Maldives

[truffles__pearls]

oops..i meant to say i miss jarrett even before i was at the airport. infact i was already missing him days before i left. it sounds weird rite..but sometimes u can miss someone even when the person's infront of u. like miss-in-advance.

 

[haru]

T&P,
aw....i am sure Jarrett was missing you as well when you were away. thanks for sharing on the pumps. i have not actually checked out Ameda. Been only really looking at Medela and Avent. will find out more about Ameda too!

 

[lavendar_lover]

Wu
cut weight? maybe...haven been on the weighing scale since back. least I know my baby bulge is smaller...keke... did ALOT of core training during the week. =)

ya..saw the advert... island hop? see how then... cos I know I won't be going back there so soon... even I want, hubby dun want..he wish to go other places first. Maybe for our 10th anni i guess. =) If I go back there again, he'll grumble..like he always say I went to Perth so many times.... hee. BUT sure will go to Shangri la for stay...=) The resort looks good.

Sheena? ok..she's very jovial.

the photographers are not fat lor... think they look fit. haha... one of them is the chief photographer of SPH. Rather young.. he's only abt 35 years old.

t&p
ha..think I'm like you too.. wasn't feeling that bad when I left maldives... I was lokoing forward to come back home. ;p

haru
I use the avent manual n auto... not too bad lah... but abit the slow for auto.. takes a while to pump to full bottle.

 

[haru]

hi starstar,
so u tried the Avent too?guess will have to reall try it out to figure out which one works best for me.

 

[zhuzhu]

Haru
Get the Ameda..much cheaper than the Medela PIS..somemore PIS is quite bulky..

 

[haru]

hi zhuzhu,
thanks! i will check out the Ameda!=D

 

[bvbride]

heyhey

WElcome back Mr Wu
can see u are suffering from w/drawal symptoms .. again hor - thatz the effect Maldives have on people who love it sooo much
did u shed a tear on your way to the airport??
Weather looks great man - u must be v v tanned

glad that you enjoyed yourself and didnt forget to post your pix here

Ok mummy talk time
Haru : me used Ameda too - very easy to operate but dun drop the bottles or any of the plastic parts cos they crack real easy!
u can check out www.mumsfairy.com.sgthey have a whole suite of pumping accessories

Welcome back T and P!
want to post my Hotsling pix here but cam not w me and being IT un savvy i always got prob resizing the picture - always got file too large error msg la.. haizzz give up
has Jarrett dozed off in the sling? its qt comfy for them to snooze in - kieran wil snooze in it especially when i go shopping w him in the sling...sometimes he will snooze while i have a quick bite!!
btw how did u sterilise your pump while on the move all the time during your trip?? just curious ah...

Starstar: will catch you fabulous self in the upcoming Shape mag

am sure u look fab now

leaner, more tanned and glowy

Zhuzhu: no time to try the brown rice beehoon yet
still on alpha pasta - he loves it so far. just back to the 5grain rice thingy - must blend after cooking to make it smoother and more easily digestable right?? the other time i blended before cooking but it wasn smooth enough and Kieran didnt take too well to that...

Aiyoh must report that i was pick pocketed while shopping at Mango at VIvo!!!! i must have gone crazy looking at all those fab clothes and didnt notice anyone grabbing my phone from my tote!!!
so guys pls email me your contact??? THANK U!!!!or those who has my no pls hor just sms me? thank u!!!

[email protected]

will pop in when im free again!!
CHEERS!!!

 

[haru]

zhuzhu,
i have bot a packet of e brown rice bee hoon but have yet to cook it leh. any simple recipes to share??=P somehow to lazy to cook, mayb i should just bring it to mum's place and let her cook it.hahah..

bvbride,
oh dear!!! so sorry to hear bout ur handphone...understand how frustrating it can be. =Z

 

[truffles__pearls]

bvbride,

wow..so the talk abt Vivo with lots of pickpockets is true! I better b careful when I go there. with a stroller, one tends to b a bit careless sometimes.

re. hotsling, jarrett's liking it. He doesn't have the oppt to doze in it yet cos i always only use it for a little while, like from home to carpark. We usually use the stroller or bjorn when out with him. BUT...whenever he sits in the sling, he'll rest his head on my chest..aww...melt whenever he does tat. Recently he has learnt how to kiss kiss and hug hug too...aiyo..whenever he does tat, I feel everything i have done is worth it.

