Biyadhoo Island Resort

Just returned from Biyadoo with my fiance, best week away!! All of the staff were fantastic and could not do enough. Great for rest and relaxation, lots of book reading and relaxing. If your after doing nothing but enjoying sun, sand and snorkelling this has got to be the place for you. Accomadation is basic although enough for what you need, how much do you want to spend in your room anyway!! Give it a try - you will love it!

Basic resort as the buildings are all quite dated. Room was freshly painted, no sign of mould as some other reviewers have reported. Fridge was new. Bathroom perfectly adequate. Room very clean and comfortable, only negative point was the noisy humming A/C from just outside the terrace. Ask for rooms on the western side (rooms n. 50-90) as they have a lovely beach just steps from the terrace. Excellent food at the restaurant, good selection, nice soups, mild curries, lots of fish, very nice desserts. Good beach, great lagoon, amazing house reef. Did not use the dive centre, so cannot comment. Would recommend the resort to anybody just looking to chill out, have a great time relaxing, swimming and snorkelling, and not looking for pampering and luxury. This is a basic resort (not for much longer as it is due for refurbishment and then.....we won't be able to afford to go again!!).

Went to Biyadhoo in July 2006, with my husband and 15 year old daughter and have been wrangling with the tour operator for compensation ever since. We stayed 2 nights until we were transferred to another island at our request as the neglect on Biyadhoo was unbelievable. Our room was damp, with mould on the ceiling and walls. The shower was awful and the whole island had an air of dereliction. The main bar was out of use and full of old furniture. The island itself was beautiful and the snorkelling was out of this world. I am in full agreement with the previous review as we have photos that are very similar. If you wish to have a diving or beach type holiday and have no problem with staying in what can only be described as student type accommodation then don't hesitate to go. As for the cost, my husband and I went in 2005, all inclusive to Lohifushi at little extra and it was worlds apart standard wise. Lohifushi incidentally is given the same rating by Hayes and Jarvis as Biyadhoo! As for Hayes and Jarvis as a tour operator don't bother if you can travel to the same destinations with someone else then please do, we have used them twice to go to the Maldives and wouldn't recommend them to anyone!!

Having stayed at another Maldivian island 18 months ago that was a 4 star, arriving in Biyadhoo was a bit of a disappointment. It is more run down than we were expecting. The sister island is under development at the moment, and from what we could gather once this is completed the same was going to happen to Biyadhoo. Having said that, there is one element of the island that is absolutely magical, and that is the reef that surrounds the island. If you enjoy snorkelling or diving then this is the place for you. If you are not into swimming etc, then I would probably not recommend this island as there is nothing else to do. The beaches are okay, but if the island is full - as it was for us - be prepared to fight for the deck chairs, my partner got up early every morning to secure the same chairs 'german style', which wasn't the greatest. The food is very good and the bar is okay. We were on the island over Christmas and New Year and there was entertainment around the bar area most nights, although from other reviews I do not think this is typical. The weather wasn't perfect every day and we had a fair amount of rain, which was okay because I had read the weather reports before we arrived and bought plenty of cards/ indoor games etc. But others found it quite boring as they were less prepared. Luckily, my 9 year old is like a fish so she was more than happy to spend all day on the beach and in the sea, she was also able to do a couple of 'bubble' dives. She was too young to do her PADI, but my Partner did his and thoroughly enjoyed it. I would definitely recommend a trip to Cocoa Island for some of their spa treatments, it really is 5 star experience (although fairly expensive - treatments for 60 mins = $110, 75 mins = $130, 90 mins $150 - same price no matter what treatment). Being 24 weeks pregnant I had the pregnancy massage, which was lovely and then we back for another trip and had an indian head massage which was amazing. The staff and service on our previous island was superb, however we found the service not as professional and helpful as we would have liked. We tried to set up a candlelit dinner on the beach, which didnt happen for a few days because of the weather, which was perfectly understandable, but when the weather was fine our waiter (who you have to book it through) forgot to order the Lobster and then positioned our 'romantic' table just the other side of the bar area - in the end we cancelled as it was too much hassle. When we tried to complain the Manager became very elusive and delegated dealing with us to the head waiter, which was fine for us as we knew him from the other island, but not very professional. The fishing trip was great and my daughter caught a barracuda and my partner caught 3 snappers, all of which were cooked for us the next day. The 'dolphin' trip lacked any good sightings of dolphins, but that was the luck on the day, but getting out in the boat was enjoyable. In summary, the snorkling and diving are amazing and makes the visit to the island worthwhile. It is run down, but when you get past the peeling walls and broken wooden slats on the balcony it is a place that you can totally relax in. My tip would be to take plasters, savlon, toiletries and first aid stuff as the shop on the island caters more for soveniers than anything that you practically need. We had quite a few bites and scratches from the coral and I was unprepared for this, which was my fault, but couldnt do anything about it once we arrived. Reception had some plasters, and tiger balm can only do so much. Enjoy.

