticulous beauty of the place, and the sheer artistry of the kitchen: “I wasn’t expecting what I saw there. It’s set in these lush green lawns, and while a lot of money has been put into the transformation, you can see exactly why. Every detail has been looked into. But the thing that surprised me every single time I went to the restaurant was the meals. It wasn’t just about what I was eating; it was what I was looking at. It was like artistry on a plate. I would say the finest meal I’ve ever had in my life was at Huka Lodge.”

Why we love it: Huka Lodge proves that true luxury doesn’t need scale; it just needs flawless execution.

Bonus: Read our review of Huka Lodge

2. &Beyond Ngorongoro Crater Lodge (Tanzania): Drama at the rim

Perched on the edge of an ancient volcanic caldera, &Beyond Ngorongoro Crater Lodge is often described as “Masai meets Versailles.” It is a property that leans into theatrical romance—think banana-leaf roofs, beaded chandeliers, and silk curtains framing one of the most dramatic landscapes in Africa.

For Sanjar, the lodge will always be tied to the emotional high of a long safari day that finally delivered: “We had a long day driving from the Serengeti, looking for lion, which we hadn’t seen yet. The day was almost done, we were nearing the lodge, and our guide suddenly whispered, ‘Simba.’ And there it was, walking towards us. My day was already made, but the lodge is what blew my mind. I walked straight into the bathroom, and there was a huge bathtub filled with rose petals, positioned in front of a massive window looking right out over the crater. That stay will stay close to me for my life.”

Why we love it: &Beyond Ngorongoro Crater Lodge understands that in a place as primal as the crater, the architecture should be equally dramatic.

3. Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, London (UK): Grandeur in the Big Smoke

London is Sanjar’s favourite city in the world, and if you want to understand English grandeur without the stiffness, Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park is where you stay. Recently awarded Three Michelin Keys (the highest possible hotel distinction) and named ‘Sustainable Hotel of the Year,’ the property balances historic Edwardian elegance with contemporary intelligence.

But sometimes, a hotel becomes memorable simply because of how it makes you feel when you open the curtains. Sanjar’s Insight: “When I checked in, they bumped me up into the Presidential Suite. That was the treat of a lifetime. The balconies opened right up to Hyde Park. From there, as a regular feature, you can watch the Household Cavalry trot by every morning on their way to the Changing of the Guard. That is as grand a sight as you can get in a city like London. The expanse of the suite, the views of the park, the address—it just did it.”

Why we love it: Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park offers the most privileged perspective of London’s daily pageantry. As Mandarin Oriental Fan Club members, we are able to provide our clients exclusive perks like complementary upgrades, early check-in’s and late checkouts.

4. Forestis, The Dolomites (Italy): Alpine minimalism

High in the Italian Alps, surrounded by dense forest, Forestis is a masterclass in how to build a hotel that doesn’t compete with its environment. This eco-conscious, adults-only retreat was constructed using local timber, stone, and glass, creating a serene, minimalist frame for the UNESCO-protected peaks outside.

It requires effort to reach, but as Sanjar notes, the payoff is immediate: “It had been on my bucket list for a long time. It took a couple of train changes overnight, but driving up, I knew exactly why I wanted to do it. It is the most magnificent scenery you will come across in all of Italy. The pièce de résistance is the view from every single room. The Dolomites are so up close you feel like you can almost touch them, and they change colour during the course of the day. The restaurant has floor-to-ceiling windows, and the meals are a gastronomic delight. If you haven’t done the Dolomites, do it—and stay at Forestis.”

Why we love it: Forestis strips away alpine cliché and replaces it with pure, elemental elegance.

5. Samode Palace, Rajasthan (India): A heritage masterpiece

We finish in India. Nestled in the rugged Aravalli Hills about an hour outside Jaipur, Samode Palace is a 475-year-old architectural marvel. Unlike many heritage hotels that feel like museums, Samode feels vibrantly alive, with its intricate frescoes, mirror-work, and courtyards maintained with remarkable care.

For Sanjar, the connection here is personal—forged not just through stays, but through celebrations: “It is very close to me because I’ve stayed there several times and had the opportunity to organise several weddings there. For someone who has never been, you drive through rugged country, and then it just comes up like a grand stage set. You don’t expect anything like this. It is a stunning palace, almost out of a picture book. The rooms, the public areas, the hand paintings, the pool—all of it is preserved architecture, and you get to actually live in it.”

Why we love it: Samode Palace is regal Rajasthan without the commercial crowds, operating on a deeply personal scale.

How to choose a hotel that remembers you

“The hotels we stay in become a part of our memory,” Sanjar says, “and that’s because of the experiences we have within them.” That is the philosophy behind how Panache World designs travel. We don’t just read reviews; we go, we sleep in the beds, we eat in the restaurants, and we take notes. When you come to us, we match the hotels we know intimately to your specific tastes. So when you finally walk through the lobby doors, you aren’t hoping it’s a good hotel—you’re walking into a place you already know you will love.
Ready to find your own unforgettable stay? Get in touch!

The post Sanjar’s five most memorable hotels around the world appeared first on Panache World.

 

Discover the best wellness retreats in India with Panache World Founder-Director Loveleen Arun. Compare Prakriti Shakti, Kalari Kovalam, Kalari Rasayanam, Swaswara, Ananda in the Himalayas, Six Senses Vana, and Tulah Wellness to find the right fit for your healing journey. 

 

People ask us all the time: which is the best wellness resort in India? It is a fair question, but also the wrong one. Wellness is not one-size-fits-all, and the best retreat for you depends entirely on what you are looking for — a gentle reset, a medically guided cure, a structured detox, or a more exploratory introduction to the world of healing.

That is why Panache World Founder-Director Loveleen Arun prefers to look at wellness retreats the way a thoughtful doctor might: by diagnosis, not by decoration. Some properties are naturopathy-led, some are accredited Ayurvedic hospitals, some are beachside detox sanctuaries, and others are mountain retreats with strong wellness programming but no overwhelming rigidity. In this guide, Loveleen breaks down the best wellness retreats in India based on what they actually do well, so you can choose the one that suits your body, your mind, and the kind of break you want to have.

 

How to choose the right wellness retreat in India

The wellness space in India is broad, and that is exactly why travellers can get confused. There are resorts that focus on relaxation, others that are designed around cure and prevention, and some that balance healing with a more holiday-like atmosphere. A good wellness retreat should not only be beautiful; it should also be honest about what it offers.

At Panache, we look beyond the branding and assess the actual experience. Does the property feel medical or restorative? Is the programme intense or gentle? Are you there to address a specific concern, or simply to feel better and more balanced? Once you answer those questions, the shortlist becomes much clearer. India has some of the world’s most interesting wellness destinations, but they are not interchangeable.

 

CGH Earth Prakriti Shakti, Kerala: Nature cure in Its purest form

Prakriti Shakti is one of the strongest examples of naturopathy-led wellness in India. Set in Kerala, this CGH Earth property is designed for guests who want a nature-based approach to healing rather than a conventional spa-style stay. The focus here is on natural medicine, diet therapy, yoga, and treatments that work with the body’s own systems rather than around them.

It is the kind of place that appeals to travellers who want to step back, simplify, and reset without being surrounded by unnecessary fuss.
Loveleen sees Prakriti Shakti as ideal for people looking for a true naturopathy retreat rather than a luxury resort with wellness as an add-on. The property is especially strong for those who value clean living, quiet routines, and a structured health-led programme. It is wellness with purpose, not wellness as theatre.

Best for: A naturopathy break, preventive wellness, and a more disciplined reset.

 
Kalari Kovalam and Kalari Rasayanam: Ayurvedic hospitals in disguise

Kalari Kovalam and Kalari Rasayanam are among the most important wellness properties in India because they are not merely resorts — they are NABH-accredited Ayurvedic hospitals. That distinction matters. These are properties for people who are serious about treatment, whether that means addressing an existing ailment or pursuing preventive care through traditional Ayurveda. The experience is therefore more medical than many travellers expect, but also more precise and credible.

