Seen from the window of a seaplane, Lhaviyani Atoll is a loose necklace of reef, sand and dark-blue channels some 130 to 150 kilometres north of Malé. The seaplane flight takes around forty minutes, a little more or less depending on the resort, and the atoll — known in Dhivehi as Faadhippolhu — holds a small number of private-island properties: Six Senses Kanuhura, the adults-only Hurawalhi, Kudadoo and Cocoon among them.

The dry north-east monsoon, the iruvai, sets in from around December and holds into April. Skies clear, the sea calms on the western reefs and the humidity eases a little, though the air stays warm through the night. November is the hinge month, often fine, occasionally showery.

Three settings shape a week here: the reef, the lagoon at dusk and one visit to an inhabited island. Most of a Lhaviyani day happens within a few steps of the water. Men need little more than swim shorts and one shirt: the PP natural swim shorts in Vanille or Roosewood Pink for the house reef, and a Cuba Linen Shirt in Blue for the walk to lunch along the jetty. The Cuba's easy cut leaves room for the air to move, which on a sandbar at noon is the whole of the brief. Women will reach for the ladies linen set in Sky Blue or Lemon, its blouse open over a swimsuit at the beach bar, buttoned for lunch.

Evenings on the northern atolls are long and unhurried, often eaten over the lagoon or on the sand. The Amelia linen dress shirt in Dubarry or Oyster suits that hour: a dress in itself, light enough for the warm night, structured enough for a table set with linen and candles. For men, a Laos Long Sleeve Linen Shirt in Oyster with PP Casual Linen Trousers in Vanille answers the cooler air off the water and the attention of the evening insects.

Hurawalhi's 5.8 Undersea restaurant, set below the surface of the lagoon, deserves its own note. It is cool inside, and the long sleeve that felt optional on the terrace becomes welcome at the table. Dark Blue, from the Laos Long Sleeve range, sits naturally against the blue light of the glass.

A visit to an inhabited island — Naifaru is the atoll's capital — asks for a different register. The Maldives is a Muslim country, and away from the resort islands both men and women cover shoulders and knees. For women, the PP linen blouse in Lemon covers the arms, and an ankle-length skirt does the rest; the Amelia linen dress shirt waits for the evening back on the resort. Men will want long trousers: PP Trousers 100% Linen in Sapphire Blue, with any of the short-sleeved shirts.

On an atoll, a garment spends the day moving between sea air, a damp swimsuit and the air-conditioned villa, and linen copes with all three without needing to be changed. Linen in humid weather behaves differently from linen in dry heat, and the neighbouring atolls to the west, Raa and Noonu, have their own guides.

Packing for Lhaviyani is, in the end, packing for a single colour field: turquoise by day, ink-blue at night. Pale shirts, one or two saturated ones for evenings, swim shorts in two colourways and nothing that asks to be ironed.

Read more: What to Wear in the Maldives  ·  The Best Linen Brand for the Maldives