TravelStar

Just curious, when were you offered the discount? Before you arrived? On the boat?

WorldTravl

Does food charges count as base points:
ie. spend 5,000$ on food(& activites,spa,etc...) and used aspire card. Would that get me 5,000*10(base points)*2(Diamond status)+ 5,000*14(aspire card) =170,000 OR 5,000*14(aspire card) = 70,000
Thanks

MaldivesFreak

Comparing Peacock Alley and Rangali Bar is like comparing apples and oranges. One is for Hhonors Afternoon Tea and the other is a beach bar! Rangali Bar should be compared to Nava. However, it (Peacock Alley) does still beat Vilu.....but maybe not Mandhoo for obvious reasons. Personal opinions will vary I guess. Personally I'd prefer an older, not necessarily newly-built, outdoor and over-water location with unobstructed killer views to a newly-decorated, albeit 'classier' interior in which I was basically stuck indoors. After all, when we fly halfway across the world to a remote tropical island and attend afternoon tea we don't want to, if we have a choice, shut ourselves indoors for any longer than necessary or have anything less than a view to die for. That's just my (and my OH's) 2c worth, @james0499.

Here is what I mean in detail (previous post re-written as it was deleted), @james0499
If you want variety and over-water experiences for your F&B, choose Rangali. The Waldorf has its fair share of 'interesting' dining options but none fully over water (Rangali has 2 + under water as well), some tacky, a ripoff and a bit silly unless you happen to be a bird (Terra, see the wiki for conversations about this venue). Jasmeen has mixed reviews, some say great, some say cheap imitation. Obviously there's no point in talking much about beach bars and buffet restaurants (Waldorf wins hands down here for buffet restaurant) but everything that Rangali has to offer as far as over-water and beach dinners has more substance; tried and tested menus that have been there for a decade or more, classy locations like Vilu and Mandhoo (which have won multiple awards for ambience, romantic atmosphere, luxury / scenic setting etc), both expansive and private beach areas for the beach dinners and naturally fantastic locations for the Private Beach Dining option. Actually I made a mistake in my initial summary - it's not really fair to compare these because one property has these offerings and the other pretty much does not - currently the Waldorf has only a few semi-overwater tables at Li Long and no beach dinners (except maybe in front of the main pool as @flyerchatter reported, ugh) or even anything like Koko Grill which is set into the beach, rather than just on it - there just isn't enough space for a decent one - private or semi-private - that's separated from the rest of the resort because the resort's packed so tightly and beachfront is so very narrow over most of the property. I also have the feeling that by design the Waldorf didn't try to encroach too much on Rangali's territory here (you have to remember that they are both in the same chain and perhaps wanted to differentiate F&B-wise). In a nutshell, Rangali's F&B operation has been consistently winning awards in the top categories for god knows how many years (here are some from 2017 as an example) so if you want to stick with something that's got class, and extra class in the fact that management hasn't set them up to fleece you (admittedly Ithaa being borderline in this area) and has a reputation to boot, then I definitely recommend Rangali.

mikamal

Back in early May WA wrote the below about private transfers (basically saying they are ok):
"You may book transfer through a third party, however we will not be able to guarantee the quality of service, safety and security measures taken by them and the resort as such does not endorse such third party companies.

We will also request that the arrival time to be shared with us 48hrs prior to arrival in order to ensure that our team is ready to welcome you"

Thus I booked my private transfer based on that, do you guys and girls think that WA will honor the above or give me trouble?

wekxbrainx

I was emailing them back and forth just weeks before arrival. The communication was so slow(one email response per day with 1 line answer). I got frustrated and complained. So they offer the discount over email about 4 days before arrival.

jphripjah

Well, I think if you get the opportunity to visit Waldorf Astoria Ithaafushi first hand you will see that the comparison is apt. Happy hour is served at Rangali Bar at Conrad Rangali (or at least it was during my last visit) and the one hour afternoon tea/happy hour are served at Peacock Alley at WA Ithaafushi. There is the choice of sitting indoors or outdoors at Peacock Alley, no one is "stuck indoors" though I appreciate that may not be apparent from photos of Peacock Alley available to the public on the resort's website.