For Loveleen, these properties are essential to understand because they represent a form of wellness that goes beyond pampering. If you need a proper Ayurvedic protocol, this is where the structure, doctors, and treatments come together in a way that is deeply rooted in discipline. This is not the right choice if you want a partner-friendly spa holiday. It is the right choice if you want the system of Ayurveda taken seriously.

Best for: Ayurvedic treatment, preventive care, and medically guided wellness.

CGH Earth Swaswara, Gokarna: Beachside detox without the heavy hand

Swaswara occupies a very different place in the wellness landscape. Set in Gokarna, it is where the beach meets a lighter, more personal healing journey. Loveleen recommends it for travellers looking for a gentler detox or a 21-day gut cleanse, particularly those who want the discipline of Ayurveda without feeling as though they have checked into a hospital.

The setting helps enormously: sea breeze, open skies, and a quieter tempo make the process feel less austere.
This is the retreat for travellers who want the experience to feel like a holiday even while they are doing something serious for their health. Swaswara manages to combine restorative routines with a sense of ease, which is not always easy to achieve in wellness travel. It is ideal for those who want to heal without losing the pleasure of being away.

Best for: Light detoxes, gut cleanses, and wellness by the sea. 

 

Ananda in the Himalayas: The Best Entry Point Into Wellness

Ananda in the Himalayas remains one of India’s most recognisable wellness destinations for good reason. It sits in a beautiful mountain setting near Dehradun, with the old palace at its heart and rooms overlooking the valley and the Ganga beyond.

Loveleen recommends Ananda for travellers who want wellness, but not in an overly rigid or intimidating form. It is especially well suited to those travelling with a partner who may not be fully committed to a wellness retreat, or to first-timers who want to begin their journey gently.
The food, the gardens, the spa, and the treatment programmes all support a well-rounded experience that is serious without being severe. Ananda is often where people start when they want to understand wellness travel properly. It is a place that welcomes curiosity rather than demanding commitment.

Best for: First-time wellness travellers, couples, and mountain-seeking guests.

Six Senses Vana: Minimalism, alternative therapies, and deep structure

Six Senses Vana has grown steadily in popularity, and once you’ve been there, you’ll understand our enthusiasm for it. The architecture is beautiful in a quiet, minimal way, and the property creates a sense of openness and calm from the moment you arrive.

Unlike Ananda, which offers mountain views, Vana gives you forest views, and that difference matters more than people think. It changes the atmosphere from alpine retreat to woodland sanctuary.
Vana is especially strong for travellers interested in a wide range of therapies — acupuncture, hydrotherapy, Tibetan massages, yoga nidra, meditation, and food-focused workshops. It is a more structured and intellectually engaging wellness experience, and that is what makes it stand out.

For guests who like the idea of being gently guided through a programme rather than left to float, Vana is a compelling choice.

Best for: Structured wellness, alternative therapies, and immersive healing.

 

Tulah Wellness, Wayanad: Medical wellness with a modern edge

Tulah Wellness is one of the newer names in India’s wellness conversation, and it has quickly attracted curiosity.

After having been there, Loveleen places it in a category of its own because it combines holistic well-being with a more medical, test-based approach. Located in Wayanad and accessible from Calicut airport, it is designed for travellers who want measurable insight as part of their retreat — from DEXA scans to mobility and joint assessments — alongside treatments, massages, and sports-medicine-informed care.

This is not a place for couples looking to do “a little wellness” together. It is for people who are ready to engage properly with their health and want the retreat to feel both preventive and diagnostic. Tulah’s architecture, food, and doctor-led protocols make it one of the more interesting additions to India’s wellness map.

Best for: Medical wellness, diagnostic-led retreats, and preventive health.

 

The reason we write about these places with such confidence is simple: Panache has been there. We understand that wellness is private, and that many travellers prefer discretion when it comes to health. But we also understand that the right choice depends on details that matter — room size, treatment style, doctor access, the intensity of the programme, and the kind of atmosphere that will actually work for you.

That is what makes our role useful. We do not simply recommend a “best” retreat. We help you find the right one for your needs at that moment. Whether you want a gentle reset, a proper cure, or a wellness holiday that feels like a real holiday, we know how to match the experience to the traveller.

 

The post Loveleen’s guide to the best Indian wellness retreats appeared first on Panache World.

There are experiences that find their way onto a itinerary by chance, and there are
experiences that redefine what a trip means altogether. My nocturnal wildlife tour with in the
Margaret River region was firmly, unforgettably, the latter.

Margaret River sits in the deep south-west corner of Western Australia, a region of
extraordinary geological and ecological character. Ancient karri and jarrah forests rise to
cathedral heights. The coastline is rugged and wind-carved, quite different in temperament
from the turquoise gentleness of Rottnest. The air smells of eucalyptus and damp earth and
something older, something that belongs to the land in a way that resists easy description.
This is a corner of Australia that has been shaped over tens of thousands of years, and you
feel the weight of that time pleasantly, in every direction you look.

South West Eco Discoveries, led by owner Sally White, presents what she rightly calls a
mosaic of extraordinary natural sights and wildlife. Their nocturnal tour is the jewel in that
mosaic: a rare, intimate encounter with the animals and plants of the bush after dark, set
against one of the most spectacular skies I have ever had the privilege of standing under.

“I had visited forests before. I had looked at stars before. But I had never done either quite
like this.”

The Journey to Yelverton Brook

Our evening began with the drive into the bush, the last light draining from the western sky as
we made our way to Yelverton Brook Conservation Sanctuary, the private pocket of
original bushland where the tour takes place. This is not a theme park or a managed zoo
experience. It is genuine, protected native bushland, largely unchanged from the landscape
that the Wadandi people of the Noongar nation have known and cared for across centuries.
Walking into it after dark, with torches casting low pools of amber light across the
undergrowth, you understand immediately that you are a guest in someone else’s home.

A short guided bush walk led us to the animal viewing site, our guides speaking quietly as
they pointed out the native plants lining the path. And this is where the tour revealed its
deeper dimension.

The Living Pharmacy of the Bush

The native flora of the Margaret River region is not merely beautiful. It is a living archive of
knowledge, each plant carrying centuries of practical and cultural significance for the
Noongar people who have been the custodians of this land since time immemorial. Our
guides wove this history into every step of the walk.

The Balga, or grass tree (Xanthorrhoea), one of Australia’s most ancient and iconic plants,
produces a flower spike that was used for fire-making, its resin as an adhesive, and its base
leaves as food. The Zamia palm (Macrozamia riedlei), with its prehistoric silhouette,
provided seeds that were carefully processed by Noongar women into a paste after leaching
out toxins, a culinary and chemical knowledge refined across generations. Paperbark trees (Melaleuca) provided bark for sheltering, wrapping food for cooking, and as an antibacterial
dressing for wounds. Peppermint trees (Agonis flexuosa), which release their distinctive
sharp fragrance when a leaf is crushed, were used medicinally, their leaves steeped for
respiratory ailments.

These plants are not background scenery. They are a library, written in leaf and bark and root,
by people who understood this land with an intimacy that Western science is only beginning
to properly appreciate.

Bush Billy Tea and the Animals Arrive

We settled at the viewing site and that is when Sally’s team produced something that stopped
the conversation entirely: bush billy tea, brewed from local herbs and native leaves, served
warm in the cool night air. I wrapped both hands around the cup and simply breathed it in
before drinking. It tasted of the bush: faintly citrus, faintly floral, earthy in a way that was
deeply comforting. It was, without question, the most appropriate cup of tea I have ever been
served in my life.

And then, as though they had been waiting politely for us to settle in, the animals began to
arrive.

The kangaroos came first, moving out of the tree line with that particular combination of
power and softness that makes them so endlessly fascinating to watch. They accepted food
from our hands with a gentleness that was almost formal, their large eyes catching the
torchlight as they regarded us with calm curiosity. There is something about feeding a
kangaroo in its own habitat, under the open sky, without a fence or a handler between you,
that feels like a genuine act of trust on both sides.

