Maldives

[ryo]

Hey christie,

WElcome to the thread.... I would recommend low season if you wanna make full use of your money. However, MAldives weather is unpredictable. But so far my 3 trips there during 1st July ~ 9th july are ok. Occasionally shower, some overnite storm, but I still got Indian looking tan.

I would always recommend to go for a longer time to spread the risk of being caught in a rain that last for say 2-3 days(I never encounter that though). The worst is a terrible storm during my departure day that lasted from early morning till departure..about 7hours.

Yeah.. I say just go for Maldives. Boracay? I would rather go redang, rawa or even tioman.

Most agent would need you to settle full payment during booking. Whereas direct booking with resort, you'll settle all payments on ur last day. Normally agent rates is cheaper unless the resort gives guaranteed best rates.

Any idea which island u wanna to go? Now you need to set a budget and we can discuss with you on your needs and requirement for a suitable resort. i.e good spa? fine dining? good diving spots etc...

 

[mooncloud]

Wu> thanks for the great amt of info. Err... I am quite clueless about what different islands have to offer actually. I am prob looking for nice comfy rooms, prob water villas and best if it has jacuzzis in the rooms. Not that much into fine dining. We will prob only do a few. Had plentiful of fine dining during my honeymoon. Think it's enuff. I will prob snorkel around. Hubby don't swim. He belongs to the laze on the beach or aiak in the jacuzzi kind of person. And I would love a good spa if budget allows. I am trying to stretch for 7 nights over at Maldives but prices are so steep. Hilton seems possible for 7 nights during may plus a bit of luxury. I did consider Conrad but prices were wow. Ha. Hoping to do within 10k. So either go for shorter trip or less luxury. Dilemma. Most high ends seem to require a 15k budget for longer stays.

 

[veracity]

WU: "kekkee... it's your choice really. My second trip there, all I want to do is to get out of Male island ASAP. You might have a even better pool at Hilton u know.
Most of my check in is at 10am, after requesting for the earliest flight... rooms is plentiful as probably I always go Maldives in July(low season)."

Does tt mean there's actually rm for negotiation to check in much earlier? Wow 10am chk-in you have is v early. As I said, at Hilton it's 2pm. Yes, am in a 'dilemma' lah. I don't wanna end up sleeping insufficient on my 1st night + not being able to 'enjoy' Holiday Inn, which I oso paid a fair bit for + reaching Hilton say around lunchtime & not having a rm yet. Dunno if these concerns of mine are founded.

 

[ryo]

Hi Christie,

Till now I'm clueless as well in a way. Becos we dun have much info about most of the resort. It's only based on hearsay, some studies and read up about the resort on the internet and from tripadvisor. Then again, what those ppl though it's good might be only ok for you. Thus the trick is just take a leap and see for yourself.

My 1st trip turn out magical, second one total relaxation and third one heaven.... so every resort surprises you.

Its a fact that with good money buys u good resort and amenities... really no choice though. But the real enjoyment there in Maldives is the environment, the beautiful white powdery beaches, turqoise sea and wonderfully sun that Tanned u without burning. Haa...

Hmm... ok, I'm summarised your needs.

1)7 Nites in a Water villa with preferably jacuzzi/or perhaps dive pool
2)Nice house reef with plentiful fishes and stuff to see.
3)Probably nice beaches to relax.
4)Good spa at affordable rates.
5)Not particular about food, reasonable will do.

I would suggest the following to save cost:-

1)possible a island Hopping stay in one luxury resort and a 4stars one... to enjoy the best of both world. Luxury and affordable food/spa.

2)A reasonable 5stars resort with both water villa stay beach villa stay.

3)Or a 4stars resorts and enjoy the best out of that resort with more spas session, special dinner(dining robinson crusoe style,under the stars kind of private dining),private sunset cruises, and perhaps attending some scuba diving course?

10k is good money 3-4yrs ago when SQ flight is cheap and Maldives resort rates at about 30~50% less. But I reckon this 10k is ok if you opt for low season travel, i.e mid May to Mid July.
Take note that SQ rates is currently at 1.2k per pax. It'll be effectively taking up 24% of your budget. its really ridiculous for them to charge so high for a 4hrs flight. What you can do is to buy miles from ppl. That might save u some cost.

If you opt for a resort that need seaplane flights, it's gonna take up a good amount of about USD660 for 2 pax return. A resort that accessible by speedboat, the transfer is probably about 1/2 ~ 1/3 of the seaplane flight rates.

So you see... perhaps 40% of your budget will go just to transfer.

I spend about a total of 15k for 8nites 2 years back in W Resort n Spa Maldives, and at that time the cost is still pretty low(i.e SQ at 700 per pax, and resort rates is also lower.) And W is not consider the high end ones... probably mid high end only.

But dun be discourage, those resort sometimes will have offer such as free nites, free transfer etc... that might save you some money.

Let me search out some resort that might suit your needs and will let u know soon...

But off course it's based on this year rates. NExt year they might just increase again...

ok?

Meantime just check out this website for informative Maldives map and alot of resort to see see look look... Their price is not the cheapest bit just have a few of those different resort.

http://www.mal-dives.com/

and then check out tripadvisor.com as well for reviews by tourist.

Have fun browsing!!!

 

[ryo]

Hi Veracity!

All early check in is subject to availability though. Probably I'm just lucky... always have rooms. The longest I waited is Conrad Maldives, check in at about 12pm... weird becos we are supposingly the 1st customer in that villa when Conrad reopens after refurbishment from the Tsunami(2004).

In Holiday inn Male, the surrounding is like errmmm... probably like Chinatown ba. So My idea is I rather fly early to enjoy the resort amenities(even late checkin), and off course hoping for early checkin.
If not, I can put my luggage down with the recept, I can relax at the beach... sun tan, swim , walk around the island to recce, or have some food at the bar before checking in, even at 2pm.

and yes you concerns is there, as if you ask for the earliest seaplane flight at 7am, u need to get up at about 4am, leave Male at 5am, reach Hilton seaplane transfer lounge at about 6am and wait for the seaplane. Thus u might have only max 4 hours sleep(u'll probably settle down at about 12am after checking in Holiday inn).
At first I'll feel tired... and once I reach the seaplane lounge... I'm getting excited and once on the seaplane I'm already fully awake!

REally depends on you....

but if you wanna to take it slow and no rush, do just enjoy at holiday inn and fly the noon time seaplane... and enjoy the beautiful view!

Hope it helps and not confusing. After ur 1st trip, the second will be easy.

 

[veracity]

Hi Wu

Thanks! I'll discuss more w my hubby but I think we'd not wanna rush for its own sake - holiday mah!

Gg by the timing example you gave - wow does it take 1 hr to get fr Male to the airport island? I thought it's just like several min speedboat ride?

Also, I dunno if the seaplane terminal is within the airport itself or what - do you know if the Holiday Inn pple will bring me to the Hilton terminal, or just drop me somewhere and I have to make my own way there somehow?

Sorry, I know I can sound a bit confused... it's all the details details! ;-)

Much appreciate all the help. Haha, u talking about 2nd trip liao... ;-)

BTW, can we wait till we arrive & meet up with the Hilton & HI (Holiday Inn) reps and only then decide on our desired seaplane & various transfer timings?

 

[mooncloud]

Hi Wu,

You really make a fantastic Maldives ambassador! Ha.. Feel so happy with all your help. At least i feel a bit less confused. The way you describe Maldives makes me want to fly there now. 'The environment, the beautiful white powdery beaches, turqoise sea and wonderfully sun that Tanned u without burning' sounds so wonderful.

I will probably settle for low season after your suggestion. In this case probably it will be end may (since its my anniversary). Probably can go for a longer trip. I was looking through your suggestions and just a few questions.