As for the sterilizing pump, eh..i pump n throw leh while on the trip, so dun need to sterilize. But when I go out for meetings, I will sterilize the pump first, put it into a fresh new ziplock each time, then put into my pigeon fridge to go to keep "Fresh".

Zhuzhu,
where to buy organic brown rice bee hoon?

 

[haru]

T&P,
thats soooo sweet!!! i am melting just thinking of Jarrett snuggling to his mummy..aw....

 

[kazataza]

Vivo pickpocket?!?!?!? i didnt know about it leh.....u mean it's common there? i go there almost once every 2 weeks or more leh...so far, ok for me..think i look poor....so they won't target me oso...

 

[happy_ting]

hi maldives lovers

there is a promotion for clubmed maldives now for the natas fair. one for one package.

I just checked and it cost $4005 for 2 pax inclusive airtax for a 6day5night for clubmed maldives. isnt that super good deal??! i am definately heading down to natas fair this friday. just sharing this info with u guys

 

[ryo]

Yo Folks,

Naughty pickpocket... Thanks bvbride for the reminder... probably they are everywhere in the crowded place.

okok... relax abit.. since weekend is coming near. Did a photomontage on my Maldives trip with a nice Maldivian songs(Name of the group is called Mezzo)with the help from my bro Alex.... Hope it'll be entertaining for all the mummy here!

http://www.depixel.sg/slideshows/wu-maldives/

cheers! n Have fun!

 

[ryo]

Hi Meiting,

I reckoned it's a good deal for that price. I guess that it should be all inclusive package right? Probably it's gonna be a normal room, but still, worth it lah..as it only cost about 2K per person(If u booked SQ now, per ticket w/tax alone will cost > 1K liao).... Go Go Go!

Anyway... like to share a photomontage clip to showcase my trip with a wonderful Maldivian song(Bought in Male Airport). Have Fun eh!

http://www.depixel.sg/slideshows/wu-maldives/

Cheers!

 

[haru]

omigosh Wu,
ur photomontage super nice lor!!! number 1 is all the great shots and effects, and number 2 is the great scenery!!!!

 

[happy_ting]

omg!! it's sooooooo beautiful!!! I got to show this to my bf!

yup, it's a normal room, they called it beach villa.. for 6days at this pricing, i think it's a good deal. All inclusive pricing. but later i will go down natas fair to confirm again.

ur resort definately looks very tempting to me! but too bad my pocket cannot afford. hopefully in near future I can afford to go.. it's called W hotel is it?

 

[pcw]

hey bro Wu, you evil lah, we are slowly getting over Maldives and now you dig our beautiful memories out again with this posting sigh.... going to take us another few weeks to bury it and get over our Maldives blues haha...

 

[porsche]

Meiting: is the infor available online?

 

[happy_ting]

i think u go uob website should have this info. is for uob card promotion, during the natas fair.. if not, u can call chan brothers to ask. but it's only valid for booking by this sunday.

i absolutely love the resort Wu went to! after seeing his clip, i scare club med might disappoint me.. will go to mal-dives.com to see the pricing of W spa retreat..

 

[ryo]

Yo Meiting,

Yup, W resort & spa, or W-hotel.
Remember I did some photoshop enhancement lah. But it's as close as you can get when viewing thru a sunglass, i.e. sky will turn more blue, so does the sea...
Dun wory, clubmed is a really good choice as well, similar sand, sea n sky. If it's a beach villa, it's pretty good liao.. I think there's a lower grade room in Clubmed though.

My other photos are kept in my multiply account below, go show your bf... ask him to bring u there la! kekeke.....:-

http://ryonpepper.multiply.com/photos/album/53/W-resort_Spa_Maldives_2008
http://ryonpepper.multiply.com/photos/album/54/W-Resort_Spa_Maldives_2008

Yo PCW bro...