Then came the bandicoots, and the collective reaction of the group was instant and
unanimous delight. Small, pointed-nosed, busy with the urgent importance of their own
evening plans, they darted and foraged with comical energy, barely registering our presence.
The bandicoot has the air of a creature who has somewhere very important to be and is
running slightly late, and watching them work their way around the clearing was among the
more purely joyful things I have experienced in recent memory.

Our guides were full of stories, factual and folkloric in equal measure, about each animal,
each plant, each sound coming from the dark beyond the clearing. The possibility of night
birds added a further layer of anticipation: tawny frogmouths, those masters of stillness and
camouflage, and owls whose calls drifted in from the tree line. The bush at night is
emphatically not silent. It is busy, layered, alive with a different shift of creatures going about
their business with tremendous purpose.

The Sky Above Margaret River

And then I looked up.

I have seen night skies. I thought I knew what a night sky was. The southern hemisphere
disagreed with me, politely but comprehensively.

The sky above Yelverton Brook that night was not merely starry. It was structural. The Milky
Way did not appear as a faint suggestion, the way it does through the ambient light of most
places I have stood. It appeared as a solid, luminous river of light, arching from one horizon
to the other with the confidence of something that has been there for billions of years and has
no particular interest in being subtle about it. The Southern Cross, that most distinctly
southern constellation, hung with quiet authority. Stars I had no names for crowded every
inch of sky that I turned to face.

I spent a considerable and slightly obsessive portion of the evening attempting to photograph
it on my phone. I tried every setting, every angle, every trick I had read about or half-
remembered. I failed, thoroughly and repeatedly, and eventually put the phone away with the
particular peace that comes from accepting that some things simply refuse to be captured.
The sky above Margaret River is one of them. You must go and stand underneath it yourself.
No screen will ever do it justice, and that is precisely as it should be.

About South West Eco Discoveries

Sally White and her team have built something genuinely special in this corner of Western
Australia: tours that combine ecological knowledge, indigenous cultural context,
extraordinary wildlife encounters and exceptional local produce into experiences that stay
with you. Their nocturnal tour is family-friendly and available alongside a range of daytime
nature and wine tours showcasing Geographe Bay, wildflowers, whales in season, and the
rugged west coast.

If you are travelling through the Margaret River region, this is not optional. It is essential.
At Panache World, we travel, we experience and then we pick appropriate experiences to add
on that extra layer of authenticity into your trips to Western Australia and beyond!

The post Into the Australian night: A nocturnal wildlife tour In the Margaret River region appeared first on Panache World.

These five hotels – The Lana Dorai Dubai, Joali Being Maldives, MO Tokyo, Raffles Doha, and Plaza Athénée Paris – are the crème de la creme of girlie getaway hotels: decadence dialed to 11, with design that dazzles and service that spoils.

The Lana Dubai – The sultana’s playground

Perched above Marasi Bay Marina, The Lana offers 225 spacious rooms and suites, the UAE’s first Dior Spa (they have the softest pillows, btw), an infinity rooftop pool with skyline views, and eight restaurants serving global and regional cuisines. 

Seamless service, curated city experiences, and wellness offerings make it girlie getaway unlike any other. Go here if you want a Dubai stay that balances city buzz with personal pampering. Think skyline selfies from sky-high terraces, shopping sprees via chauffeured Bentleys to the Dubai Mall.

JOALI BEING Maldives: The joy of living well 

Overwater bliss meets biohacking at JOALI BEING on Raa Atoll – Maldives reimagined for girl gangs craving kale smoothies and kinetic sand playlists. Custom “Being” journeys blend cryotherapy with coconut scrubs; rooftop yoga flows into private sandbank picnics. Laugh over lobster beach BBQs, then debrief life post marine biologist accompanied snorkels. It’s wellness that isn’t preachy, but leaves its mark in the form of radiant skin, stronger bonds, and turquoise horizons that make every other group chat jealous.

Read our JOALI BEING review.

Mandarin Oriental Tokyo: Neon nightlife

High above Nihonbashi, Mandarin Oriental Tokyo makes the city’s vastness feel gracious. Rooms and suites are calm, and offer views across Tokyo’s shifting skyline. Dining spans seasonal sushi to pizza (Hello, The Pizza Bar on 38th!) Steps from Ginza and minutes from museums, markets, and temples, the hotel also connects directly to the Tokyo Metro.For the ultimate girlie getaway, Mandarin Oriental Tokyo delivers one of our favorite cities electric energy in a boutique package – bold, bubbly, and brilliantly unfiltered.

Raffles Doha: Qatari Queen Vibes

In the new seaside city of Lusail, the Katara Towers rise like crossed swords, Qatar’s national emblem made real in steel and glass. Inside one crescent-shaped tower, Raffles Doha comes with spectacular design and impeccable taste, offering all-suite rooms, six signature restaurants, a rooftop bar, a holistic spa, and a fantastic library with rare first-edition books. Dramatic lobbies, curated art, and world-class service turn every corner into a discovery. Go here if you appreciate design, flawless service, and a stay that makes Doha unforgettable.

Plaza Athénée Paris: Haute Couture Hideaway

Paris’s Plaza Athénée on Avenue Montaigne is girl getaway catnip – Eiffel Tower twinkles from Dior-pink balconies, with Michelin-starred menus for endless toasts. Haute couture fittings at nearby ateliers; private Seine cruises with champagne sabering. Spa Dior pampers post-shopping hauls; afternoons dissolve into patisserie crawls and Louvre whispers. For best friends, it’s the eternal city of lights at its most indulgent – chic, champagne-drenched, and conspiratorially fabulous.

At Panache World, these are the threads in our girly getaway tapestries – bespoke, blissful, built for unbreakable bonds. Get in touch with us and let’s plot your next chapter. @Inder – link to the contact us page

The post Panache Picks: Top five hotels for the ultimate girlie getaway appeared first on Panache World.

8th March, for us, is less about hashtags and more about spotlighting the women reshaping what hospitality can feel like in India.  Not just in corner offices, but in forests, palaces, pilgrimage towns and high-altitude deserts where the idea of luxury is being rewritten as care – for people, place and community.

These are hoteliers who think in ecosystems, not just experiences; who are as invested in gender parity, local livelihoods and culture as they are in thread counts and tasting menus. For travel designers like Panache World, which curates travel for guests who have seen “five-star” a thousand times before, these women-led projects feel like the future: soulful, sustainable, design-forward and deeply rooted in where they are. 

Shruti Shibulal: Tamara Leisure Experiences

Shruti Shibulal has quietly built one of India’s most thoughtful hospitality portfolios in the form of Tamara Leisure Experiences, where responsible tourism isn’t a line in a manifesto, but the operating system.  As Executive Vice Chair and long-time CEO, she has led a 10x growth of the group while insisting that people, planet and profit stay in the same room. Tamara’s properties in South India and business hotels in Germany weave in green building practices, wildlife preservation and careful resource use. Under Shruti’s value-driven leadership, the brand has become synonymous with sustainability, gender parity and real job creation in local communities …the kind of back-of-house impact you can actually feel in the front-of-house warmth. For travellers, that translates into stays that are serene and well-run, but also gently consciousness-raising: pilgrim hotels that understand multigenerational families, coffee estates that respect the forest, and a brand that proves scale and soul can co-exist.

Priya Paul: The Park Hotels and Raan Bas The Palace Patiala

Long before “boutique” and “design-led” became category clichés, Priya Paul was already steering The Park Hotels into that lane and flooring the accelerator.  As Chairperson of Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels, she transformed a traditional city-hotel portfolio into a collection of contemporary, art-forward spaces that speak directly to India’s new creative class. Her latest chapter is Raan Baas The Palace in Patiala, Punjab’s first true luxury palace hotel, where she’s backed a meticulous restoration in collaboration with conservation architect Abha Narain Lambah. The result: a resplendent palace that feels less like a museum piece and more like a revived royal home, with restored frescoes, revived crafts and staff drawn from surrounding communities. Together, The Park and Ranbaas tell a very Priya Paul story – one where heritage and contemporary design flirt comfortably, and where a woman at the helm keeps nudging Indian hospitality towards something braver, bolder and far more interesting than beige opulence.

