Makunudu Island Resort

I've had my fair share of travel to Maldivian resorts, but this is by far the best one. The highlight of my trip was the dive school. It changed my entire worldview. Ricardo and Susan are a unique team who took care of my entire family and taught us many valuable lessons, both in and out of the water. Right from the get-go, we received a completely different treatment than at other resorts. We were given cold towels and water bottles on the boat ride. This was a whole new experience. Upon arrival, we were given trinkets, welcome drinks, and more cold towels. They have thought of everything. I feel that the management actually traveled as local guests and put themselves in our shoes to anticipate the customers' needs. We were given a briefing and taken to our rooms. The staff are super friendly and tried their best to accommodate all our needs. If we asked, they'd try their absolute best to make our dreams come true. We went to the dive school, and Ricardo introduced himself. He gave us all the specifics of the PADI open water course and checked if he could rearrange his schedule. He even tried to get another instructor to come and help him out so he could help us with the classes. Finally, he said that he'd take the classes personally. I was at first disappointed that there was no all-inclusive option in the packages. But look no further; with this resort, they'll bring delicious meals from all parts of the world and a variety of options to your dinner table. You wouldn't want an all-inclusive option. Truly, money well spent. All the meal times were like this. Set meals or buffet, you'll leave the restaurant fully satisfied and full of energy. We extended our stay to finish the dive course. If I were to write about the dive course and the instructors, I could write a book, and it would only be filled with compliments. They leave no stone unturned. They take their time to teach every single member separately and empowered us to move past our comfort zones. They are a dynamic duo who will play a huge role in bringing back returning customers. I definitely am returning to Makunudu Island. This trip will always be remembered, and I hope they only get better with time to make our stay as comfortable as possible.

This was our 3rd visit to this beautiful little island that we now call our 2nd home, we have only been home a week and already missing our little beach bungalow. We were lucky to get bungalow 6 which has been updated with a new bathroom and a lovely sitting area outside with a little walkway down to the beach. The bungalow is a classic example of the Maldivian rustic charm that we have come to love, the room was always cleaned to a high standard with fresh towels every day and bottled water. The bathroom has shampoo and conditioner, shower gel and body lotion. The bungalow has a kettle and a supply of coffee and tea which was topped up daily. Beach towels are also supplied and changed every day for you. We used the spa, and really enjoyed our treatments, it was lovely to see the ladies in the spa again. The food at Makunudu is a buffet breakfast and buffet lunch with an a la carte menu for the evening meal, there is also a BBQ night and a Maldivian night. There is plenty of choice for even the pickiest of eaters. If you are vegetarian ask for the separate vegetarian menu to get an even better choice. When you arrive you are allocated a waiter and they will look after you for your stay, it was lovely to see Anwar again and to be looked after by him and also to see Lasantha and other members of the team, they all made us feel very welcome. The sea life at Makunudu is just simply stunning, we saw turtles, sharks, rays and many fish. The reef is very safe and even though some areas are very deep you can always see the bottom. There is very little entertainment in the evenings but this suited us. The bar staff are always friendly and always happy and chatty. The reception team and the manager were always friendly and helpful. We are already looking to come back next year as we don't think we will find anything that matches the magic of Makunudu.

I can now understand why this island has such a loyal following of repeat visitors. If you want a traditional sand between your toes Maldivian island with an amazing house reef then this is for you. The enthusiastic dive team are great at looking after people like us who just wanted to snorkel, making sure the free hire kit fitted well, explaining the best reef access points and sharing where daily unusual sightings were etc. The service and food were excellent exceeding our expectations. After visiting various other Maldives islands, we would happily join the list of returners here.