I'm evil to myself also lah.... miss Maldives so much... but hey.. treat it as a reminder to work hard and save for our next trip mah! Anyway, it's usual lah.. until now, I'm still thinking of my previous trip, 2006 leh.!
Actually I'm not evil..... it's becos u have ganna the Maldives' poison liao... called the Maldives FEVER! Haaaa....

Eh.. bro... Maldives low season rates gonna start from Mid May 2009...so start planning... If not, clubmed can be a good choice also, their rate doesn't seems to follows the other.

I'm definitely planning for my trip next year!!! Time fly n soon it'll be 2009.

Cheers!

 

[luvz17]

Wu,
is it confirmed that low season always start from mid may?

better start finding out more, so that i can plan my trip properly.when i surf mal-dives.com, there is a choice of meal plan. Dor what i gather from this thread, it is recommended to have halfboard. Am I right?

then how about the transfer? if you don't require, then how can you get to the resort? or is it a must to choose seaplane?

Someone pls enlighten me..
thanks

 

[pcw]

hey bro, thanks for the headsup on the low period, will start planning after chrismas lah haha... But the next trip we are likely looking for a resort with night transfer. Been on a seaplane already, so don't have to go on it again.. so clubmed is certainly one choice but the water villa is expensive lah, so may not go for water villa this round. Anyway, alot of choices lah, will look out for resort promotion.

To temporary bring down our fever, we planned to go clubmed this december but not the Maldives one lah, going to the Bintan one, cheaper "medication" to bring down the temperature ;-p

 

[ryo]

Hi luvz17,

yeah.. as far as I know, low season starts from Mid May till Mid July. You will thus see free nites stay and lower rates being offer from various resort.
Depends on Resort, some would force you to go for full board, half board or all inclusive.

Personally I recommend to choose only breakfast. 1stly I dun eat much, and the breakfast spread is pretty good for those resort that I went b4. thus, after breakfast I'll be feeling rather full all the way till say 4pm. By the time, dinner is almost not far away. I would probably just eat some biscuit/titbits that we brought or order some light meals(<USD10) and share with my wife.

1)Hilton Maldives offers 5pm free teabreak, during my visit there in 2005. So no lunch for me.
2)Mirihi Maldives have finger food at affordable price.. so again, no lunch for me.
3)W-hotel have free ice-cream/drinks range 24hrs, n 5pm always got someone knocking on our doors, give us some cake, chocolate stuff... so again no lunch for me/

However, most resort would allow you to opt for meals upgrade when u are there. So just go with breakfast 1st, and reach there if you find the lunch/dinner spread suit you, n you feeling hungry... then go for half board/full board.

Anyway, I still prefer to restaurant HOpping to eat things that I can choose. To go half/full board, most likely you can eat in only 1 of the restaurant.

Hope this information helps.

But do contact the resort u are visit to check on the meals upgrade option, i.e can you choose to upgrade when you're there.

Cheers!

So where are you intending to go? any resort preference? hee

transfer will be arrange by your resort, either by seaplane or speedboat or domestic flight plus speedboat.

This transfer is a must loh.

those resort further away from Male will need seaplane transfer(overnight stay required), i.e. North/south Ari Atoll.

As for those very far up north or south might need domestic flight to the domestic airport instead, then transfer by speedboat.

 

[pcw]

Hi Luvz17, i can help you in the meal plan. I booked the full board the last round but will probably go for half board in our next trip (if there's a next trip). First you got to ask your partner and yourself can you guys go without lunch? Basically half board provides breakfast and dinner, whereas full board provides all three meals. The meals are usually buffet style so if you guys go for a late heavy breakfast and can tahan till dinner time, then go for halfboard.

As for transfer, it depends on the resort you choose whether it's far from the airport. If it is far from the airport, usually it will be on seaplane and as for the nearby resorts, ferry should be able to take you there in less than 30mins. You definitely need either seaplane or ferry transfer and would recommend you book with the transfer since it's your first trip and you may not know where to board the ferry or seaplane, at least someone from the agency can guide you.

