Kudahithi Sands is envisaged as a home away from home for the super rich. With villas rising out of the reef above crystal blue waters, the Maldives are synonymous with luxury. Most of the 1.
8 million tourists who visited the South Asian island state last year are on the deep-pocketed side. But the super-rich will soon have an even more exclusive option: a private island they can bid to stay on. The new concept is being piloted by Mohamed Ali Janah, group chairman of Hotels and Resorts Investment Maldives Group (HARIM Group) and a special advisor to UN Tourism.
“I am building the most exclusive private island in the world,” he told attendees of the UN’s event in Tbilisi, Georgia last week. Would-be guests will have to auction to stay on Kudahithi Sands island, a 30-minute boat ride from the international airport in the capital of Malé. Janah, an advisor to the Maldivian president and described by Forbes as the Maldives’ leading construction magnate, has built numerous resorts across the island state and further afield.
While developing Kudahithi, it occurred to him that this jewel of a 14,000 square metre island presented a new opportunity. Plans currently include six villas and a yacht, making it a covetable location for private meetings or secluded family and friend time. Discussions are underway with global real estate agents to figure out the finer details of how the auction concept could work.
The idea is that a limited number of nights per year will be release.