1) When u mention island hopping stay, how do we go abt it?Do we have to plan our own transfers or we can arrange with the hotels? And any idea how much the cost is? I did consider this as I am worried that if i book a 4 star one, later i end up regretting not paying more to be in a more luxurious one. Ha.. Want to play safe. But island hopping sounds confusing.

2)How do we go about booking both water villa and beach villas for the same stay? Do they have that option on those internet agents? Seem like you can only select to book one type. I was playing around and trying to get quotes but i can only select one type per trip. Or do I have to do 2 separate bookings? Coz some websites like agoda make it compulsory to charge in the seaplane/speedboat transfer. I end up having to punch the calculator. Feel like an accountant. Ha..

Option 3 with the 4 stars resort sounds not too bad. More spas, special dinner and the private sunset cruise sounds romantic. Hmm... Wondering if their rooms are comfy enuff. Like what you mention, the problem is that we hardly have sufficient info abt the quality of the resort till we are there. Even some ratings of 5 star may only turn out to be 4 star quality. Just worried that a 4 star one that i choose end up to be 3 star. A couple of years back i went over to bintan for a short trip. Chose bintan lagoon which was supposed to be 5 star but it turned out to be quite old. Quite disappointed. So trying to avoid the same thing happening.

How do i go about buying miles? A bit confused till now about the mileage system. I have yet to even claim my miles since coming back for US. Horrible. I am procrastinating. Do they have those 2-to-go promotions for male? Or they stop having it recently? I guess there is no other alternative but to include the flight cost.

For the seaplane, i am actually pretty neutral with the plane/speedboat. But seems like everyone is gushing abt the seaplane. Is the experience magical and a must?? I went for a floatplane ride just this yr and my heart almost dropped to the ground coz we met a turbulence halfway up in the sky. Ha.. Any turbulences on the seaplane?? I got a weak heart... And is the view really a must from the seaplane? I think my hubby would love it. He was so hyped up after the floatplane ride this yr (though i was turning green).

And yesh.. a lot of the resorts do not have pricing out for next yr's low season. I guess i am a bit too early. I wanted to go during nov so was planning but decided to put it off till may next yr in order to stretch my dollar. Well.. prob you can give suggestions on what u think is a must have in your standards. If the seaplane is like one of the highlights you can just let me know. I will prob try to rob a bank in order to increase my budget for the trip. Ha... Tentatively hoping to do within 10k. But well.. i usually tend to burst my budget (which is very bad).

And yupyup.. am looking through all the various websites that all of you are suggesting. Taking time to read the reviews too. Don't wish to make a hasty decision and regret it later.

Thanks a lot for your help. Was so touched esp when you mentioned helping me find some resorts. Thanks a million...

Veracity> I am praying for you that your trip is lovely. Then i can follow you on your choices!!! Ha.. Please remember to come back after your trip k? Need your advice too!

 

[ryo]

Hi Veracity,

hahaha... true enuff..

for me I'm rushing to get off Male ASAP. kekeke...

No, From Male to Airport island it's only 5-10mins boat ride. It's the waiting and dili-dali things that is wasting time. Waiting for checkout from Holiday inn, waiting for the person to pick u up. Arranging taxi ride from Holiday inn to jetty etc....

Once the rep brought u to the airport island, they'll hand u over to a Hilton resort rep. Hilton folks will be arranging your bus ride to the Seaplane transfer lounge, which is across the other side of the runway. A 15mins bus/coach ride. By the time u saw the HIlton rep it's all gonna be much smoother. They will handle ur checkin luggage all the way to resort. Just remember to take ur hand carry luggage.

Hahaa... Once u leave the resort on your last day, you'll be thinking about 2nd trip liao.

The Seaplane timing will be automatic arrange by the Hilton folks. If u dun request, it'll be auto. For me, I always request for the 1st flight(at about 7am), where the sun just rises over the horizon. Absolutely stunning...u'll see it at the seaplane terminal when u opt for the 1st flight.
The seaplane timing(even u request or be it decided by them) will only make known to you once u reach MAldives on your 1st nite. By then u cannot decide or change the time liao as most flight will be full. it's probably a 20 seat plane only where it might land at a few resorts dropping/picking others off/up before reaching ur destination.

If u dun request for specific timing, They'll give u a 11am-12pm flight as most resort checkin time is 12-2pm. Still... the decision will be by them.

Just give you another tips, try to ask for late checkout on ur last day(if u r not planning for other things in Male). Write to hilton to request now(off cos they'll say subject to availability).
Then when u r there at Hilton resort, try to ask for late checkout days before ur departure. It's becos if u got nothing else to do in Male or other planning on ur last day, the last day can be boring. It's a waiting game, waiting for the 10pm SQ flight. Checkin only 8pm. So lets say u checkout at 12pm, seaplane at 2pm... u reach the airport at 3pm... u got another 7hours to go for your flight. There's absolutely nothing to do there at Hulhulhe airport.

If u ask for late checkout(off cos complimentary la... becos it's subject to charges depending)..say as late as 4pm.. you reach Hulhulhe airport at say 6pm... it's still not as bad, as it's only a 2hours plus wait before u can checkin. AFter u checkin, there's another 2hrs wait before flight. But at least there's a couple of shops for u to shop around and it's aircondition.

I really hate the last day though.... but unfortuately, the SQ timing is not in favour of us Singaporean(reaching in the morning 7am). It's catered for transfer passenger who are going back Korea,Japan and China. Really sad isn't it... Hmmm...

 

[ryo]

Yo Christie;... chat with u later... gonna settle some work 1st...kekekek.. later boss scold. Haaa.

 

[mooncloud]

Wu> no prob.. better do work first... Ha.. just remember to come back can liao. No hurry..

 

[patndrew]

Hi Veracity,

On your way back, can you help me get the Maldives Resort Guide 2010, English, from the airport departure hall, its about USD 39.
If you dont mind, i can pass you the USD before you set off....

I regret not buying the book!!!

 

[ryo]

Hey Christie,

Back.. Ha. Yes it does make sense to go during the low season. But there are ppl who cannot fork out time to go during that time or other commitment. Rates can be as high as 2X during the peak season for some resort... and don't forget about the crowd as well, when ppl will fly in from winter to Maldives.

I will get hyper active when I see ppl go Maldives.. and when I discuss with folks here, who know it'll trigger another trip to Maldives myself.

My 1st ever trip there is being trigger by a powerpoint slides, sent by my friend. The last page of the slide infact ask us to stop dreaming and go to work. Ha....

1)ok regard to ur question... Island Hopping is not difficult. Basically is to book 2 resorts that is within reach, preferably by speedboat, not more than 30mins away, within the same Atoll(i.e South ari Atoll, North Ari Atoll etc... and not from Male Atoll to Ari atoll.. which is simply too far).
The transfer of speedboat can be arrange by the 1st resort that you're staying. Alot of ppl actually did that. I try once before, but it's to visit another island resort. The resort will charge by per way basis and per boat rates. Technically, the nearer the transfer the cheaper will be. All charges are determine by resort to resort.

2)For internet agent booking, don't use the onine booking system. Just write straight to the reservation counter and they'll settle everything. Same goes for direct booking thru
Resort themselves.

3)Yes indeed. The resort classification standards is misleading. ALthough some resort are 5stars, they have all amenities, their rooms are inferior to some 4stars resort. For Maldives, you have to take a closer look. Some so call 5stars resort are mass market one... alot of rooms and it'll be very crowded. You'll not feel the calmness and feeling of castaway. That's the point of going Maldives... The feeling of Castaway.

Haaa.. Bintan's resort... forget about it... can only opt for Banyan tree. Forget about others. I would rather go to Sentosa Siloso beach resort.

So far, no more 2-to-go promo to Maldives. They used to have it pretty often during the downturn. They even used to have 4-to-go right after the Tsunami. I only paid S$598 nett per pax in 2005. Now is S$1.2k ~ 1.4K... take it or leave it.
As for Mileage wise, I always get from my friends who travel often. They can use their mileage to redeem for airtravel and put our names. I'll then compensate them with cash. Depends on ur relationship loh... if they are ok, they might just charge u half price or perhaps free? Haahaha...