Went to Biyadhoo in March 06 and am just about to go again in February 2007. If you want great value for money and a genuine desert island experience this is for you. If you are looking for pampering, swimming pools, discos, and lots of entertainment forget it. The rooms are basic, but air-conditioned with mini bars in each room which is charged at the same price as the bar, which is about the same as the UK. The food is good but can be a bit boring after two weeks. The service is superb and the staff will bend over backwards to help. The diving centre is of a very high standard but be warned the diving is very relaxed, so if you are used to the hustle and bustle of Sharm and the pressure of multi technical dives, this is the slow boat of the diving world. Most dives are usually 40 mins tops, usually fun dives in the morning (12 to 18m) and deeper dives in the afternoon with the occasional night dive (12m 30mins tops). Diving here is purely about the fishes, it won’t stretch your skills. If you want to learn to dive, this has to be one of the very best opportunities you will get. Equipment, staff and the centre are what 5 star PADI centers should be. Biyadhoo is becoming a rarity, most of the islands are being redeveloped and you can expect to pay redeveloped prices. Biyadhoo is stuck in a political wrangle over ownership and hence to some it could look a little run down but if you are doing the Maldives on a budget, this is the place for you. Quickies – currency is dollars but you will be asked to pay for everything at the end by cash or card. Visitors are from all over without any predominance of one nationality. Bring everything you need as the shop is very limited. Dress code for meals in the day is casual, tees and shorts and in the evening tees and trousers. Lots of sun cream, don’t underestimate how strong it is, lots of bite cream for the evenings. No toplessness it’s a Muslim country, wetsuit shoes for paddling about in the sea the stone fish can give a nasty sting and if by some bizarre accident you forget your mask and snorkel they can be hired. Take lots of books because the only things to do are sun, sea, sand, relaxing and diving.

We stayed there december 2005, two adults 2 children Rooms very basic but fine, everything worked. Food ok lots of variety even with fussy children. They did their junior scuba diving and had a great time. My son swam around the whole Island. Snorkelling was the best, previously we had been to Veligandu and the snorkelling was really only on one part, but the reef at biyadoo had channels which you could swim out to and then along even at low tide. The children found turtles and swam with them for ages. The sea is very rich with marine life, there is even a purple anemone with Maldive clown fish, fantastic to see. Quite a few people there on the beach which didn't worry us as we were a family, but if you want be a little more secluded, ie honeymooners, best try another island. People were wonderful, but they always are in the Maldives, mad about european football, they are always watching an english game,and is their passion to come to england to watch a match. When we went it was only two star, but I believe it is having a revamp and therfore prices will shoot up which is a shame as the prices will be out of reach to many, and there is so much to see. It did rain quite a lot , but it didn't matter Helen

My Husband and I booked the trip to Biyadoo as we are both keen divers and it seemed pretty good value in comparison to other resorts in the Maldives. We were extremely apprehensive and ready to request to move Islands having read all sorts of reviews about the Island on this web site. However, maybe it’s because we went expecting the worst we were pleasantly surprised when we arrived. The resort is advertised as a 3* not a 5* resort. You should therefore not expect 5* standards and cannot compare it to a 5* resort. Throughout your stay you need to remember that you are on a tiny Island in the middle of the Indian Ocean and therefore things are bound to be different from your 3* resort in the Mediterranean when you can employ people easily for building maintenance and get supplies easily. Accommodation on the Island consists of six blocks, I would recommend being on the west side of the Island as this has a larger sandy beach and is closer to the bar and restaurant and you can watch the sun set. I would also ask for an upstairs room as if you are down stairs you will have not only your air conditioning unit outside your veranda but also that of the room upstairs. Having said this, the view on the ground floor rooms is not as shown in some of the photos on this web site. The Room Our room had a double bed with crisp clean sheets and did not smell of damp at all, in fact smelt very clean. The bathroom is old fashioned but works. The shower was hot the toilet took a little while to fill but plumbing an Island this size is not an easy task and who cares you cant flush the toilet twice in one minute you are on holiday! The bathroom was cleaned spotlessly everyday. I noted one writer was in fear of electrocution- this was an exaggeration okay the electrics would probably not meet British safety standards but there were no loose wires and everything was fused and seemed pretty safe to us. The room had a mini bar and yes the fridge the drinks were in was a little old and had a bit of rust but it worked! And it was not dirty. Yes there was a bit of damp showing through in some of the areas and the hotel needs to replace its guttering as this would probably fix some of the problem areas. I did speak to guests who said when it rained there was a bit of wetness running down the wall of their room; this was fortunately not my experience. Food Loads of choice and the fresh bread is amazing as are the deserts. In some ways I found the restaurant was trying to offer too much and maybe should have limited its menu and concentrated on a few dishes rather than several. It was all very tasty though. One night we opted for the lobster meal on the beach and this was well worth the extra money and made a change from the buffet. The beach The Island suffers from a bit of erosion on the eastern side but has small patches of beach. On the western side is a much larger beach with lovely sand leading straight to the lagoon. The reef which surrounds the island has marked channels so you can snorkel in and out of the channels with ease and view the spectacular reef. An abundance of fish can be seen on the reef and you can literally spend hours snorkelling. A down side is that deck chairs rather than sun lounges are provided and we did end up copying some Europeans and putting our towels out at breakfast to get the best spots. Beach mats are provided so if you want to lie out you can without getting your towel sandy. Incidentally beach towels are provided clean every day. Water sports We hired a canoe one day and noted that there were Hobby cats to sail but we never saw these used. All equipment looked pretty good, but apart from diving other watersports seemed to be a very low key affair. Diving Diving is run by Dive Ocean. We have dived with other dive schools before, but were really impressed not only by Antonio and his team of divers from all nationalities but the excellent equipments and general organisation of the whole place. At the end of our week stay we were given a computer print out log of all our dives indicating depth bottom time etc. We had some wonderful dives a particular favourite was to the napoleon reef. We also did a night dive. Staff The staff were generally all very helpful, reception were a little slow and their level of English was not as good as the bar staff and the waiters which surprised me a bit. The bar staff were extremely helpful and quick. Drink prices Reasonable $2.50 for soft drinks and beer $7-8 a cocktail $18 a bottle of wine. Summary If you love diving this is for you, go with an open mind, don’t expect 5* for this price, accept it is a little run down but it was clean and had a brilliant beach and excellent reef and very good food.

