Asia - Moderate options in the Maldives?

So I'm planning a first visit to the Maldives, and am feeling rather overwhelmed by the sheer amount of resorts. This is just a birthday bash weekend escape from Singapore, not a once-in-a-lifetime honeymoon or anything, so we're looking at ~3 nights (plus probably one in transit at Male). Some criteria that I'm using to filter out the wheat from the chaff:

* Not insanely expensive (under US$300/night)
* Not a huge resort (being kid-hostile is a bonus)
* Good diving and snorkeling right off the island
* Modern or at least in decent shape
* Water bungalow or private beach would be nice

Currently Helengeli (http://www.helengeli.net/) is at the top of my list: 50 bungalows, renovated 2004, great house reef. Bungalows are a bit more no-frills than I'd like and the food doesn't get rare reviews but, for three nights, we'll manage, and grub seems to be considerably cheaper than some of the competition.

Nika Resort (http://www.nikamaldive.com/) also sounds nice, but the prices are a little above my pain threshold (and the website is terrible too!). Any other suggestions? :confused:

Also dont forget to check on the cost of getting to the resorts from Male.
The return seaplane transfer from MLE to the Hilton is currently USD290 per person :eek:

Sorry cant give any recommendation, only been to the Hilton.

mario33, a wise heads-up, but it's an extra I'm willing to pay -- I hate long speedboat rides and if you fly you get to do some aerial sightseeing too :cool:

Helengeli is full (curses!), so now I'm looking into Vakarufushi (great diving, low frills) or Bodu Huraa (looks very frilly, and being attached by bridge to Anantara Resort is a bonus, but diving's a mystery). Choices, choices...

-Hilton
-Coco Palm Dhuni Kolhu

(both start cheaper than Nika)

We eventually ended up picking a water bungalow at Thulhagiri (http://www.thulhaagiri.com.mv/), which seems to tick most of the boxes, although it's an older resort and not particularly fancy by Maldives standards. Looking forward to it :cool:

Too late for you but here is my 2c worth.

House reef is my number one consideration when travelling to the Maldives. My second criterion is size: if they so much as mention the words "disco" or "banana boat" (typically only offered if they have heaps of guests) I avoid. As a result I laugh at some of the supposed luxury resorts and find much better value in the moderate category. Moderate resorts I have personally been to and would recommend:
- Vakarufalhi
- Veligandu
- Komandoo
- Angsana (might be a bit pricier)

For future visits I am taken by the look of Makunudu.

BTW when I first started going to the Maldives I regarded with envy those wealthy enough to afford water bungalows, which I regarded as the epitome of island extravagance. Now that I could afford it I am put off by the whole concept: the close proximity of others, no view across a beach, none of that exquisite feeling of waking up and walking across white sand to an inviting sea...

I don't mean to hijack this discussion, but my question is similar. I will be in Sri Lanka and am considering a quick trip to Male/Maldives, just to have a look around. I have no interest in swimming, diving, food, spas, or any particular activity. (I know, 'why am I going?' I just want to see everyplace on Earth, once, if only briefly.) The Helengeli is available during my dates, and generally looks fine.

An exercise facility would be great. (Of the four places mentioned in the immediately previous post, one apparently has a small gym.) Airport transfer costs matter a bit - as I say, it's a short stay.

Other options: Two Taj hotels, Nasandhura Palace, Hudhuran Fushi, Eriyadhu Island

Final thought: as always, I will be traveling alone.

I don't mean to hijack this discussion, but my question is similar. I will be in Sri Lanka and am considering a quick trip to Male/Maldives, just to have a look around. I have no interest in swimming, diving, food, spas, or any particular activity. (I know, 'why am I going?' I just want to see everyplace on Earth, once, if only briefly.) The Helengeli is available during my dates, and generally looks fine.

An exercise facility would be great. (Of the four places mentioned in the immediately previous post, one apparently has a small gym.) Airport transfer costs matter a bit - as I say, it's a short stay.

Other options: Two Taj hotels, Nasandhura Palace, Hudhuran Fushi, Eriyadhu Island

Final thought: as always, I will be traveling alone.


