Honeymoon Maldives

So last week was kinda panicking, because H-30 to our wedding and we have not booked our honeymoon just yet. To add the extra tension, all the good and cheap resorts in Maldives have been fully booked. What's more to that, there are literally hundreds of different resorts there and all seem nice and sooo many of them have positive reviews.
I got headache just browsing www.tripadvisor.com;  www.booking.com; and others alike.

I even read people's blogs who have been to Maldives but again I got very wide options.
I am so much aided by this website //www.overwaterbungalows.net/; you can search almost everything; resorts with glass floor, resorts for honeymoon, cheap resorts, luxury resorts. I even asked a question to the writer. hahaa so helpful, thanks Roger!! =)

Finally, I read review in Female Daily and knew OVHolidays, the agent there. And we compared the prices of the resorts we wanted in 3 different channels: tripadvisor, own website and OVholidays. Thank God we got the bestest deal!!! Will write the details and the name of the resort later, because I want to keep it a surprise. hehe

Some tips and tricks for you who want to go to Maldives:
1. Know why you want to go to Maldives ie. honeymoon in private, family vacation, celebrate anniversary, diving, drinking and partying, etc. Because each resort offers different ambience.
* If you want to go for a private honeymoon (like us), go for some private island, offering a romantic activities/honeymoon benefits, and a good villa of course (it's honeymoon, you will stay in your villa more. lol). My suggestion is go for the 4-5 star resort like Sun Siyam Iru Fushi, Centara Grand Island, Conrad, Ozen by Atmosphere, Mirihi Island, Gili Lankafushi, Cocoa Island, Lily Beach, Adaaran, Veligandu, Anantara Veli, and many more. Just choose one within your budget range. Dont forget to add the cost of the seaplane/speedboat return transfer because usually the price stated in the final booking does not include this cost. If you have specified budget then go for speedboat transfer, much cheaper, usually just around USD 150/adult; whereas seaplane can reach up to USD 300-500/adult.

But if you have a strict budget and want a good all inclusive resort and dont mind about the luxury & privacy so much, i suggest check the Meeru Island. It is relatively the cheapest among other resorts and it has positive feedback

* if you want a family vacation with kids, find a children-friendly resort. you can find the suggestion in www.overwaterbungalows.net, it is so thorough.

* if you like to drink and partying, go for an all inclusive plan because it offers free flow of beers, spirits and alcohols usually during lunch and dinner. But if you're a small eater or want to save budget go for a lesser meal plan, I suggest half-board meal plan (breakfast & dinner), because if you only take breakfast, the cost of food might be quite high, i heard, can reach up to USD 150/pax (buffet).

2. Narrow down your options to top 5 resorts, the one you like best based on review, photos, amenities and facilities. I suggest you read that www.overwaterbungalows.net first because it has categorised the resorts based on the facilities and reviews. Then compare the price, i suggest my way that is three-way price comparison ie. trip advisor (because it automatically finds the lowest room rate from expedia, hotels, booking, and own website); own website (still check the resort own website because if you book using trip advisor, it still takes commission, right?); and OV holidays. There are other agents but I use OV Holidays because I've read good reviews about it. I've seen another agent like maldivesoffer.com, etc

If you are too lazy or too busy to compare, you can always contact an agent. So far I found OV Holidays very helpful and they relatively tell which resort has the best value for money within our specific criteria. You can also check the weddingku honeymoon but after my thorough research, it is much more expensive =)

3. last but not least, always confirm whether the price stated is NET of all taxes, you dont want to pay extra money there, do you? and also confirm the price of the airport transfer (speedboat / seaplane)

Happy hunting all!!!
Will update our Maldives trip and resort later after we visit there =D

Lots of love,
Lophe