Read Panache Founder Director, Loveleen Arun’s review of Raan Baas The Palace.

Husna‑Tara Prakash: Glenburn Tea Estate & Glenburn Penthouse

Husna‑Tara Prakash didn’t just enter hospitality; she more or less created the Glenburn universe from scratch. First came Glenburn Tea Estate near Darjeeling, a restored planter’s bungalow set on a working tea estate, where gracious, old-world hosting is paired with serious immersion into the rhythms of plantation life.  Think guided tea walks, picnic lunches by the river and the sense of staying in someone’s impeccably run home rather than a hotel. Then came the Glenburn Penthouse in Kolkata, conceived as a “gift to the city”: a rooftop refuge with sweeping views of the Victoria Memorial that brings the elegance of a hill-station planter’s home into an urban setting. Across both, Husna‑Tara’s touch is unmistakable. Layered décor, intuitive hospitality, and a commitment to preserving and celebrating the stories of tea, Bengal and the families woven through them. It’s a masterclass in turning personal passion into a hospitality brand that feels deeply personal, yet effortlessly world-class.

Vidyun Goel: Haveli Dharampura

In the dense, intoxicating lanes of Chandni Chowk, Haveli Dharampura is a minor miracle: a 19th-century haveli rescued from decay and reborn as a 14-room heritage hotel.  While politician and heritage enthusiast Vijay Goel led the initial charge to save the building, it is his daughter, Vidyun Goel, who has become the young, energetic face of the haveli and its cultural life.Under her stewardship, Haveli Dharampura isn’t just a pretty restoration project; it’s a stage for kathak performances, kite-flying sessions, Old Delhi food trails and terrace views that reacquaint even lifelong Delhiites with their own city. The UNESCO Asia-Pacific Award for Cultural Heritage Conservation feels well-earned here, but what we love most is how Vidyun uses the space to create opportunities for local artisans, performers and hospitality staff – many of them women – within the walled city. It’s heritage, yes, but also a very contemporary story of a young woman turning a crumbling family property into an urban sanctuary with serious cultural cred.

Antara & Jahnabi Phookan: Diphlu River Lodge, Kaziranga

On the edge of Kaziranga National Park, Diphlu River Lodge feels less like a “resort” and more like an extremely well-run secret tucked into riverine forest.  Established in 2008, it is the reincarnation of a pioneering 1970s ecotourism lodge, now led by the Phookan family – with Jahnabi and Antara Phookan shaping much of its present-day ethos and guest experience.  Thatched, bamboo-on-stilts cottages borrow their lines from Mishing tribal homes, and interiors are dressed with weaves and artefacts crafted by local women.  The lodge’s responsible tourism practices run deep: greywater recycling, low light and noise policies, a women’s weaving unit on-site, and hospitality training for young boys and girls from neighbouring villages.  Recognised by Lonely Planet and consistently ranked among the top wildlife stays in the country, Diphlu proves that conservation, community uplift and seriously comfortable beds can co-exist beautifully when there are women in the room asking the right questions.

Mrinalika & Akshita Bhansali Deo: The Belgadia Palace, Odisha

The Belgadia Palace in Mayurbhanj is a 200-year-old residence that could so easily have become a cordoned-off relic; instead, two sisters, Mrinalika and Akshita Bhanj Deo, have turned it into a living, breathing heritage stay with social impact at its heart.  Originally built as a Victorian-meets-Georgian retreat for visiting dignitaries, the palace has been restored as a tropical art deco sanctuary where visiting feels more like staying with cultured friends than checking into a hotel. The sisters still live on-site and have opened their doors with a clear agenda: to use tourism to build sustainable communities in this tribal-dominated region through cultural exchanges, workshops and local employment.  Guests wander through verandahs lined with indigenous flora, play vinyl in old drawing rooms, and eat from an organic farm, all while being gently plugged into the area’s art forms, heritage sites and wild landscapes. The Belgadia Palace is an elegant rebuke to extractive palace tourism; here, heritage is not just preserved and prettified, but leveraged to create opportunity, particularly for local women and youth.

Rigzin Lachic: Dholkar, Ladakh

In Ladakh, where the scenery tends to do all the heavy lifting, Dolkhar stands out for something rarer: a woman-led vision of hospitality that is deeply, almost fiercely, local.  Founded by Rigzin Wangmo Lachic, this sustainable boutique stay is designed to embody Ladakh’s essence – from its architecture and materials to its food philosophy and community partnerships. Recognised as Boutique Hotel of the Year at the Economic Times Travel & Tourism Conclave, Dolkhar marries crisp, contemporary design with an ethic of minimal environmental impact and maximum benefit to local farmers and artisans. Its plant-based restaurant, Tsas by Dolkhar, turns Ladakhi ingredients into quietly dazzling plates, reframing “vegetarian” as inventive and destination-worthy rather than dutiful. For first timers and travellers who have already “done” Ladakh alike, Dolkhar offers an experience that is slow, rooted, female-led and radically in tune with the land’s fragility and strength.

There are scores of women-led projects to spotlight, but we hope that these five projects have piqued your interest. We love to stitch places like Tamara, The Park, Ibnii, Belgadia Palace and Dolkhar into itineraries that feel as considered as the women who dreamed them up – always tailored, always a little unexpected. If you’d like, we can help you build a trip around one (or several) of these addresses, but for today, we’re simply inviting you to notice them, celebrate them, and maybe let them influence what “luxury” means to you next.

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Panache Founder Director, Loveleen Arun stayed at the remarkable Mandarin Oriental Palace in Lucerne and what struck her most was how the hotel manages to feel both grand and intimate. Every detail, from the art collection to the personalized service, reflects a commitment to creating experiences rather than simply providing accommodation.

The lake stretches before you like liquid sapphire, framed by Alps that seem close enough to touch. Your balcony at the Mandarin Oriental Palace, Lucerne overlooks this scene, but something more intriguing catches your eye. A contemporary sculpture stands in the lobby below, its bold lines deliberately clashing with the ornate Belle Époque architecture. This tension, this conversation between 1906 and today, defines one of Europe’s most compelling luxury hotels. The palace that once hosted European aristocracy now invites modern travelers to experience something rarer than opulence: the thoughtful collision of heritage and innovation.

Built at the height of Lucerne’s golden age as a spa destination, the Palace Hotel welcomed royalty, artists, and industrialists seeking Alpine air and lakeside tranquility. When Mandarin Oriental acquired the property, they faced a delicate challenge. How do you preserve a building that represents an entire era while creating spaces that speak to contemporary sensibilities? The answer lies in what they chose to keep and what they dared to change. Original stucco work remains untouched. Grand staircases retain their marble balustrades. Yet walking through the corridors, you encounter striking modern art installations that refuse to whisper respectfully in the presence of history. They speak boldly. A canvas of vibrant abstracts hangs opposite gilded mirrors. Minimalist sculptures occupy corners where potted palms once stood. This isn’t renovation. It’s curation.

“The hotel houses over 200 pieces of contemporary art alongside its Belle Époque heritage, creating a dialogue across centuries.”

Rooms where mountains meet water

The 136 rooms and suites understand their greatest asset: those views. Floor-to-ceiling windows frame Lake Lucerne and the surrounding peaks like living paintings that change with every passing cloud. Many rooms feature balconies where morning coffee becomes a ritual of watching mist lift from the water to reveal the Rigi, Pilatus, and Bürgenstock mountains in succession. The décor strikes that same historical-modern balance. Rich fabrics and classic furniture acknowledge the building’s heritage. Sleek bathrooms with rain showers and soaking tubs nod to contemporary comfort. Suites offer separate living areas where you can work on a modern desk while surrounded by crown molding and parquet floors that have supported a century of footsteps. The Lake Deluxe rooms provide the most dramatic vistas, their terraces becoming private observation decks for sunsets that turn the Alps pink and gold. Some suites even feature panoramic roof terraces with 360-degree views encompassing both lake and mountains.

