Well let me start by saying that I've never been on a vacation where my experience has gone from one end of the spectrum to another. When we arrived after a long flight we all struggled with jet lag and not to mention how quiet the island was as occupancy was lower than expected when we arrived plus the island had just over 30 Villas .
On day three we voiced our concerns to the GM, Vincent (who sadly is no longer at Como) and is response was amazing in the fact he'd arranged for us to go the following day to their larger island in Maalafushi.
Having discussed the matter over dinner and due to a number of factors we decided to stay and we're so glad we did (factors being a sea plane trip are quite restrictive from Male when windy, we'd lose a day through travel and a health concern with a family member)
The island is small however the Villas are all beautifully laid out in a row with Sunset views. Having been refurbished within the last few years, the villas have a fresh feel with the rooms being decorated in white, blues and wood and no matter which rooms you choose you won't be disappointed with the size and layout.
Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner all takes place in one restaurant, at the Ufaa restaurant however don't make the mistake of thinking there is a lack of choice as the resort takes great pride in providing a varied menu on a day to day basis which will not disappoint.
As a wellbeing brand, the hotel offers plenty of healthy choices (under the name Shambala) and i can safely say the choices on offer were varied and delicious. If you choose to visit, do make sure you try the Shamabala Ginger tea, be it hot or on ice as it will have you coming back for more.
One of the highlights of this resort are its in house reefs which are some of the best I've ever experienced. Amongst the many different species of fish you'll see, don't be surprised if you see Hawksbill Turtles and Reef Sharks.
If you like to dive then you wont be disappointed by the the choice of dive sites. Unfortunately as the weather was quite windy when we visited, we were limited to where and when we could go out, however we saw plenty of great fish, coral and what was the highlight, Manta Rays.
Amongst other things they had a small but well equipped gym, a fabulous hydrotherapy pool, yoga studio and a spa - although i didn't personally use the spa, my wife did on numerous occasions and her comments were that the massages were the best she'd ever had
In terms of staff, they were excellent, never trying too hard to impress but always there when you needed them however i feel the need to give a special shout out to two people on particular, Hindra who was the F&B manager and is breath of fresh air. Not only was he delightful company he was a talented mixologist and barista and nothing was ever too much. Then their was Kadak, the Executive head chef, who made a point of visiting every table each night and would always take on board your views, good or bad (mostly good may i say) and then make sure they were actioned. He was humble, knowledgeable, talented and took immense pride in his produce.
Like i said earlier, having initially struggled it took us a couple of days to realise that a complete laid back, relaxed and peaceful island holidays was exactly what we needed and it begs the question as to whether I do a similar trip again - absolutely yes without hesitation
Thank you to all the team at Como (led by Vincent and Wisam) for a wonderful and relaxing 9 night - hope to see you all again soon
