Finally, was able to catch up with the work after being back from the paradise (CMR and WA) and decided to reflect back on the most amazing vacation we had in a years.
But first and foremost, I would like to thank this amazing community for all tips and advice I got during the plan of the vacation. Special thank you goes to MaldivesFreak - it was super cool to meet you in person - we really enjoyed our chats!
The planning of the vacation started about a year ago, as it required careful booking of multiple flights between West Coast, Middle East and Maldives. Originally, we planned to go only to Conrad Rangali, but just before I booked our stay, Waldorf Astoria began accepting the reservation and we decided to split the stay to 5 nights in CMR and 5 nights in WA. We stayed from January 5th to January 15th 2019. Luckily, I booked before February 15th 2018 and the transfer to WA was "relatively cheaper".
In this post I would like to share our experience in both resorts. One clarification, it was our first time in Maldives and luxurious resorts, hence our expectations and points of view might be different from other travelers.
Our vacation started in CMR, with very nice first impression in Conrad lounge in Male, after the long flight from Paris we enjoyed our one hour break and shoulder massage with the light sandwiches.We were offered to purchase a SPA bundle which included two 75 minutes massages and pre-set menu launch at Mandhoo for $406++ each - one of the massages could be extended to 90 minutes utilizing Diamond benefit. We ended up purchasing this package when arrived to the island, and I will add the set menu of the launch to the post. Transfer to the island was very enjoyable with incredible view. Nazym, who was our host welcomed us and we walked to the lobby for the check in, some guests got a buggie, but we didn't want to wait. Few weeks before arrival I requested an upgrade from OWV, which I booked on points, to SWV and after few emails, settled on upgrade cost of 72USD/night (inclusive taxes). Following MaldivesFreak advice we asked for villa #339 and this was the villa we got. We couldn't be happier with the choice, the view was unobstructed and the privacy was great. As many other before me mentioned the villas are dated, but it didn't bother us much.We received a standard welcome package for Diamonds, and the flyer also mentioned that I could request a complementary personalized bath amenity, Refinery for men, which was nice. Then we went to the Happy Hour at Vilu, which become our favorite spot for breakfasts as well. The staff was super friendly and during the happy hours our glasses were never empty.
The first dinner was in Ufaa, and this was the only dinner during the stay we enjoyed the least, but most likely since we ordered the Hot Pot, which was ok, but nothing outstanding for $400++. Regarding the dinners we dined at Sunset Grill, Mandhoo, in villa and at Fishermen BBQ (which was great). Activities vise, I did a scuba diving refresher, as it's been a while since my last time, and the instructor was outstanding, he was super patient, spent time with me in the lagoon before taking me to a real 24m dive from the boat. During the dive, we saw many sharks, rays, morena and of course colorful fish. The cost of the dive was $190++.
On the third day I got some virus and had to visit a clinic, there was no wait time and doctor was very nice. She issued me with some paracetamol and antihistamines. The cost of the visit was $50++ which I find reasonable compared to US.
The day before the departure, I bumped into Nyzim, who told me, that since we are celebrating our anniversary the hotel is offering us complementary 30 minutes massage and a bottle of wine, which was very nice surprise. Post the massage, we headed to our last dinner at Mandhoo, and the table had a special decorations to highlight the anniversary - nice touch.
While I was a little bit worried prior to our trip regarding the degradation of the service at CMR, in my opinion the service was superb, we haven't experienced any issues. The staff in Vilu and Atoll Market was super attentive during the breakfast, although we found Atoll to be a little bit hectic and went there only once. All staff member we interacted with were super nice, helpful and friendly.
All in, including the air transfer, upgrade, dive, medical, massages and F&B (+ cocktail in Ithaa which was all about taking pictures and trying not to get other guests in the frame) we ended up with $4,800 bill. The only hiccup was that I haven't received the invoice by email and my account wasn't credited with points. After waiting two weeks, I reached out to the hotel and the issue was immediately addressed and points were posted in my account. I think there was an IT issue with my reservation since at some point it showed that I owe ridiculous amount of money as a security deposit, which was never taken.

