Vilamendhoo Island Resort

Having vistited the Maldives twice before, we were disappointed with the general state of the island, it has seen better days. For natural, read many biting insects, not just mosquitos. Between 17'00 - 17'30 every day a cart generating smoke and insecticide was pulled around the island, unfourtunately this did not kill them all as most if not all guest were very baddly bitten, we had sprays with us, but had not needed to use them else where in the Maldives also at this time of year. We as others requested that our rooms be spayed each night The staff were very friendly and good and so was the food, as we expected, but, there are far too many trees to allow sun bathing when you want, some rooms had no gaps in the trees to let the sun through. The rooms were ok, but need to be decorated and upgraded, not 4 star. The sea life was great, the dive centre was to a high standard and the team friendly and proffessional.

Have just returned from spending two weeks All Inclusive at Vilamendhoo, and had the time of my life. Thought I'd share my experiences with others, as these reviews were immensely haelpful to me. I would also like to add that this was my first trip to the Maldives so I have nothing to compare it to, only my own standards. Flight: Flew with First Choice from LGW, no delays so all was well there. Plenty of legroom (as is always the case, I am only 5" 3'), staff were helpful and friendly, although I felt they lacked the proffessionalism of scheduled airline staff, but I suppose you get what you pay for. Entertainment was average, you have to pay a fiver for the privilege of pausing films. Had a seamless connection ot the seaplane, was an amazing flight from Malé to Vil. The return flight was also pleasant, although I was amazed at what 10 hours without a cigarette can do do certain people. Needless to say next time I think I'll be flying with Emirates/Sri Lankan! Island: I did my homework when booking this holiday and was not dissapointed with what I got. The resort really does feel 'in harmony with nature' with some of the most amazing flora and fauna I've seen (I'm a bit of a self confessed nature geek). The fact that the island had no pool appealed greatly to me (who needs a pool when you have the warm, Indian Ocean). Rooms: We had a superior room on the north side of the island. It was clean and simple, no comlpaints there. Our room boy was good but spoke little English so it was hard to enjoy banter with him. Air con was good, always felt like you were walking into a fridge. Make sure you keep all the doors closed to ensure no mozzies creep in. Beaches: This is a subject that really grinds my gears (not the beaches themselves but the people who moan about them), but I mustn't rant so I'll try to remain calm. The beaches are beautiful but in some cases densely covered in shrubs (as was the beach in front of our room). However, within a minute's walk was a beautiful spit (East end) that rarely had more than 5 people on it. We frequented this part of the island on most days, just bringing our towels to lie on (you can have your sun loungers moved but we didn't bother, the sand is just as comfortable if not more so. On our side of the island there were also a number of man-made sea defences. What some people don't seem to realise is that without them there would be no island, it would just get smaller and smaller, that's just the way it works, it's a preventative measure against natural erosion. Snorkeling: Abolutely superb, the island is surrounded by a beautiful house reef which means you don't need to take a boat ride to go snorkelling on the drop off unlike other islands. Saw sharks, eagle rays, stingrays, lion fish. We even had a brief encoutner with a titan trgger who was not very pleased to see us, and proceeded to chase us for a good 15 meters! Excursions: Being AI, a night fishing and uninhabited BBQ island trip were included in our holiday. The fishing was a lot of fun, the Germans were hysterical and the boat boy was brilliant. The beach BBQ was also a fantastic day out, we had a great game of beach football, it felt like a Benetton advert. Food and Drink: Throughout the two weeks, we ate the most amazing food. Alot of it was fish and curry based, which was delicious (if you don't like curry then you've probably come to the wrong place). It was pleasing to see chips on the buffet only once (who wants to travel halfway round the world and eat western food?). There was always plenty of fresh fruit too. Our waiter, Mousa, was attentive and polite. The main bar was a lively place when were there (due to the World Cup) and it was a nice place to be during the evenings. No issues with "watered down drinks". The sunset bar was also nice, a pastime of ours was to watch in amazement at one particular German who, on most evenings, would take his little table and chair and move it to the front of the beach in front of everyone else, because obvioiusly he had to have the best view of the sunset. Long live the stereotype. N.B. There are a large number of Germans on the island which was good fun. They are most entertaining and it was pleasing to be surrounded by minimal Brits. Overall: The holiday was amazing, I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a rustic and natural, but at the same time classy, holiday.

