Kuredu Island, Maldives ...Paradise (Kuredu Island Resort)

Member Name: Food-Guru

Product:	Kuredu Island Resort
Date:	24/09/09 (83 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Amazing food, beaches, staff, sealife, accomodation, location

Disadvantages: Price and 12 hour flight

I travelled to Kuredu Island resort in the Maldives in July 2006 for my honeymoon. It was absoultely amazing, the best holiday I have ever been on. I long to return. Please find a detailed breakdown of my experience below.

The flight

We flew from Gatwick airport with Monarch, luckily we upgraded our seat to premier economy which I would highly recommend to anyone traveling long haul with monarch. To say the ecomony seats are a little cramped would be an understatement for a 12 hour flight. When you upgrade to premier economy you get extra space, extra baggage allowance, upgraded menu, welcome aboard pack containing a range of toiletries and priority boarding. We paid an extra £250 each to upgrade which was well worth it, however I personally won't fly longhaul with Monarch again.
The entertainment on the plane wasn't great, each seat had seat back screens but there were no controls or choices like on many other planes. The food was also a little disappointing, but I guess thats airplane food for you.

The Island

The island was absolutely stunning, the photos on the web looked amazing but the real thing looked even better. The sea was the most amazing blue colour I have ever seen. The beach was amazing, so clean and surprisingly empty, my husband and I walked around the island and chilled out on the beach most days and hardly saw anyone. It was like we were on our own dessert island. The sealife was amazing, we regularily saw baby sharks and sting rays in the shallow water surrounded by millions of multi coloured fish. There was also a family of sea turtles that lived just off the shore.

The Room

We stayed in a sangu water villa, located on wooden stilts over the ocean. The room was basic but very luxurious with a private balcony and ladder going down into the sea. The view from our room was amazing we could lay in bed and look out over the ocean. The sound of the ocean was also very relaxing. Our balcony had a light under the balcony which we switched on at night to attract the fish. I would definitley recommend staying in a water villa, it is expensive but worth every penny. If you stay in a water villa you can use all the bars and restaurants on the island, including the exclusive sangu restaurant only for people staying in the water villa or jacuzzi beach villas.

The Restaurants/Food

We only ate in the sangu restaurant because the food was out of this world. There was an excellent selection of food every night with a range of themed nights going on throughout our two weeks. I am a vegetarian and was a little bit worried that my choice of food would be limited. This wasn't the case, on our first night I informed the waiter that I was a vegetarian. He took me to meet the head chief who pointed out all the foods available that were suitable for vegetarians and then in this open kitchen cooked me up a the most delicious pasta I have ever tasted. I think he enjoyed the challenge and continued every lunch time and night to cook me up something different every night. He would see me coming and get to work, creating a different masterpiece every night. The chiefs name was Raff, he was amazing. As were the waiters they were so helpful and pleasant. They would go out of their way to ensure that you had a nice time. The best thing about the sangu restaurant (apart from the food) was that there were candle lit tables on the beach where you could eat your food, listening to the sound of the ocean. It was so romantic.

Sunsets

The majority of nights there was the most amazing sunsets where the whole sky turned into the most amazing red colour, it was breath taking. The only night that the sunset wasn't so amazing was the very night we decided to go on the free sunset cruise. Which involves taking a 30 minute cruise around the island. We had heard excellent things about the cruise from people staying on the island saying that the sunset was awesome and there was a pod of dolphins surrounding the boat. However on our cruise it was really cloudy and no dolphins. I wouldn't let that put anyone off, it was just one of those things.

Staff

The staff on the island were excellent, they went out of their way to make sure that you have an amazing time. They were always smiling and always happy to help. The management team were great and give you a really nice welcome. The majority of staff all speak really good english.

Gift Shop

The gift shop was quite disappointing, with a small selection of high priced souvenirs. I would recommend waiting until you get to the airport where you can pick up the same gifts for cheaper.

In summary I would highly recommend kuredu to anyone who wants a holiday in paradise. I can't wait until the day I go back.

Summary: Absolute Paradise