Planning for 2010

After spending last week in Marrakesh and hating it, I made my wife promise that the next holiday would be my choice. Therefore I%26#39;m gonna hopefully take the opportunity to make it a good one by going where I%26#39;ve always wanted to.

It%26#39;s not until I%26#39;ve started to look into it seriously that I%26#39;ve become aware of the extent of choice available between the various resorts.

I%26#39;m looking for more seclusion than equatorial butlins and as such the smaller islands seem more attractive me. I generally would shy away from AI holidays but it does seem to make more sense with the Maldives, especially as I can%26#39;t seem to find any conclusive information on the cost of meals and drinks (probably because of the many different set ups between the resorts)

Both my wife and I are PADI divers but haven%26#39;t dived for a couple of years. (I%26#39;d get some refresher training before we went),however I wouldn%26#39;t want it to be a diving holiday. I%26#39;d like to do a couple of days but am happy to spend the most of the time relaxing and snorkeling so a good house reef is a high priority.

Athuruga seems a good bet but I%26#39;m open to suggestions. I know it%26#39;s closing for refurb but as I am planning for 2010 that%26#39;s not an issue, in fact it may be an advantage as it%26#39;ll be nice and fresh. The one problem I have is that it only seems to be offered by Kuoni, which means it%26#39;s more expensive than similar resorts from web based companies.

I do have a question about time as I unsure whether to go in April or August. we are limited by my wife being a teacher so we have to accept being restricted to school holidays and the price hike associated with them.

I know it%26#39;s early to be planning this and asking questions from you fine experts but I need to purge the memory of last week :-)

Steve

Planning for 2010

Hi weirdfish ..you%26#39;ll see lots of them in the Maldives :-)

A couple of suggestions for you to look at..apart from Athuruga which you mentioned, there%26#39;s also it%26#39;s sister island Thudufushi. Both of these have reportedly the best AI deals in the Maldives..most islands All inclusive doesn%26#39;t include items like Mini bar, sometimes even bottles of water.

Mirihi, don%26#39;t think you can go AI but if you look on their website you can see food %26amp; drink menus so there are no nasty shocks..reportedly great snorkelling.

Komandoo..can personally recommend, although it has gone expensive. Good snorkelling.

Veligandu.. again can recommend it, although it%26#39;s had a complete refurb since we went, and there are now less land villas and more water villas. Snorkelling not as good as Komandoo.

A slightly cheaper option, but also a bit larger is Reethi Beach (we%26#39;re going here in July). AI available, more choice of places to eat, decent snorkelling.

Time of year wise, If I had a choice out of April or August then I%26#39;d choose April, although it will be more expensive then. I wouldn%26#39;t rule August out (we%26#39;re going in July for the same reasons you mention), just be prepared for the possibility you may get a few days rain.

There%26#39;s a few for starters!

cheers

Ian

Planning for 2010

forgot to add.. in case you haven%26#39;t seen them, the links below take you to a couple of useful websites for photos/info about some of the islands..

http://www.malediven.net/Bilder/

http://www.malediven.at/

cheers

Ian

Put Fihalhohi into the pot --although only FB, but good reef / snorkeling --diving, also agree with April.

Rumps

Rumps ... who%26#39;s April? lol

...AG

Agh ,

ive been found out--my Fantasie although her real name is Suzanne or is that Pauline, lol.

Rumps

Cheers guys.

My wife asked a question the other day that I replied with %26#39;of course you can%26#39; but I%26#39;m now wondering myself. Can you snorkel on the house reefs when you feel like it during the day or is it restricted in any way.

The top two on the shortlist are Athuruga %26amp; Komandoo, although there is a sizable price difference between booking Athuruga through Kuoni (apparently it%26#39;s exclusive to then in the UK market) and using Dreamticket.com for Komandoo. The thing that%26#39;s in the back of my mind with Komandoo is the concrete wall.

Hi weirdfish

Regarding the wall around Komandoo, it is only visible at low water, and even then we didn%26#39;t feel it spoiled our views too much.

You mention price differences, but are they like for like? Komandoo have dropped their standard AI package and re-badged it AI Gold. It still doesn%26#39;t include everything (eg bottles of water), and costs an exhorbitant amount. Athuruga, on the other hand, reputedly has one of the best AI deals in the Maldives (along with sister island Thudufushi).

regards

Ian

Yeh I know what you mean about like for like. I%26#39;m only going on basic sums at the moment as who knows what prices will be like next year.

Komandoo is available with Kuoni %26amp; Dreamticket and comparing a 14night stay on B%26amp;B at the end of July this year is nearly 1200quid cheaper per person! The dreamticket price doesnt include transfers but I can%26#39;t see them costing 拢1200 a pop.

I usually like to book my holidays direct with hotels and sort the flights out separately, but going on this years prices and stuff that doesnt seem to be the cheapest way for the Maldives.

No restrictions re snorkeling--but ask advise re --tides and strong surges, flow -rips.