I'm just back from Vilamendhoo on South Ari Atoll. It is my second visit there and I can recommend it 110%. It has a fabulous house reef and dive operation. The reef runs around the island and is accessable from 8 entry/exit points through the coral - each is well marked with an underwater bouyline. The main reefs are on the East and West sides of the island. The East side shelves gradually down to a sandy bottom with a busy reef down to 15m. The West side is a vertical wall down to 30m, teeming with coral and sealife. The current runs North (pm) - South (am), so dives on the house reef tend to be gentle drift dives. On the last trip, we saw a Manta on our second dive from the house reef. We also saw barracuda, eagle ray, moral and black tip reef sharks off the house reef. Other divers reported a whale shark off the wall and dolphins on the north side. The dive centre also runs 5 dive boats from its operations, visiting some amazing dive sites on the atoll. The Kudimar Wreck was amazing and the more demanding dives off the atoll edge bring experiences with Whale Sharks, Manta and a variety of sharks. On our last trip we saw 3 whale sharks, 2 mantas, numerous white & black tips, turtles, eagle rays, massive stingrays and a rarer Silver tip shark. I have seen whale sharks from the Vilamendhoo boat on both trips there (September and June). The centre is one of the 'Werner Lau' chain and is mostly German. That said, the staff there are exceptionally professional, very friendly and very laid back. They were a pleasure to dive with and did everything they could to make our diving enjoyable. They hire all the kit you will need (mostly scubapro stuff), including dive computers, and the cylinders are DIN fitting. The Werner Lau website [----] has details of vilamendhoo - along with maps, photos and details of the dive sites. If you are seeking to do some diving courses, they run some special packages that are great value. You can do a nitrox course for $120 (U.S. dollars) - useful because 32% nitrox if FREE for qualified divers. They will also run advanced open water courses for $120 if you book a 6 day dive package with them. Also, they run a CMAS Deep Dive course for only $20. Yes...$20!!!! My girlfriend did all three (SSI Advanced, SSI Nitrox and CMAS Deep) for a total of $240 (£131.00)....total bargain! The Island itself is amazingly intimate and unspoilt. It is thick with palm trees and you walk around bare-footed on sandy paths - between your cottage, the (excellent) restaurant, the beach bar and the dive centre. There is no spa, massages or swimming pool....but who cares!?!?! The island lagoon is great for swimming, the house reef is excellent for snorkeling and diving and the beach bar is beautiful and social. The food was awesome...and is served as an all-you-can-eat buffet. The staff are keen, polite and friendly. When I went in September, it rained on most days...but the rain was brief and heavy. For the rest of the time, the weather was blisteringly hot. Water temperature is around 30 degrees all year round. Visability varies on the plankton. Good viz will be 40m+ Bad viz means you will see Whale Sharks and Mantas regularly.