There are other airlines such as Sri Lankan and Malaysia Airlines flying to Maldives, transit thru Colombo and KL. I advise.. forget about the hassle, we're being force to take SQ for convenient sake. Unless u r planning for a Europe trip at the same time.... fly to europe for a tour and enroute to Maldives.

Then there're morning flights.

Seaplane travel are safe, dun remember any fatality involving such airplane type.
Not to frighten u...I was on my way back fromo W-resort MAldives, saw a seaplane crash and sink halfway into the sea. The nose and part of the fuselage still above sealevel though. Our pilot still circle around the half sunken plane to check for status. Ha. Judging from the situation, I dun think it's serious.
SEaplane generally fly low, thus unlikely to have turbulence issue. I've taken seaplane during mild storm, and raining situation. It does hang on without any issue. Just that Seaplane cabin is not pressurized... thus it would loud inside due to engine/propeller noise.

It's a once in a life time experience... please do try out seaplane with your hubby.

I always burst my budget as well... it's normal. Haaaa....

No problem... if you've gone thru the very old thread during 2005 ~ 2006. Me, including T&P and many others ladies... we all help out with each others and other 1st time traveller. Now most ladies are mummy liao and they came here less often. BTW, I'm the only daddy here. HAaa...

Ok... will try to formulate various resort for you according to your budget... my pleasure to do it as I enjoy it.

Cheers! Check back later...

 

[ryo]

Hi Christie & others,

A Maldives Map for your reference. This is a powerful tools for planning the island hopping trip. However alot of resort are not inside here and alot of them had already change their name, either rebranding or being sold to the big hotel chain. The Maldives map has actually expanded as well... not physically but the Govt gave permission for more resort to open further up north and the southern tip of Maldives, probably not shown here

http://www.mal-dives.com/maldives/holidays/resorts/maldives_resort_location_map.php

 

[mooncloud]

Wu> you just made me think of Europe plus Maldives!!! But which airlines does the Europe enroute Maldives? Also SQ? The plane ticket sounds expensive.

 

[mooncloud]

Just now was busy at work too.. so only left a short post. Will check out the location maps slowly to see if i want to do the island hopping. Understand the feeling about being triggered by others. Ha.. in fact, just by reading the posts here trigger me to bring forward my plans to go maldives. Europe was supposed to be first. Ha.. Anyway, i do wish to have those castaway kind of feeling. Hate crowds. Best is if i hardly see any other tourist in the island. Ha..

Hmm... understand the part about the airlines. Will prob go with SQ. Trying to see who to target for their mileage. ha.. Anyway, i was tempted by the europe-maldives combination. Did a quick research and it appears that maybe only emirates is possible. But the flight cost 6k for 2!!! Though the benefit of that is that you dun waste a night waiting coz you arrive in the morning. But when u go back, got to transit at dubai to get back to singapore which is nonsense. 4hrs flight turns out to be more than 10 hrs.. Madness... I was still hoping that i can cover both 'must-go' places before i get rushed to become 'mummy' status and have no more freedom. Sigh... Think not possible...

The seaplane sounds like the floatplane in terms of the noise and the non-pressurised part. Think i am suay to kena the turbulence. Coz apparently the floatplane also dun fly low so not supposed to experience it much. Hmm.. In that case i shall try to budget a bit more for that. By right 10k, by left 12k (i will probably survive on grass/rob a bank). Ha..

The fact that a lot of you keep visiting this thread and keep going back to maldives show how lovely the place is.. Ha.. Not to worry. I know u are the only daddy here. Saw your pictures in one of the threads. Think it was taken at W resort. Lovely.

Thanks for the help in formulating the resorts. Hope that my budget is not too restrictive. Ha.. I was playing with the ideal of conrad actually (since you all seem to love that place.. it must be for a reason). Prices are not out for next yr. Using whatever i can, 3 days beach villa and 4 days superior water villa (still die die want the jacuzzi) together with the seaplane and air tic is close to 9k liao.. Sigh...

By the way, how much to budget for expenditure during the trip? For the food, spa, excursions etc.. The special dinner and sunset cruise seems nice..

 

[veracity]

Hey everyone!

Agoda has jz sent me an emailer of hot deals in the Maldives. Thought to share. My gdness, it makes me feel v loogee so I wonder if I shd cancel & re-book... hehe.

Chk it out & I hope it wks out for someone out there!

http://www.agoda.com/specialoffers/default.aspx?city_id=17759

 

[ryo]

Morning ladies.!!

Hi Christie,

Wah... Emirates so ex? Actually not surprising loh. Those folks from Europe often stay like 3-4weeks kind of duration. Really Loaded.

Yup, a float plane is probably the as the seaplane that we'd describe here. Likely the scenary is gonna be very different flying over Maldives Atoll.

How many seater is the float plane u r talking abt? probably less? Anyway hor, the pilot of the Seaplane fly barefooted... What a diff from the normal pilot we know.

Ok lets stretch your budget to 12k then... Haaa.

lets do backward calculation to formulate the most achievable per room per nite rate, taking breakfast only(not full Board) - 7 nites.

12k - SQ [email protected] per pax - seaplane flight - 1nite in Male.

You probably left with about 8.5k. So effectively you're look at about USD6k. Lets target meals per day is USD150, then u'll be left with about USD5k.

So if you dun do any excursion or special stuff, you are able to stay at a resort that charges about USD714 nett per nite rate. That's pretty good money though, but again when u factor in excursion and other special stuff, you'll be left with probably say USD500 per nite category.

So my suggestion for you is a mix n match your stay in a resort, between a beach villa and water villa... or island hopping. Staying throughtout in a water villa in a single resort is possible but will probably settle for a lesser resort, other than those more luxurious one. I wouldn't suggest cutting down on the total nites in order to stay in a better resort. The reason is that u're going there to enjoy the castaway feel and the best part is the sand, sea, corals etc etc..

1)YEs, a good choice is Conrad Maldives...
However my feeling is mixed now. I love it becos that's my 1st ever trip to Maldives. However, such resort sometimes will give u a feel that it's too commercialized... and sometimes abit fake(ppl greet you becos they r told too.. etc.. u know what I mean?)
mix and match a beach villa with it's water villa. Dun think the superior one is really worth the money though, my take is just get the normal Water villa. The superior probably have the jacuzzi but well... you have the entire beautiful water steps away. That's even better then the Jaccuzi. The rates for Conrad seems to have drop this year, probably over charge for the last few years. It's technically island hopping becos beach viila is on one island and water villa is on the other, link by a 500m bridge.

2)ALternatively, you can try a nearby island resort which I also went. Its call Mirihi(10mins speedboat ride away from Conrad) a 4 stars only 36 rooms on this beautiful island. It is a mini conrad becos they have the same designer. I had more castaway feel on this island as compare to Conrad or W. Becos it's very "kampong like" but with beautiful scenary, powdery sand, decent water villas and wonderful coral reefs. I do not have those fake feelings here becos there're less ppl, we're mostly on our own.

3)Angsana resort(Velavaru or Ihuru). Ihuru is just stone throw away from Banyan Tree(Both are at Male Atoll, need only speedboat transfer). Velavaru needs seaplane and theres another adjacent resort call the vilu reef.
Island hop between Banyan tree/Ihuru or Velavaru/Virureef.

4)Island hop between Angsana Iruru(only beach villa) and Huvafenfushi(one of my dream resort). However, the Huvafen's water villa might be ex... but probably possible if theres free nites offer.

5)Island hop between W and Conrad/Mirihi is possible. There are in the Ari Atoll. 40mins speedboat ride between them.

