Summer Island Village

6 readers found this review helpful

We had been here for our honeymoon. we were particularly looking for water bungalow. Most of the places were either v expensive or was not available. Finally we got it in summer island village. Place is awesome. we dint like the food there initially, but when we spoke to the chef who was a srilankan ,he prepared the food separately for us according to our taste. People in the resort were v friendly. Water sports was arranged by John , water sports in charged guy even though water sports was not scheduled for that day. Overall the experience here was just awesome.

4 readers found this review helpful

I am a bit late giving this review, but have to say Summer Island is just sheer paradise.
We loved it so much last year Feb 2008, we are going again this year in fact today is Thursday 29 Jan 09 and we fly out on 8 Feb, cannot wait,I must email Mr waheed, all the staff are great and always have a smile, and they work so hard, bless.
Snorkling if fantastic, the parrot fish, piper fish, even sharks, I knew a shark would swim past our water bungalow at around 4.02 so made sure I was there, hey there he was and it wasnt a black tipped reef shark, then we saw a baby blk tipped shark, it stayed feeding on the small fish at the back of the bungalow where there is a sand bank, even a shoal of Parrot fish would feed on these sardines or whitebate, fasinating to watch.
You have your own sun shade on the beach sometimes between the trees, its a thatched three sided building which has the number of your bungalow on it, so that is your spot whilst there, so no running with beach towels claiming a spot, Ha! great for leaving the snorkeling kit and lilos.
My god 11 sleeps cannot wait, I sound like a silly girl, not a woman that gets her bus pass in March, Ha!

8 readers found this review helpful

We have just returned from a two week all inclusive stay in Summer Island.
We flew with Monarch airlines and opted to upgrade our flights to premium which i would really recommend. This is a 9.5 hour flight out and around 11.00 hours return. Premium gives you bigger seats, more legroom, free papers, entertainment, 4 course meal and free alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages for around £200ish.
The boat trip from Male to Summer Island was an hour and forty five minutes and was lovely, calm sea and flying fish with a beautiful breeze after a long flight.I read reviews from this site before we went and when we arrived we decided to book the return transfer to Male by sea plane, the transfer took 15 minutes and the view of the atolls were amazing for around £70 each this was a fantastic experience which i would repeat. Seaplane transfers can be booked through the rep on arrival.
This is the second time we have been to the Maldives, the last stay being at a four star resort, however this holiday to Summer Island far surpassed the last holiday.
The Island is small but is full of wildlife from the friendly Gannet,rabbits, parrots, storks etc to the resident fruit bats.
We stayed in a Water Bungalow which was quite basic, but had Sky TV and a safe and a viewing panel in the floor, through which you could view the fish at night.Despite what the brochure says about having to pay for this it is free.
There were no tea and coffee making facilities (although you could hire a kettle,it was expensive over a two week stay), so it would benefit to take a small travel kettle and tea and coffee, you can get cups etc whilst you are there.
The food was of a high standard, although a fairly limited selection, very adequate for even the fussiest eaters which i am.
The local alcoholic beverages cocktails, wines etc were fantastic and free if on All Inclusive, named brands like diet coke have to be paid for.
There were snorkelling trips, four times a day to local reefs. Each holiday maker is entitled to go on two of these trips per day.
Other excursions include, fishing, viewing sealife from a submarine and touring the island of Male.
Full PADI courses can be purchased here for a very good rate. All other scuba needs are catered for from beginners who would like a taster to experrienced divers.
Other watersports included, windsurfing and canoeing
There were some recreational facilities here, darts, table tennis and a good library.
The staff were exceptional, extremely helpful and very friendly, as was the Rep.
This holiday was absolutely fantastic, i am really impressed, i will definitely return here again. I would recommend this if you would like a laid back holiday, although basic accommodation it's a fantastic island with exceptional staff and resident wildlife.
I will rate this as 10 out of 10

2 readers found this review helpful

well what can i say? went here for a weeks holiday with my boyfriend. my only regret is not going for two.
we stayed in a water bunglow which was lovely, had tv fridge hair drier glass bottom flooring and a fantastic view for as far as the eye can see.
the food was great and the fish even better. the staff very friendly especially rasheed.
the most relaxing holiday we've ever had couldn't ask for more. such a beautiful island and the snorkelling was out of this world.
brochure said 1 3/4 hour transfer to island, ours took 2.5. i would recommend the sea plane on return to airport.we got very wet and its a long flight home when soggy.
i would recommend this holiday to couples not much for young children to do.
loved the island so much have booked up already for summer 09.

6 readers found this review helpful

fab fab fab.
my husband and i have just come back from the holiday of a life time.
the place is wonderful, same as the brochure which i could not really believe,wonderful staff, wonderful bungalow on the white sands and the scene like a dream.
during the speedboat ride into summer island, we saw some dolphins swimming around which was very beautiful to see. a few days later we saw some again just by our hotel, it took my breath away, my husband had a tear in his eye although he wont admit this!! men!!
i can not fault anything at all about the place, plenty to do such as swimming, boat rides and fishing, all wonderful experiences.
we did only go for a week but we are already looking at booking again later in the year for a fortnight.
thank you very much summer island, you made a young (ish) girl very happy.

