Specht

Greeting to all,

In August we are planning a holiday for the first time in many years and we want it to be special. I found that Alila Villas on the Maldives are due to open on the 1st of August and it looks nice.

I know August is not the best time but we just want to laze, read and do a bit of snorkeling. Alila being close to the equator may get a little less rain than the rest of the Maldives and in any case a bit of rain does not bother us. I also picked the Alila as it I like its modern looks.

I never stayed in an Alila property and my worry is that reviews of other Alilas are very mixed. Some love it but many others say it is poor value and that many properties are a bit shoddy put together. Also the food is often criticized.

I am not sure whether there is any relevance comparing different Alila properties, but as the Maldives resort is not yet open it seems the only option. So I was hoping somebody may have some comments or suggestions with regards to Alila resorts.

Thanks a lot!


P.S.
I just received an email quoting US$ 5,500 for 8 days including taxes and transfers from Male. In addition food would be at US$75 for lunch and US$ 125 for dinner.

Cicerone

I don’t know that hotel, but my main concern would be staying at a hotel in its first month of opening. In the first place, the worst case scenario is that the opening is delayed, so that you make all these plans and then you end up at another hotel. In the second, it could be that some facilities like the spa and gym or some restaurants, may not be finished even if the hotel is “open”, which may interfere with the overall experience. They may be finishing some villas and doing landscaping, which may involve noise, dust, etc. Finally, I don’t know that I want to break in staff in their first month, there are bound to be teething issues with training. You may want to wait a few months before trying out a brand-new hotel.

During monsoon season, the rain levels are only really different in the atolls further south below the equator, so the Alia’s location in North Huvadhoo Atoll is not, IMO, bound to make a lot of difference. However, as you say, if you are prepared for the weather and don’t expect sun everyday, this may not bother you.

Also be sure to look into the international flight times into and out of Male and how that works with the seaplane transfers you have to take to get to the island. Seaplanes cannot fly at night, and most in'tl flights into and out of Male arrive/depart late in the evening, which may mean one night at the airport hotel, which is fine, but not cheap, and may result in fewer days at the resort. If you have to stay at the airport hotel on both ends of the trip, that might cut into your holiday time further.

You may be able to find good deals at other hotels in the Maldives. Don’t know if you have looked.

Specht

Hi Cicerone,

Thanks for your reply, I was hoping you would as I found your replies on other Maldives threads very insightful .

I agree with your points. I would definitely be very annoyed if the restaurants are not open or if they are still doing construction work. I will check with them on this.

I considered the staff issue but to a limit, I prefer staff teething problems over jaded or arrogant staff as was mentioned about some other resorts.

The spa open or closed does not bother me as I am not interested in spa's whatsoever. I have tried several and they do nothing for me. And I don't do gyms. I am one of those lucky ones burns lots of calories just by breathing.

Checked about plane and they claim it flies throughout the night but I will check that again.

For the past 15 years we live in India, now in Goa so we are bit used to the environment and weather. By the way, at the moment the monsoon is not too good in India, the farmers are complaining quite a bit. Good thing the elections are over!

We also looked at the Angsana (http://www.angsana.com/EN/Properties...InOcean_Villas) but the last reviews on Tripadvisor were quite poor so that put me off see: http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...ECK_RATES_CONT


Than I took note of the various comments on other threads:

Reethi; no snorkeling,
SG; boat traffic, no good views, not remote
One and Only; too close to Male
Conrad; noisy, poor design for water villas
W; watervillas noisy

So that left the 2 Four Seasons, Naladhu and the new Shangri La but all three are a lot more expensive. Probably with good reason but not quite within my budget.

The Angsana and Alila both offer rooms for approx. US$600 per night.

I have noticed that there seems to be three types of people that go to the top end 5 stars:

- the ones with plenty of budget, who are experienced with these type of hotels but for who money is not the major concern. They tend to ignore/overlook negatives.

