Fari Islands Festival 2025

Inaugural four-day multidisciplinary celebration featuring Rupi Kaur, Kim Turnbull, Wagyumafia, and other international creatives across art, wellness, and cuisine.

Fari Islands Festival 2025 debuts across Patina Maldives, Fari Islands and The Ritz‑Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands from September 19–22, 2025, transforming the North Malé Atoll archipelago into a four‑day celebration of music, art, gastronomy, wellness, and ocean culture set around Fari Marina Village and landmark artworks like James Turrell’s Skyspace Amarta. The inaugural edition brings together global headliners and regional “Fari Voices” for immersive programming that flows between both resorts, with confirmed dates, program pillars, and headline talent now published by the destination and resort partners. Packages and early booking offers are live, including a festival stay with 15% savings at Patina Maldives when reserved by mid‑September, ensuring seamless access to the island‑spanning schedule.

Dates, place, and festival concept

• Dates: Friday–Monday, September 19–22, 2025.
• Location: Fari Islands Archipelago, North Malé Atoll, hosted across Patina Maldives and The Ritz‑Carlton Maldives, with shared programming centered at Fari Marina Village and signature venues such as EAU Bar and Fari Beach Club.
• Vision: A first‑of‑its‑kind cultural gathering for the Maldives, curated around five pillars that define the daily cadence — Culinary Artistry, Sonic Immersion, Nature Amplified, Body, Mind & Soul, and Creative Artistry — with guests free‑flowing between resorts for performances, residencies, talks, and experiential dining.

Headliners, artists, and special guests

• Music: Multi‑instrumentalist FKJ leads the closing night’s Fari Marina Fiesta with a live set that blends funk, jazz, and electronic textures, while NTS Radio regular Kim Turnbull curates multi‑genre sets and guest bar takeovers at EAU Bar and Fari Beach Club to shape the islands’ sonic identity over the long weekend.
• Literary performance: Poet and illustrator Rupi Kaur appears in intimate readings and site‑specific performances, including an opening program at James Turrell’s Skyspace Amarta and a finale segment beneath the stars, underscoring the festival’s cross‑disciplinary ethos.
• Culinary: Tokyo’s WAGYUMAFIA, founded by chef Hisato Hamada, arrives for a rare Maldives residency with hyper‑limited, one‑night‑only dining at The Ritz‑Carlton’s IWAU on September 20 for just two couples, translating the brand’s invite‑only wagyu ritual to the Indian Ocean for the first time.
• Cocktail culture: Award‑winning bars Nutmeg & Clove and Danico headline guest takeovers, remixing island botanicals into story‑driven cocktail menus that anchor evening socials and after‑parties across the beach clubs and marina.

Daily rhythm and signature moments

Programming is designed to move from slow, grounding mornings into exploratory afternoons and celebratory evenings, encouraging presence, connection, and discovery in equal measure. Expect breathwork and movement in Bamford‑curated wellness sessions at sunrise, marine expeditions and conservation workshops by National Geographic Explorer Gibbs Kuguru with the Olive Ridley Project by day, and curated soundtracks with headliner performances and chef collaborations after dark. A published highlights matrix points to three anchor nights: Rupi Kaur’s opening at Skyspace Amarta on Sept 19, Kim Turnbull with dual bar takeovers at EAU Bar on Sept 20, and the closing Fari Marina Fiesta headlined by FKJ with a poetic coda from Kaur on Sept 21.

Nature, wellness, and conscious travel

Nature Amplified is a defining pillar, bringing hands‑on encounters with the archipelago’s reefs and megafauna into the festival canvas through guided snorkels, shark science briefings, and sea turtle conservation programming in partnership with on‑island NGOs and explorers. Body, Mind & Soul layers in Bamford rituals and integrative therapies led by guest practitioners, with wellness lunches by Rosemary Ferguson and daily restorative practices that align with the islands’ slower rhythm. These elements add depth to the celebration while situating every guest experience in the Maldives’ fragile and extraordinary marine context.

