Fihalhohi Island Resort Review

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Fihalhohi Island Resort
★★★★☆
4.0
81.0% of users recommend this

Richard Boon's review of Fihalhohi Island Resort

“Fihalhohi ”

★★★★★

written by Richard Boon on 05/10/2004

Good Points
Wonderful beaches, fantastic staff, very high tall palm trees, great excursions, relaxation aplenty. Paradise indeed.

Bad Points
Food often the same despite different themes.
Entertainment not great (but that's not to important on this quiet island, Weather a gamble from Mar-Nov

General Comments
Fihalhohi



When me and my partner were considering going to the Maldives for our holiday we did our best to search out reviews of islands by people who had been in June and July as this was the time we had planned to go.

Obviously this is the wet-hot monsoon and therefore the weather is a bit of a gamble, and so we were desperate to find out if it was a waste of a lot of money to go at this time or not.

Unfortunately the only reviews we found based around these months talked a lot about the islands and facilities but didn't mention the weather! And so we went anyway on the grounds that at least it would be warm and still a nice change from England.



So this review is written for a number of people - obviously anyone going to the Maldives will probably find it useful in someway or another, but those going to the island of Fihalhohi will obviously benefit greater, and a lot of what we say may only be relevant for those who are going in June / July, although no matter when or where you're going - have a read of what I have to say here as I'm sure it will benefit all.



Ok, so me and my partner went to Fihalhohi in the South Male Atoll for two weeks, I start this review by simply stating that one week would not have been enough but for us three weeks would have been too much.

Fihalhohi is a very small island, you can walk around it in about 15 minutes although we never timed ourselves, mainly because you can't actually walk all the way around the perimeter, but you can walk around most of it. I guess what I'm saying is that the beautiful white sanded beach runs around most of the island, but the so called 'front' of the island doesn't have much useable beach, this is where the boats are all kept etc, (we did however snorkel all around this area!).

When we were looking at going here we were disappointed by not being able to walk all the way around on beach - don't be! You are NEVER more than a few feet from the water and to be honest the island is better for it because at night there is one place opposite the main bar where you can sit with the water right up to you, and that my friends is truly relaxing!

Fihalhohi is a simple resort, not for those looking for noise and endless water sports, it is a real place of tranquillity and this is what makes it paradise.

The island is home to some of the tallest palm trees in the Maldives (as you will notice when going past some of the others), and they give the place an amazingly natural feel despite the man made buildings that live within the island.



Starting from the beginning we flew with Monarch Airlines and were delayed by an hour and a half when we flew from Gatwick.

The flight was truly horrific as the seat room was ABSOLUTELY REDICOULOUS AND INHUMANE!

I have wrote my review of Monarch on this very site and at the time of it going online it was the only one so please check it out BEFORE agreeing to fly with Monarch, some friends we made on holiday told us that you can actually demand not to fly with them but know one knew this.

The flight was the pits, worst flight EVER, for a number of reasons and we will never fly with Monarch again long haul, although I don't want to go into this in too much detail as this is my review of Fihalhohi not Monarch but believe me - if you can avoid Monarch then DO, there is a rumour that due to all their complaints they are upgrading their planes in 2005, although I don't know how true this actually is.

One great thing about flying is if you get a clear day when you arrive as we did you get a great view of the atolls and islands as you fly over, you can really see the turquoise lagoons and reefs from way up above and the circles of white sands encircling each island.

Male airport is a little chaotic, and the heat hits you as soon as you get off the plane, we were greeted here by our rep and were taken to a speed boat where along with another six people and loads of staff were transported very choppily to the island, the journey took about an hour and the first 20 minutes were rough and very choppy - not for those who get sea sick!

Although it was June and therefore the ocean was obviously a little choppier than in Dec-Apr.



We had never been to the Maldives before and so only had internet pictures to give ourselves a taster before arriving, when the boat pulled up to the jetty of Fihalhohi I was lost for words, the palm trees lingered over the beach, the water was beautiful and amazingly clear, like nothing I had ever seen before - I was in love already.

