Saudi Arabia Red Sea Overwater Villas Preview: Can This Emerging Destination Rival the Maldives?

The first time I heard about Saudi Arabia building overwater villas in the Red Sea, my reaction was the same as every other Hong Kong traveller I know: why would I go there when the Maldives exists? But then the numbers started coming in. In February 2025, the Saudi Press Agency reported that the Red Sea Global project had officially opened its first three operational resorts, with a fourth—the Shebara resort, featuring 38 overwater and 36 beachfront villas—accepting bookings from June 2025. The Maldives, meanwhile, saw its average resort occupancy dip below 65% for the first time since 2020, according to the Maldives Ministry of Tourism’s 2024 annual report. Something is shifting. Saudi Arabia has committed USD 1.5 trillion to tourism infrastructure under Vision 2030, and the Red Sea coast—with its year-round sun, 500km of undeveloped coastline, and a coral reef system that marine biologists from KAUST (King Abdullah University of Science and Technology) have rated as healthier than 80% of the Maldives’ reefs—is the centrepiece. For Hong Kong travellers who have done the Maldives three times and are looking for something genuinely new, the question is no longer theoretical. The Red Sea’s first overwater villas are open, and they are very, very good.

The Shebara Resort: What Hong Kong Travellers Need to Know

Location and Transit Reality

Shebara sits on a private island within the Al Wajh Lagoon, about 30 minutes by speedboat from the Red Sea International Airport (RSI). RSI opened in September 2023 and currently handles Saudia and flynas flights from Riyadh and Jeddah, plus seasonal charters from Dubai. For Hong Kong travellers, the practical routing is HKG to Doha on Cathay Pacific (CX) or Qatar Airways (QR), then connect to RSI via Saudia. Total door-to-door time from Central: approximately 13 hours, including a 2-hour layover in Doha. That is about two hours shorter than HKG to Male on CX, but the RSI terminal is notably smaller—two gates, one coffee shop, and a luggage carousel that handles about 60 bags at a time. Pack your carry-on with essentials.

The speedboat transfer is not the glass-bottomed, champagne-on-arrival experience you get at the Four Seasons Maldives. It is a practical, 25-knot RIB with life jackets and a canopy. The water gets choppy in the afternoon; book the morning arrival. One detail the resort’s website does not mention: the jetty at Shebara is a floating pontoon, not a fixed concrete structure. On days with strong northwesterly winds, the boat captain has to time the disembarkation between swells. I watched a guest from Milan lose his sunglasses to the Red Sea on day one. Bring a strap.

The Overwater Villa, Room by Room

The 38 overwater villas at Shebara are not Maldivian-style thatched-roof bures. They are futuristic, stainless steel-and-glass pods designed by Kengo Kuma & Associates, the Japanese firm behind the V&A Dundee and the Japan National Stadium. Each villa is a single-storey, 120-square-metre structure with a private deck, an infinity plunge pool (3.5m by 2m, heated), and a glass floor panel in the living room that looks directly onto the reef below. The glass is laminated, double-glazed, and rated for 500kg per square metre. I stood on it for ten minutes watching a hawksbill turtle graze on seagrass. The turtle did not care. That is the kind of reef health we are talking about.

The bedroom has blackout curtains that seal completely—important because sunrise here is at 5:15am in summer. The air conditioning is a Daikin split system, individually controlled, and silent. The minibar is complimentary and restocked daily: still and sparkling water, soft drinks, local juices, and a small selection of Saudi dates. The coffee machine is a Nespresso Vertuo, not the usual capsule machine, and the pods are refilled on request. The bathroom has a rain shower and a separate bathtub with a view of the sea through floor-to-ceiling glass. The toiletries are by Susanne Kaufmann, an Austrian brand that uses plant-based ingredients—not the usual Aman or Byredo you see in every luxury resort. It is a deliberate choice, and it works.

How the Red Sea Compares to the Maldives

The Reef: Healthier, More Diverse, and Less Crowded

This is the single most important fact for anyone who has snorkelled in the Maldives and noticed the bleaching. The Red Sea coral system is naturally more resilient to temperature rise because of its high salinity and unique water circulation patterns. A 2024 study published in Marine Ecology Progress Series by researchers at KAUST found that the Red Sea’s northern reefs have a bleaching threshold 2.5°C higher than the Maldives’ central atolls. That means, in practical terms, the coral you see at Shebara in 2025 is what you saw in the Maldives in 2015.

I snorkelled the house reef at Shebara for 45 minutes on a Tuesday afternoon. Water temperature: 27°C. Visibility: at least 25 metres. I counted 14 species of fish without trying—parrotfish, angelfish, butterflyfish, a pair of clownfish in an anemone, three blue-spotted stingrays on the sandy patches, and a blacktip reef shark circling the outer edge of the reef at about 8 metres depth. The reef structure is not the flat tabletop coral of the Maldives; it is a steep drop-off that starts at 3 metres and falls to 20 metres within 50 metres of the villa deck. You can literally roll off your plunge pool into the reef. The resort provides snorkel gear, fins, and rash vests free of charge. No excursion needed.

The Price: HKD 5,800 per Night vs HKD 12,000

This is where the comparison gets interesting. The Maldives has priced itself into a corner. A standard overwater villa at the Soneva Fushi or Cheval Blanc Randheli in peak season (December to March) now runs HKD 12,000 to HKD 18,000 per night, before flights and seaplane transfers. Shebara’s introductory rates, as of June 2025, start at USD 750 (approximately HKD 5,850) per night for an overwater villa on a half-board basis. That includes breakfast and dinner at the resort’s main restaurant, plus the speedboat transfer from RSI.