6)The new Shangrila(out of the Map)... I saw they have special rates for July 10, at USD480++... Not sure whether they will have it next year or not.

These are some which I can think off. And also based on the rates that I can remember. The actual cost we'll have to really further calculate though. There are actually limited stuff u can do over there in Maldives.. like you'll probably do 1 thing only once, say fishing, sunset cruises, snorkeling trip etc.. or if some resort has it, like glass bottom boat trip and other seasports if you're into it.
My idea is roughly plan what you want to do and put it down... so that you'll not blow the budget(at least not too much).
Depends on resort, the extra things rates can be very different. So actually if you're free now, can start writing to them to ask for excursion prices, meals menu prices, spa prices etc... They will sent it to you thru emails in PDF/words format. Get a feel of how much they're gonna charge.

Hey if you're going there low season, you still got 1year to plan.

 

[ryo]

Hey Veracity...

Hmmm... u are tempting me..

Some of them are really tempting indeed!!
Hopefully next year I got the chance to go again.

Just a question for you, what does the rewards means from the Agoda web? You'll get that amount as cash rebates or use it for your next trip?

 

[veracity]

Hi Wu

Try to read up on the site? I haven't redeemed mine b4 yet, I jz accumulate 1st.

Sorry, I haven't read mch into it for now... ;-)

 

[mooncloud]

Wu> i am processing the info that you have just given me. Slowly checking out those resorts. The jacuzzi is actually more for my hubby (coz he doesn't swim.. :-S) I will prob just jump straight into the water if i can. Ha.. But thankfully for someone who doesn't like to swim, he seems to love beaches and the ocean so he likes the idea of going to maldives. Which is why i thought while i am entertaining myself swimming around, he can soak in the jacuzzi. Hmm.. Not worth it ah?

As for mirihi, the prices look to be pretty steep too. No? Think i better recheck again. I did look at this resort coz of ur previous posts. But just wondering, are the rooms luxurious? Or comfy and simple? So i get a rough feel... Coz 'kampong' makes me feel as though the rooms are quite bare. Ha.. Or does the 'kampong' relate more to the atmosphere in the resort?

Yet to look up on the other resorts.. will slowly do so.

Will take ur heed on jotting down the excursions and planning. Do the resorts state the different types of excursions they provide?

Ha.. I was originally supposed to be going this nov so i started now. Since doing it then might as well plan a bit here and there. Once start looking up on the info abt maldives, feel so hard to stop! Haha.. daydreaming while working everyday.. Tsk tsk... Ha... veracity tempting u to go next yr? By then i shld be on the way there too then.

Veracity> thanks for the link!

Veracity & Wu> i think the agoda rewards is for the next booking. I kind of clicked on some help button and it seems to indicate that. At least that is to my understanding..

 

[mooncloud]

Wu> left out the info abt floatplane.. floatplane that i took is abt 7 seater including the pilot. Took it when i went alaska this yr. Flew over some fjords and the ocean. Definitely different feel i guess. I was wearing like thick jackets during the flight. Pilot definitely had shoes on too. Ha.. Super cold... And i realised i made a typo error.. it was supposed to be that the floatplane dun fly high... not dun fly 'low'

 

[ryo]

Hi Christie,

Ah.. pardon me..I see. Hmm... based on Agoda's website, both normal and superior water villa are 74 sqm(including balcony). It's consider small as compare to many new resort standard. I've been into one and find it small in comparison. However the quality is there, nice comfy king size bed, and they uses branded stuff. room is wooden so you'll feel very cosy and warm.
Mirihi water villa is slightly smaller at about 53sqm. Room uses basic stuff, bed is ok, interial also made of wood.... as cosy as Conrads one but lack the feel of luxurious though.

Kampong as in the feel, the atmosphere. The common area such as reception, bar and dining area pretty much similar as Conrad(in terms of concept like sandy ground and at nite very cosy, except that Conrad got a much larger common area such as the entertainment block,big gym facing the sea,a very big bar area, nice infinity swimming pool and many more. You'll feel like u're in a bar(not to the extend of a disco) at nite when u are in Conrad, while at mirihi, it's like some fine dining area... quiet. W hotel on the other hand is between the 2. Conrad(beach villas island) seems to be more rowdy, due to it's size and crowd and no. of rooms.
ppl doing surfing, boat ride, jet ski etc....then most of the time its almost impossible to grab a seat near the swimming pool becos those long stay angmo will chop it from morning till evening. Haaa... ridiculous. (when we 1st arrive there, they are there at the swimming pool, when we left the last day, they are still there at the swimming pool, most of them would read a book....faint)
But it's not a bad thing, I enjoy it the 1st and would want to go again, but I would also prefer the calmness of Mirihi.

Conrad has 2 big islands, and alot of walking is necessary. The water villa island is quieter due to less rooms, as all of them are Water villa.They dun have a entertainment block there, only a restaurant call vilu bar, a reception area. This water villa island has the feel of kampong.

In my opinion you can try Conrad beach villa n water villa, enjoy the best of both worlds but the excursion stuff, food,spa and other things tends to be more ex then a 4 stars Mirihi.
Mirihi got excellent house reef, nice affordable food, and the spa(in term of skills) is the best among W and Conrad(if the those balinese ladies are still there la).

Yes, when I email those resort, they'll sent me the excurions price list and some explanation regards to the items. itemized pricing as well.

Yes indeed. It's hard to stop going to Maldives once you've been there. By right I should not recommend Maldives to the locals... as more ppl go, prices will go up. But it's hard not to recommend. Hahahaha...
Do you know Maldives is in the top 10 destination among the most go places for Singaporean now?

anyway, these are my experiences in the resort I'd stayed. dun forget about others as well. In Maldives, you'll never know what you'll get.

Just a rule of thumb.
1)try not to go for those resort that are very near to the airport.
2)try not to choose those mass market resort, i.e. Bandos, Sheraton Fullmoon, Kuredhu, kurumba, Holiday island, lily beach , Veligandu.. just name a few.

Check out mirihi website:- www.mirihi.com also.

Yaaa.... very tempting. All of you are tempting me now...

anw.. in the seaplane u can see boats, islands, coral reefs etc... so consider low for me liao. HA... but it's a must take lah. Very nice view of the MAldives atoll.

 

[ryo]

Hi Christie,

Some details of both Conrad/Mirihi photo for ur reference. Alot of photo... I shoot like mad. SuaKu that time.

Anyway, be patience. At times, alot of luxury resort such as Huvafenfushi, W, soneva gili etc... do have stay 7 nites pay 5 nites kind of promo. Have to really open eyes wide.

Hi Veracity, boat trip to relax inn shown in the Mirihi photo album. Let u have a feel.

Need to sign of for shutterfly to view.
1)Conrad Maldives
http://www.shutterfly.com/lightbox/view.sfly?fid=2b5d4d05221874016cbbd47cbb382743

2)Mirihi Maldives
http://www.shutterfly.com/lightbox/view.sfly?fid=fc662d63b96058066cbbd47cbb382743

Streamline photo album.

1)Conrad
http://ryonpepper.multiply.com/photos/album/2/Maldives_2005_Hilton_Rangali
http://ryonpepper.multiply.com/photos/album/30/Hilton_Maldives_2005_Enhanced_Version

2)Mirihi
http://ryonpepper.multiply.com/photos/album/8/Maldives_2006_Mirihi_Resort
http://ryonpepper.multiply.com/photos/album/19/Mirihi_Maldives_2006_Album_2_Enhanced_version

3)W resort n Spa Maldives
http://ryonpepper.multiply.com/photos/album/53/W-resort_Spa_Maldives_2008
http://ryonpepper.multiply.com/photos/album/54/W-Resort_Spa_Maldives_2008

 

[ryo]

hey ladies... u folks have a nice weekend... I'll be flying off for urgent job oversea..

Have fun here in the thread!!

Talk to u all next week.