A base for alpine discovery

Lucerne sits at the strategic heart of eastern Switzerland’s most spectacular landscapes. The hotel becomes your staging point for journeys that range from gentle to exhilarating. Take the cogwheel train up Mount Pilatus, where 360-degree views reveal the entire central Swiss Alps. Drive forty minutes to Engelberg for the rotating cable car to Mount Titlis and its glacier cave. The Rigi, just across the lake, offers hiking trails through Alpine meadows in summer and cross-country skiing in winter. Cultural explorers find Lucerne’s Chapel Bridge and Lion Monument within walking distance, while day trips to Interlaken, Zurich, or even Italy’s Lake Como remain easily achievable. The concierge team excels at crafting itineraries that match your pace, whether that means helicopter tours over the Jungfrau or leisurely boat rides to lakeside villages where time seems suspended.

Four culinary worlds under one roof

Executive Chef Gilad Peled, a Michelin-starred veteran who once helmed Gordon Ramsay’s Le Pressoir d’Argent in Bordeaux, oversees the hotel’s four distinct dining destinations. Each reflects a different facet of culinary artistry.

Colonnade earned two Michelin stars for its modern French haute cuisine. Here, seasonal ingredients transform into innovative compositions that honor French techniques while embracing contemporary creativity. The elegant dining room provides the perfect setting for culinary journeys that unfold across multiple courses.

For intimate experiences, Minamo offers something truly rare. Just eight seats at the counter. One chef. Traditional Japanese omakase where every guest receives the same meticulously timed courses, prepared before their eyes. The restaurant holds one Michelin star and has become Lucerne’s best-kept culinary secret. Watch as nigiri takes shape, ask questions, savor the exceptional sake pairings. This is dining as theater and meditation combined.

MOzern serves as the hotel’s vibrant all-day destination. Mediterranean delicacies and Western classics flow from the open kitchen. Breakfast here is generous and international. Afternoon tea arrives with British precision and Swiss refinement. Evening transforms the space into a lively scene of sharing plates, creative cocktails from the circular bar, and views across the lake that make every meal memorable. Personally, i highly recommend the rainbow Salad.

When warm weather arrives, Quai 10 opens on the lakeside terrace at water level. Think 1920s charm meeting Mediterranean sunshine. Fresh focaccia emerges from the wood-fired oven. Grilled fish from the lake arrives alongside locally reared meats from the barbecue. Local herbs and vegetables brighten every plate. An aperitif here as the sun sets over the Alps becomes the kind of moment you revisit in memory for years.

Ready to experience this synthesis of past and present? 

Contact Panache World to book your stay at the Mandarin Oriental Palace, Lucerne. As Mandarin Oriental Fan Club members, we ensure our clients receive exclusive perks and upgrades that elevate an already exceptional experience into something unforgettable.

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Our Founder Director, Loveleen Arun visited Taj Falaknuma Palace recently, and the experience has brought this extraordinary property back onto our radar with renewed appreciation. What struck her most profoundly was how the palace transcends the usual luxury hotel experience.

The approach alone tells you everything: Your car winds through seven kilometers of ascending road, climbing two thousand feet above Hyderabad’s cacophony until the city becomes a distant shimmer of lights. Then, through the gates designed to admit horse-drawn carriages, the palace reveals itself. A sprawling scorpion-shaped marvel that seems to float above the clouds. This is how royalty once arrived at Falaknuma, and this is how you’ll arrive too, though the Nizam who commissioned this palace in 1894 never imagined his private sanctuary would one day welcome guests seeking the rarest form of luxury: authentic immersion in living history.

The Taj Falaknuma Palace isn’t merely a hotel occupying a historic building. It represents something far more precious. A decade-long restoration so meticulous that artisans were brought from Italy to recreate original frescoes. Every Venetian chandelier was catalogued. Each piece of jade examined. Every hand-carved rosewood panel restored and returned to its exact position. Princess Esra of the Nizam family personally oversaw this renaissance, ensuring the palace retained its soul even as it gained new life.

“The sensitive restoration took ten years and the personal involvement of the Nizam’s family—a testament to honoring heritage without merely preserving it.”

Rooms where royalty rests

The sixty rooms and suites at Falaknuma tell their own stories. Each one is distinct, named and decorated to reflect the palace’s aristocratic lineage. High ceilings soar above four-poster beds draped in the finest linens. Bathrooms feature European fixtures original to the palace, some with freestanding Victorian tubs. Frescoed walls depict pastoral scenes and classical motifs. Windows frame views that stretch across the Deccan plateau. The suites occupy corners where princes once resided, their sitting rooms filled with period furniture, oil paintings, and artifacts that belonged to the Nizam’s collection. This isn’t themed décor. It’s the real residence of India’s wealthiest ruler, carefully preserved.

A palace reimagined for intimate gatherings

Today’s luxury traveler seeks experiences that money alone cannot manufacture. Falaknuma delivers this in ways that transcend typical five-star offerings.

Consider the CEO who recently chose the Jade Room for a board retreat of twelve executives. This was where the sixth Nizam once conducted state affairs. Surrounded by Renaissance paintings and overlooking the palace’s geometrically perfect Mughal gardens, strategic discussions unfolded beneath the same ornate ceiling where century-old decisions shaped an entire region. The evening culminated in the heavily chandeliered Durbar Hall, once the dancing room where the Nizam’s court gathered. Cocktails flowed as the sun set over Hyderabad, followed by a sit-down dinner beneath glittering crystal. The palace’s intimate scale, with just sixty rooms across 32 acres, created perfect privacy for strategic conversations that would shape the company’s future.

Or picture a golden wedding anniversary celebration that began in the historical library, where guests checked in surrounded by rare first edition books and leather-bound manuscripts from the Nizam’s personal collection. The evening’s dinner unfolded at the legendary 101-seat dining table, crafted from a single slab of Burmese teak. A full brigade of white-gloved servers orchestrated each course with military precision, replicating the formal dinners where world leaders once gathered. Families discover that milestone moments demand more than beautiful venues. They require spaces that honor the weight of time itself. When champagne toasts echo through halls where nizams celebrated their own dynasties, personal history intersects with royal legacy in ways no modern construction can replicate.

This is luxury redefined. Not as opulence for its own sake, but as meaningful connection to place, story, and heritage. For retreats demanding discretion, conferences requiring inspiration, or celebrations worthy of remembrance, Falaknuma offers what other properties cannot. The gravitas of authenticity.

Ready to transform your vision into reality? 

Contact Panache World to truly co-create and curate your next retreat, conference, or milestone celebration at this extraordinary palace where every detail honors both history and your unique story.

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Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to be about grand gestures. But if for you, it is, we have the perfect offering for the Valentine’s weekend.

At JOALI BEING, from February 9–15, you are invitated to feel more, together—a quiet recalibration of connection through clay, sea, sky, and savour. After our stays at both JOALI properties, we’re proud to carry this Valentines Day offering that promises more than performative luxury, but presence.

Picture parasailing side by side, hands brushing mid‑air as turquoise falls away below. Or hands sinking into wet clay at a pottery workshop, shaping a heart‑shaped keepsake that captures a laugh, a pause, a shared breath. These aren’t add‑ons; they’re the point.

Mornings that feel like gentle kiss

Morning Kiss Valentine’s Breakfast at Turtle Tree House sets a tone of unhurried abundance. Above lush treetops and shimmering lagoon, plates arrive bright and generous—flavours dancing between fresh and indulgent, bubbles catching dawn light. USD 550 per couple (wine, champagne, or sparkling tea included). It’s the kind of start that whispers today could be anything.