- the ones that normally do not go to these type of places, it is a once in a life time experience for a honeymoon or so. They are blessed because, without relevant reference framework, they tend to find it all wonderful

- the ones that have probably traveled a lot, stayed often in urban five stars but more on a business account than pleasure. They have some sort of concept of what five star should offer and, if they pay themselves, are especially anxious to get value for money.

We probably fall into the last group. We run our own company, hence little holidays , travel extensively, have seen, eaten and stayed at lots of urban 5 stars but almost always for business.

This time is supposed to be holiday so we look at the budget differently.

Still, this being the first holiday we will have in years, I would love to make this a really good experience. So if you have any suggestions for other small-scale resorts I would be very happy to hear about them.

In any case all your comments on Fodors are very much appreciated. So thanks very much!

LeighTravelClub

Regardless of what you are being told by the resort....sea-planes will not fly in the dark.
As for the advice, that most international flights to and from Male, arrive and depart in the evening.....not my experience at all. At least certainly not U.K. flights....but I have no experience flying to and from other countries.
I would be very wary of booking with a resort that has only just opened.
Our experience of The Maldives is that really, if you want something special.....then it costs !!

Don't know if this will be too far over your budget but take a look. Fairly recently revamped, and WOW! what a location. Link below

http://www.lilybeachmaldives.com/

spassvogel

I know the Banyan Tree but this is also pretty close to Male but we had a fantastic time there. Good snorkeling and absolutely barefoot luxury.

I would not go to a resort which is still in its "soft oning stage" - I guess the rates somehow suggest it's soft opening for the reasons mentioned above.
The landscaping might be still rough
the spay, gym, dive shop etc.....all very risky in view to fully functional.

I would rather shorten the stay and pay the $$$ if it's supposed to be special or wait for another year.

It's not only the money - as self-employed its mostly the time which is regrettably wasted.

The Four Seasons is fantastic and I share your resentments regarding the Hilton: Mass brand, no special flair - just A Hilton!

Happy Planning!

SV

rhkkmk

i too would be concerned about the actual opening on time of the resort....asian hotels never open on time....have an alternative ready...

Cilla_Tey

Check out the Taj Exotica and Kanuhura, I experienced wonderful service there. Don't know about the diving and snorkelling as I enjoyed the fish while I was above water.
I am going to Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru (they had a 50% off deal recently) and recently received an amazing deal from Velavaru for their new in-ocean villas. If you are interested in the latter I will give you the email address and you can write and ask about their by-invitation offer. Angsana took over from late 07 onwards from memory so look at the reviews after that date.
As far as I know the small planes to the islands don't fly at night as there are no runway lights etc.

Specht

Hi All! Thanks for all the suggestions! A lot to consider, it seems almost work ;-) but will follow up on all.

Spassvogel you are so right about time being the most valuable commodity when one is self employed. I am checking out the Banyan tree

Cilla-Tey I think I also received the Angsana deal but would like to see whether it is the same so if you could mail it to: birds AT vsnl.net, I would be grateful.

I did not consider the Taj because we have THREE Taj hotels literally on our doorstep here in Goa, all within 10 minutes drive from my house. We regularly eat in the new one, Taj Vivanta (the two others are past their prime) so the concept seems a bit too familiar to consider holiday, no matter how nice.

Will follow up on the Kanuhura though.

Thanks again!

Specht

Hello again,

Just wanted to let you know that we did finally decided to go to the Alila. It was a really though decision.

For a start Cicerone was right, instead of 1st August they postponed until 15 August which did not actually fit with our schedule.

But before I knew that, I had contacted them and referred to this thread, asking them to alliviate the various concerns mentioned.

And I must say they were fantastic. The replies were immediate, to the point and really friendly. They even phoned to explain several things.

When later it become clear that the opening was postponed to 15 August, which was too late for us, they offered help by making suggestions for other resorts and offered to help with the booking.

All that gave us the right feeling of being cared for while we were not even there yet but we were disappointed we could not make it.