 

[patndrew]

I think i have to go back Maldives..... this is making me tampted.....

BTW Wu, thanks for the pictures, Conrad looks quite the same from the pick.
We met a British couple who were there for the 8th times

 

[mooncloud]

PatnDrew> how did you find conrad? Wu is tempting me with all his photos... faint. Cannot decide on what i want in a villa... Which room did you take in conrad? Is it small like wat Wu mentioned?

 

[patndrew]

Hi Christie,

I think Wu must be refering to the standard beach villa, he tried 2 different room types in Conrad, the other is Sunset water villa, which is the largest room in Conrad, and only 2 units in the resort. For that villa, you may have to book directly with Conrad, I didn't see that on the Conrad booking page, or maybe it is always booked.

http://conradhotels1.hilton.com/en/ch/hotels/index.do?ctyhocn=MLEHICI

For me I stayed 2 nights in Deluxe Beach Villa with private plunge pool and short distance to beach. It has an Outdoor garden-bathroom with thatched bathing pavilion and open-air shower(separate shower and bath), very large area, and secluded, i like the plunge pool, nice for a dip after the salt water.
However my hubby likes the water villa, where we stayed for 3 nights, we chose the standard water villa, no jet spa, but its has everything you need. Conrad has 2 island, main island and Vilu island where the water villas are which are for adults only, children are only allow to dine in the restaurants there, no access to the pool or the beach area. (both island has a pool)

For us, we love outdoor, we hardly stay in the room. Usually after breakfast at about 10 to 11, we will go to the pool or the beach, soak or sun, else at the bar, eat, drink or chat with people. some days, we go for trips, island hopping, snorkeling, and night fishing, each day there are different programs available for you to choose. by late afternoon, we will go back to our room, change and dress up for the evening.
at the Vilu bar, 5-6pm free drinks for water villa guest, 6-7pm happy hour 50% off drinks at Rangali bar (main island) there after, we will go for our dinner, there are 7 restaurants in Conrad, all except the buffet restaurant, requires reservation, and the food are good. cost of buffet is about 100USD per person ( we didnt try, cos we dont like buffet), restaurant main course range from 35-50USD. usually we spend about 150 to 200USD a night for meals, we tried a special dinner, lobster and champagne dinner, that was buffet cost 250USD per person, nice but too much food which we didnt eat much, i would rather go for the private beach dinning, also about 500USD for 2 pax. (next time i will try that) best to book before you go, 2 couples per evening and weather permits. Other than that, there's a tea session daily 4-5pm, we were there twice, free flow tea and some snacks, nice for a lazy afternoon.
Actually there are lots of activities, each day seems to pass quickly, and i enjoy the trip, very much that we wanted to go back again.

As for the rooms, all have comfy beds, which makes my hubby went into deep sleep daily (he is a light sleeper, most of the time have problem sleeping, even at home, could be due to stress) it could be because of the sun and sea too. but we both have a good time resting.

If you prefer indoor and like to be above water, quiet, go for water villa with jet spa.
You can soak in your own tub, no noisy kids running around, lots of privacy.

The low season rate makes Conrad affordable and i think its reasonable. Total exclude airfare, we spent about 7.5K SGD

I would go again!

 

[ryo]

Hi Christie,
U have to go n see for urself. Pics can't really tell the story.. Its wow from pics but WowWowWow when u r there. î…
Patndrew has ran thru a very good description of that place.

What i meant small is a comparison with the newer bigger water villas in other newer resorts, such as w, angsana velivaru, that comes with plunge pools. But conrad has set the standard well before others in turn of quality.
Conrad's beach villa is 150sqm and the deluxe one is at a whopping 300sqm... Including the garden, bath area. Conrad's beach villa still sets a standard for others to follow in turns of the siZe.

Once u have been to conrad, its gonna be a benchmark. U might not settle for something less next time.... Haha.. U'll hv less choices to choose from next time which can be good n bad. Good is easier to choose n bad is its gonna be as ex if not more.

If u choose conrad u'll hv to be careful with spending on other things while a lesser resort like mirihi for example, u'll hv more budget for other stuff... Its like whether spore wanna to put more money into education, defense or infrastructure kind of situation. Not easy.
However u'll never go wrong with conrad. Thats for sure.

Other 5stars resort u will not go wrong
- w, banyan tree, angsana, shangrila, anantara, huvafenfushi, four season, soneva gili, constance halaveli,one n only reethi rah.

Just go once n u'll know u want.

After my 3 trips... For me.. If financially capable i would choose those resort above for sure...
For now.. After having my 1st kid budget tight, i would choose a lesser resort, mirihi for sure, stay for longer days there like 10 or 14 nites, just enjoy the nice environment, simple amenities, nua in the room, lost track of time.

U hv to decide what u would like. î…

Greetings from taiwan. Haa...

 

[mooncloud]

Wow.. i didn't come into the forum the past 2 days coz busy with work.. Ha.. didn't realise all of you so fast.. esp wu.. all the way frm taiwan. Ha.. How's taiwan?

PatnDrew> wah.. your description is so good... make me feel like booking conrad immediately. Only prob is i am so tempted by the deluxe beach villa (coz i also like the pool!) and the water villa with jacuzzi... aiyoh.. but if liddat hor.. I think my budget is going to burst like nobody's business. Not very good...

Seems like there is a lot of food there. ha.. But i roughly get it. The food there is ex.. But well.. since all the way there, will still haf to go for those private dinners and stuff. Just emailed conrad and they sent me a list of the food prices. Woah.. not cheap at all. But did you go for excursions like those sunset cruise and stuff?b How are the prices like for those fishing or snorkelling trips that u went? Coz they did not send me info on that. Hmm.. think got to ask them again. How abt the spa there? Did you try?

Think my hubby and i belong to the 'nua' category of pple. I have this feeling we will spend quite a bit of time in the villas sitting at the sundeck and just stoning. Ha.. Or he will just like soak in the jacuzzi. We prob will walk ard for a couple of days and then start to nua. So i guess maldives is good. We just came back frm canada and alaska. Went there for honeymoon. Complaining it was too tiring. Decided we need places where we can stone.

Wu> Your pics are already so gorgeous.. You are telling me its even more wow? Hmmm... i was just abt to ask is it becoz u are more pro in photography tat's y photos so nice. Coz i am those use point and shoot camera type. Will be so sad if i cannot take nice photos there.

Hmmm.. newer bigger water villas?? Now i am so fickle minded. On one hand like those big big posh posh villas with the huge rooms and plunge pools (by the way, do u use the pools?) But on the other hand, keep telling myself tat the cost dun seem very justifiable. Plus the cost of all those spa treatments and wat not will be super ex. Haiyoh... Dilemma. Did think of mirihi.. But hor, i think high chance may not go. Coz no bathtub!!! Ha.. sorry.. We soak in bathtub like everyday when we go holidays (if possible). Think i am so troublesome. Want to save money but complaining abt bathtubs. Paiseh. If only they have a bathtub... I was so tempted to do like mirihi together with conrad/w...

Anyway, after seeing your photos.. i got so swayed by the glass 'hole'.. dunno what they call it.. that is present at the w retreat's water villa.. Looks very cool. Of coz the sunset villa at conrad has the living room with glass floor. But that is totally impossible. The price is madness. You mentioned u did an upgrade? So they gave u a discount? I was reading on some visitor's comment that they also had upgrades/ free upgrades.. How does that come abt?

U noe hor.. the more i see those 5 star resorts.. the more i feel like i shld up my budget. Which is not good at all.. I am supposed to be saving up for my house reno loh. Ha.. My hubby will ban me frm all holidays if he noes i am splurging again. My honeymoon already burn one hole. He will kill me if he noes how ex maldives is... Sigh...

