A look at the hospitality brand’s immersive new wellness concept.

Wellness and sustainability have been synonymous with the Soneva name ever since British hotelier Sonu Shivdasani and his Swedish wife, Eva, unveiled their first barefoot-luxury resort, Soneva Fushi, in the Maldives back in 1995. Now, almost three decades later, the couple has poured their accumulated expertise into the creation of a transformative wellness brand called Soneva Soul.

Revolving around bespoke treatment programs, all-natural products, and resident teams of health experts including an Ayurvedic doctor and Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner, the concept has been rolled out across the group’s trio of properties — Soneva Kiri in Thailand and, in the Maldives, Soneva Fushi and its younger sibling Soneva Jani. At the latter, the Soneva Soul experience encompasses both the resort’s existing overwater spa and the new, purpose-built Island Spa, a sustainably designed complex of curvaceous open-air treatment rooms, consultation suites, a state-of-the-art gym, and a yoga pavilion. All are linked by elevated walkways that wind among the treetops of Medhufaru, Soneva Jani’s 60-hectare private island.

With views across the sparkling turquoise lagoon, the setting alone is therapeutic, though guests in need of a proper reset can look forward to a combination of traditional healing practices (everything from cupping to clay wraps) and innovations such as hyperbaric oxygen and intravenous vitamin therapies. Adding to the mix will be a roster of visiting wellness specialists like celebrity fitness coach Joe Wicks, who will be on-site in October to conduct training sessions and workshops.

soneva.com

This article originally appeared in the March/May 2022 print issue of DestinAsian magazine (“Good for the Soul”).