Just got back from Vilamendhoo, which we chose predominantly based on the reports posted on this and other forums. Let me first say that we're regular visitors to the Maldives, trying different islands each year, so our assessment is based on what we've experienced in the past and have come to expect as the standard level of service. Vilamendhoo has an excellent house reef that will suit both experienced divers and the occasional snorkeller. Whilst there is a mild current off the reef, numerous exit points mean that this is not an issue. The sea life varies from the usual small tropical fish, to turtles, stingrays, reef sharks and some larger than life beasties that pop up from time to time. Our original room was based on the north east side of the island (room 35) but we had this changed straight away to room 114 on the south west of the island (more of the reason for the swap later). The beach from rooms 113 down to 118 is really nice, soft white powdery sand, chrystal clear shallow lagoon, lush green vegitation etc, just what you expect in the maldives. The beach from room 119 to 141 is also OK, but very narrow and you'll be sharing your sunbed area with your neighbours on top of you. The reef is only a matter of yards away from the beach so you get easy access. Same goes for rooms 01 to 28. All of the above on the south side of the island. The beach in front of the sunset bar is great, but this isn't directly served by any rooms and you'd have to get your 112lb sunbeds moved. Rooms 112 to 81 also have a nice beach but again it's very narrow and you'll be sharing. This leaves rooms 33 to 80 which look out over ugly concrete walls, rather than any form of beach, onto sharp slippery rocks. Hardly the Maldive dream and the reason we immediately requested a room change as did everyone else who we spoke to who'd been put in these. The standard rooms are in the middle of the island and most people seemed to opt for an upgrade to superior on arrival. All of the rooms are looking a little tired as there has been no renewal investment for the last four years as a result over disputed ownership of the island. This has now been resolved and we saw work going on to improve some of them whilst we were there. The superior rooms have an outside bathroom, so make sure you take your bug spray with you. The delux rooms, which we stayed in, were slightly larger, with a separate seating area and inside bathroom. The island was being surveyed whist we were there so we took the opportunity to chat to the surveyors. It transpired that the new owner intends to upgrade all of the room facilities, add a child freindly area a pool and a spa together with building water bungalows in the lagoon. The surveyors indicated this work would commence in August, with a quarter of the island being closed off at a time. Be warned. The trips out are good value for money and if you're All Inclusive they throw two of these in with the cost of your holiday. Make sure you go on the Beach BBQ it's great, but take loads of sun protection as the island you visit has virtually no shade. It's also worth mentioning that it has no loo either and you're out from 10.00 till 16.00 :o) We're not divers but those that were raved about the dive school and dives they went on. So it's a thumbs up for that aspect of any holiday. Turning to the food, this was a real dissapointment. The selection was fairly limited and was all too often either cold or at best tepid. The meals were prepared ages in advance and the buffet was put out long before the restaurant opened. Even food straight from the kitchen was cold. It was a shame as the quality was generally very good. The standard of service from the waiters was excellent. The bar staff were very attentive until about 11.00 in the evening after which they made it clear that they wanted everyone in bed. The AI drinks seemed watered down and most people were of the same opinion. Cleanliness was hit and miss. Some people raved about their room boy, othere unfortunately mentioned that theirs did the bare minimum until the last night when they wanted a tip. To summarise: We had a really good holiday, but it wasn't great and we won't be booking a return visit. All maldivian islands are pretty, the sun shines, the sea is clear and warm and you can overlook a tired room, but attention to detail and the level of service are what makes a maldivian holiday special. These latter two details were sadly lacking.

We spent two weeks on Vilamendhoo in May and didn't want to come home! It was our first trip to the Maldives and it was paradise. It's the only holiday we've been on where the brochure photos really don't do it justice. We had a seaplane transfer to the island which added something really special to our holiday. They are great fun and the views are stunning. We had a bit of a wait for our seaplane transfer but we were delayed at Doha for 6 hours on the way out (we went with Virgin and flew with Qatar Airways) so we missed our original transfer, but the seaplane lounge was fine with cold drinks available and made a great place to watch all the planes coming and going. The island itself is fab. We had a superior room on the north of the island (room 98) with a gorgoeus stretch of white sand pretty much to ourselves. There are no TVs in superior rooms but we didn't really notice. We had an outside bathroom (which took some getting used to but was great fun!) and the room itself was nice and spacious. They are a little dated but the bed was comfy and it was kept immaculately clean (they clean the rooms twice a day with a turn down service in the evenings). We really couldn't fault it, particularly after our room boy decorated our bed so beautifully on the last night. The beaches are pristine around most of the island, particularly at the sunset bar. There is some erosion in front of a couple of rooms on the north side which they are repairing but they seem to keep the rooms here empty. We don't Scuba dive but there is a dive centre on the island. We spent most of our time snorkelling at the drop off which was amazing. There are channels cut through the coral around the island so you can easily get to the drop off, which is close to the beach around most of the island. There are hundreds of fish - we saw huge parrot fish, clown fish (nemos!), reef sharks, rays and masses of tropical fish. You can hire the snorkelling gear or buy it from the shop for about the same price as two weeks hire. The food is all buffet style in the main restaurant but there is always plenty of choice as well as freshly cooked pasta and a roast meat most nights. The sunset bar serves snacks between 4pm and 6pm if you are on all inclusive - perfect if you slept or snorkelled your way through lunchtime! You have the same table and waiter for the length of your stay - our waiter was fantastic and if you ask nicely they'll keep you entertained with card tricks and puzzles! Advice for those going -1. take mozzie repellant. The island is sprayed daily but they still lurk around. 2. Tipping tends to be customary and usually $10 a week for your waiter / room boy / sunset bar staff etc is about right. 3. Make sure you take plenty of suncream as it is $28 a bottle in the gift shop! 4. Don't worry about taking too many books as there is a library in reception of books other people have left. 5. Also don't take too many pairs of shoes - all you really need are some flip flops or sandals. The only places with tiled floors are your room, reception, the main bar and the restaurant and the rest is all sand. 6. Keep an eye out for the comedy crows at the sunset bar and the resident chickens, herons and cats. We had a fantastic time on Vilamendhoo, We would go back tomorrow if we could!