By the way, you mentioned about looking out for promotions. You look at the travel agent websites? Or the hotel websites? Or just random lookout? Any particular month with higher chances of promotions? Oh yah.. i checked SQ just for fun. And realised if i am crazy enuff to book flights for may 2011 now, its slightly above 2k for 2 inclusive of tax. So abt 1k per pax..

And yesh.. kids are expensive. Maldives will prob be like my last big ticket trip before we decide to try for kids. Which is y i die die want to go. But well.. need to set aside 'kid funds' too. For someone who has a kid... even mirihi sounds luxurious already. U sure can enjoy. I doubt i can even like leave the country..

Thanks to all for so many tips and detailed descriptions.. I am a fickle minded person. Just can't decide on which lovely resort to choose. Waiting for some resorts to reply me.

 

[ryo]

Yo Christie,

Taiwan is hot..34degC. Just got back from the office work. Really tired. H"a....

I want to go Cananda and Alaska too!!! One of my dream destination as well!!

I ever flew across Alaska while going US for work,those mountains cover with snow, its really gorgeous!!
However I hate flying for long hours... sit until backside break ah.

Haa... back to Maldives. Dun worry about taking photos... most impt is when u r there.. it makes a different.

ok.. now I'm more clear about ur needs. Bathtub preferably with pools and also a bigger villas to Nua.
anyway the plunge pool is not for u to plunge in hor...keekek u'll hit the bottom. imaging its only a bigger bath tub that's all. It should have jacuzzi function as well. YEs me n my wife does nua in the plunge pool in W, as its like a infinite pool at the edge of the balcony, next would be the sea liao. Beach villas pool will be more secluded, away from the common beach within your villa compound, same for W and conrad.

Conrad deluxe beach villa is really a good choice. At 300sqm big, really, it's ridiculously big and not many resort are able to match. What I did last time is I only choose the nomral beach villa for 7 nites. When we saw the villa, we already so happy becos at 150sqm, such a space, it's really a luxury for us. Guess what we only pay USD150 per nite. It's a steal. Really regret never upgrade to the deluxe one at only USD270. faint. Just stay inside ur own villa to escape the crowd. Ya... I ask for a visit to the sunset water villa, a 250sqm big water villa, for a tour(remember the powerpoint that my friend sent to me, and then ask me to work and stop dreaming? The pics is from sunset water villa. Ha).
its got 2 huge rooms ensuite, one of the bed is a rotating bed that track the Sun's path, a big common area where the glass floor is, outdoor balcony, Bose entertainment system in all area even balcony that can be control individually,a dug in swimming pool in the sea(but almost gone after the tsunami), 24hrs personal butler, and personal speedboat for transfer between 2 islands. I missed that villa.
The manager/butler for sunset water villa tempt us to upgrade as its available at the moment. The normal rate is USD2700 per nite, but they offer us USD1000. We bargain till USD750 and we got it. it's again a steal. See... u'll never know what you will get, in MAldives. It might just happened to you.

For Beach villas, I would choose Conrad again...as for water villa I would choose W, newer, bigger and more Posh, unless u choose Conrad's newer Spa water villa but its really ex as compare to the other normal water villa in conrad. There's even a massage room within the spa water villa. The spa water villas infact reside in the spa water villa village whereby you got almost everything there, spa, restaurant. The spa village is on the beach villa island, all the way to the end of the island.

How about exploring island hopping between Conrad beach villa and W. Achievable but still must check out the rates though.

however, if u dun want the hassle, Conrad water villa is still a very good choice!

My 2 cents worth, House reno try to do it simple, becos it'll only be fun for say 1st 2 years. by the time u hv kids...u'll think about practicality. Most of my friends, including me who go for really designer reno regretted.. especially after having kids. (designs as in like open concepts, open kitchen with island, black color toilets with tap water flowing from within a mirror, platforms etcc.. now we have kids, its really "Ma Fan"... Ha. wish we had a normal kitchen normal tap etc...

But of cos not asking u to dump all money into Maldives la. kekeke....

I always lookout for promo from Maldivian agent, resort websites and hearsay, and now we have Agoda.com. Discount or free nites are all year round but normally low seasons there are more, and the base rates is much lower off cos.
Yes u r crazy enuff to book for the 2011 May SQ flight. HAaaa.... I think can still wait ba, but if the economy is doing well, unlikely they will have 2 to go or even 4 to go promos. Can ask around for krisflyer miles purchase from ur friends liao. Ask for 20%, so a 1k ticket will be 800.

Best friend who always fly, bug them to give u free la. kekeke....

hmmm... for me, after spending so much for my kiddo, Sentosa siloso beach is luxury for me liao. kekeke. I dun want the hassle to bring so many things oversea loh.

Hey....steady ok... if u opt for May 2011, it's almost 10mths to plan. Planning is fun too!

I totally understand ur excitment, really... I'm still excited till now. I believe all the others here as well.... so does PatnDrew who just came back not long ago...once u are there u'll be hooked and there'll always be a virus in u. Maldives virus.

 

[ryo]

Hey Christie,

Another resort u can think of is the new Angsana velavaru water villas. It's pretty new concept probably mimicking Soneva gili's style. However it's newer and the pool is huge!!
One of our forumer just went last or this year... Paging for T&P...yo... pics please!!

DUn forget to check out Shangrila as well!! This is the newest resort in town!!

Cheers... gonna go.. going to Taipei 101 and the museum.

Chat with u later!!

 

[patndrew]

Wu..... 150USD for a night in beach villa??? now its more than double!!

Christie,
remember to tell the resort that you are on honeymoon, you get freebies, like 3 course dinner, champagne and one day trip.
I use the plunge pool and like it! swim naked in it! whahaha....
if you like tub, the tub in deluxe villa is huge, actually its not really a tub

http://www.myhometown.sg/Forum/tabid/84/aff/37/aft/5417/afv/topic/afpgj/28/Default.aspx#67098

This forum has some pictures

Those trips are not ex, fishing is 50USD, snorkel is 50 and 60 depends on how many spots you go. average is about there, the more expensive trip is the luxury cruise with champagne about 300USD.
I did not try the spa, by then we decided to do spa our skin were burnt! thus never go.... whahaha...

 

[mooncloud]

Wu>n 34 degrees? that's hot.. singapore is like very cool and nice today.. Ha.. raining. Feel like sleeping whole day.. though went to catch the inception movie. Whole movie about dreams... I prefer to dream of maldives. Ha.. Anyway, how was taipei 101? I skipped that part when i went there. Prefer to get out of the city most of the time. Danshui is quite nice if you have the time to go there. MRT last stop.

Alaska and canadian rockies is very nice. You shld go to the rockies more if you like phototaking. Scenery is more beautiful. But yah.. the flight kills. Which is y i am skipping europe and opting for maldives next yr. Both of us almost died on the way back. Ha. took us 18 hrs plus transit.

Hmmm.. Now i am considering between conrad, W and angsana velavaru. Shangrila dun connect to me that much. I like the deluxe beach villa of conrad, the room of W, and the ocean villa of angsana (coz i like the hammock style kind of feel)..

Wow.. you really got such a fantastic price for the beach villa and the sunset villa. Sigh.. dun dare to bet that i can get such upgrades. So better play with safer choices. If not later cannot upgrade end up regret. Prices really skyrocket now.

Anyway, wun be so crazy to book the tickets. I already think i am quite mad to be looking at the resorts like 10 mths ahead. Ha.. but once you start... its hard to stop. So addictive. The photos and everything just look wonderful.

Dun worry. Not planning to spend that much on house reno too. Just basic essentials. Still staying with in-laws while waiting for my BTO to be ready. So there is a high chance that kids will arrive even before the flat is ready. So the reno has to be kids-proof as well.. But your house sounds very cool.. Ha.. trying to visualise your tap with the mirror.

If T&P is ard... good to haf some info on angsana velavaru. Coz the photos on their website looks tempting. Just got to calculate real carefully and see how i can fit in my budget.

