Royal Island Reviews

We stayed here for the 1st centre of our honeymoon in Feb 2006 - fantastic!

As soon as we arrived into the airport we were whisked away to cool airconditioned room to wait for our sea plane transfer to the island. We were provided with a hot towel to freshen up and also a fruit coctail.

The seaplane is excellent make sure you keep camera handy. Upon arrival we were made to feel extremely welcome and escorted to our room..

The rooms are great. There is a huge marble bathroom with a partial outside shower . The rooms are luxurious with fridge tv air cond mini bar and terrace leading directly to the beautiful beach . Would recommend to request a room on the opposite side of the island to the pool as they beach is much wider. Although the rooms look quite close together in the brochure they aren't.

The beach is amazing, pure white sand. The island has a house reef with fab snorkelling. There is also a dive school. Watch out for the baby sharks which lap the shores.

There is 1 buffet restaurant but this offered a great selection of food and each evening was themed.. Would def recommend a meal on the beach in the a la carte restaurant too - very romantic. The all inclusive is a must as drinks are very expensive we were drinking coctails priced at $25 each. The hotel offers a night fishing and local island excursion these were great. Entertainment is low key with live music occasionally. There is a disco bar on the island - which we went in once but the german karaoke put us off! Would def go back to this hotel. Recommend for couples and honeymooners. the staff were fantastic and nothing too much trouble.

We are saving to go back soon!

The reader will note from the date that I am writing this about a holiday that took place 16 days after the Tsunami struck the region.In fact it is this fact alone that spurs me to write.

We, like everybody else were horrified by the events of Boxing Day 2004. The news reels day after day painted a stark picture as to the state of the region's infrastructure. We (being selfish for a moment) were concerened as to whether to go or not, but were finally persuaded by the argument that the best way to help the country would be to go, spend our money, and contribute to the fragile economy of a beleaguered country.

And what a good decision it was! The resort when we got there was in perfect condition. There was no, and I mean no, evidence of what had happened at all. Both the airport and seaplane terminals were entirely operational, again with litle or no sign of damage. Royal Island is a fabulous place, with wonderful accomodation, fabulous facilities, excellent service and glorious beaches. We could fault nothing.

What made us sad, and somewhat ashamed of privileged people like ourselves was that the resort had received 80% cancellations and was therefore barely occupied.

The staff would never let it show, but were undeniably fearful for their livelyhoods, and deserve better support from the tourists from this country.

I therefore would lodge a plea on behalf of the islands of the Maldives. Please do not cancel holidays, choose this location if you require a fantastic holiday. - It is still a paradise.

Of 87 resort islands, all were affected, but nearly 70 of them were fully operational within hours. By now most of the rest will have been repaired, and are desperate for guests to go.

As a tip, if you have the option to fly with Emirates - take it. This was the first flight that I have actually enjoyed.