 

[ryo]

Yo PCW bro,

Bintan got clubmed meh? Bali issit? kekeke... anw... not familiar with Bali nor Bintan.

Went to Bintan once... really hate it. lousy food, lousy room, wife ganna attack by sandfly...that will be my last trip to Bintan. Haa.
Can try Thailand resort also... got very nice one, i.e. Racha.

Actually hor, thailand, bali got very very nice resort, just that the sand/sea/sky lose out to Maldives loh.....Hmm... I might also try that to temp stop my Maldives fever as well!! kekeke.......

thanks for suggesting on the temp remedy... Hee.

 

[pcw]

Oh yes there's a clubmed at bintan. I usually go bintan only for golf (day trip) so never go to the beach. I think i only stayed two nights at bintan Banyan Tree some years back, very very nice villa, abit like Maldives but expensive and you are right, the sun and sea can't compare lah. Oh better not talk too much as it wasn't a trip with my wife

Went bali around four times, twice passing by while on the way to Timor Leste. The other two times was on holiday. For Bali, the nice beaches are at Nusa Dua and Sanur, kuta is horrible. Ubud is really nice but the resorts are expensive and don't think it's near the beach area.

Racha? never heard before, must go and do some research already

 

[happy_ting]

hi wu

went to natas fair earlier, an agency strongly recommend me baros. from the photos, it looks good. he told me is one of the good water villa in maldives.. can give some comments?

 

[ryo]

Hi PCW,

Hahhaa.... who do you went with then? I see. I think for bintan, can only go to Banyan, clubmed or Angsana at least. Can forget about the rest.
Ah... Racha, my biz partner went before... a very nice boutique resort. Check out the pics here!
http://ausplanner.multiply.com/photos/album/32/The_Racha

Hi Meiting,

Baros is not bad as well. My memory of baros is old, but in fact I think it went thru some refurbishment recently.
http://www.baros.com/baros-specials.php

Baros is not tat cheap as well... small island, but rooms looks really cosy to me, nice bath tub, flat screen TV, DVD/Cd, wireless internet..... thus doesn't come cheap.
The Water villa is about 92sqm which is pretty big liao I would say.

I think it's worth a try la...go for it. however ,bear in mind that this will be different from Clubmed. I would say it's shld similar feeling, touch as compare to Mirihi &amp; W-resort, i.e small island, quiet, kampong feeling.....Clubmed would be somewat like Conrad n those bigger resort with more facilities such as swimming pool, more restaurants...

Please check out the price also...if it cost more than USD700++ per nite during low season... then I think I'll rather choose W or even huvafenfushi, probably by adding USD150++ more per nite. Or alternatively I would rather pay USD350++ for Mirihi(slightly older resort, but I still think its priced relatively low for their standard).

Eh... forgotten when you are going liao? this Oct?

 

[porsche]

jus back from natas...

most of the agency like dunno how to promote maldives... maybe the profit margin not high and its not their forte... quite disappointed...

 

[ryo]

Hi porsche,

Most agency here only deal with a few resort such as Bandos, Fullmoon,Laguna and other nearby island around Male. Can check out Holiday tours, as Maldives is one of their speciality. However, their rates seems to be much ex now, compare to previous years.

For Maldives, I guess the most important consideration is still budget...with a healthy budget, the choice will be left with only a few resorts, likely less than 10.

What are you looking for in those resort? hope I can help out.

Cheers!

 

[porsche]

Hi Wu

I am looking for a nice resort with a v tight budget though... I was considering the offer from ClubMed but did not want to go to such a crowded and family oriented resort...

I am now considering Mauritius ..

 

[ryo]

Hi Porsche,

I understand that....perhaps you can check out Mirihi Maldives. just a 36 rooms(6 Beach Villas n 30 Water water villas), as quiet as your very own resort. Only thing is that it's now moving towards the shoulder period, thus rates will go up for sure.