Hands in clay, hearts in motion

JOALI BEING leans into creation as intimacy. The complimentary daily Handbuilding Pottery Workshop lets you craft a trinket dish or heart token—messy, meditative, memorable. For something deeper, the Shape Your Story Wheel‑Throwing session (USD 160 per couple) turns emotion into form: wheel spinning, hands guiding clay into a vessel that mirrors your shared path. No prior skill required; just willingness to get your hands dirty together.

Evenings that unfold

As light fades, The Evening Unfolds Omakase Dinner (USD 1,000 per couple at Turtle Tree House) elevates the moment. Sea breeze caresses treetops while chefs orchestrate Maldivian‑Japanese courses, each bite a precise celebration. Toast with wine or champagne to discoveries savoured side by side.

February 14’s Love in Bloom at MOJO (USD 295 pp) is bountiful romance: handmade pasta, local seafood, wagyu beef—plates designed to draw you closer with every forkful.

Sea, sky, and serenity for two

Adventure calls with Soar in Harmony Parasailing (Feb 9, 11, 13; USD 450 per couple)—gentle lift from waves into open sky, laughter echoing as the ocean shrinks below.

For horizon‑chasers, luxury yachts steal the show. The Aicon Afternoon Cruise (Feb 14, USD 6,450 per couple) drifts through sunlit waters with elegant canapés, returning for candlelit dinner ashore. The Maiora Romantic Sunset Cruise (USD 8,165 per couple) paints the sky in gold, with optional onboard sushi/sashimi feasts (add USD 730).

Wellbeing stays intimate: Tranquillity for Two (Ocean Sala + Yutori; USD 1,650) pairs a couples’ massage with five‑course omakase under stars. Souls in Sync Spa Romance Journey (150 mins, USD 1,350 per couple) unfolds in overwater sauna, rainfall showers, and side‑by‑side bliss, ending with champagne, strawberries, and petit fours.

Why this, why now, and why with Panache?

JOALI BEING’s “Gifts of Love” sidesteps cliché. No heart‑shaped tubs or rose‑petal baths. Instead, shared flight, creation, flavour, serenity—experiences that linger because they demand presence. It’s the wellness island at its most human: for couples rediscovering rhythm, friends forging new memories, anyone ready to let love feel effortful in the best way.

After our own Raa Atoll immersion, this strikes as the perfect counterpoint to JOALI Maldives’ artful exuberance. Where the flagship dazzles, BEING restores—together.

Book through Panache World for unbeatable rates, seamless flight logistics, and our relationships with the brand to turn this VIP experience, VVIP. Marhabaa to feeling the love!

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JOALI Maldives is less a five-star resort and more a deeply personalised, art-soaked, multi-sensory experience— we think it is ideal for honeymooners emerging from manic wedding months, and for multigenerational families or close friends looking to celebrate in style.

Heaven is a place on earth. But the catch (there always is one) is that you’re going to have to be willing to part with a couple thousand dollars per night for it. Yet, JOALI Maldives, somehow makes this seem worth it. JOAL Maldives is about the kind of luxury that doesn’t need to shout; it whispers in the background, while you are treated like royalty by its people, or the planet peacocking the very best of its ocean vistas. This is luxury that anticipates your needs before you even think of them. Luxury that is weather‑agnostic. Even on windy, cloudy, or rainy days, there is solace, story, and plenty to do at JOALI Maldives. 

From well‑living to art‑forward living

After spending two nights at its wellness‑centric sibling JOALI BEING, I boarded a speedboat and skimmed across the same Raa Atoll for a 20‑minute ride to JOALI Maldives. After back‑to‑back days of sunscreen neglect, I for one, was grateful for cloudy skies. As an extra treat, the crew fixed floats to the bow, letting us sit right at the front, faces misted by waves. A brief, yet welcome reprieve from the humidity.

The first thing you notice about JOALI Maldives is the impressive arrival jetty.It arches out into the lagoon in the shape of a manta ray—one of JOALI’s mascots—and sets the tone for an island where sculpture, design, and whimsy are ubiquitous.

We were greeted by a coterie of smiling staff, right hand on their heart in JOALI’s signature “marhabaa” greeting, including General Manager Shifaz and Sales Manager Farzona, excited to show us how this flagship differs from JOALI BEING. If BEING mends the body and soul, JOALI Maldives expands them in celebratory, art-soaked wonder. Where BEING is anchored in wellness and the “Joy of Well‑Living”, JOALI Maldives is art‑forward and family‑friendly. More about creativity and joyful indulgence than diagnostics and cryotherapy. Over 20 large‑scale artworks punctuate the island, all commissioned from international artists and woven into the landscape so seamlessly they feel found, not placed.

Villas for slow living and long conversations

The island offers 73 villas and residences, in both beach and overwater categories. I checked into a Luxury Sunset Water Villa with Pool: 108 sqm of interior space, unfurling into a massive 280 sqm footprint thanks to an expansive sun deck and a 35 sqm infinity pool that appears to pour straight into the lagoon.

Inside, the mood shifts from its younger sister JOALI BEING’s aquamarine minimalism to a more classic, quietly opulent design language. Think warm wood, soft neutrals, and thoughtful details. Two TVs nod to the idea that you could watch something here, though if you actually do, I reserve the right to judge. There are his‑and‑hers sinks, a separate dedicated vanity table, and a bathrooms fitted out in emerald marble.

Art is part of the architecture at JOALI Maldives. Apart from the 20+ art pieces on the island, you’ve also got some in your villa. Each villa features “Pearl”, a wall sculpture by Turkish artist Seçkin Pirim, an ode to the shifting aquamarine moods of the surrounding water. Another piece, an unassuming pineapple worth several thousand dollars, sat innocently on a table until my self‑awareness kicked in and I asked our butler to whisk it away before my clumsiness turned it into very expensive modern art.

Everything—pool placement, lounger orientation, outdoor shower—is clearly designed for slow living. Time loosens its grip here. Sunsets become events, not timestamps.

Jadugars: The smiling magicians behind the curtain

Each JOALI accommodation comes with its own butler, or Jadugar (“magician” in Urdu); ours was a sweet lady named Nouha. JOALI borrows the term from its Turkish roots, but it fits perfectly: Jadugars are that blend of logistics genius, quiet confidante, and wish‑granters who make remote‑island life feel frictionless. Places like JOALI don’t have physical front desks. You are checked in, by your Jadugar, in the comfort of your villa. 

As Lubna Mukhi, AVP at THRS (the rep company hosting our trip), told us, some JOALI regulars postpone entire holidays if their favourite Jadugar isn’t available. After two days, I could see why. You may feel far from civilisation, but your wildest requests have a way of simply… appearing. Transfers, restaurant bookings, snorkel plans, forgotten toiletries, surprise celebrations …everything dissolves into a kind of invisible choreography.

Even ordinary rituals—showers, skincare, the walk to dinner, feel subtly staged and considered.\

The Story Behind the Island

On our island tour, Farzona filled us in on JOALI Maldives’ origin story. The owner, Esin Güral Argat, heiress of Turkey’s Güral Group, spent years searching for a remote, untouched island where she could marry art, sustainability, and a distinctly feminine sensibility. She fell in love with Muravandhoo and commissioned Istanbul‑based design studio Autoban to bring her vision to life: raw, tactile materials, organic forms, and an emphasis on softness rather than spectacle. It was first opened to the public in October 2018, and hasn’t looked back since. 

There’s even an urban legend about a local named “Ali”, whom she met early in the process and after whom the resort was playfully named in internal lore. Our group of Indian travel designers immediately fixated on Ali’s fate—“Does he get royalties? Complementary villa privileges?”—questions which we await responses for. We won’t be holding our breath for them, though.

Maramas: A kids’ club you’ll be jealous of

If JOALI BEING treats children like young adults—with cooking classes and conservation workshops—JOALI Maldives embraces full‑blown play. Maramas, the kids’ club, is enormous and still expanding, anchored by mascots Manta, Turty, Mermie, and Pico the Heron. Expect weekly foam parties, themed activities, and a programme so well thought through that even the most jaded grown‑up will feel a twinge of envy.