PatnDrew> good to know that the fishing trips are not that ex.. Relieved. Looks like i got to email them abt spa treatments then. I am diehard fan for spa... My hubby too. Just like to relax and haf a good massage, or soak in milk baths and have body scrubs.. Sheez.. i am dreaming again...

Aiyoh.. u noe hor.. i was already so tempted by angsana already. Until u told me abt the plunge pool and the swim naked part. Ha.. sounds like quite an experience. Faint.. this is so hard to decide.

By the way, must be honeymoon then got freebies? Anniversary can? Coz its one yr already leh. Later they want to check for proof how huh...

 

[patndrew]

Christie,
i think anniversary should have lah, oh ya.... there's another freebie, a special prepared bath.
For mine, i requested to have it after our dinner at 9pm.
When we got back, the bath yard was lighted with lots of tealights, flowers in the bath, bubbly and nice fragrance.
but the hot bath can make you quite uncomfortable if you get back after dinner with 100% filled stomach

 

[mooncloud]

PatnDrew> Ooo... sounds like they do add in quite a number of freebies.. Seems very nice. Sigh.. Now i got to wait till next yr.. How depressing. So you were there for 5 nights?

 

[patndrew]

Christie> yes 5 nights.... i regretted.... cos not enough!!!! i should have stayed longer!
7 nights will be just enough, each day there are different activities going on, thus with 7 nights stay, you can have the options to attend every different activities.

Wu> does other resort operates the same? as in the daily programs and happy hour discounts etc...

I would like to try other resorts, by worry i will miss Conrad...

Actually my 1st choice was W, but the price is a lot higher....

 

[mooncloud]

PatnDrew> okok... shall keep it at 7 nights... Now i am looking at angsana. I emailed them. The spa prices seem cheaper, meals abt the same. But their activities look a lot less compared to conrad (i realised they did email me the list of excursions afterall.. haha) Think need to wait for wu to reply you too. Ha.. coz i was pondering abt the same thing as you too. Conrad seems to be a very tried and tested resort. Like a safe choice... W seems so expensive.

 

[ryo]

Yo Christie,


Nah.. no time to travel around, just back from work at about 10pm.
Taipei 101 is awesome!!! other stuff around seems.... so small. Ha. The lift travel at 1010m per min, which is about 60km/h yet did not feel the lifting sensation... simply amazing. Stayed on top for about 1hr plus...

18hrs to Canada only? The last time I went Boston is 13+1hr transit plus 8hrs. Total 22hrs.... almost die also.. like never ending flight..and dunno watch how many movies.

HAaaa... u are hooked to luxury resort liao. anw, not only Angsana water villa got the hammock thingy. I first saw it with One&only water villas years back. Anyway O&O is also a superb resort but too ex. One of our forumer
won a few nites stay there 1-2yrs back, thru the magazine called Shape... Paging for Starstar, aka lavender lover!!

keke... my tap mimics stark design....another tap, the kitchen tap, the water flows down from a tube from the kitchen celing. Haaa... now I feel like tearing it down.
All the best in ur reno and BTO..and off cos kids planning.

Its never ending fun with kids!

Eh... better go before having a baby hor... you'll have absolutely no time for travel liao. If u go alone with hubby, ur heart is not with Maldives but ur kiddo.

Yo PatnDrew,

Yaaa... it's so affordable during 2005. the deluxe beach villa one is only USD270++. It's a steal man.
Agree with u... 5nites is not enuff..it's not gonna be enuff no matter how many days. Thats why all those angmo go for 2-3weeks and visit maldives again n again. how I wish I go so much money n leave to go.

Last time conrad(when it's still hilton), do have free tea break at the 2nd floor entertainment block. They serve cakes, pastry, tea/coffee etc.. from 4pm. we did not even miss one day... was always there at 4pm. happy hour discount also have ... but forgotten wat time liao. The bar do have 1 for 1 or 50% off drinks during happy hour. Anyway we "Nua" most of the time in the villa.
As for W, its ice cream(Magnum), soft drinks, milo and other stuff free flow thru out our stay. They are place stragetically in a fridge along walk ways between villas. We probably took mor than 10 magnum each. At 5pm, someone will knock on our doors with pastry/cake(different everyday)... free also. They will also flowered the bed upon request, and lit up candles in our villa balcony.
DAily activities will be "posted" to us(just like conrad) to our rooms.

Every resort probably have different gimmicks loh. U'll probably can find out more from the tripadvisor forum or review.
When I went to Mirihi in 2006, and island hopping trip back to visit Hilton island again...the Wow factors still there but much more crowded. I did not miss conrad once I'm back on Mirihi island becos it's Soooo sooo quiet than hilton. Probably my preference has chance, where I really like mirihi calmness. Well, Mirihi only have 36 rooms.. how crowded can it be?

U can try W if the rates is right. I waited for the stay 7 and pay 6 nites offer... and I think it's worth it. The bed is even more comfortable than the bed in conrad Sunset water villa. Heard that is a reowned W signature bed, and it's very famous in the world. Ocean oasis is much larger then Conrad's one. However, Conrad beach villas/deluxe BV wins hands down for it's shear size and the amenities...

Why not try island hopping? W and conrad...

But hor W is a very very small island run 1 round probably takes only 5mins
(reasonably fast run). but most likely you'll only nua in the villa as well.

U are saying W rates is higher? how much u pay for the water villa in conrad?

 

[mooncloud]

Wu> Is boston on the east coast of states? Paiseh.. no sense of direction when it comes to US. I flew into seattle then travelled over to vancouver. Its on the west side so prob the flight was shorter. Trip there was shorter... took abt 6.5 hrs first leg, transit at tokyo narita. Then second leg was abt 8.5 hrs. Transit about 1 hr. The flight back was the killer. Prob coz already half dead frm the trip. First leg took 10.5 hrs.. dunno why so much longer. Second leg abt 7 hrs. Transit 2 hrs.. come to think abt it.. It was close to 20hrs!!! Ha.. Okie.. thank god i miscalculated. If not i will feel even more depressed. But wonderful weather. Lovely gorgeous scenery. Shld go once u have the chance. Before the glaciers melt... If ever u do go there then let me know. ha.. i will suggest must-do activities. Esp if you love phototaking..

Yesh... i am hooked onto the luxury resorts already. Sigh. That is always my weakness. I up-ped my budget for my honeymoon like 3-4 times. Ha.. looks like maldives is going to be the same. Jialat man. O&O seems damn ex.. dun want to see and dun dare to see. Later again tempted!! Must exercise self control.

Why do you want to tear your tap down? Dun seem to understand how come ur tap gets into the way once u have kids... Do taps affect kids? Sorry.. no experience with kids over here. Ha.. But i do understand wat u mean by heart with the kid even if physically at maldives. So i will die die go before i have kids. Its a must on my list.

Didn't know 101 was so gorgeous. My fren told me nothing to see. But guess prob depends on individuals. My hubby and I spent like less than 10 mins at the top of the seattle space needle too. Ha.. Anyway, rest as much as u can. Take more water since weather is so hot over there... Take care!

 

[patndrew]

Wu> i think i paid 520USD for standard water villa, 650USD for the deluxe beach villa, we only nua in the room in the evening and early hours, some days we got up as early as 6am, to catch sun rise, take pictures and go to the gym.

The free Tea and snacks is still available, at the Mandoo SPA restaurant 4 to 5pm, view from the restaurant nice!

W is so much expensive....

I think Beach house not bad too....

the water villa cheaper than beach villa

after my conrad trip, i earn some HHonors points, i should have points enough for 1.5 nights in maldives for my next trips....
so maybe Beach House next.... but the seaplane trip is about 1.5 hrs... thats long!

 

[patndrew]

both of u go Spain before? i planning for europe next year. any suggestions?

 

[mooncloud]

PatnDrew> Never been to spain. Cannot help. In fact, yet to set foot into europe. ha.. But ever did look ard and research a bit into italy, paris and greece. But tat was like minimal research.

