kaptain72

Effective today, vaccinated travelers are no longer required to present a PCR test on arrival to the Maldives (https://imuga.immigration.gov.mv/ethd). I'm assuming I should confirm with Qatar Airways that they are following those rules prior to our flight on Wednesday.

nexusCFX

I posted about this in the Asia forum. Still going to get a test to avoid issues with my Friday flight.
Maldives

If you'd be so kind as to report your check-in experience, I would appreciate it and I'm sure others will too.

estnet

fyi - a previous time when the Maldives said PCR not required Qatar lax refused to allow me to board - wouldn't look at timatec, wouldn't look at Maldives government website, etc. Others at other airports did not have this problem. I had gotten a PCR "just in case" otherwise I would not have been allowed on the plane!

kaptain72

I absolutely will. I just got off the phone with QA and the representative said that even if their airline website isn't updated, they follow the destination country's policy. The check-in staff at the airport are connected the respective country's immigration information in real time....or so he says. I may try dig up the airline number at my departure airport (IAH) and them tomorrow to confirm. I've also printed the release from the Maldivian govt, just in case.

kaptain72

Wow. Okay, if I can't get a hold of the airport staff tomorrow we'll probably just go ahead with our tests on Monday.

nexusCFX

They use TIMATIC and right now it still says PCR within 96hrs. Have to wait for IATA to update it with the latest information.

kaptain72

Yeah, I see that on IATA's website. I'll track that, too.

jmail1

We flew out on the 3rd before the no test policy and our paperwork was BARELY checked by the Qatar staff, they rifled through it so quickly there is no way it was verified.

estnet

Totally depends on the (contract) staff - same day I had the problem at lax another person had no problem at IAD (oh and I had previously been cleared at sfo and issued my boarding passes by AA but staff at lax wouldn't accept them! and wanted to issue their own - told me my luggage would be taken off plane if I didn't have PCR -flying sfo-lax-doh-mle) Clearly I just had bad luck - but they had all the power.

Jay66

They actually sent me a payment link, did anyone else experience this and know how the transaction codes?

noeatbutgo

Completed a 9-night stay at the StR- overall pretty satisfactory and would like to revisit.

Villas (★★★☆☆)
We spent 5/3/1 nights at a 2-BR SOWV (207), 1-BR SOWV (541) and GV (104).

Room space: 2-BR SOWV (excl. the 2nd floor)> 1-BR SOWV ~ GV
Pool space: GV > 1-BR SOWV >> 2-BR SOWV
Interior: they are just different
Snorkeling experience: 1-BR SOWV > 2-BR SOWV
View: 1-BR SOWV > 2-BR SOWV >> GV

Overall our couple likes a 1-BR SOWV the most. It offers a convenient access to snorkeling spots which include the area near the JJA Suite and more feeling to be on the water versus a 2-BR SOWV. We strongly advise to avoid 544 and 543 as they are too much exposed to people at the Whale Bar between 6-10pm so really suffer from a lack of privacy- they can see your room if you turn on the light. I still can't believe the resort initially assigned us to the 544 despite my multiple requests with strong room preference. Anyhow if I can choose my own SOWV then I will go with one around 535 (only StR Suite with a sunset view) for the best sunset view (vert West) and proximity to the JJA Suite for snorkeling. Again you would really want to avoid 544.

Regarding a 2-BR SOWV, the resort assigned us to 207 furthest from the Whale Bar per our request. But after staying in that villa, I think 208, 209 or 210 should be fine as well. Just avoid 212 if you care about privacy. While having a dinner at the Whale Bar, I had a view exactly towards the deck of 212. The 2-BR SOWV also had a nice sunset view which we appreciated and as always it was good to have two bathrooms. But the rest space on the second floor was really in no use honestly except I could escape to this floor frequently as my wife hates A/C. My real complaint on this villa type is the pool size. It is more like a tub- you can't swim really. And there is no umbrella (parasol) provided on the deck while my butler also could not install it per the resort's policy, which should be improved after the renovation in June/July.

Finally on a GV, we actually liked it. After 8 nights in OWVs, it worked as a good refresh and offered Bali/Ubud vibe which we really enjoyed. And we appreciated its large pool size. Amongst the three categories, the GV has the largest pool size approximately double vs. OWVs pool and quadruple vs. 2-BR SOWVs pool. But as mentioned previously we won't spend our whole stay in this category.


Butler/staffs (★★★★☆)
Our butler was Abanoub, a young guy from Egypt. Initially and honestly, I was not much comfortable due to his restaurant pre-booking for all nights but we cleared the air eventually (I don't have OCD! ) . Except this minor dent, he was very attentive through our stay. For the first time, I had to visit the clinic due to some splinters and minor cuts in my feet unexpectedly and and I could see he really cared about our couple.

I also highly appreciate politeness and professionalism of our airport butler, Muaan, another young intern guy. His English and attitude were simply flawless. We forgot to take our PCR result print after check-out but he smoothly and calmly dealt with it on the way to the airport in limited time. He definitely deserves a promotion.

