We travelled together with another couple and arrived on a speedboat from the nearby island of Fooddoo. For us, this added to the whole experience, and we loved it!
After a quick tour around the island by buggy to help us get our bearings, we were shown to our lovely Family Beach Pool Villa (sunrise side of island). Our expectations were high… and they were surpassed, very spacious, super clean, well stocked mini bar, fabulous bathroom with both an indoor and ‘open to the air’ outdoor shower. The beach was literally 20ft away from our decking, the fine sand a beautiful white colour. The sea, aqua blue clear and warm. We enjoyed getting up at 6am to watch the spectacular sunrise. Tip: if you are staying at a beach villa, do bring along some good mosquito repellent. We didn't and got bitten quite a lot.
The second half of our holiday we stayed, with our friends, in the massive two bedroom Ocean Pool Villa which extends off the south of the island. What a treat - the pool was vast, the view to the horizon was unbroken, the jacuzzi was a bonus, sun beds hammocks, all you could want. The sea was shallow and clear. We saw numerous manta rays, a sting ray, barracuda and small grey shark all close by and the lounge had a glass panel looking directly down to the sea where you could watch the fish endlessly.
Food:
Melange - the main eating restaurant for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Buffet style, no need to book and always space. The choice was extensive, local Maldivian, Sri Lankan, Indonesian as well as UK/Continental dishes.
The chefs would offer to cook us anything we wanted. Nothing was too much trouble, special thanks to: Asanka, Shah, Manjula, Nyoman, Vindalhan and Shaheem just to name a few! We found all the staff were brilliant and happy to help guests enjoy their time on Maamutaa to the fullest.
Souq Oven - great venue for a ‘dining experience’, service to your table. Italian food, great pasta, great steaks. The manager very knowledgeable with wine matching to the meal choices. Over 80 different good quality wines available to choose from included in the ‘all inclusive’ package, including decent brut and rose champagnes. Other non-inclusive wines were available, but expensive and we never felt the need to upgrade.
Phat Chameleon - a vegetarian (vegan available) restaurant with more of a garden/outdoor setting. Great flavours and worth a visit.
Saffron Affair – we really enjoyed spending time here. The place to go to watch the sunset with a cocktail, chilled music, ample indoor and outdoor seating. Hot finger snacks on tap too.
Activities:
Jet Ski – we had a 30 min fun session on a powerful modern jet ski shadowed by Shaaheen, a hotel water sport specialist, showing you where to go. He made us feel very safe. Shaaheen also managed to get some great action photos and videos of us.
Guided snorkelling - we were taken out on a boat to the island’s ‘house reef’ and shown along the ‘drop’ to the deeper water. Lots of vibrant fish and turtles swimming amongst the coral. The water was super warm and even though we had very little experience in snorkling, we felt really safe and had an enjoyable trip.
Sunset cruise - a real bonus was we came across a pod of dolphins who came right alongside the boat, the young ones playing and jumping clear out of the water. We managed to get some great photos. It was a little cloudy on our trip, so the sunset wasn’t the best.
Spa – we did the couples massage, which was a 45 min body massage, very relaxing. Thanks to Barbara and Kinzang
The All inclusive package is great, we spent nothing extra whatsoever on our holiday. There are a number of activities included (more the longer you stay), all the branded alcoholic drinks are included and so the cocktails are also the ‘real thing’.
Nichula the Guest Experience Manager worked tirelessly to ensure we were having the best time. He has the ability to make you feel like you are the only guests on the island!
Hat’s off to John, General Manager. He leads a strong team who are all passionate to deliver an excellent customer experience. Truly worth its 5 star rating.
Terry and Loraine
Tip: Always bring some good quality mosquito repellent as there were a lot of mozzies!