 

[ryo]

Hi Christie,

Ya, Boston is on the east coast. After the long hrs, I also need to drive 2hrs to hotel. I knock out after that, didn't even have dinner. Slept or 12hrs. Really ridiculous long trip.
yeah I know ur feelings. I still got phobia on such long haul flight.

okok sure... will bug you for details about going canada if I'm planning to go. Haa...

haahahha....so if you're gonna blow ur budget on Maldives, it'll be 30 ~ 40k!!! good I love it!! will find a even more posh resort for u...kekekke... it'll be even more fun!!

Haizzz... becos for both tap, its somewhat in a hidden location. My friends who came to my house can't even find the knob for the tap.. and the tube is fixed, can't move.. so washing is tedious. Haaa..aiya in short, really inconvenient.

Yup... go before having a kid. Or best MIM(made in Maldives)!!

Orh... taipei 101 is pretty impressive. It's the engineering that interest me as well. Anyway ur friend can't see much, Its true, becos we're so high up and everything else seems so small. kekeke... Ya it get bored after a while but still its a must go itenary. In addition to that, alot of branded shop there, it's endless... got LV, channel, Cartier etc etc.. everything u can think off. Ur hubby will be very happy to buy u many gifts there....kekekkee.... oooopppssss...

Yeah thanks! I'll be flying back tomorrow. I've been eating and drinking alot... HAaa.. I'm gonna missed the food over here in Taiwan. Slurp.

 

[ryo]

Hi PatNdrew,

AHhh... I see. Then I think conrad water villa is worth the money though. At that price, I would like to go. It's really worth the money with quality amenities.So does the deluxe beach villa.
Hardly can find such huge and good quality beach villa in Maldives.

WAh... u are a very active person... haaa.. for me, we almost Nua to death in our room. Haaa...

Conrad used to raise their rates exceptionally high during 2007-2008. If I can remember, the normal beach villa during low season is already USD650. Deluxe is worse. Not sure if its becos they found drop in occupancy. At least now it's affordable.

Yeah, you should try other resort, then you'll miss Conrad more if you find it's not up to ur standard. kekeke...

However, do check out beach house review properly. It did not have good review years back. Now they have been taken over by another group. Hopefully their service n management is better. I've actually booked beach house largest 2 rooms water villa during my 2008 trip. I can remember it's at a very fantastic rates. However, they screw up my reservation, and I cancel it and ended up choosing W. No regret in Choosing W. we have great time there.
Then again, the current beach houses rates seems pretty affordable, and rooms are pretty nice as well. But I have my doubt after that issue with them.

If I'm right, beach house transfer is by domestic plane, not seaplane...then again by speedboat.

Ah.. I see. I wasted my HHonors point... forgotten to use it. It's worth 1 nite in cat 6 such as conrad Maldives. Haizzz... I should have stay 1 nite in Conrad during my 2006(island hopping from Mirihi).

The chances of me going back Maldives is very high if the rates stays low, especially Conrad. I would want to stay in the deluxe beach villa this time round. ( I only visited once of the villa for fun).
I noticed the deluxe beach villa plunge pool comes in different design depends on room. Some are rectangular, some are square... and some really near to the beach.. so guess it's not save to swim naked. kekeke... I ever encounter worker walking into the garden to cut plants.

ok cheers.!! talk again...

 

[patndrew]

Christie> Thanks anyway... because we have enough Krisflyer point for 2 to fly to europe region, thus consider Spain, as we have been to some central parts..... if go Maldives, we will have balance points.... is that ideal?

Wu> We tried walking round the entire island, can't see the deluxe villa plunge pool.... not at all, quite secluded.... but YES, not 100% safe lah, but who cares... unless you are a superstar! hahaha....
If not maldives, i will go Conrad Singapore stay one night!!! dont waste the HHonors points!

 

[ryo]

Yo PatnDrew,

Ya its not 100%... but better be safe. I'm not worry about being seen if it's as secluded as a really well designed enclosed villa, but a beach villa is pretty accessible.
A female friend of mine with hubby went to Maldives recently. She was molested by one of staff there...took off bikini tops and try to take off her bottom. Seriously no joke. The hubby called me the nite of the incident to ask for advise on how to handle such incident.
My friend is ok now but might have a phobia to go back Maldives ... but I feel very bad for her as I'm the one who recommended her to go Maldives. The whole saga was closed with freebies for them and free nites stay. I wouldn't want to reveal the resort name since this is officially closed between all parties.

just be careful though... but this is the first time I ever heard such incident happens in Maldives.. really cannot comprehent..probably she is unlucky.

anyway, I don't mean to scare anyone but it did happened. Just take extra precaution. We are really fortuate to be living in Singapore but bad things does happened anywhere.

 

[patndrew]

Wu> OMG!! was she sleeping alone outside the villa, sleeping alone on the beach? or door to villa not lock? how can this happen huh?

Anyway i always make sure hubby is around, cos we sun tan together.

 

[mooncloud]

Wu> Welcome back!!! Ha.. i am assuming you are prob on the way back or reached already. When i went taiwan, weather turning cold so the food became like exceptionally salty (no idea y that is so).. Didn't enjoy that much. The best i enjoyed was some ah ma dou hua at a small night market near our hotel. And the noodles by the roadside stall beside our hotel. 24 hours noodle stall. We were so happy coz we always go down at like wee hours to packet up to our rooms. Ha. And i seriously doubt my hubby will sponsor me with all the branded stuff. He was controlling me when i was in US! :S

MOLESTED!!! Faint... poor thing. Must be so traumatic for your fren. Come to think of it.. not tat safe afterall. How did the staff get to her??? Think i will handcuff my hubby with me throughout the days there. BTW, since you cannot mention the resort name, you can hint rite? Did it happen in any of the resorts any of us considered?

And hor... blow budget also not 30-40k lah. Ha.. you really think i can succeed in robbing bank? Anyway, i was calculating for angsana velavaru, first round calculation already 13k. Scary. And that was assuming they give the same discounts for the beach villas like this yr (50% off). So far all 3 resorts (conrad, W and angsana) got back to me. Angsana has the most affordable prices for excursions, dining and spa. How did you all afford W?!?!? So expensive. So envious siaz. Conrad also not cheap man.

Think if baby is MIM.. It is going to be a super expensive baby. But well.. That is exactly the reason i am trying to convince my hubby to go maldives with. MIM.. haha..

PatnDrew> If i had the same amt of krisflyer points, i will fly to europe. Euro is pretty low now too. And if money is not an issue, i will come back to maldives the following yr. Ha. Spain sounds nice too. I wanted to head there end of the yr with my galfrens. But didn't materialise.

And yesh.. dun waste your points. If not going conrad maldives, Conrad singapore is not too bad either. Pretty comfy! We booked a room before after national day on a weekend. Ended up there was the fireworks festival. So we strolled down after dinner to catch the fireworks. And while the rest of the world was caught in a jam trying to get home, we strolled back to our room. Very nice. Haha.. Can consider.

 

[patndrew]

I dont like Taipei, nothing much, shopping not really good, food i dont really like, the out skirt are much much better.

Christie> I think spent about 7K in total for the 5 nights stay, include seaplane, food, room and some shopping in the Conrad shops.
Dont be suprise, i bought some stuffs there, like hair pin, coral bowl, silk scarf....
there's a jewellery shop too!

Wu> hint a bit lah..... we wont tell others

 

[mooncloud]

PatnDrew
> shopping?!?!? Oh.. faint... Ha. But i am quite sure i will shop there. Was hoping to restrict myself. But i hardly doubt it will.

Anyway, i also dun really appreciate taipei. The outskirts are much nicer. I spend more time out of taipei actually. Ha..

Wu> yah.. i second pat's idea of hinting.. I will zip my mouth. Ha..