All the other staffs whom I met at the restaurants and villas were also super nice. I would not forget Janif who remembered my name through the stay and automatically served mango and mangosteen plates upon arrival the Alba with his happy smile. Pop was another impressive staff from Thailand with her big and warm welcome every moment. My wife also was very happy about various animals made of towels in our villa provided by our villa attendants Almas and Ali with warm handwritten letters. In everywhere and from everyone, we could feel their hospitality.

As a Korean, I am not used to giving tips and generally I don't. However I think I paid total about $500 through my stay this time as I was really moved by them.


Snorkeling (★★★★★)
The marine life around this resort is pretty impressive- lots of fish kinds while I could encounter turtles and sharks occasionally. We advise you to stay in a SOWV (near 535 or JJA) if you are big fans of snorkeling like our couple. The best house reef is in the West and especially the area from the Whale Bar to the JJA Suite would be the best to be explored. A large coral garden in front of the JJA is a must.

However the reef in the North which includes the area near BVs would be less impressive given strong currents and relatively weak marine life.

Here are some my clips uploaded to YouTube- enjoy.



Activities (★★★★☆)
We joined a whale shark tour ($490++/p) and a night snorkeling ($110++/p).

The whale shark tour was awesome as you can see in above clip. The group size was favourable- only 6 people joined including us while 3 staffs guided us. At the spot, we could see many of other groups but their group size was certainly a lot bigger. This activity depends on weather and luck but I highly recommend this activity if you haven't encountered whale sharks. They are simply... stunning.

On the other hand, the night snorkeling was not that impressive although I still recommend it. We were luckily enjoyed this activity as a private event thanks to no other guests. And on the way back to the dive centre, the team provides a speed boat so you really don't need to swim much so it is very comfortable. This boat return was not provided at the WA, fyi. We could not spot night marine life as much as we expected or we had watched at the WA. However it was still thrilling and was astonishing to see stars in the sky on the speedboat.


Dining (★★★☆☆)
First of all, our couple are not much into fine dining especially dinner so not much to comment.

Clearly I think all the restaurants and mini bar selections here are overly priced. One sushi piece is near $10... no way . We just simply enjoyed the vibe of the venues. Obviously we liked the Whale Bar the most and didn't visit the Orientale.

What we pretty liked were calzones at the Crest and a whole reef fish (white snapper) at the Whale Bar.


Management (★☆☆☆☆)
I might not able to score this category as I didn't get any chance to meet any of them during my stay. They didn't show up even in the breakfast restaurant. Simply not a good attitude which was frequently complained by other FTers here.


StR vs. the WA
It is a tough decision but if you haven't been any of them or experienced both, then I would recommend the WA. Otherwise please visit the resort which you haven't been.
But please note my stay at the WA was before the pandemic.

Villa: StR < WA (larger pool size, more spacious room and deck, better chance to get upgraded)
Breakfast: StR < WA (wider selection at the buffet)
Staffs: StR > WA (more attentive butler, more smile and politeness etc)
Snorkeling: StR > WA (better marine life amid calmer currents)
Resort size: StR < WA (i think the bigger the better after staying at the Residence, Conrad, WA and StR)
View from the villas: StR > WA (most of WA villas have no sunset/sunrise view)
Transportation StR < WA (yachts should be always better than seaplanes)

Long story short, I have decided to revisit this resort around this Christmas although I should try different ones in Feb 2023- perhaps RC or WA.

I am happy to take any questions, cheers.

jmail1

Oh i can definitely see how someone who is either clueless, or on a power-trip, or worse off a combination of both, could make things very difficult. I prepared as if it was going to be one of those people with an email from the Maldives tourism office, my test results x2, my Covid recovery letter from 30 days ago and my vaccine records.

What drives me crazy now is my Covid recovery letter alone would get me back into the US even if I did test positive via PCR, but I still have to pay the resort $150x2 to get tested when the results don’t matter.

MrM2016

Noeatbutgo's review is spot on, we even had the same butler. Similarly my wife also had a medical issue developing a full body allergic reaction to something in the sea, he was excellent as a go between the resort doctor and ourselves.

544 was exactly the villa we were allocated initially and this is completely accurate. Not recommended.

Noeatbutgo is also correct about the snorkelling. We swam with a turtle off the JJA reef and I lost count of the number of shark encounters, a couple below:

dabrain230

Hi fellow travelers. Just made it to the resort yesterday. In contrast to many travelers in this thread I haven't been to that many higher end properties around the world so I guess my expectations are probably not as high. But so far, almost everything has been great. The staff at the airport lounge as well as the wait staff at the resort and our butler. All of them knew our names and the purpose of our visit and were very attentive. One minor thing was that our butler erroneously thought we had booked a dinner at Decanter.

We booked a regular OWV and were put into a panoramic OWV (524). I like the privacy but the pool does stay rather cold. I asked if we could either try a SOWV or the regular OWV if one becomes available. But according to our butler the property is currently running at 90% capacity so it's rather unlikely that we will be able to switch.

If there is any other people here interested in a whale shark tour this week, let me know!

Edit:
How do you tip wait staff at the restaurants? Via the bill or leave some cash on the table?

friedablass

You are not forced to take their PCRs. You can bring the proctored antigen tests at a fraction of the cost. Do you even need to present any negative test if you have a recovery letter plus previous positive PCR test?