Peacock Alley is WA Ithaafushi's main bar and lounge area, located just off reception and close to the large casual restaurant, Tasting Table. It's the focal point of the common areas that a guest will see first when arriving at the property and pass through every day. Nava is located well away, on the other side of the resort, on the beach, and is generally empty, and is more comparable to the Quiet Zone at Conrad Rangali. I think you will agree with all of this you visit the resort first hand. I appreciate it's hard to get an informed impression of WA Ithaafushi from photos and from Tripadvisor reviews.

But to the extent that your statement yesterday was "Everything that Rangali has to offer is of much more substance and classy, " and today you're posting that "Personal opinions will vary I guess," I believe we are finding common ground here.

Traveler Dave

wekxbrainx

They also had a mini concert the next day. Was told that they are trying to schedule more events each week.

It's not a set weekly event yet. But they will try to schedule more events and see what people like.

jphripjah

Do you guys think a resort like this would ever adopt a policy of "no smoking in the indoor OR outdoor seating areas of F&B venues?"

Because it kind of sucks to travel all the way to the Maldives and then have to choose between sitting at a smoke free table inside or sitting at a table outside surrounded by cigarette smokers from countries where cigarette smoking is very prevalent.

alice50734

Traveler Dave

MaldivesFreak

I'm surprised that suddenly - and conveniently - there is absence of mind because as you well know from being active over on the Rangali thread, Afternoon Tea at Rangali Bar was only a temporary thing (as Vilu was initially closed due to maintenance) and the trial move over to Rangali Bar got a lot of very negative feedback.

Like I posted twice already at the beginning of my posts, "If you want variety and over-water experiences for your F&B, choose Rangali".
The Waldorf has basically zero variety as far as over-water dining goes. And as we have seen so far, their 'beach dining' is a joke being outside the main pool where there's the possibility of lots of people, lots of noise and noise from screaming children. Not exactly a classy location for a classy, private beach BBQ. There's no comparison.
Then there's Glow vs. Mandhoo.....dine at Mandhoo and be over the water while eating your 'detoxifying delicacies'. Many people travel to the Maldives to enjoy over-water experiences so yes, Rangali would win hands down here again. I seriously doubt you're going to see any first prizes awarded to Glow for ambience, romantic atmosphere, scenic setting etc.
And Rangali has two beach bars, one classy and the other standard, so you could say, again, that Rangali wins due to variety. So, like I said; variety & over-the-water dining. But remember, I've always been expressing my opinion, not just today. I'm surprised you've just started noticing.

BLTraveler

After they denied my entry I forwarded them this message and they gave me some BS about all the customers complaining about the 3rd party transfers invading their privacy (BS) and that they no longer allow 3rd party transfers. So they are aware that this message was floating around out there and they could care less.

It appears some bean counter with an MBA from the university of phoenix has implemented a strict mandate to absolutely ban all 3rd party transfers no matter the circumstance.

I'm looking forward to seeing what happens when someone just shows up anyone in a 3rd party transfer.

james0499

Agree it's the overwater experiences we're after. Having spoken to the wife... she's conducted 'thorough instagram research' and is edging towards Rangali now! Think it's just more suitable for us all round. Sadly we are going to be stuck with 5 nights as we have flights already booked in and out!

BLTraveler

I added the distances below and sorted by distance. Amazing one of the closest resorts has the most expensive transfer.

SAii Lagoon Maldives, Curio Collection by Hilton
Speedboat
$135
8km

Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort
Speedboat
$142
8km

Four Seasons
Speedboat
$308
19km

Waldorf Maldives
Boat
$862
23km

Holiday Inn Resort Kandooma Maldives
Speedboat
$229
31km

W Maldives
Seaplane
$475
83km

Conrad Maldives Rangali Island
Seaplane
$526
107km

Westin Maldives Miriandhoo Resort
Seaplane
$475
113km

St. Regis Maldives Vommuli Resort
Seaplane
$695
159km

JW Marriott Maldives Resort
Seaplane
$600
215km

Park Hyatt Maldives Hadahaa
Domestic flight and speedboat
$520
408km