I will be staying at the Taj Coral Reef later this yr...if you do deicde to stay there, pls let us know whow it went....

The rates are up there though !!!

My wife and I stayed at the Vilamendhoo Island Resort (http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g298324-d317348-Reviews-Vilamendhoo_Island_Resort-South_Ari_Atoll_Alifu_Atoll.html) in April for $229 per night including half board. It was a very good selection at that price with exceptional shore diving. I would highly recommend it to avid divers and snorkelers on somewhat of a budget. I posted a review at Scubaboard (http://72.14.253.104/search?q=cache:pWum8h33nesJ:www.scubaboard.com/archive/index.php/t-148671.html+scubaboard+vilamendhoo&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us&client=firefox-a):

Vilamendhoo itself, an island in the south Ari Atoll, is a 25 minute seaplane ride from the main Male Aiport. Our seaplane service was operated by Maldivian Air Taxi, which has a comfortable and satisfactory check-in and waiting facility at the Male Airport. Vilamendhoo is a very good option for visitors to the Maldives who don’t want to spend a king’s ransom. We paid $229 per night for a superior room and half board and an additional $220 per person for the roundtrip seaplane transfers. The room did not have a television and the shower and toilet were outdoors, but it was certainly acceptable. The island itself is fairly small – 900 meters by 300 meters – and quite pleasant with a bar, two restaurants, badminton and tennis courts, ping pong tables and a dart board, and a television lounge. Breakfast and dinner in the main restaurant was buffet style and quite good. We lunched at the Sunset Bar and paid a la carte prices, which were fairly reasonable ($7-$14 for most entrees).

As for the diving, my wife and I totaled nine dives (five for me; four for her) during our three night stay with six of the nine dives on the house reef. The house reef at Vilamendoo is one of the biggest attractions to the island as it is reputed to be one of the best in the Maldives. There are 10 entry points in total. Entry points 1-6 are on the south side of the island and points 7-10 to the north. The south side of the island gently slopes to 100 feet and beyond, although virtually all the marine life and worthwhile diving is done at 15-40 feet. The north side of the island features a near-vertical wall toward the middle of the island, but as with the south side, the better diving is generally shallow. The dive shop itself is located near entry point 4 on the south side and I would recommend diving between points 2 and 6 on the south and 9 to 7 on the north. The Maldives do not have an abundance of colorful soft corals, but the marine life more than makes up for this. During our dives on the house reef we saw numerous eels, rays, and tropical fish, although few sharks.

The dive operator is now Euro-Divers (http://www.euro-divers.com/DivingCenters.aspx?ID=17), formerly Werner Lau. They typically run two separate one-tank boat trips in the morning and two more one-tank boat trips in the afternoon. Sometimes, they substitute all day trips featuring two single-tank dives separated with a lunch on board the dhoni. Each boat will accommodate up to 20 divers and our two boat trips carried 15-17 divers. Boat dives carry with them a $10 surcharge over the price of dives on the house reef, which cost $45 individually for a single tank. Nitrox is offered at no charge.

Euro-Divers was a little too conservative for my liking. For example, they required us to do a check dive at the outset and perform mask flooding, regulator retrieval, and air sharing drills. Moreover, they claimed that per Maldivian law, Advanced Open Water divers like myself were limited to a depth of 30 meters and Open Water divers like my wife were limited to 20 meters. As a result of these restrictions, my wife was forced to sit out the dive to the Kudhimaa Wreck, which sits in about 100 feet of water. The shore dives on the house reef were much better because of the freedom they afforded. You mark on a dry erase board your desired entry point and entry time with at least one hour advance notice and the dive staff will cart your equipment to the entry point and retrieve your spent tank after the conclusion of the dive. Take note that Euro-Divers will require every diver to carry his or her own SMB, so pack accordingly or be prepared to rent one.

All and all, we enjoyed our time at Vilamendhoo. The resort offered good value for the money and had an excellent house reef. Experienced divers may be frustrated with the conservative nature of Euro-Divers; however, the diving on the house reef, which is quite good, will allow one to avoid the watchful eye of an overbearing divemaster. I would be happy to return to Vilamendhoo again in the future.