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Le Méridien Maldives Resort & Spa, Thilamaafushi, Maldives [Master Thread]

Old May 7, 2021, 10:45 am
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Last edit by: jason8612
Hotel email:
[email protected]

Resort Shared Seaplane Transfer:
Prices are inclusive of tax and fees and to be paid upon check-out.
420 USD per adult (12 years and above)
210 USD per child (ages between 2 and 11.99 years)
Baggage
Complimentary for infants (below 2 years)
Standard baggage is 30 25kg including hand luggage. Excess weight will be charged at 5.60 USD per kg (per round trip).
Max dimensions are 158 cm and 32 kg. Infants do not have baggage allowance.
Hours
Operate between 06:00 to 16:00.
For check-in, last international flight must arrive at or before 15:30.
For check-out, first international flight must depart at or after 09:00.
Complete Details can be found here.

COVID Related Topics
Testing
Testing available at 120++ USD pp and reservations should be made no later than 72 hours prior to departure.
Quarantine/Isolation Policy
What happens if I test positive for COVID? Current policy can be found here.
Contact Tracing
Where can I find the list of properties under contract tracing? Here.
What happens if a resort is listed under contract tracing?
Guests must travel directly between MLE airport and the property post arrival and pre departure via international flight ONLY.
Inter-island transfers will be ceased and guests will not be able to arrive from, depart to, another island in the Maldives.

Water Sports & Diving Menu

Spa, Beauty, & Fitness Menu

F&B Menu

Latitude Menu
Riviera Menu
Tabemasu Menu
Turquoise Menu
Velaa Lunch Menu
Velaa Dinner Menu
Waves Menu
Wine Master List
Mini Bar Menu

Meal Plans
Prices are inclusive of tax and fees
Bed and Breakfast per night

30 USD per adult (12 years and above)
15 USD per child (ages between 3 and 11.99 years)
Half Board per night
95 USD per adult (12 years and above)
47.50 USD per child (ages between 3 and 11.99 years)
Complimentary for infants (below 3 years)
Full Board Plus per night
155 USD per adult (12 years and above)
77.50 USD per child (ages between 3 and 11.99 years)
Complimentary for infants (below 3 years)
All-Inclusive per night
230 USD per adult (12 years and above)
115 USD per child (ages 3 and 11.99 years)
Complimentary for infants (below 3 years)
Details can be found here.

F&B Bonvoy Discounts
General Members & Silver Elite 10%
Gold Elite 15%
Platinum, Titanium, & Ambassador Elite 20%
Full Details can be found here.

Resort Map
Can be found here.
Room total can be found here.
Beach Bungalow and Beach Villa are categorized by location. See the resort map for more information.

Paid/confirmed upgrades
Rates per night as of 08-May-2021
From Sunrise OWV to Sunset OWV 50++ USD
From Sunrise OWV to Sunset OWV w/ pool 250++ USD
Terms
Must be for entire duration of reservation
Requires non-refundable payment at time of confirming
Availability and rates subject to change
Can you apply SNAs at this property? No.

Late Checkout Policy (subject to availability)
General Members: None
Silver Elite: "Priority"
Gold Elite: 2pm
Platinum & Titanium Elite: 4pm
Ambassador Elite: 4pm or "Your24"

Welcome Gift
General Members & Silver Elite: None
Gold Elite: 500 points per stay
Platinum, Titanium, and Ambassador Elite: Welcome Gift: 1000 points per stay OR amenity per stay OR breakfast at Turquoise Restaurant per day for 2 persons (member + 1)

Drone Restrictions
"We strictly prohibit the operation of any type of UAV or drones for any purpose within and above the premises of the resort as our guests' privacy is of our utmost concern. This prohibition extends to devices launched from the resort or from outside the boundaries of the resort. If you wish to take photographs or videos, you may do so at the common areas of our resort."
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Le Méridien Maldives Resort & Spa, Thilamaafushi, Maldives [Master Thread]

Old Jun 30, 2022, 4:57 pm
  #1261  
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: SMF
Programs: Bonvoy Titanium, SPG LTP
Posts: 1,522
Originally Posted by yolie
Anyone been to another resort and this one that can compare it? I am having a hard time choosing a resort.

Can someone sell me to Le Meridien??

thanks!
I won't sell you anything, but reading upthread should tell you everything you need to know. I reviewed it and provided some comparisons to the Westin in post 1108. Others provided comparisons in their posts too.
yolie likes this.
Sam P. Goodman is offline  
Old Jul 8, 2022, 9:57 pm
  #1262  
 
Join Date: Apr 2022
Posts: 72
Can you still book the OWB with FN + Top off? Looks like they are around 60k but I'm not presented with an option to use FN.
incarbon is offline  
Old Jul 9, 2022, 12:43 am
  #1263  
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Posts: 541
Originally Posted by incarbon
Can you still book the OWB with FN + Top off? Looks like they are around 60k but I'm not presented with an option to use FN.
Can't use certs on upgraded rooms.
bobu is offline  
Old Jul 9, 2022, 1:01 am
  #1264  
 
Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: SFO/YYZ
Programs: AC 25K, AS MVP Gold, BA Bronze, UA Silver, Marriott Titanium, Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 2,430
Originally Posted by bobu
Can't use certs on upgraded rooms.
There is a workaround to do it, despite what phone agents will tell you. In June I spent 8 nights here on a mix of 35K, 40K, and 50K certs, each night booked at the points + $50 cash upgrade rate.