This was our fifth trip to the Maldives and we were very pleasantly surprised by this island, having thought I was 'all Maldived out'. We had reservations about its size before travelling there (around 150 rooms) as we normally don't go for resorts with more than 80. It is very well laid out, with a great sense of space, including the dining rooms so you get the feeling there are a lot less guests than are actually staying there. All the staff were very attentive and helpful and we found the bar, dining room and reception staff particularly helpful. Nimbe, Guest Services, was always more than ready to 'go the extra mile' and made our holiday very memorable - nothing was too much trouble for him. A lot of thought has gone into how the island is laid out and care and attention have been paid to the island and its surrounding reef. We were surprised at the volume and variety of marine life and delighted to see how the coral is recovering. The dive shop is very well set up - I prepaid my diving to my UK tour operator but would have done better paying at the resort. The deserted island trip/bbq is a must - the staff all worked incredibly hard to give everyone a really great time. The food both on the day trip and in the restaurant and Sunset beach bar was always fantastic - best we've had in the Maldives. Very high quality and masses of variety. The rooms do look a little tired but we loved ours and were very, very happy with it and the view from it. This is the first Maldivian island we have thought of returning to.

We stayed at Vilamendhoo Island Resort April 2006, what a wonderful resort. Quiet, well managed, fantastic friendly staff, excellent food, superb snorkelling,clean comfortable air conditioned (essential) room,we virtually had our own patch on the beach with our own loungers and sunshade. Majority of people staying at the resort were German which shows the high standards as we have found at other worldwide resorts. Now the negatives:- on the web site it says hairdryer provided but this is only in the exclusive rooms not the Superior rooms which are in the majority on the Island, I know this a small rental cost ($2 a day) but if I knew this from the start I would have taken our hairdryer; Mosquitos (no-see-ums) if you have allergies take gallons of repellent as they attack as soon as there is a drop of rain; there are no TV's in the rooms but a TV lounge, this and the restaurant are not air conditioned and open to the insects- take full flesh covering evening wear, for snorkelling if you are a sealife junkie like me then wear a t-shirt and some thin full length pajama bottoms as the sun while snorkeling is magnified and burns the back of legs, back etc..very hot and high humidity. Seaplane transfer was very good as were all the transfers with Sri Lankan with good food and service. Would we go again? No, we enjoyed it but after 5 days we were bored, needed a TV in the room (how sad) but we would recommend to anyone wanting a quiet and unspolit resort with fantastic snorkeling and warm, warm water

Beautiful natural island. Very hot on diving - dive school on site run by Germans. However, I only snorkel and that was great for me. Lots of wildlife to see. Don't go if you want a spa etc [it doesn't have one]. This is an island for a relaxing natural chill out in tune with nature. Good points: Friendly staff, very good food [and I'm fussy!], sea and coral are stunning. If you don't dive you will feel as if you have the island to yourself all day whilst the divers are away. What a wonderfully relaxing place to go. Watching the small fish leap out of the sea to avoid being eaten by the larger ones or the heron was a fascinating event. Not so good: As said in previous review rooms are looking a bit tired. They are a bit "brown" and could do with brightening up. However, they are perfectly comfortable. Do NOT go for a standard room as they are in the middle of the island and look a bit dismal. Go for a superior. Tips: The best rooms to get are nos 31 or 32 but these are booked months in advance. Ask for a room on the south side as the sand/beach is much nicer there. I thought west of the bar/restaurant on the south side was best as it got the sun all day - but there were still plenty of trees etc to shelter under if that is what you wish. They are numbers 113 to 141 and if you email them they will "do their best" Email is vilamndu@aaa.com.mv Go all inclusive - particularly if you intend to drink alcohol as otherwise it could work out very expensive! Take plenty of mossy spray and use it during the day also as it seems that there are a lot of daytime mossies in the vegetation around the beach. You really will only need one pair of sandals [and I'm an Imelda Marcos-type!] and you will find that you hardly wear those. Jelly shoes for walking around the island in the sea also a good idea. Fishing trip and visit/barbeque on a deserted island most enjoyable. Wonderfull!!!