It’s one of the reasons this island is so well‑suited to multigen celebrations: kids disappear into their own universe while adults oscillate between spa, bar, sea, and bed.

Beach villas and big‑deal residences

While the water villas capture the Maldives fantasy, the beach villas more than pull their own weight with privacy and sheer scale. Some clock in at around 865 sqm, with the two‑bedroom beach villa stretching to roughly 1113 sqm—gardens, pools, and shaded nooks for everyone to vanish into.

We toured the larger residences and got a glimpse into JOALI’s conservation work helmed by their resident marine biologist, Shameem. Two turtles had recently nested on the island, and he had live camera feeds of both nests on his phone; guests regularly message asking to be notified when the eggs are close to hatching. Science, stewardship, and story, all playing out on the sand.

Spa-ctacular wellness

Is JOALI BEING’s spa more extensive? Yes—39 treatment rooms and an overall focus on wellness is hard to compete with. But JOALI Maldives holds its own beautifully with a more compact, eight‑treatment‑room spa that’s exquisitely designed and includes a proper hammam. Treatments skew indulgent rather than clinical—think body rituals, facials, and massages that sit perfectly between “pampering” and “I might actually feel human again after this.”

For honeymooners, this balance hits the sweet spot: you can do a couple of serious treatments, but you’re never in danger of accidentally booking yourself into a wellness retreat when you meant to be on honeymoon. For the more hardcore wellness enthusiasts, the best wellness island I know, JOALI BEING is a short 15 minute speedboat jaunt away. They are more than happy to welcome sister property guests for a wellness day, or even just a meal. 

Five spectacular restaurants

At this level of luxury, a thin F&B offering would be unforgivable. JOALI Maldives delivers five distinct dining arenas, each dripping with its own personality.

The gorgeous design of their overwater Japanese restaurant, Saoke. A breathtaking timber lattice cieling in traditional kumiko style alludes to the artistry in the kitchen (Photo credit: JOALI Maldives)

• SAOKE: the showstopper. A stilted Japanese restaurant designed by Noriyoshi Muramatsu (the mind behind the interiors of Zuma addresses globally), all clean lines, bamboo, and a breathtaking timber lattice ceiling evoking traditional kumiko work. Beneath you, reef sharks cruise lazily. Before dinner, a box of chopsticks and sake cups appears; each piece is unique, and you’re asked to pick the ones that “call to you”. It feels a bit like Ollivander’s wand shop, and I naturally chose the chopsticks that most resembled a wand and a crimson sake cup. Highlights: A5 wagyu, sumiyaki‑grilled black cod (my co‑travellers, Nobu veterans, remarked it exceeded the original), Maldivian lobster, and pristine sushi and maki. “The only reason we don’t have a Michelin star is that the guide hasn’t come to the Maldives yet,” our server said, only half‑joking.

• Vandhoo: the all‑day dining restaurant serving South‑East Asian, Chinese, and Indian staples, and home to the breakfast spread that fuels both gym sessions and horizontal beach days. Amongst other things of note, children (and honestly, adults too) will love their peanut butter-making machine. 
• Tuh’u – Middle Eastern plates under the stars. Think flame‑kissed meats, smoky dips, and comfort food with serious polish.
• Bellinis – where we dined the first night. Fresh catch cooked with restraint, exceptional ragù, striking Aquazzura crockery, and a standout dessert: avocado panna cotta with crunchy chocolate mousse and honey‑ginger sauce. It sounds chaotic; it works.
• Mura Bar – the relaxed pool and beach bar. All‑day classics, a wagyu burger that ruins lesser burgers for you, and a whisky‑cigar lounge that fills up as the sun goes down. For kids (and adults who know what’s good for them), there’s a dedicated ice‑cream emporium with wildly fun flavours; the champagne scoop was a hit.

Operations in the kitchen are overseen by Kapil Sharma, Director of Culinary, whose résumé includes Taj, Four Seasons Maldives, and Anantara Doha—a pedigree that shows on every plate.

The Joys of JOALI: Doing (or not doing!) it all

JOALI’s activities programme is aptly named the Joys of JOALI. You can be as busy or as blissfully idle as you like. A week will easily go by without your noticing. Just know that most of these activities are additionally charagable:

• House reef snorkelling – A guided reef snorkel with the island Marine Biologist, Shameem, showcases just how healthy JOALI’s house reef is in a region where coral bleaching is a constant worry. We spotted parrotfish, surgeonfish, squirrelfish, soldierfish, neon fusiliers, and a riot of other species. As a charming winter tradition, the team “plants” retired Christmas decorations in the reef, letting them slowly transform into living coral sculptures.
• Mixology workshop – A playful cocktail session with Beverage Manager Vikas, where JOAgaritas (watermelon margaritas) flow, and you’re gently shepherded into creating your own signature drink. It’s less a class and more a story‑driven evening with excellent outcomes.
• Sports & creativity – Padel lessons that genuinely sharpen your game, tennis, an art house for pottery, mug painting and glazing, plus multiple dive options (including night dives), flyboard jetpacks, parasailing, semi‑submarine rides, manta ray snorkelling, sunset and big‑game fishing. A fleet of four yachts, from 36 to 80 feet, stands ready for private excursions.

The Verdict

After two nights, it was hard to shake the feeling that JOALI Maldives is less a resort and more a beautifully curated parallel universe. It’s where honeymooners come to exhale after months of spreadsheets and spreadsheets disguised as guest lists; where families and friend groups celebrate milestones without ever feeling like they’re sharing space with strangers.

Paradise doesn’t have to be hedonistic. Here, it’s creative, playful, deeply comfortable—and designed so that every sense, and every generation, finds a version of joy that fits just right.

Keen to take this once in a lifetime trip to JOALI Maldives? Travel with Panache and we’ll get you the best rates and turn this VIP experience, VVIP. Contact us to know more.

The post JOALI Maldives review: Art, indulgence, and slow living on Raa Atoll appeared first on Panache World.

Recently reframed around the “Joy of Well‑Living,” this one-percenter luxury retreat on Raa Atoll in The Maldives makes you feel like can return from holiday feeling taller—in stature, clarity, and self. 

Paradise doesn’t have to be about hedonism. JOALI BEING is proof that a Maldivian escape can be just as much about well‑living as it is about bottomless margaritas and turquoise shallows. This isn’t a place you stumble into because flights were cheap; it’s an island you choose when you want to come back from holiday not needing another holiday.

Why Maldives, and why now

From India, travelling to the Maldives is almost disarmingly easy. Direct flights from Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Delhi get you to Malé in around 2–3 hours, with multiple daily departures and civilised mid‑morning options from Bengaluru that don’t require a red‑eye. I, of course, made things harder for myself by taking a SriLankan Airlines connection via Colombo, but it’s comforting to know you don’t have to. For Indians, immigration is a breeze – no entry fee required and a simple form filled will give you a QR code to show to immigration officers.

In the Maldives, luxury isn’t a bonus, it’s the baseline. Malé’s humidity falls away the moment you’re met by JOALI staff holding a discreet placard and shepherded towards the seaplane terminal. You can take the standard Trans Maldivian Airways plane (more affordable), but if you can, opt for the JOALI private seaplane: an eight‑seater, 40‑minute hop to Raa Atoll that doesn’t scream opulence, but feels infinitely more comfortable and private than the standard commuter. Just the seaplane costs around $1500 for a round trip; while pricey, it is significantly more affordable than a private charter. 

Up on the top floor of the seaplane terminal, JOALI’s shared lounge sits alongside the Maldivian A‑list—Cheval Blanc, Velaa Private Island, One&Only. Think calm air‑conditioning, a proper à la carte snack menu, showers with Dyson hairdryers, and a sea view of seaplanes skimming across turquoise runways. It’s your first reminder that, here, “transit” is also part of the experience.

Gate of Zero: where the reset begins

Some arrivals feel like logistics. JOALI BEING’S feels like a soft reboot.

