KIATTIPONG PANCHEE / PER AQUUM IMAGES

By Austin Ramzy

Posted Monday, June 27, 2005; 20:00 HKT
If there's one thing that can ruin an island vacation, it's other people. Whiny kids, boorish high rollers and beer-fueled revelers can quickly strip any paradise of its sheen. The simplest way to get it back? Buy them out. And there's no better place to do that than Dhoni Mighili. This one-hectare patch of white sand and lush foliage in the Ari Atoll, a 30-minute seaplane flight west of the Maldives' capital, Male, is always restricted to just six couples at a time. But if you don't like the thought of sharing the place with any strangers—and if you can spare up to $20,000 a night in high season—you and your entourage can have the island all to yourselves. Accommodation consists of six luxury bungalows, each with a dedicated butler; four of them feature their own swimming pools. Dhoni Mighili also offers indoor and outdoor spas, a dive center, a restaurant, a library and a 24-hour bar. Naturally, you can choose your own menu and when and where you want to dine. And if even this Elysium gets too cramped, each bungalow comes with its own dhoni—a stunningly appointed, 20-m sailboat, with captain and crew on call at all hours. "We have guests cry when they leave the island," says manager Jacqueline O'Hara. And no, it's not because of the bill.

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