After five days, we transferred to Waldorf Astoria, via Male. We got a "private" ride on Majesty their largest yacht, as we were the only passengers, and this yacht was beautiful.
Upon arrival, we were greeted by the staff waving on the pier, which was a little bit odd. Out host Camille, took us to our villa, and man... what can I say, this was just all another level. In the villa we received standard sparkling wine, fruits and chocolates and also cheese cake for our anniversary. I don't know if this the standard, but everyday we received some complementary cookies/chocolates and fruits. We stayed in the "downgraded from BV" OWV 117, and I can't be happier with this decision, due to the great view and very nice snorkeling from the villa and near the drop off. Location wise, it is in the middle of the OWV, and we could hear the busy traffic of buggies. We didn't hear our neighbors, but could see them during the snorkeling. Also, after two days, the neighbors from villa 115 checked out, and the hotel did some renovation/construction (already?) which was noisy. But after I mentioned it to the staff the worker reduced the level of noise, but they were working there for the remaining three days. Also, there was quite a busy boats traffic in front of the villas, complete difference from CMR. We really enjoyed the villa, as many other mentioned, it is enormous and gorgeous. However, on the day two, I saw many screws and nails on the floor of the outdoor shower, lucky I didn't cut my self. I brought it up to Camille and she was very surprised. It was immediately cleaned.On the morning of the second day, we had a little bike accident. The fellow guests let us use their buggie and we were taken to the clinic to get some band-ads. Later on the hotel sent us a basket with fruits and checked how she feels. In WA we did 90 minutes massage, and added 30 minutes Diamond benefit enjoyed two hours of the relaxation .
Food-wise, we enjoyed Yasmeen, although pre-set was too much food; Glow, Li Long, in villa dinner and the tasting table with the fish we caught on the fishing trip. The resort is huge, and after the bike accident we used buggies, most of the time it was sent within 5-10 minutes. But one day, when we wanted to get to the Happy Hour, we waited forty minutes!!!, and we almost missed it. I mentioned it to our host and she apologized. During the dinner that day, suddenly the restaurant manager showed up and told us, that our bottle of wine will be on the house due to the trouble with the buggie. And he actually removed the glasses of wine we ordered beforehand from the bill.
Every evening we went to Nava for a discounted drinks and enjoyed quite time with very nice cocktails.
Few small things which didn't affect our stay: In our villa we didn't have a beach bag, when asked the host she said that she will try to get us one. She did send a bag few hours later, mentioning it was taken from another unoccupied villa. On day 3, the host gave us a mobile phone to get in touch with her if needed. Seems like they didn't have enough equipment during the high occupancy days.
All in, we spent around $3.5K in WA, including transfer, massage, fishing and F&B. The points showed in my account next day post the check out.
One comment about the breakfast and Happy Hour in Peacock Alley: the breakfast was very nice, the food selection and quality was great, but it was very busy and seemed that they were understaffed. The service was slow, although the staff worked very hard. Few guests complained they they waited for coffee/tea very long time. The service in the happy hour was slow and less fun compared to Conrad. We typically got two rounds of drinks, and maybe three if we flagged the waiter. Not that they were not nice, just overall style was slow.
This leads me to the main point of the comparison between WA and CMR. WA has better/newer/larger villas. The snorkeling equipment is newer and better as well. CMR obviously has nicer landscape. The snorkeling, in my opinion was not too much better at CMR vs. WA. The biggest difference to me was atmosphere. While WA was very professional and the staff was very attentive to any request or feedback, in CMR the service was very personal and more engaging and fun, and felt more laid-back. We really enjoyed our vacation and feel fortunate to be able to stay in the resorts of that caliber. If I have a chance to get back to Maldives, I think I will choose Conrad over WA for the more relaxed service.
Hope this lengthy review provides some help to once who decides which hotel to chose.

Pre-set lunch in Mandhoo, part of the spa package