You are welcomed to the world of JOALI BEING via the “Gate of Zero”

The seaplane glides into an arrival jetty enigmatically called the “Gate of Zero” — JOALI BEING’s own metaphorical threshold between your regular life and everything that comes after, designed to represent the flared white skirt of a whirling dervish.

A line of smiling staff waves you in, led by General Manager Graeme, hand-on-heart as they say “Marhaba” — the Maldivian welcome that JOALI has turned into a quiet ritual. Right hand to heart: welcome, from the heart.

There is no front desk, no queue, no pen on a chain. True luxury doesn’t make you wait. Your Jadugar (literally “magician”; JOALI’s term for butlers, borrowed from Urdu) simply appears, takes your bags, loads you into a buggy, and leads you into the island toward your ocean villa. Check‑in will happen later, barefoot, on your own sofa.

JOALI BEING vs JOALI Maldives: sisters, not twins

JOALI Maldives, the elder sister, is a 20‑minute speedboat ride away, a high‑octane design‑forward island where art, gastronomy, and indulgence take centre stage. JOALI BEING is newer, quieter, more introspective: the world’s first “well‑being island,” now gently reframed as a sanctuary for the Joy of Well‑Living rather than a strict wellness bootcamp.

This shift in narrative matters. It means you don’t have to arrive with a step count, a juice cleanse, or a yoga certification. You can be a beginner, curious, or simply exhausted. The island asks only that you’re willing to feel better when you leave.

The Grand Ocean Pool Villa: aquamarine everything

I checked into a Grand Ocean Pool Villa, the kind of overwater address that makes the camera roll feel underprepared. Perched on stilts above the Indian Ocean, the villa stretches out in soft aquamarines and turquoise. These accomodations are vast; generous bedroom, living area, dressing room, and a bathroom that seems to belong to a spa rather than a “room,” all opening onto a sprawling deck and a 33 sqm infinity pool that spills visually into the reef beyond. Stairs lead straight into the ocean, where the water is so shallow and calm you can float for ages, watching the sky change colour. If you’re a decent swimmer, yes, you can absolutely swim to the next villa. Sunset, bobbing alone in a warm lagoon that looks like molten copper, is one of those moments you’ll spend the next month trying—and failing—to explain properly.

The health‑forward lens shows up subtly from the start. Before arrival you’re asked: would you like a bottle of Ruinart on ice, or a sparkling tea? The option exists to choose kombucha over champagne, but in the spirit of balance, we chose the champagne and promised to make good choices later. JOALI BEING makes these choices easier than its elder sister property, and it doesn’t just have to do with the cute bicycles each island resident is given to traverse the island upon check-in.

JOALI BEING’s Four Pillars: where the science comes in

My first “appointment” happened soon after check‑in, at the island’s spa and diagnostics hub, AREKA — the beating heart of JOALI BEING’s wellness offering. I was greeted by their resident doctor, a fellow South Indian, whose remit stretches far beyond sore backs and tight shoulders. Here, they start with the idea that what’s stuck in your mind often shows up in your body. Pent‑up emotions? Expect them to be reflected somewhere in your organs.

Bioenergetic testing sounds like sci‑fi but feels surprisingly gentle: you sit, hold two electrodes for a few minutes, and the system maps imbalances and stressors. Results from this Qest4 device are then translated into JOALI BEING’s Four Pillars: Mind, Microbiome, Skin, Energy. Your therapist walks you through where you’re thriving, where you’re compensating, and what to focus on during your stay.

The clever bit? Every treatment and dish on the island is tagged to one or more of these pillars. That seaweed body wrap, the sound‑healing session, even your breakfast shot at FLOW — each is linked back to mind, microbiome, skin, or energy. It’s gameified wellbeing, but in a way that feels adult and quietly empowering. I went in skeptical; I walked out with a list of very practical tweaks that spoke eerie truth to long‑ignored lab reports and late‑night Google searches.

Eating fresh from the ocean

JOALI BEING has three main restaurants:

• FLOW – the all‑day, three‑kitchens‑in‑one restaurant that anchors the island. Mornings here mean a kombucha and tonic bar (the maple syrup kombucha is dangerously good), an encyclopaedia of eggs, Turkish‑leaning breakfast plates, and more ways to eat fruit and grains than your nutritionist has had time to write down.
• MOJO – the beach‑club‑adjacent restaurant that works for lazy lunches and unhurried dinners. Expect Atlantic salmon tartare, scallops, oysters so fresh they taste like the idea of the sea, tiger prawns that could pass for small lobsters, and a steady undercurrent of Indian comfort dishes.
• Yutori – their Japanese restaurant. We didn’t manage to dine here, but it’s where those craving omakase energy and precise knife work will feel most at home.

Everything is labelled with its pillar benefits, but there’s never a sense of being policed. You can order the miso‑marinated fish and a chocolate mousse and still feel like you’re on the “well‑living” path.

Will I get bored in the Maldives? Not here.

AKTAR, JOALI BEING’s own herbology studio leans into Turkish roots to create fantastic activities for residents, including an excellent perfume making workshop (Image: JOALI BEING)

This is the question clients ask us most: “If I don’t dive, will I be bored?” At JOALI BEING, the answer is an emphatic ‘no’.

• AREKA spa is easily among the most sophisticated in the Indian Ocean, with hydrotherapy, sound therapy, and all manner of massages calibrated to your pillar profile. I tried their signature ‘Four Pillar’ massage and exited the spa with rigor and vitality that felt almost alien to me. 
• The gym is touted as the best in the Maldives, fitted with seriously high‑end equipment and a cryotherapy chamber that cools to near‑Arctic levels (-78 degrees Celsius).Three minutes inside can torch up to 700 calories, but more importantly, leaves you feeling like your nervous system has been rebooted. Kickboxing, dance fitness, and pilates lessons means that you’re always around professionals, if needed. 
• AKTAR, their herbology studio, offers one of my favourite experiences on the island: a 90‑minute perfume‑making workshop where you build your own signature scent, then leave with the recipe and a bottle to take home.

• The house reef, explored with the resident marine biologist, is busy with life: eagle and sting rays, turtles, reef sharks, and enough fish to make you feel you’ve swum into an animated film. My taxonomy never evolved beyond “Nemo” and “Dory,” but the joy was universal.
• The Discovery Sound Path threads through a forested section of the island, dotted with sound installations and interactive “games” that more spiritually inclined guests will adore. It veered a bit too esoteric for me, but I can think of several friends in chanting circles who’d slot right in.
• The kids’ club is outrageous in the best way: cooking classes, boxing, astronomy sessions, padel courts, and surprise visits from sporting legends. In just the last couple of months, the resort has hosted football icons like Clarence Seedorf and Dimitar Berbatov, and Wimbledon champion Markéta Vondroušová for guest and children’s masterclasses.

And if you’re the do‑less type? There’s not many better places to do nothing. You can spend an entire afternoon with your nose in a book or lounging about and still feeling like you’ve done something important.

For VIPs (and VVIPs)

Even on a remote island, privacy can be dialled up. Private cinema screenings under the stars, off‑menu dinners inside sculptural installations shaped like sea creatures, and carefully sequestered beach and deck corners ensure that those who don’t want to be seen, won’t be. The four‑bedroom overwater residence is a destination in itself: reef‑front sauna, private gym and treatment rooms, and a deck roughly the size of a medium‑sized apartment, fronted by an infinity pool that seems to fuse with the Indian Ocean.

The Joy of Well‑Living, with Panache

In late 2025, JOALI BEING formally pivoted from “wellness island” to a broader “Joy of Well‑Living” philosophy, anchored by its new “Joyful Journeys of Well‑Living” campaign. It’s less about chasing perfection and more about leaving lighter, clearer, and happier than when you arrived.

Book through Panache World and the VIP experience quietly turns VVIP. We secure better rates than those online, line up the right seaplane at the right time, and build an itinerary that matches your energy, not your neighbour’s. Paradise doesn’t have to be hedonism; at JOALI BEING, it can be the most beautiful reset button you’ve ever pressed.

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