I am not sure if the workaround works if you're trying to do a cert topup where the cert itself cannot cover the full point cost of the standard room though, for example if you have a 35K cert but the standard room is 45K points, you could obviously book the standard room using a 10K topup, but I am unsure if you can convince the system to let you book an upgraded room as certificate + topup + cash/points upgrade, I really doubt it.

But I do know from experience that if your certificate covers the cost of the standard room, there is a method to book the following rate types:
"Redemption with Cash Upgrade"
"Redemption with Points Upgrade"

Last edited by nexusCFX; Jul 9, 2022 at 1:08 am
nexusCFX is offline  
Old Jul 10, 2022, 6:54 pm
  #1265  
 
Join Date: Jul 2022
Posts: 5
Halfway through our stay

Hi all,

me and my wife are here for a 10 night honeymoon stay which we are halfway through, and I wanted to share our experience thus far.

before I start, I want to thank everyone on this forum. You have guided us to have an amazing experience thus far! We booked our honeymoon stay here back in November and been following this since! For reference, this is our first time in the Maldives.

We used emerites for air travel to male from the USA, highly recommended as they are a great airline. Took a while to get our bags but they did arrive and we were greeted by a rep from the hotel shortly after. Keep your eyes peeled when you leave the arrival terminal, there are about 1,000 resorts with reps waiting and it is a bit overwhelming. The rep from le meridien was top notch. Handled our luggage and swiftly got us to the sea plane lounge. The lounge was very nice and had free refreshments and snacks. We were very lucky as our sea plane was ready after only waiting 5 minutes in the lounge. Pro tip, grab 2-3 sodas from the lounge to keep for later in the room!

the sea plane ride was short but so beautiful. Smooth ride and looking forward to those views again on our way out.

upon arrival we were greeted with a welcome drink and given meal plan info. We opted for the bed and breakfast and went a la carte for dinner/lunch to give us some freedom. The breakfast as mentioned is amazing. The buffet is huge and things slightly change each day to keep it interesting. We have been so full from the breakfast that we have skipped lunch every day so far.

our over water villa (sunrise) is amazing. Very clean and we love the decor (we are from key west Florida so reminds us of home). We have seen turtles and rays swimming by each day!

the staff is amazing and all so polite. The resort seems almost dead as not many are here this week. We love the feeling of it being our own personal resort.

we have done a turtle quest snorkel with the dive center and it was amazing. Saw turtles, manta ray, sting ray, and hundreds of fish. Hayden was an amazing guide. We also took the mixology class for $55 pp and it was just ok, we weren’t a fan of the cocktails but getting 8 drinks for $110 was a cheap way to catch a buzz.

we were gifted a honeymoon evening turn down service with rose pedal baths and a few free bottles of champagne. Be sure to let them know in advance if it’s your honeymoon and they will treat you like royalty. Every staff member seems to know we are on our honeymoon!

overall we are blown away and already planning our 5 year anniversary. Please ask any questions and I will try to answer them while my wife is sleeping lol
Dfitzy10 is offline  
Old Jul 10, 2022, 10:36 pm
  #1266  
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Posts: 387
Thanks so much for the detailed review. How is the food so far? Are there any theme nights here?

Also, do you know where the over water pool villas located?

Thanks,
yolie is offline  
Old Jul 11, 2022, 1:12 am
  #1267  
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Posts: 3
Originally Posted by yolie
Thanks so much for the detailed review. How is the food so far? Are there any theme nights here?

Also, do you know where the over water pool villas located?

Thanks,
We just returned from a stay at this resort about 10 days ago and it was one of the best vacations of our life. The food is definitely very good, not your usual resort-level mediocre or above-average but actually quite good fine dining. Being from the SF bay area, I can say it compared very favorably with the fine dining outfits here at home. The drinks, not so much .

Also the portion sizes are huge. So consider that when budgeting or picking a meal plan. While expensive (anywhere in the father away Maldives islands) they did not cut any corners on the food. Their on-island hydroponic garden means a lot of fresh ingredients are local rather than being flown in, so very fresh.

There are no theme nights in terms of activities but they have a few special activities such as outdoor movie night, DJ, sunrise/sunset yoga, elite members welcome cocktails etc. If you are asking about theme nights for dinner, yes, they do have themes such as beach barbecue, fish night, and other regional cuisines. Most have an upcharge if you are on a meal plan.