Festival offers and how to attend

• Bookings: Festival‑themed stay packages are available at Patina Maldives with 15% savings for bookings made by Sept 15, designed to bundle access with transportation between hubs and priority seating at select events; inventory is limited for headliner moments, especially chef residencies and micro‑audience performances.
• Access: The Fari Islands model allows guests staying at either Patina Maldives or The Ritz‑Carlton Maldives to cross between properties for scheduled programs at the marina, beach clubs, and partner venues, with a central calendar guiding day‑by‑day choices.
• Limited seats: Ultra‑limited experiences like WAGYUMAFIA at IWAU are planned as one‑night‑only dining for two couples; interested guests should liaise with resort concierges immediately to join waitlists or secure confirmations.

Why Fari Islands Festival is different

Rather than a single‑island concert series, the festival treats the archipelago as a cultural campus, bridging two distinct resort philosophies to deliver breadth and intimacy in one place: Patina’s art‑forward, transformational luxury and The Ritz‑Carlton’s heritage‑driven Circle of Life ethos co‑create a fluid guest journey across art, ecology, gastronomy, and sound. The inclusion of works like Turrell’s Skyspace Amarta anchors the lineup in site‑specific art, while Fari Marina Village’s design and programming provide a public square feel rare in the Maldives, intentionally breaking the “one island, one resort” mold to foster community.

Practical planning

• Getting there: Fly into Malé (MLE); transfers to the Fari Islands by speedboat take approximately 45 minutes depending on conditions. Confirm arrival timing with your resort to coordinate same‑day festival access.
• What to pack: Resort‑smart attire for dinners and performances, breathable daywear for snorkels and workshops, reef‑safe sunscreen, and a light layer for breezy evenings at the marina or beach clubs.
• Reservations: Secure spa and wellness slots early during the festival window, and pre‑book high‑demand programs like mixology takeovers and literary readings that may run at micro‑audiences.
• Movement between venues: The festival calendar is structured to minimize overlap of key headliners; even so, leave buffer time to move between EAU Bar, Fari Beach Club, and Marina Village so you do not miss headline transitions.

Sample festival day

• Morning: Bamford breathwork and movement session followed by a guided conservation snorkel with Gibbs Kuguru and the Olive Ridley Project.
• Afternoon: STPI creative workshop or wellness lunch with Rosemary Ferguson; sunset reset at Fari Marina Village with acoustic soundscapes.
• Evening: Cocktail takeovers by Danico and Nutmeg & Clove at EAU Bar flowing into a Kim Turnbull set; optional chef experience or late‑night social at Fari Beach Club.

Insider notes and limited editions

• Beauty and wellness collaborations: The festival week will host special consultations and treatments by visiting experts, such as founder‑led skincare sessions and resident facialist programming, as teased by resort channels for Sept 19–22.
• Art as stage: Turrell’s Skyspace Amarta is not only a sculpture to view but a performance site where poetry, ambient sound, and celestial transitions meet — plan to queue early for capacity‑limited sets.
• Culinary passports: Expect a passport‑style guide to anchor your evenings, with stamp‑worthy stops at bar takeovers and chef residencies that reward completion with bespoke tastings or gifts.

Verified details at a glance

• Event: Fari Islands Festival (inaugural edition).
• Dates: September 19–22, 2025.
• Hosts: Patina Maldives, Fari Islands and The Ritz‑Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands; programming centered at Fari Marina Village.
• Pillars: Culinary Artistry, Sonic Immersion, Nature Amplified, Body, Mind & Soul, Creative Artistry.
• Highlights: FKJ closing live set at Fari Marina Fiesta; Rupi Kaur opening and finale performances at Skyspace Amarta; Kim Turnbull DJ sets and sound curation; WAGYUMAFIA one‑night residency at IWAU; Nutmeg & Clove and Danico guest takeovers.
• Offers: Patina Maldives festival package with up to 15% savings when booked by Sept 15; limited inventory for ultra‑exclusive dining and micro‑audience performances.

The Maldives has never hosted a cultural gathering quite like this. Reserve your festival stay at Patina Maldives or The Ritz‑Carlton Maldives, secure priority for limited‑seat experiences, and build a four‑day journey that moves from sunrise rituals to reef explorations, sunset poetry, and star‑lit concerts. Follow the program updates and lock in the moments that speak to you most — then let the Fari Islands Festival reshape what a Maldivian escape can be, one extraordinary evening at a time.