The Maldives is paradise. At this point I think we can just state that as fact. But with over a hundred resorts to choose from, the decision over which particular paradise you want to spend your hard-earned money on can be a tough one to make.
Where we stayed
Veligandu is a small resort, situated just 20 minutes by seaplane from Male’s Velana airport. Its unique shape concentrates the majority of villas and amenities on one side of the island, while the rest is dedicated to the main restaurants, pools and the long, stretching sandbank. You could probably walk one side of the island to the other in under 10 minutes, which is SO handy – no filling your entire bag with everything you may or may not need for the day just so you don’t have to trek back to your villa here.
What I loved best about this resort is that while it didn’t cater purposefully to families – I have two under five - it still felt easy. What’s more, it felt like a holiday for me, as much as for them. There was no kids club or babysitting creche, but there were people at every turn offering to make things more comfortable for us and no shortage of things to keep the kids entertained. If you don’t have children and want a quieter break – this resort strikes the perfect balance between being welcoming but not overwhelmingly full of families.
In fact, the staff are really what make this resort sing. From our personal lifestyle host who we could Whatsapp with bookings or questions around our itinerary, to the waitresses, chefs and other staff around the island – every single one of them made us feel welcome, engaged the children, and helped us with whatever we needed. It was clear that they seemed happy – some having worked at this resort for many years – and that came across in the way they helped their customers. As the resort is so small, it really makes a difference.
The accommodation
The resort is one of the oldest in the Maldives. There has been a huge refurb recently to update some of the accommodation and amenities, though some villas in the ‘older’ style rooms remain. While a little less shiny than the newer accommodation, the rooms are still charming in their own right. Plus, they have a price tag that is reflective of the differences in quality. This means you could have access to all the luxury of the resort, for a cheaper price than the newer rooms.
We started off our stay in one of these older-style rooms; a beach villa. Simple and spacious – there was enough room for two additional single beds for our children – with a focus on comfort and practicality. The separate wardrobe space was handy for keeping the living area clear, and I loved the huge outdoor bathroom complete with hot tub. The best bit about the room, though, is clearly the white sand beach that it rests on. The area is small, but that worked perfectly for us as a family. I could sit on the sun loungers with my book (and glass of champagne) while watching my husband happily splashing around in the sea with the kids. And it all felt completely private. There are a lot of pros to these rooms but if complete, outrageous luxury is what you’re after, then you may be better off in one of the water villas.
Everyone's clicking on...
We spent the rest of our stay in one of these - an enormous two bed water villa - with all the mod cons and extra details that you might expect. The under-villa lighting was a specific hit with my family, engaging us every night after dinner as we’d try to spot the coolest marine life swimming by. The bedrooms were almost as big as the entire previous villa, with an additional wardrobe space, tea area, fabulous bathroom and separate living area for each bedroom to enjoy, too. The set up means that the hotel can put up a wall and sell the villas separately if they want to – the upshot being for us, we had more space than we knew what to do with (and no one was complaining). It also meant that instead of one deck and infinity pool, we had two. If you are travelling with a couple of smalls like we were, you could definitely get away with just one villa between you, but for families with older children, or even for couples travelling with other couples, this set up is perfect, giving privacy and space when required. Our villa was on the ocean side, offering uninterrupted views of those blue waves. If money is no object, however, I’d suggest upgrading to the sunset side – where you’ll not only enjoy nature’s greatest spectacle every night, but the villas also have a slightly different setup with the bathrooms overlooking the ocean, too.
It’s worth noting here that the price difference between these options is quite stark. If you have the budget, then splashing out on the water villas is a no brainer. But if you’re trying to stick to a tighter budget, then the Beach villas are still a fantastic option.
The starting room rate at Veligandu Maldives is US$749 for a Beach Villa on a Bed & Breakfast basis, based on double occupancy, including green tax.
What we did
Veligandu has an incredible house reef located alongside its main jetty, making the snorkelling here really something special indeed. My four-year-old happily swam alongside me as we ventured out; spotting all manner of marine life from eels and rays to clams and a number of sharks, too. There is something so magical about this experience, that you could do it over and over… and over again and never tire of the underwater scenery and new wildlife spots – no two swimming trips will ever be the same.
If you have a particular animal in mind that you’d like to see, Veligandu offers snorkelling excursions, too. We took a trip to see the turtles, which is a must-do if you love sea life. They also have a nurse shark experience, a manta ray excursion – and many more. There’s of course scuba diving if that’s more your thing, and tonnes of water sports activities including newer technologies such as electric jet boards, wake foiling and the x-jetblade. Fishing trips, dolphin cruises, visits to private sandbanks – you would be hard-pressed to be bored on this particular slice of paradise.
If you find the time between all of that snorkelling and sunbathing, I’d thoroughly recommend a trip to the spa. With treatment rooms situated in stilted huts on the ocean, this really is relaxation at its greatest. What could be more restorative than a treatment in a setting like this? Not much. In truth, it’s kind of ruined all other spas for me...
There’s also a gym on-site, plus padel and pickleball courts, and a games room with table tennis, pool and more. Thundi, the main bar, also hosts entertainment come the evening which is well worth scouting out. From live music to glow parties and – our favourite – a Maldivian Cultural Show, this is the hub of activity in the evening and creates an environment that is warm and fun!
I also got the impression that this resort could and would create any kind of bespoke moment, meal, anything that you could want. Worth keeping in mind if you have any occasions worth making that bit more special.
What we ate
As Veligandu is a small resort, I had wondered if the food options might be lacking versus some of the bigger islands, but I was not left wanting. In fact, I found the food at Dhonveli to be some of the best I’ve ever had at a hotel buffet, with a variety of hot, tasty options on offer. As the resort isn’t billed as being for families, this is the safest bet if you’re dining with picky eaters, as they have a wide variety of options to choose from. If you’ve booked onto the All-Inclusive Dine Around package – which I’d recommend as it includes so much more than just food and drink – then you also get to enjoy the resort’s a la carte options. Madivaru Silk is the place to go if you’re craving Asian-inspired meals of gyoza, sashimi, pad thai and curry, while Raalhu has a very fine dining feel and melt-in-the-mouth steak. Neither of the a la carte options had a children’s menu but both were more than happy to create something off-menu for our kids, too.
If you’re staying on the island for a week or more, then you may also want to make the most of their location dining options. From a floating breakfast delivered to your pool (a personal highlight for my kids), to lobster nights on the beach and completely private dining experiences around the island.
A note on travel
Before arriving in the Maldives, we assumed that visiting two resorts would be a pretty easy affair – you just fly from one directly to the other, right? Well, mostly, no. There are some resorts connected by sea plane depending on the route of the provider, but as the sea planes are run by an external company, this is very difficult to know ahead of time. Usually, you will be required to return to Male via seaplane from your first resort, before flying back out to the second. The flights may be quick, but you could be waiting at Male for some time, so it’s worth weighing up if a change of scenery is worth potentially losing a morning or afternoon of your precious vacay time for.
Jess Edwards is Cosmopolitan UK’s Deputy Editor, working to deliver the very best experiences across the brand's platforms (print, social, video, digital), products and events, including a focus on our membership offering, Club Cosmo. Jess has worked in the media industry for almost 20 years and at Cosmopolitan for over 10 years, joining the brand as Fashion Editor and later going on to lead the digital team as Site Editor. With her background in lifestyle journalism, it is no surprise that you’re most likely to find her in the Fashion section and exploring the very best in hospitality via our Travel pages.
