Water Bed
Floating Ocean Villas in the Maldives

Exotic vacation rule #56:

The harder a place is to spell, the more likely you’ll want to spend a week there.

One “for instance”: Maguhdhuvaa in the Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll, home to Ayada Maldives, an opulent overwater resort, taking reservations now.

If you’re a location scout for the next Bond flick (or just want to OD on infinity pools), this is the play. The island: 37 acres of Duran Duran video–worthy beach, reef and tropical jungle. Your accommodation: a straw-topped bungalow with a glass-bottom living room and a hammock built for two. Or three, if you ignore the Maldivian Fire Department’s maximum occupancy warning.

Now, it’s entirely possible to spend a full stay here without leaving your oceanfront terrace. And if that’s your thing, go ahead. But you’ll be missing the AySpa—a 38,000-square-foot cluster of villas filled with hydrobaths, steam rooms and a hammam. (Yes, the first spa visible from space.)

Then there’s Wine & Cheese Island (actual name)—a mass of land built to honor... those two long-standing cocktail party staples. You’ll strand yourself here after a dinner down by the lagoon. Sit inside a structure made of river stone and unwind with a quartino of chianti/hunk of gouda before raiding their extensive Cuban cigar collection.

Apparently, Cohibas are the chief export of Wine & Cheese Island.