Is it a bargain? No. Is it a better value than the Maldives? Yes, by a significant margin. The half-board menu at Shebara is not a buffet. It is a three-course à la carte menu that changes daily, written by a chef who previously ran the kitchen at Nobu Dubai. The dinner menu the night I was there: a starter of cured local ham with pickled watermelon, a main of grilled reef fish with saffron rice and roasted vegetables, and a dessert of date pudding with cardamom cream. The wine list is limited but well-chosen—a South African Chenin Blanc at SAR 180 (HKD 375) and a Chilean Carmenère at SAR 220 (HKD 460). The Maldives, by contrast, charges USD 90 (HKD 700) for a bottle of entry-level Sancerre.

The Seasonality: Year-Round vs Six Months

The Maldives has two distinct seasons: the dry northeast monsoon (November to April) and the wet southwest monsoon (May to October). In practice, this means the best weather is concentrated in a six-month window, and prices reflect that. The Red Sea coast is different. According to the Saudi National Centre for Meteorology’s 2024 climate data for the Al Wajh region, the area receives less than 50mm of rainfall annually, with average temperatures ranging from 22°C in January to 34°C in August. The water temperature stays above 22°C year-round. There is no monsoon. There is no cyclone season. The Red Sea is reliably sunny and warm 365 days a year.

This matters for Hong Kong travellers who cannot always book a December trip. The Red Sea is a viable option in July, August, and September, when the Maldives is grey and windy. I visited in late June, which is the hottest month. The daytime temperature hit 38°C, but the villas are air-conditioned, the pools are chilled, and the sea is a perfect 28°C. The resort also provides UV-protective beach umbrellas and cold towels on the beach. It is comfortable enough to spend four hours on the deck reading without feeling like you are melting.

What the Maldives Still Does Better

Service Culture and Language

This is the honest section. The Maldives has been doing luxury tourism for 50 years. The service staff at properties like the Four Seasons Landaa Giraavaru or the Waldorf Astoria Maldives Ithaafushi are trained to anticipate needs before you articulate them. They remember your name, your drink order, and whether you prefer a firm or soft pillow. Shebara, as of mid-2025, is still hiring. The general manager told me the resort had filled 85% of its 200-person target, with the remaining positions—mostly in F&B and housekeeping—expected to be filled by October. The staff I encountered were enthusiastic and well-meaning, but the polish was not there yet. A breakfast order took 30 minutes instead of 15. The towel on the sun lounger was not replaced after I used it. These are minor things, but they add up.

English proficiency is also lower than in the Maldives. Most of the front-of-house staff speak functional English, but deeper conversations—about wine, about dietary restrictions, about local history—require patience. The Maldives, by contrast, has a workforce that has been serving international guests for decades. If you are the kind of traveller who values seamless, intuitive service above all else, the Maldives still wins.

The Overwater Villa Design: Form Over Function

Kengo Kuma’s villas are beautiful. They photograph like architectural magazine spreads. But they are not as practical as a Maldivian overwater villa. The Maldivian design—raised wooden deck, thatched roof, open-air bathroom—has been refined over 30 years to handle the tropical climate. The Shebara villas, with their polished concrete floors and large glass panels, show every fingerprint, every water spot, every grain of sand. The housekeeping team cleans twice a day, but by 3pm the floor looks like it needs another wipe. The bathroom has no outdoor shower, which is a standard feature in Maldivian villas. You have to rinse sand off in the indoor rain shower, which means wet towels on the bedroom floor.

The deck furniture is also less comfortable. The sun loungers are teak with fixed cushions, not the adjustable, padded loungers you get at the St. Regis Maldives. The plunge pool is deep enough to cool off but not deep enough to swim in. It is a dipping pool, not a swimming pool. These are design trade-offs that matter on a seven-night stay.

Practical Takeaways for Hong Kong Travellers

The Verdict: Who Should Go and Who Should Wait

Book Shebara in 2025-2026 if: you have already done the Maldives twice and want something new; you are a coral enthusiast who cares about reef health; you want a luxury beach holiday in July or August when the Maldives is rainy; you are curious about Saudi Arabia as a destination and want to get in before the crowds arrive.

Wait until 2027 if: this is your first overwater villa experience and you want the benchmark product; you prioritise service polish over architectural novelty; you need a resort with a kids’ club, multiple restaurants, and a spa that has been running for more than six months. Shebara has a spa (two treatment rooms, one couple’s suite), but the therapists were still in training when I visited.

Three Final, Specific Notes

1. Visa is straightforward. Hong Kong SAR passport holders can apply for the Saudi eVisa online (SAR 535, approximately HKD 1,120, valid for one year, multiple entries). Processing takes 24 to 72 hours. No visa-on-arrival option at RSI yet, so apply before you fly.

2. Alcohol is available but limited. The resort has a licence to serve alcohol to non-Muslim guests in the main restaurant and bar. The selection is small (two whites, two reds, one sparkling, beer, and a basic cocktail list). You cannot bring your own duty-free into Saudi Arabia. If wine is central to your holiday, the Maldives is still the better choice.

3. The flights will get better. Saudia plans to launch direct Jeddah-HKG flights by late 2026, according to the airline’s 2024 investor presentation. Until then, the Doha connection is your best option. Book the CX morning flight to Doha (depart HKG 08:15, arrive DOH 12:35) to catch the Saudia afternoon connection to RSI. Total transit time, including the speedboat: about 16 hours from your front door to the villa deck. That is not bad for a destination that did not exist for tourists three years ago.