Not sure what the previous reviewer was expecting. Biyadhoo is not the most modern of resorts, granted, but everything was clean and tidy, and although by no means perfect, all the items in our room worked okay. Biyadhoo is, howvever, a perfect place to completely RELAX. The atoll takes a mere 10 minutes to walk around, and all the beaches are clean (they're swept every morning) My wife and I have just returned from 7 days on Biyadhoo, where all we did was sit and chill out in the sun, occassionally swimming in the crystal clear waters, and enjoying the delights of the small restaurant and bar. So, if you want all mod cons and perfection, Biyadhoo is not for you. If however you just want to RELAX in a tropical paradise, go to Biyadhoo!

Just returned after a week with my wife and son. Enjoyed the island; the reef was tremendous and snorkelling and diving were excellent. The rooms were pretty average - ours leaked (see previous report - their photos are accurate) and some other visitors on the island moved rooms. Some were so disappointed that they moved islands! The place is pretty run down and desperately needs a facelift. Only one bar and restaurant operated whilst we were there and Vilallaru - the so called "sister island" that some operators say you can visit and whose facilities you can share is closed and has been for a year. Biyadhoo's Spa was virtually derelict. SO CHECK YOUR OPERATOR'S SALES BLURB BEFORE YOU GO. If you thought you might get some choices when you get there, you WON'T!! Everything has been said by previous reporters about the food. Bar prices were pretty much in line with UK pub prices. U$3 for a big bottle of water (you can't drink the tap stuff); U$ 3-4 for a beer; U$8-9 for a cocktail; U$2.50 for a coke etc; and U$ 18 or so for a bottle of wine. All plus 10%. The diving costs apparently are very reasonable. Our son did a 5 dive PADI open water course which cost U$465 - this it seems is about £100 cheaper then back home. We had "entertainment" on one evening only. No mozzies that we came across but plenty of "invisible" sand flies that bite; they don't seem to react to insect repellant so take some antihistamine with you. THINGS TO TAKE: Playing cards; plenty of books; a snorkel and mask; some beach shoes (the broken coral lying about on the sand is very sharp); a copy of the travel agent's brochure describing what you will get. Some of the people we stayed with had gone for a fortnight expecting that the place had a couple of bars; 2 restaurants, a Spa, amd access to Villaru - they had taken the 3 kids with them and were very annoyed that the travel company had misinformed them. Enjoyed our holiday - would definitley go back the Maldives. A house reef is a must for us but I am not sure whether the accommodation at Biyadhoo is up to a repeat visit. Still it is pretty good value but the resort prevents the island being called a paradice.

The only good thing to say about the resort is that the staff was verry kind. ready to help at all times with asmile on their face the rest is terible. the island is dirty. the rooms are old. there is an overal smell of moisture and burned oil. its like the resort is not even painted for several years. its forgoten by.... I will say no more. I will let the photographs do the talking this is only MY OPINION.others might like it. I DIDNT. I called my travel agent as soon as I got on the island and aranged to move to another resort. (only stayed there for one day)