So we looked at just about every other Maldivian resort but kept coming back to the Alila. In the end we decided that we would some how arrange matters in such a manner that we could leave a bit later and I booked for 9 days from 16th August.

I will let you know how we fare.

BKUK

Dear Cilla_Tey and Specht,

I am wondering if you guys can send me the email to get the special offer from Angsana Velavaru ? Many thanks
[email protected].

Dear Specht,
I am also interested in the Alila. It looks good. What is their offer? Do you get any special deal ? meal £ ?

Thanks
B

marmot

Spect, I've never been to the Maldives so my comments are more general on the Alila group as a whole. As you may know the Alila's were conceived as the "popular price" tier of the Amans and the GHM Group (which now includes the Chedi's). All three brands are loosely connected, like step siblings or in-laws. Their concept is to present a unified aesthetic -- refined, understated, serene -- at three price levels.

I've stayed at the Alila in Ubud (formerly the Chedi) for years and would agree that travelers' comments on inconsistency. The quality of the experience -- including service, housekeeping, security, really all aspects of management -- is directly related to who the manager is at that point in time. Sometimes it's been great; sometimes substandard.

It sounds as if they've got a good one in the Maldives. The personal connection (that you've already established) is the key.

aesla

Hello Specht,

Please update us on this Resort. I have reservations next month and am anxious about the reviews.

Thanks in advance.

sfsoma99

I have booked at the Alila in October.
I was told by the the hotel that they have transfers 24/7. Someone would greet us when we arrive on our 10 pm flight and take us to the domestic terminal to fly to another atoll airport then by boat to the resort.

Looking forward to reading about your stay at the Alila.

Specht

Hi All,

I am still at Alila! The place is absolutely beautiful. The beach villa's are fabulous; large, clean design, privacy, luxurious, espresso machine, a wide variety of nice smelling amenities and a white, fine sand beach with a sea full of corals, 2 minutes swimming from the villa.

Also the setting of the restaurant, swimming pool and bar are sublime. Fantastic modern design without being cold. The restaurant offers beautifully designed plates with decent food, although sometimes lacking a bit salt.

The water villa's are not ready but look good, although I am not sure whether there will be an entry direct from the villa into the water.

The staff is having a bit of a hard time because the resort is not quite finished so they have lots of extra worked but despite that are always smiling and everything you ask for is possible.

Snorkel equipment, wi-fi and drinking water are free which is not always the case at every resort

We have not done diving but heard from other guests that they saw wales, sharks and turtles.

Some guests are annoyed that not everything is finished but we think it is interesting to see how it all comes together; a bit like the metamorphoses of a butterfly.

It makes you realise and appreciate how much effort goes into everything. In the villa you do not notice anything of the bits of work that is still going on.

Perhaps we are easy but we love it and my partner is already telling me to book again in February.

aesla

Thanks so much Specht. Can you tell us when the Over the water rooms will be ready? Also what about the rest of the resort's construction? Are all the facilities open otherwise? How is the snorkeling?

Specht

They say the water villas will be ready mid September.

The resort is still not pristine but they are making fast progress. I think it will be at least another month before all the T's are crossed and I's are dotted but it is getting there.

The house reef is very satisfying, lots of good coral, interesting fish and clear water. The Kondhi Channel not too far is apparently great for divers offering sharks, whales and turtles.

Cicerone

<b>sfsoma99</b>, you might want to consider overnighting at the hotel near international airport in Male rather than heading right on to the resort. The main reason for this is so that you can enjoy the incredible views you can get of the islands from a plane during the day. It’s like seeing living jewelry, the colours are just stunning. The other reason is that the flight from Male to Gan (where I believe you would be going) is about 2 hours, plus then a boat ride of undetermined length to get to the resort. (I am guessing by the fact that transfers are by boat that the boat trip is an hour or so, if it were longer, they would take you by seaplane.) With a 10 pm arrival time, between Immigration in Male, waiting for your bags, checking in for the domestic flight (the domestic terminal is like 50 feet from the international, no worries there), the flight down, then getting by boat to the resort, I think it will be like 2 am or later by the time you arrive at the hotel. All in the dark (and heat at some points; the airport waiting areas are not air-conditioned, although the restaurant near the domestic terminal is and should be open. There is an ATM in the airport just after baggage claim but before you exit the doors into the main arrival area, there is also a money change desk here.)

