Sea, sand and silence: A Maldives break with no underwater restaurants, no golf buggies and no hovering 'beach butlers'... but plenty of luxury

David Churchill checks in to Nova Maldives, located in the South Ari Atoll - one of the smallest in the MaldivesHe stays at one of its 76 villas - 26 of which are on the water - and enjoys dinner on the beach 'under the stars'READ MORE: The world's most powerful passports in 2024 revealed - four EU countries rank joint firstVisit MailOnline Travel for more 2024 holiday tips, tricks and advice

The phrase ‘back to basics’ has been much derided ever since John Major used it at a Conservative Party conference in October 1993.

But here at Nova Maldives it holds true. There are no underwater restaurants; no golf buggies going laughably short distances; no hovering ‘beach butlers’. But there’s plenty of luxury following a £12 million revamp a couple of years ago.

Located in the South Ari Atoll, a 30-minute flight by seaplane from capital Malé, the island is just 358 metres long and 179 metres wide — one of the smallest in the Maldives. It’s surrounded by a spectacular house reef teeming with multi-coloured marine life.

Nova’s three restaurants, bar areas and 76 villas — 26 of them on the water, the rest beachside — offer simple designs which reflect a palette of ocean colours. Top-of-the-range fittings in the villa rooms include near-silent air-conditioning and ocean-view shower rooms.

The villas, some of which have private pools and Jacuzzis on the rear decking, have stairs leading down into the Indian Ocean — ideal for snorkelers.

David Churchill spends his honeymoon at Nova Maldives following the resort’s £12 million revamp

Nova’s three restaurants, bar areas and 76 villas — 26 of them on the water, the rest beachside — offer simple designs which reflect a palette of ocean colours, according to David

Head chef Sanjeet Gopee oversees a Maldivian cooking class for guests for an additional fee. My wife and I tried this but failed to replicate his delicious tuna curry despite several attempts.

The culinary highlight is Nova’s overwater teppanyaki restaurant, Mizu. The dimly lit, minimalist wooden structure and all-round sliding doors allow you to watch the sunset while ocean waves lap around you.

Nova is close to a large community of mantas and whale sharks, which are year-round residents of the Maldives, especially in the protected South Ari Atoll. We were taken out in the resort’s boat by entertaining and experienced manager ‘Toby’.

The villas, some of which have private pools and Jacuzzis on the rear decking, have stairs leading down into the Indian Ocean — ideal for snorkelers, says David

The island is surrounded by a spectacular house reef teeming with multi-coloured marine life, David recalls. Pictured: A tassled scorpionfish in the surrounding waters (stock image)

We could tell he was a native by his fish-like swimming abilities and, thanks to his intimate knowledge of the ocean, within an hour we were lucky enough to see a gigantic whale shark.

It was a heart-stopping moment to witness the six-metre behemoth glide gracefully along within touching distance and only a few metres above the coral below.

A few days later we were treated to a display of intricate aerobatics from a pod of dolphins that took a shine to the boat’s sleek lines by swimming alongside it.

Another highlight was playing real-life Robinson Crusoe one afternoon by taking two jet skis to a deserted sandbank about a 30-minute drive from the resort.

On his final night at Nova, David has dinner on the beach under the stars where the staff had laid the table within an illuminated heart etched into the sand, he says. Pictured: An example of a beach villa at the hotel

Here, our only companions were crabs which scuttled across the shell-white stretch of sand — no more than five by 15 metres.

We sat with them in awe as the sun went down. The easiest activity to slot into our ‘busy’ week was an immersion into Maldivian culture.

Although this sounds impossible while staying at a luxury resort, Nova holds a weekly ‘Holhuashi’ event where we learned about local traditions, heard storytelling and ate traditional snacks.

The gathering takes place under a native banyan tree in a dedicated clearing in the centre of the island, where we also played Maldivian board games.

On our final night at Nova, we had dinner on the beach under the stars where the staff had laid our table within an illuminated heart etched into the sand. Well, it was our honeymoon. And a wonderful one, too.