Ithaa, which means pearl in Dhivehi, is the world’s premier undersea restaurant, secured five metres (15 feet ) below sea level, surrounded by a coral reef , at the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island in Rangalifinolhu, Maldives

The award-winning Hilton Maldives Resort & Spa became Conrad Maldives Rangali Island on 18 December 2007 – This is in line with Conrad’s positioning as the luxury brand within the Hilton Family, with services & facilities.

The five-by-nine meter restaurant is encased in R-Cast acrylic which is a transparent acrylic roof offering 270° panoramic view to its customers.

Only 14 individuals can dine at one time and the menu is considered to be Maldavian-Western Fusion. Meals range in cost from US$120 to US$250.

The amazing experience begins right from the start as you reach the restaurant by going through a wooden walkway.

The restaurant, which cost around $5 million to build, was designed by M.J. Murphy Ltd. – a design consultancy based in New Zealand – and was opened on April 15, 2005. The structure was built in Singapore and shipped to the island on a massive barge equipped with a giant crane to lower it into position in the sea

Carsten Schieck, the General Manager said : "We have used aquarium technology to put diners face-to-face with the stunning underwater environment of the Maldives.

Our guests always comment on being blown away by the colour, clarity, and beauty of the underwater world in the Maldives, so it seemed the perfect idea to build a restaurant where diners can experience fine cuisine and take time to enjoy the views without ever getting their feet wet.” Source

In February 2004, M.J. Murphy Ltd. was approached by Crown Company in the Maldives to make a unique underwater restaurant. The Crown Company, owner of Rangali Island, leases the island to Conrad Maldives Rangali Island (previously known as Hilton Maldives Rangali Island Resort & Spa). Initially Crown envisioned the underwater restaurant with straight walls and glass windows. Later they came to favor Mike Murphy's (of M.J. Murphy Ltd.) R-Cast acrylic tunnel, manufactured by Reynolds Polymer Technology, Inc. in the United States. This tunnel was also designed for the Kuala Lumpur National Science Centre, the world’s largest aquarium tunnel.

Work on technical designs and drawings for Ithaa started in March 2004. Murphy initially planned to build the structure on the beach of Rangali. Once constructed, Ithaa would be winched into the water. Technical challenges, limited resources, and quality control problems in building a structure of 175 tonnes in the Maldives were foreseen. Hence, a decision was made to build Ithaa in Singapore instead.

In May 2004, its construction began in Singapore. In October 2004, the construction work was completed including the installation of 5-metre (16 ft) wide acrylic arches, air conditioning and electrical ducts.

On November 1, 2004, Ithaa was lifted onto an ocean-going barge to be transported to the Maldives, which took 16 days to arrive. At this point, Ithaa weighed 175 tonnes.

On November 19, 2004 Ithaa was "sunk" with the help of 85 tonnes of sand ballast loaded into its belly. It was precisely maneuvered onto four steel piles which had been vibro-hammered 4 to 5 metres (13 to 16 ft) into the seabed. It was then secured to the steel piles with concrete.