3 readers found this review helpful

I and my husband just returned from 7 days in Summer Island. We had a wonderful time in the resort.
On the way out to Maldives in the Monarch Airbus, there were quite a few empty seats so we stretched out across the 3 seats. The journey was 10.5 hours from Gatwick. As the outwards journey was at night, the hours seemed to go quicker, compared with the return journey in a full plane and mostly in daylight.
We got to the Resort from Male airport in the speed boat (bright yellow). It took 50 minutes. The weather was a bit overcast and the sea was rather choppy. When the boat approached the Island, the view was exactly like the brochure.
There was a jetty, with loads of colourful fish, white sand, palm trees. We made it just in time for our lunch. After that, we picked up the key to the Water Bungalow. There was a huge bed, TV, fridge, bathroom with hot/cold shower, plus a bath. The best thing was the balcony overlooking the lagoon, the ocean and beyond. The sunset was breathtaking. The marine life was spectacular. The sea was turquoise, so clear.
The Island had one restaurant which served the 3 meals. We did not have any problem with the food. There were themed nights in the evening. There was always something we liked. We enjoyed the BBQ night, Asian evening and Chinese night the most. Disco was in the Bar on Saturday night. Snorkelling was good. We also did night fishing on Friday in the ocean about 15 minutes away from the Island. There were 20 people and caught 8 fish (apparently, very good attempt). We did not catch any fish ourselves but great fun.
For those who worry about the wet monsoon season in August/September, I will say 'Do not worry'. Out of the 7 nights, there was one day completely wash out. The rest was dry, sunny and very hot. Most of the rain came in the evening and night, so you do not lose your precious time in sunbathing. Remember, always top yourself up with high factor sun screen.
This has been a very enjoyable, relaxing holiday. We will certainly return to Maldives very soon, hopefully.

2 readers found this review helpful

Just returned from Summer island Village after spending 2 weeks there celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary, when we arrived we thought it was lovely, beach bungalow was very basic but ok.
We were too excited to catch lunch so we went swimming in the ocean straight away, by the time it was dinner we were starving but the reviews stated the food was good so we entered the dining room expecting a nice meal, the food was very limited in choice fish and usually 1 type of meat, sometimes potato or chips but rarely, but you could order a small plate of French fries which we did often, by the second week we became very ill, with upset stomachs.
The staff were quite good though giving us extra medications for the stomach cramps and rehydration sachets, I went 6 days without eating, my husband is still ill and has not been able too return back to work.
The cosmos rep was horrified at our situation and she was very helpful, even telling the kitchen staff to cook us anything we wanted and she would pay for it, but we were too ill to eat anything and with the prospect of a 19 hours journey home the next day impossible.
Other guests were hit by this tummy bug but most were ill for 24 hours, they all stated the choice of food was poor and could really have been better.
As for the weather the first week was hot and sunny with occasional storms, 2nd week very wet and windy, some days the sun did not shine at all it rained constantly, but it was the monsoon season, so to be expected, but as for short sharp showers as some reviews stated I’m afraid if you get them then your lucky, I felt sorry for the people who only came for a week it rained most of the time, and there is nothing else to do, a lot of the boat trips had to be cancelled because of the weather but we did manage to night fishing trips and they were fun.
Would I go again? Well I don’t think so, we wanted to book for Gan Eqator Village next year but this experience has put us off, think we will stick to Florida and Lanzarote never had a problem there even in Hurricane Francis.

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2 readers found this review helpful

Forget your shoes, forget the papers, and forget the TV.
A superb island to do nothing!
However plenty of water sports and boat trips to tempt you, well worth as trip on the Manta ray trip, swim with these beautiful creatures, just stunning.
Food very nice, always something different on offer...waiters always happy and willing to help...although "Waheed" the waiter is off his trolley... funny guy!
I was very nervous about going to this Island, as I am the type who gets bored easily.
Not a chance. I didn’t want to waste any opportunity to snorkel and sea the marine life, to do all the trips etc.
I did not read one book in the 2 weeks there. It’s a perfect place for a perfect holiday.
And it gives you chance to do what we don’t do enough of...and that’s...
Just sit and chat! In the bar of course!

2 readers found this review helpful

My husband and I have just returned from Summer Island where we spent our honeymoon.
We took the seaplane to the island and it was worth every penny, the barefoot pilot just has to be seen.
When we arrived we were met by the manager and offered warm towels and a nice cool drink, after the Monarch flight it was well needed.
We were shown to our room and that’s when I fell in love with the Maldives, perfection really does exist.
During the 2 weeks there we dove a lot and also visited the spa, all was worth every penny and the prices really are good value.
The waiters were superb and always smiling and happy to help with anything.
Alas we are now back in the UK dreaming of Summer Island, do not believe the bad reviews, this place was heaven.

6 readers found this review helpful

My husband and I booked a last minute holiday to Summer Island, we have visited the Maldives 5 times previously but have never gone all inclusive.
This was the smallest island so far. We have taken the sea plane previously but as the plane journey would have been fairly short we decided to go on the boat.
It was a long journey but very enjoyable, it was great to be able to sail past numerous other islands and we saw flying fish along the way!
Upon arriving at Summer Island we were given a warm welcome, a long cool drink and damp towel - very much appreciated.
The rooms although fairly basic were adequate for the amount of time you actually spend in them and the partially open air bathroom was great and the room was kept well clean.
It was great to be all inclusive and the food for the week was excellent with, we thought a very varied menu definitely on a par to islands that we have visited previously.
We would recommend that you purchase a bottle of wine - costing around $15 with a good choice, to be able to have a romantic dinner on the beach under the stars, a high light of our stay.
The daily snorkelling drips were fantastic, the sea life out of this world, swimming close up with turtles virtually every day! The variety of fish/sea life that we sighted was by far the best out of our previous trips.
We treated ourselves to two treatments in the spa, they were both superb, would recommend the mama massage - heaven.
My husband also took advantage of the watersports on offer and was very impressed with the two hour windsurfing lesson - costing approx £12.50 and also waterskiing in the lagoon.
We also hired a double canoe and took a trip around the island which was also great fun.
It was bliss to be barefoot all week and I am now back at home, in the wet and cold planning our next trip.
We would definitely consider returning to Summer Island.