I assume you are coming from the US which will involve at least one change of aircraft to get to the Maldives, so you may be pretty wiped out just arriving at 10 pm and may not want to face another 3-4 hours of travel on various modes of transport. (Also, if you don’t like boat trips at night on speedboats, you might want to give this a miss.) If nothing else, you might want to confirm all of the above with the hotel so you at least have an idea of what sort of arrival time at the resort you can expect.

There is a perfectly comfortable, although not in any way luxurious, hotel about 5 minutes by shuttle bus from the airport. It is the Hulhule Island Resort, see http://www.maldiveshotels.mv/Hulhule_Island_Hotel. (They don’t seem to have their own website.) You could have a hot shower, a decent night’s sleep, breakfast and then head out on the first flight of the day which would give you the opportunity to see the islands from the air during the day and enjoy the daytime boat trip. If you do this, get at least one window seat on the plane of course!!

If your international flight home would allow you to do a daytime flight from Gan to Male, then perhaps that would be sufficient to enjoy the scenery. I just wanted to let you know what your options would be.

If you stay at the Hulhule, ask for a room in the new wing, they are a bit nicer and quieter. Ground floor ones have access right to their little beach, but for an overnight this may not make any difference to you.

I have to note that at every resort I have stayed at in the Maldives drinking water has always been free (in fact I don’t believe it is legal to charge for drinking water unless the hotel has potable water at the tap), as has the snorkel equipment and in most cases boating equipment that does not involve an engine, i.e. kayaks are free but jet skis are not. Wi-fi can be free or charged, that does vary.

sukyibaby

Hi everyone. I've been following this thread for a while now. Thanks to Specht for your review of the hotel so far. I'll be there in mid September, the hotel has informed us that the aqua villas will open on 18th september and we had requested for one. I agree with Cicerone that it is indeed more enjoyable to travel in the day and enjoy the luxury azimuth yacht in the light of day, instead of in pitch darkness. Specht, would you be able to advise if they have PADI diving lessons. Me and my bf don't have a dicing license but we would love to see sharks and whales and the sorts. Is Kondhi Channel the only place to see sharks and whales? Also, how far is this Kondi channel from the hotel? Would you be able to put some pics up somewhere? Thanks and hope you enjoy the rest of your lovely holiday!

Specht

Yesterday I checked on the other facilities.

The spa is fully operational. I have not used it but it looks very nice.

One restaurant is not open yet but is supposed to open in the next week or so.

The diving school is fully operational as well. In fact yesterday we took our first dive and were very happy with the guidance and facilities, so we went again today ;-).

The main restaurant is also complete and I am happy to report that the plates coming out of the kitchen are getting better by the day. I think it took a bit of time to organise the kitchen as the chef seems fine dining chef and offers very innovative food which is probably a bit complicated to get organised on an island.

The bar, swimming pool, library, boutique and private dining areas are also finished.

So really it is only the second restaurant and the watervilla's that need to be completed.

There are a few foibles (like the library needs to be expanded a bit further, the staff needs to carry everything as there are no trolleys yet) but we find them easy to ignore.

Specht

Sorry, just read the other posts. We stayed the night at Central Hotel on Male. New, clean and boring but good for the purposes of just catching a few hours sleep.

They fly not to Gan but another island of which I forgot the name. It is a scheduled flight, about 1 hour from Male and from there you go with a small yacht to the island which is another hour.

The diving school offers Padi courses, three days courses and introduction dives on the house reef. You can dive in many places as the area is apparently still quite unexplored. I am not sure whether you can see wales only at the Kondhi channel but that one is at least not too far away.

We made an excursion to birds island to see frigate birds and tropic birds. Nice.