Joy Island

Joy Island sits forty minutes off Velana by speedboat — a butterfly-shaped island in North Malé Atoll, nine hectares of wide white sand with a turquoise lagoon on one side and a house reef on the other. It is the lighter, livelier register of the Cocoon Collection (alongside Cocoon Maldives and You & Me) — colour-led design, an open-air market restaurant at the centre, an Italian pizzeria by the pool, a fine-dining pavilion at the island tip, and a daytime kids club called Kiddie Cove. One-hundred-and-fifty-one rooms across nine categories — beach villas on the sunrise line, suites and pool suites on the sunset line, over-water villas, suites and pool suites on the lagoon, and a pair of larger residences for the family party. A good fit for the easy all-inclusive week — families, multi-generational groups, and couples who want the colour and noise of a busier island.

Arrival. 40-minute speedboat from Velana International. We time the transfer to your flight, and confirm it in writing with the rest of the stay.

Worth knowing

• Joy is the lighter, livelier Cocoon — colour-led design, an open-air market room at the centre, an Italian pizzeria by the pool.
• Butterfly-shaped island, nine hectares — sunrise on one shoulder, sunset on the other, a house reef one swim from the beach.
• The all-inclusive plan and family-easy register make it a useful counterweight to the quieter adults-only entries elsewhere on the registry.
• PADI dive centre, paddle and tennis courts, Kiddie Cove for younger guests, Dream Spa with a Balinese-leaning treatment card.