If your clients love the idea of a proper festive atmosphere, Fushi is the one we'd have on the radar. The season starts with its tree lighting on 19 December, when children’s handmade ornaments are added to the tree and kept on the island to return each year. Christmas Eve brings golden-hour cocktails on the sandbank followed by a long table beneath the stars, while Christmas Day includes Santa’s treasure hunt, oysters and bubbles and evening dining.

There’s plenty to keep things going after Christmas too. New Year’s Eve becomes a culinary journey across 11 venues before the island heads to the beach for the countdown, while the wider programme includes sunset dolphin cruises, Cinema Paradiso screenings and plenty of time to simply enjoy the island. For families and multi-generational groups, Fushi has a particularly nice balance of shared celebrations, activities and time to do very little at all.

Christmas at Jani feels a little different. The lagoon becomes part of the festivities, with petal “snow” drifting across South Beach each evening in the run-up to Christmas, alongside champagne and caviar breakfasts, sunset dolphin cruises and evenings beneath the stars. Younger guests can get involved too, from baking bread for the gala to growing herbs for the Christmas table and making their own tree ornaments.

There’s plenty here for clients who put food high on the list, too. From 14–26 December, Copenhagen’s Fiskebar joins the festive programme across Fushi and Jani, with a Sandbank Seafood Lunch and collaborative dinner at Fushi, alongside a four-hands lunch at The Crab Shack at Jani. Nathalie Schyllert also brings Bodyism to Jani from 15–26 December, with movement and wellbeing sessions designed to bring families together.

For clients who would rather keep Christmas away from the crowds, Soneva Secret offers a much more private take on the festive season. There’s still plenty of opportunity to mark the occasion, but celebrations are shaped around the guests rather than a set island-wide programme.

That could mean a particularly personal Christmas Eve, a meal arranged around a client's preferences or simply having the space to spend the day together without needing to follow an itinerary. It’s an especially interesting option for couples, families or milestone trips where privacy is the priority.

Alongside the festive programme, Soneva has a great line-up of visiting experts coming to the islands over the winter. If a client has a particular interest, it’s worth checking the dates before booking; you might be able to build their stay around someone they’d genuinely love to meet.

There’s Andy Cole, the former Manchester United striker and Premier League record goalscorer, bringing football sessions to Fushi in October, while tennis fans can take to the court with former world No. 8 Marcos Baghdatis or current ATP star Karen Khachanov in November. For beauty and wellbeing, renowned facialist Sarah Chapman heads to Soneva Secret, while Bodyism’s Nathalie Schyllert brings movement and wellbeing to Jani over Christmas. Then there’s Jamie Lee of Copenhagen’s Fiskebar for food lovers, football freestyler Marcel Gurk for active families and, over Christmas itself, British astronaut Tim Peake at Fushi.

With three very different islands, it’s easy to match the stay to what your client is looking for, whether that’s the festive atmosphere of Fushi, the activities and food at Jani, or the privacy of Secret.

And don’t forget to check the Soneva Stars calendar when planning dates. A client’s interests could be the perfect reason to time their stay around one of the visiting experts.

Whether your client is looking to celebrate Christmas in the Maldives, escape the winter chill or build their stay around a Soneva Star, our team is here to help you find the right island and experiences for their itinerary.