What a great island This was our eighth visit to the Maldive and what a great choice of resort. Accomodation simple clean and wel designed. Placed within easy reach of the beach (all except the standard rooms which are in the middle of the island)south side of the island has the best beaches, there is a lot of vegitation on the island so expect thisngs that live in bushes and trees, Fruit bats, mozzies Crows, lizzards, geccos, land crabs etc - if you like nature this is the place for you. The island is smoked each day so the mozzies are kept to a minimum but they are around so take bug spray. Diving Their are spots to enter/exit from the water, you must always dive/snorkel in buddy pairs. Entry point 4 straight in from the dive school has a lot of interesting points. Frog fish, Mantis shrimp, at least 5 types pf Moray eel, a large shoal of Blue Fin Jacks. On a night dve folow the left hand mooring rope until it splits in to two follow the right rope until it ends and then continue on that bearing to a depth of 26M a smallcoral hed hosts an amazing ecosystem with atlleas 5 different types of shimp three types of moray eel and lots of other stuff. The dive boats go to up to six sites, so this allows beginers and experienced divers to do theor own thing it is agreat set up. The dive school staff are 1st class. Pre book your diving to save money. Nitrox is provided for Nitrox qualified divers at no extra cost, this is a super idea to reduce DCI risk so far from a recompression facility. Mantas by way of an all day trip - superb. Whale sharks within 5 minutes of the resort at certain times of the year - check the Werner Lau intranet site for full details. Food Only had one poor meal in the 9 days we stayed and this was the day befor the supply boat arrived! Fish curry is available but only if you want it a big change from 10 years ago! Staff very attentive, friendly and hard working Where to stay East end of the island - it is the farthest from the restaurants though but has a lot of golden sand! If you are out diving all day who cares where your bangalow is. Getting there Sea plane transfers are great fun lovely view of the atolls and if you are luck you get to visit one or more other resorts on the trip. Try and fly with Emirates the service is 1st class - charter flights are cramped although I hear Thomas Cook have increade the leg room om their Male flights and that it is now much better - we have travelled on both types in the past. Summary Overall this is a great value for money place to stay with excellent staff, goog food and superbe diving for novive and hardened divers I give it a big thumbs up.

I am not going to do a huge review as everything has alredy been said. From a mad keen swimmer and snorkler/diver this is the island to choose. The house reef goes all the way around the island and despite coral bleaching it is still very good. Sharks, Rays, lion fish, frog fish, octopus and an abundance of the usual species for the indian ocean. I even got to swim with 15 dolphins of the house reef!! Our forth trip to the maldives and this one rates in the top two. The only negative i would say is that the room are looking a bit tired now, still old fashioned and brown. Perfectly fine none the less but not luxury rooms. Make sure you get a room near the sandy beach as there is a set of about 20-30 rooms which are not in such a good spot where the island has erroded. The bar areas are a little hotel lobby like and not much atmosphere but still nice for a drink. This is very much a divers island, 5 boats go out every morning and 5 every afternoon all to different dive sites. Therefore if you are a diver great and if not then you have the island to yourself. This is a truely beautiful island,round with lots of palms, sand all the way round( nearly ) and a house reef in very close prox (about 40 feet away). Great food and service, lots of choice every day. We were half board but the prices were not that bad. $3.50 a beer, $2.75 water, $4.50 wine. Lunch at the sunset bar was good and good value. Choice of burgers, pizza, salads, sea food, chicken etc. Typical good snack was about $6-10 each. We spent about $700 in two weeks. To upgrade from Half Board to AI it was $35 per person per day so if you like a good drink probably worth it. Dives were about $45 each plus $5 each to hire BCD, regs, computer, weights etc. $10 per dive boat trip and free nitrox. $.50 for each air fill though. Overall fantastic island