Overwater pool villas are only 7 total (until the new jetty opens on the other side which is expected to have many more since they found these to be quite popular). They are only on the sunset side and in the section closest to the end of the jetty where the 2-bedroom villas are (which are also two pool villas but they are several levels higher upgrade). I believe they are even numbered villas 234-246 though not 100% sure about this. This map in post 158 (I can't post the URL) shows it accurately on the left (the ones on the right side jetty in this map haven't yet opened).
mlflyertalk is offline  
Old Jul 12, 2022, 5:05 am
  #1268  
 
Join Date: Jul 2022
Posts: 2
Sea plane

Has anyone had trouble with sea planes taking off in the house reef? We are here and I have now seen two planes take off where people can swim and am scared to go out.
Mary Larson is offline  
Old Jul 12, 2022, 5:06 am
  #1269  
 
Join Date: Jul 2022
Posts: 2
Sea plane

Has anyone had trouble with sea planes taking off in the house reef? We are here and I have now seen two planes take off where people can swim and am scared to go out.
Mary Larson is offline  
Old Jul 12, 2022, 11:40 am
  #1270  
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Programs: British Airways Gold, Hyatt Globalist, Delta Platinum, Bonvoy Titanium, Singapore Krisflyer Gold
Posts: 152
Originally Posted by Mary Larson
Has anyone had trouble with sea planes taking off in the house reef? We are here and I have now seen two planes take off where people can swim and am scared to go out.
We did not see that on our trip - The sea planes took off in the opposite direction of the pier if I remember correctly. Are they coming directly toward the pier above the edge of the reef? If so, I'd definitely talk to the GM about that.
wb2020 is offline  
Old Jul 13, 2022, 5:18 am
  #1271  
 
Join Date: Jul 2022
Posts: 5
Originally Posted by wb2020
We did not see that on our trip - The sea planes took off in the opposite direction of the pier if I remember correctly. Are they coming directly toward the pier above the edge of the reef? If so, I'd definitely talk to the GM about that.
Yes we talked to the gm. However planes continue to take off in this direction. Not only noisy but dangerous. I advise everyone to be cautious when snorkeling the house reef.
Dfitzy10 is offline  
Old Jul 13, 2022, 5:50 am
  #1272  
 
Join Date: Feb 2022
Posts: 29
Originally Posted by Mary Larson
Has anyone had trouble with sea planes taking off in the house reef? We are here and I have now seen two planes take off where people can swim and am scared to go out.
We saw this on our trip and asked at the dive centre. We were told that the sea planes shouldn't, but do, land there. But also said that they are at least 200m from the reef edge. You're absolutely fine in the lagoon and along the line of the buoys that mark the reef.

If you're at all nervous then it's worth going out on an organised trip to the house reef as the team are excellent and (I think) pretty good value.

Personally, I'm always more nervous about other holidaymakers doing water sports as they can seldom "drive" their craft with any skill. For this reason I always wear a bright orange rash vest when swimming in open water and will often use a pull-buoy - to make it harder to miss me.

I understand the nervousness, but the absolute risk is vanishingly low.
FlyingStantoni is offline  
Old Jul 13, 2022, 5:56 am
  #1273  
 
Join Date: Feb 2022
Posts: 29
Also to say that planes do not land in the main lagoon inside the reef. The probably could, but there's a walkway between the lagoon and the arrivals centre. For that reason they land on the other side of the reef.

I'd reinforce that the dive centre team are lovely and very good at giving advice based on your experience and nervousness levels.
FlyingStantoni is offline  
Old Jul 13, 2022, 12:54 pm
  #1274  
 
Join Date: Jul 2022
Posts: 5
Originally Posted by FlyingStantoni
We saw this on our trip and asked at the dive centre. We were told that the sea planes shouldn't, but do, land there. But also said that they are at least 200m from the reef edge. You're absolutely fine in the lagoon and along the line of the buoys that mark the reef.

If you're at all nervous then it's worth going out on an organised trip to the house reef as the team are excellent and (I think) pretty good value.

Personally, I'm always more nervous about other holidaymakers doing water sports as they can seldom "drive" their craft with any skill. For this reason I always wear a bright orange rash vest when swimming in open water and will often use a pull-buoy - to make it harder to miss me.

I understand the nervousness, but the absolute risk is vanishingly low.
well when a plane takes off inside the orange markers and is between us and the over water villas it becomes quite scary. Especially when we were swimming inside the designated area. They have taken off multiple times during our trip like this. Yes the risk is low but People should still be mindful. Again just sharing our experience. The dive center says they see it all the time and made sure we saw the gm. They are becoming scared someone will be injured. This is the issue with the sea planes being a 3rd party company.
Dfitzy10 is offline  
Old Jul 18, 2022, 6:36 pm
  #1275  
 
Join Date: Jul 2022
Programs: Marriott Bonvoy Platinum
Posts: 10
Long time lurker, first time poster. Thanks for all the information provided here - I am sold on LM, and I am blowing all of the points I've collected over the past decade on business class tix on Sing Air, and 6 nights at LM in Maldives. Currently, targeting March 2023. I'm going with the Sunrise OWV at the moment , but as my partner does not swim, I wanted to poll you all and see how deep the water gets at low tide vs. high tide, and how strong the currents are.

Based on responses, I may have to change to a lagoon villa instead...

Thanks, and look forward to your replies!
pointhoarder is offline  

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