The best amenity at this $2000-a-night Fiji resort isn’t the private pool

The hotel

Six Senses Fiji, Malolo Island

Check-in

Six Senses’ fast-tracked check-in process is swift, pain-free and greatly appreciated by this toddler parent. After a 45-minute private speedboat from Port Denarau, we arrive at the island of Malolo (in Fiji’s Mamanuca archipelago) to the gentle strums of a ukulele woven into the salty breeze. We are greeted by Claude, the resort manager, in an open-air lounge setting and introduced to Pana, our “GEM” (guest experience maker), aka personal butler, who will be at our service during our stay. There are no desks or lengthy waits. Within 10 minutes we are in Pana’s golf buggy on our way to our room.

The look

Designed by New Zealand-based architect Richard Priest along 650 metres of empty beach, the resort’s unpolished terrain nods to a traditional Fijian village. Opened in 2018, 24 bure pool villas are dotted along sandy trails each with private beach access and surrounding greenery for privacy. Sixteen private residences with two to five bedrooms are also on offer for larger groups and multi-generational families. Guests staying in the residences have access to a complimentary nanny service and the option to hire a private chef. Fitness types will appreciate the complimentary wellness screening measuring key physiological biomarkers at the beginning of your stay, as well as the herbal sauna, steam room and cold and hot plunge pools in a secluded jungle setting. Pour yourself a ginger tea post-plunge, lounge on a cabana and look forward to somebody else cooking you breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The room

Six Senses’ Beachfront Pool Villa is the end goal for those looking to fly and flop. It has a plunge pool, private beach cabana and large deck. Our two-year-old spent the majority of her time in the pool, while we ordered cocktails from the sun loungers during her afternoon nap. Inside, locally woven textiles, mahogany and white linen serve as supporting acts for the bure’s magnificent traditional natural thatch roof.

Food + drink

Like all luxury hotels responding to the longevity boom, Six Senses’ wellbeing ethos extends to the cuisine. The menus at the four on-site restaurants make a point of using organic ingredients sourced from local farmers and fisherman. At the waterfront restaurant Tovolea, house-fermented kombuchas are on offer at breakfast alongside lighter alternatives such as homemade granola presented inside a whole papaya. RaRa Restaurant & Bar focuses on South East Asian fare, while TeiTei Pizzeria is a low-key eatery in an outdoor setting where pizzas are topped with fresh herbs and vegetables from the adjoining garden. Free gelato for the kids can be found at the on-site ice-creamery.

Out + about

Excursions to the surrounding Mamanucas by air or boat provide a welcome change in programming to resort life, but take note of the weather. Too much wind on our scheduled snorkelling day meant our excursion was cancelled. If you’re desperate to get out on the reef, I suggest booking earlier in your stay to allow for rescheduling.

The verdict

Honeymooners and kid-free travellers will enjoy the romantic and grown-up vibe (the Kids Club is strategically located some distance from the main restaurant and lobby area). Parents with young kids (under six) may be more suited to a resort with a livelier atmosphere.

Essentials

Beachfront Pool Villas start from $2235 a night. Vunabaka Bay, Malolo Island, Mamanuca Islands, Fiji. Phone: +679 666 5028. See sixsenses.com

Our score out of five

★★★★

Highlight

Having a dedicated personal butler (GEM) is a game-changer not just for a seamless check-in/check-out experience but for restaurant and activity bookings and general logistics. Hello, lighter mental load.

Lowlight

All guests have a golf buggy at their disposal (driven by your GEM), which feels luxe to begin with. But the lack of guests on foot makes the resort feel unusually quiet.

The writer stayed as a guest of Six Senses Fiji

Six Senses is an IHG brand; for more see ihg-journey-starts-here.smh.com.au