Veligandu Island Reviews

We chose this island after consulting all the Maldives reviews on this site and did not regret our choice! It was just excellent.
We had an 'ordinary' Beach Bungalow which was large and airy, semi-open bathroom. We stepped out directly onto the beach (it was practically our own beach as the couples next door obviously had better things to do....) and the lagoon with black-tipped reef sharks, rays, fish of every colour and even one turtle! Some people we met had a Water Villa, which they thought was lovely but not worth the extra dollars unless perhaps you're on a honeymoon or something special.
The service was friendly and very attentive.

The food was fantastic. My husband is French and v. picky.. and loved it. There was something for everyone, curries, pasta, grilled fish and meat, salad, delicious desserts.
We took the all-inclusive deal which is well worth it. It includes soft drinks, beer, house wine (très drinkable..) and even spirits. You can order gin tonic, rum coke etc.
The island is pretty quiet. There's a bit of entertainment in the evening (film crab races etc) but it suited us. We spent most of our evenings just stunned by the sight of the Milky Way, it's so clear.

The reef is about 150m from the beach, so easy swimming, even our 9 yr old could manage it. It's really beautiful. We only snorkelled but the dive team seemed very serious and pleasant. We would advise you to take your own fins/masks etc especially if you have children. It costs 6$ a day per person to hire. You can buy them in the shop but probably not for children.
The excursion to Rasdu (nearest island) is a waste of time unless you want to buy tacky souvenirs but the snorkelling safari and dolphin watching expedition were great.

The only (very tiny) downside was the lack of English/French speaking children but we took the risk when we booked as it's not really advertised as a family island. However the staff were very friendly to our daughter and she would go back there tomorrow if she could (so would we).

We have been to this island twice and are going again in march 2007
Cheers

Louise and Jayne

This was our second trip to the Maldives.

Last year we flew with Sri Lankan but this year went with Emirates. If you have the option I would advise anybody to fly with them. We thought that Sri Lankan were very good but Emirates are outstanding. We were fortunate in being able to fly first class. Unless you are under 5 foot tall NEVER fly charter, believe me you will regret it. The staff and the service are second to none. Especially when they helped me in proposing to my partner during the flight.
We only had a short 30min wait for the sea plane but I am told that some people had waited up to 3 hours, but, lets face it that's not really a hardship.

The resort is very very good. Our arrival was met with the news that our water villa was not available, which caused us concern as our trip last year had the same problem (see Taj Coral Reef). We were put into a courtesy room for the first 12 hours which did not give a good impression. However the staff upgraded us to a delux water villa for the trouble. You will never wish for a finer room to stay in.

I can only agree with the other writers who have said how good the food is on this island. The chef's who were mainly Sri Lankan really do put out some fantastic dishes, there is allways some thing to suit everyone.
You will have your own waiter for your time at the resort. See if you can get Hassan, he really is a top bloke!!!!

There are baby black tip reef sharks that constantly swim along the beech line.
The weather was very poor this November but that did not in any way detract from a great holiday in a fantastic resort.
If you are thinking of taking a holiday here - BOOK IT!!!!!!!!

We travelled with emirates airlines from birmingham via dubai, who were excellent, loads of seat space (34"; in economy) with good entertainment (games and films) and food that you can't believe has been cooked on a plane! The flight was 7 hours to Dubai, (a three hour stop) and then 4 hrs to Male.

On arrival in Male we were taken to the seaplane waiting area, and waited around 2hrs. The seaplane was excellent, quite hot inside but the transfer is only 20mins and the views make it well worth it. You are met from the plane by a gentleman who will take you to the bar, get you a cold fruit juice and help you complete forms (ie passport no. day of departure etc).

We booked with Hayes and Jarvis (via co-op travel who could beat internet deals)and went for the full board option, but decided to upgrade to all inclusive on arrival which is $30 per person per day (£200 each per 10 nights). We are not big drinkers and as not all drinks are all inclusive it MAY have been cheaper for us to pay for our drinks individually. Price guide: Rum+coke $8, coke $2.50, small water $1.50, beer $4. We stayed in a beach bungalow (superior room) which was exceptionally clean (swept twice daily by room boy), had a double bed + a single bed, and open air bathroom, which did have a couple of lizards + ants in, but they were no trouble! The room also has a safe, hairdryer, beach towels, british plug sockets, 2 wooden sunloungers + pads, and 2 plastic chairs.

In the sea (30 ft from the the room)on our first morning we found 5 black tipped reef sharks! When snorkelling just here, the amount and variety of fish was amazing, and on the house reef there were bigger fish, and even turtles.
My partner went diving almost every day and found the dive team to be excellent, very safety concious + experienced. In 12 dives he saw turtles, dolphins, white reef sharks, eagle rays, manta eels, and the highlight for him - hammerhead sharks!

The food on Veligandu is amazing, the best holiday food i have ever had. There is a buffet with various themes 6 nights per week, + 3 chefs cooking outside. There is also a big choice of puddings, including things like creme caramel, tiramsu, bananas in chocolate etc!!

This was the best holiday we have ever had, we always felt very safe and cannot fault anything. Oh and do not be worried about the weather in June! We stayed for 10 nights, it rained for 2 nights but not in the day, and was overcast/cloudy for one afternoon!