This is an extensive review of Mercure Maldives Kooddoo Resort.
My solo trip was December 20 -28, 2023. I booked my trip via Travelocity.com which included roundtrip airfare and transfers from Barcelona, Spain to Kooddoo for a total of $4996.04 USD as a single person.
I give this resort and all that does and doesn’t come along with it a solid 3.85 stars. I have bumped up my stars to a 4 as this was the closet rating to my experience here. I do believe this resort/hotel does stand at 4ish stars and with some big changes and improvements they could possibly reach 5 stars, yet they are far from it now.
First off yes, this resort looks exactly like the photos and the pictures. The stunning beauty of the Maldives is all around, and it is hard to not notice the picture-perfect water, sunrises, and sunsets every day. This resort has the added benefit of being in a beautiful place of natural wonder. Because of the strategic planning of the owners who built this property here, great job. As we all know, nature created this beautiful place and not the resort so I will not rate them on natures gift to us all.
I booked an overwater sunset villa and the sunsets have been extraordinary. The room is well equipped and look like the photos. The bedding is nice and comfortable. Bathrobes are a nice touch however not high quality and could be softer and more luxurious for the price point here. The shampoo, conditioner, bodywash and lotion are high end and some of the best I have ever had at a resort. High marks for that. Some damage to existing furniture is a little off putting and it was unfortunate that even though they spray for bugs I had a very large cockroach in my bathroom one morning. It is a tropical island so at least I only saw one. The a/c is loud, and the sound is bothersome sometimes which was a little annoying to sleep. Cleaning service is good, Bawandha, my room service attendant was wonderful and I was happy to have a clean villa every day. Solid 4 stars on the room & 5 stars for my attendant. I would suggest nicer robes as well as a beach bag in the room that guests can use to carry belongings to the beach and purchase as a souvenir should they choose. As well as fixing the a/c unit so it’s not so loud.
I booked this holiday to scuba dive as they have a dive center right at the resort. I arranged a 10-dive package before my arrival and Alina the dive manager was wonderful to work with over email. This packaged cost a little over $1000 USD after taxes, insurance, and service charge. Once I arrived, I met Steve and Agus the dive masters. I had the absolute pleasure of diving 10 dives with Agus and as a dive master/guide Agus is wonderful. I couldn’t ask for better dives with knowledgeable, safe, and comfortable staff. I was so lucky to be on a solo dive with Agus where we had an amazing dolphin encounter with 30-40 dolphins circling around us during our dive. It was a scuba diving memory I will never forget. 5 plus stars to Agus and the rest of the dive staff and boat crew.
The overall service at the hotel is generally good however at times they can miss the mark and unfortunately even be a little off putting as I noticed some issues with other guests. A few times I would order a drink and it would never come and several times while dining I was never asked if I wanted something to drink. The biggest issue I have seen is that you must sign for all your drinks, however this is not constant as many times I never signed, and I also watched guests complain that incorrect tickets were given to them to sign. The service as an entire entity in the bar, and restaurants I would give a 4. Overall, it was good, not excellent. I believe they could improve on consistency of service and not forgetting people’s orders, as well as coming up with a better signing system so guests that are already at an all-inclusive resort don’t have to sign a ticket all the time. I have stayed at 5-star resorts where your room card is swiped and you just tip at the end of your stay. Since all the tips are split among the staff unless it is cash, I don’t see why they do not do this. People can obviously still tip cash if they like.
On December 27, 2023 I had a spa service massage using one of the vouchers the resort gives for 50% off. I did the hour-long tranquility massage, and it was wonderful. Highly recommend a spa-encounter here. I found the prices comparable to the United States but do feel they are a little on the high end for this resort. So, take full advantage of the voucher they offer to make it worth a visit. 5 stars for the massage and service I had at the spa.
Now for the most disappointing part of the entire resort. The food is not very good and sometimes even uneatable. This is such a huge disappointment as the food presentation is spectacular and beautiful. However, the taste not so much. It is not true that just because something looks amazing it tastes that way. From the overabundance of salt added to many items and the over or under preparation of things like risotto, carbonara and steak medallions the food is the biggest let down. The seafood buffet on Christmas Eve was not fresh and the prawns tasted off and the lobster like dirty socks, so I had to spit them out. Unfortunately, a lot of the same food is served over again on different days making it even less appealing than the day before. I personally do not feel like leftovers should be re-served at such a high-end resort. The breakfast buffet by far was the best of everyday. The specialty Italian restaurant of Vista on the resort is also a huge let down. The head resort chef did make me two different specialty items not on the menu that were good, not great but at least good. One was pork with coconut curry and the other was lobster in a bechamel sauce. The desserts are also beautiful yet often don’t taste very well. Most of the time a weird gelatin like texture is in them. One dessert served on Christmas Eve was beautiful however it smelled and tasted like you were eating the lotion from your room. The deconstructed tiramisu at Vista is pretty good and you can never go wrong with ice cream. 2.5 stars for the food. I could write an entire review on the problems with the food but the positives of this resort far outweigh the not so good food experience so I will leave it at that. My suggestion would be to serve food at proper temps, cold food should be cold and hot food should be hot. You should not put cold food prep under a heat lamp. Have proper steak or sharp knives at the table to cut food. Focus more on the quality of food prepared instead of the presentation of not good quality food.
My final bill arrived late evening at 10 PM before checking out the next day and it was pouring rain out, so the doorbell rang. Good thing I was still awake. Upon inspection of the bill, I noticed charges for phone calls to the front desk. I find it a bit irritating that they charge you to call the front desk. When I called the front desk, they stated they would remove the charges. This is a big red flag, and I would encourage every guest that stays here to check every item on the bill before they check out. Imagine how much money they must collect if they are charging people who call the front desk. The most ridiculous thing I have ever heard of. (I added this part last minute so 2-star rating for final bill check out because of the unnecessary and irritating charges on my final bill.) My suggestion would be to not charge guests to call the front desk.
I believe this resort values its customers and tries to make your experience better in ways they can. For this the 4-star rating on this resort is most appropriate. My holiday was good even with a few missteps. Parts of my holiday were even great and amazing however that was solely due to my experience’s scuba diving with Agus. I recommend booking all your excursions, Vista dinning and tours right when you arrive as they can fill up quickly and you might miss something if you wait.
As always please remember to be kind and courteous to the staff as they do try to make every effort possible to make your stay enjoyable. Should you have a major issue look to management to resolve them as yelling or treating any service staff unkindly is just wrong.
Hope this review helps and may you have a wonderful vacation experience at Mercure Maldives Kooddoo Resort.