Mauritius is a very good choice indeed, never been there but heard lots of great stuff there as well. Advantage over Maldives is definitely more land mass....but most of the resort there are bigger establishment with full facilities though.

anyway, good luck in your search, hope that you can find a resort that suit your needs

 

[zhuzhu]

t&amp;P
u can get the brown rice bee hoon from NTUC or shop n save..i even saw brown rice sphagetti..

 

[porsche]

Hi Wu, you seems to be concerned with Mauritius being bigger establishments with full facilities.

May I know the reasons?

 

[ryo]

Hi Porsche,

Hahaa......no lah, just that you are saying you do not want to go to crowded and family oriented resort. Those in resort Mauritius are somewhat bigger than those found in Maldives(at least judging from the pictures). My concern is always with the large resort...sure to be more crowded than smaller ones.

I hate going to crowded resort... especially those in Malaysia, i.e. Redang n tioman(went there many times).
I think it's probably age catching up on me la... hahaha... dun like too many ppl to disturb me.

 

[porsche]

haha...agree with u Wu...

This is my concern with the ClubMed Maldives offer although the price is pretty low...

I went to Aleenta in Phanburi last time and its amazing...just 10 little suite ard in this secluded area...haha...

 

[ryo]

hi porsche,

Hmm.. I heard about Aleeta as well..

I reckon hor... for Clubmed maldives, it wouldn't be like those in Malaysia where ppl queue for buffet food(1/2 hr ~ 1Hr in advance...b4 buffet is open, I encounter b4 in Redang)...

The magical thingy about Maldives is hor.... u'll likely find the resort deserted especially in the morning, n likely nite time or even hot sunny afternoon. ppl will suntan quietly... most ppl would be hiding in their rooms for the aircon, or taking a nap.

I think if it's the clubmed water villa... it's really worth a try.
In fact Many ppl think Mauritius is probably the same as Maldives, but it's not loh.. especially the sand n water quality(especially those in Mirihi Maldives)...

Anyhow, decision is on you...hehehe....dun have to rush la... just have to be comfortable with your own decision...those places will wait for you for sure.

Cheers!

 

[porsche]

thanks for yr advice...

deadline for clubmed offer has passed..anyway the offer is not applicable for the water villa..so sad...

told myself if i ever go to maldives, i will want to stay in the water villa...haha...

thus this time round i will prob give it a miss...but i will definitely make a trip one day...

 

[bvbride]

hey WU

Fantastic Montage
Every image is droolsome...and im watchin on a MONDAY morning jus before work
GOod Job

CHeerS!!

 

[luvz17]

Thanks, Wu and PCW!

It means I have the choice if I want breakfast only/ half board/ full board right? Can I determine later when I check in the hotel or must be upon booking?

You mean there are few restaurant within the resort for you to restaurant-hopping? I always thought there is only 1 in each island...Oh no, what a big mistake..

I thought transfer by seaplane is cool..so must choose North/ South Ari Atoll yah?

As I mentioned before, I hope to stay at 2 different resort. And you have recommended few resorts. I have not really gone through those resorts, but some of them eg Baros, Huvafen Fushi really leave me a deep impression of the place..from their gallery photos.

PCW, so it is actually too much to get full board? Are the food served the same throughout or with varieties to choose from?

 

[pcw]

Hi luvz17, ok i can only answer you base on the resort i went to as i am sure different resorts may offer differently. Kuredu has four restaurants because it's one of the bigger island with a lot more accomodation, thus they have more restaurant to cater to more people. Other smaller island may just have one or two restaurants i guess. As for the food served, lunch and dinner are different everyday, breakfast is the same throughout my stay there. Yes, the buffet spread is big, alot of food to choose from. First four days, we are ok with the full board cos we love eating but the last two days, just bored and lazy to walk to the restaurant and don't feel like eating... hmm... maybe it's the maldives fever virus kicking in haha...

Will leave it to the Maldives Guru Wu to help advise you.

 

[alice118]

Anyone go maldives on sept??

 

[alice118]

Hello..Anyone going maldives on this coming Sept or this year?? can share some ideas??
i think to go..but SQ flight seem all is night flight..reach there already waste one day..back also..i like W retreat resort..

