When it came time to our internal flight down to the Park Hyatt Maldives, we were surprised that we were granted access to a domestic lounge prior to our domestic flight on Maldivian; the Maldivian Moonimaa Domestic Lounge. The Maldivian Moonimaa Domestic Lounge offered a comfortable dry space, in order to relax prior to our onward journey.

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Review: Maldivian Moonimaa Domestic Lounge, Malé Ibrahim Nasir Domestic Airport, Malé, Maldives

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Transferring from Malé to the Malé International Airport:

When it came time to leave Male, we were transferred by the Hotel Jen Maldives staff back to the Ibrahim Nasir International Airport. It was a gorgeous zip across the harbour in the speedboat and we finally got the daylight opportunity to appreciate the Male skyline. Add the occasional Aeroflot wide body jet landing at the Malé airport and you’ve got a terrific view all around. 

Getting off the Hotel Jen transfer boat, we were met by our Malé based Park Hyatt Representative, who happened to remember us from our last visit to the Park Hyatt. With our handler taking the bags, we walked the short distance to the Maldives Domestic Terminal. It is a short 2 minute walk from the arrivals hall of the international terminal.

Checking into Maldivian Airlines:

Once we were at the spartan domestic terminal, we were checked in on Maldivian Q2 Flight 142, which was the non stop service to Koodohoo. The current schedule also stops on the other side of the Gaaf Alifu atolls at Kaadedhdhoo. Chances are you might get a one stop trip down, but it wasn’t in the cards for us today, meaning a non stop flight direct to our airport. Our host happened to arrange for seats 10A & 10B, which were emergency exit rows on the plane, giving us a little extra leg room. 

Accessing the Maldivian Moonimaa Lounge:

Like I mentioned earlier, our access to this lounge was included with our economy class Maldivian domestic air transfer ticket organized by the Park Hyatt Maldives. The transfer was well over $500 USD for a flight and a 40 minute boat ride, so I’m suspecting that the flight rate for foreigners is higher than it is for Maldivian citizens. While it’s not clear on the Maldivian Airlines website who or how access is granted, I am going to make the assumption that if you have a resort arranged air transfer ticket, you’ll likely have access with your booking.

The lounge is also a Priority Pass member and is the only Priority Pass Lounge at Malé International Airport.

Inside the Maldivian Moonimaa Lounge:

We were led up to the lounge by our Park Hyatt handler. The lounge is now upstairs from where the old lounge was and occupies most of the whole top floor of the domestic terminal. The old lounge space has been walled off and is inaccessible.

There has been a slight upgrade in the lounge offering since the last time that we were here.

Food and Beverage:

There was also a small buffet on offer, which was similar to the last visit. The buffet was pretty average, limp cold cuts and tired vegetables – probably the worst snack meal of our entire stay in the Maldives. The lounge, like most other places in the Maldives off resort, was “dry”. Fruit juices, soda and water were available. I am guessing with the cost of items being transported to the Maldives, there isn’t much incentive to spend a great deal on food and beverage. 

While we were here, our Park Hyatt host stopped by to advise us that there would be a ten minute delay. Maldivian was waiting for two passengers arriving off an Emirates flight for this particular connection. As a result, our domestic flights was slightly held up, not that anyone was complaining.

The Bottom Line: The Maldivian Moonimaa Domestic Lounge

The Maldidivan Moonimaa Domestic Lounge was a welcome surprise in our domestic Maldives transfer from Malé into the Southern atolls. While it was a reasonable place to hang out, the food and beverage weren’t all that too exciting. If anything, this space would be the most welcome addition after a long international flight from overseas, when you’re likely tired, jet lagged or exhausted. I would just recommend that you come fully fed.

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If you’ve visited the Maldivian Moonimaa Domestic Lounge, what was your visit like?

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