 

[ryo]

Yo PCW bro... aiya I'm not Guru... I suspect I'm have Maldivian blood....kekeke...

Yo luvz17,
According to my info..kekek... u can opt for meal upgrade when you reach the resort. Please check out from the resort you are going 1st before booking.

at least to make sure. For Conrad, we can do that... upgrade whenver we like for 1 day.. also can.

Actually not neccesary must be Ari Atoll...most of the north/south Male atoll uses speedboat transfer... probably less the 1 hr for the furthest.
Check out the Maldives map below. Other area, most likely by seaplane... or if u opt for a yatch to pick u up at the Airport lah...at extra charge. I think USD2k...ex.. but once in a lifetime experience. Hee..
http://www.mal-dives.com/maldives/holidays/resorts/maldives_resort_location_map.php

For North Male atoll, you got lots of choices for island hopping... like Huvafen, O&amp;O, 4 seasons, soneva gili these high end ones.. else u can do banyan, angsana, Taj exotica, Baros

For Ari Atoll, can island hopp Conrad, Mirihi &amp; W...

Reason I always choose BB is, we cannot eat much, we prefer ala carte food, can opt to upgrade when we are there. And if the resort have many restaurant, if you opt for full board, most likely u can only eat at the main restaurant... then if you want to try other food in another restaurant, they will only give you say 15% discount on the food, while you already pay for the full board.

But hor, if you n ur hubby can eat, by all means... chiong, a varieties of dishes!!! I wish I can eat alot but my stomach is getting smaller....hee.

Cheers!

Wu

 

[ryo]

Hi Alice, can join us in the other Maldives thread also.

If you intend to go during Sept, must book soon, as resort will run out of rooms soon.

Yup, SQ fly at nite, reach there 10pm(Maldivian time), by the time u check in shld be 11pm++
A 5D3N option is actually a 2 nite option indeed, wasting the 1st nite.
You can opt for additional 1 nite stay in the airport hotel or Male hotel, then check in the resort in the morning, thus noT wasting the 1st nite.

I Just came back from W.... very nice resort... worth going!!

Give it a try, no regrets for sure. Try to opt for the Ocean Oasis instead... better value.

Cheers!

Wu

 

[ryo]

Hi Alice,

can't PM you because u have lock your PM, not allowing PM.

To answer your queries, I always booked from the Maldives agent, online booking at:-http://www.mal_dives.com

Their rates is one of the lowest I found so far, better than local agent.

And to be frank, SQ flight back from Male is also night flight and I always experience turbulence on the way back... but really there's nothing to worry. Just sleep and soon you know, you'll be back in Singapore.
Night flight is similar to day flight, just dark and nothing to see outside. Just relax, watch some movie or sleep.

For W-hotel, you need to transfer by seaplane, which I think you'll enjoy, it's a wonderful sight flying over Maldives. It's safe, and the take off n landing(even though it's on water), it's at times even more smooth than the normal 747,777 planes.

Please kindly let me know if you need any more information on Maldives or W hotel.

Cheers!

 

[alice118]

saw u say experience turbulence..i feel scare already..haha..

anyway thanks ur reply..but that website u give me is cheap mah?? why dun online W resort website to book?? nt cheap than this website mah??

u went for how many days??

 

[haru]

Happy National Day to everyone!!!

 

[ryo]

Hi Alice,

I also scare... truthfully. Feel like taking roller coaster. It might be geologically reason though... always simliar location sure got turbulence.
But hey, look at the brighter side, Maldives is such a beautiful place.... turbulence or not, it's worth it...

Yep, it's the cheapest(www.mal_dives.com or Impex) I found when I do a comparison. Booking direct is more ex, dun know why, even though they guaranteed lowest rates.

Impex rates already include all taxes, meaning nett price(the 10% Svc charge n USD8 per pax bed tax is all in).

I went for 9 nites(1 nite in Male, 8 nites in W)

 

[pcw]

The color of your Maldivian blood must be ocean or sky blue haha...