We were treated to a cold face towel and a coconut drink (coconut with a straw in it) and some food (although no drums like on some islands).

We were given a talk straight away about the island which was a little bit frustrating and hard going after the long journey we had all just endured, then we got to go to our rooms.

We upgraded to a Water Bungalow straight away, not because the other rooms were not good enough (admittedly we never saw in one of these properly) but just because there was a water bungalow available and we took it!

It cost about £700 to upgrade for the two weeks but was WELL WORTH IT! The water bungalow was incredible, extremely spacious, amazing air con, and a large, part shaded private decking area with our own private lower platform with steps into the lagoon!

And what a lagoon it is! Just from the shallow waters around the bungalow you could see all kinds of fish and by putting your face under you will see a whole new world before your eyes.

The wonderful thing about the lagoon around the side of the island towards the water bungalows is that snorkel or just follow it out and eventually the sea bed just literally drops vertically into the great deep blue creating a visible line where the water goes from light to dark blue. This is of course the coral house reef and is like something from a wildlife documentary, all kinds of amazing underwater life swimming around you - and in no short supply, you are constantly surrounded by hundreds of fish.

We snorkelled endlessly whilst there and saw some amazing things, conga eels, baby white tip sharks, rays, even turtles. We even went night snorkelling with a group of people we made friends with and that was really brilliant, we rented large water torches from the dive school and snorkelled until they burnt out! - Remember though - all the poisonous stuff comes out at night!



The island had one restaurant, two bars, reception area, a massage and health centre, a dive school, badminton court, and a small shop - mostly for purchasing gifts and clothing such as madly coloured 'typical westerner on tropical island' shirts that I didn't touch because of this stereotype! - Not dissing those who do of course!

You may think having two bars is pointless but it was actually quite convenient, the main bar is called the Fisherman's Bar and is located in what is the main part of the island next to the large restaurant and reception, but this bar is rarely used during the day being more for the night time after-meal entertainment (such as karaoke, crab racing, native performances, films etc). The other bar is called the Blue Lagoon and Surf Caf where most people who are half board go at lunch time to have some food - simple things such as pizza, burger and chips, etc (milkshakes here are fantastic coz they are made with real scoops of delicious ice cream).

We were half board and chose to use our money to have lunch at the Surf Caf instead of going Full Board and having to eat at the restaurant as the food wasn't always that great.



Food



Breakfast (if you can be bothered to get up before 9:30 - and you should because the island is beautifully calm in the early hours) is generally fruit, bread, cheese, occasionally eggs and chicken sausages or something like that, I always just had cheese sandwiches and some cake, where as my partner always had melon.

We had lunch at the Surf Caf where the waiters are really friendly and the food is pretty good, especially the chips! And the prices are actually reasonable. The Blue Lagoon and Surf Caf (why it needs two names I'll never know) is situated around the other side of the island to the main bar and restaurant and is right next door to the water bungalows - where the best stretch of beach is as well!

Just thinking about it as I write this I really miss my afternoon stroll over the Blue Lagoon for burger and chips in the beautiful tropical weather!

Dinner in the restaurant is themed, every night they cook to a certain theme, examples include - Thai night, Sri Lanka night, American Farmhouse, English Fish and Chips (bless 'em), BBQ Buffet, etc, etc, and the food generally consists of chicken and fish - a lot of fish, oh and rice of course - always a nice selection of rice!

The dinners were not the best and some nights we didn't eat much, it's all self service so you take as little or as much as you like. Other nights it was really nice and so I eat too much!

Desert was always really simple, simple puddings and fruit usually.

In the main season (Nov - April) you will probably have to share a table with another couple, but from May - Oct you will be ok, there was only 75 people on the island in our first week and baring in mind that in the high season they have a constant 300 people we found it quite comforting, and also didn't have to share. You always sit at the same table and always have the same waiter who you will become on first name terms with - our was Ahmed and was lovely, but some people we met didn't like their waiter, it's one of those pot luck things really.



Entertainment



Evening entertainment comes from the Fisherman bar with karaoke, crab racing, performances, film nights etc, and is not great, but then as already said this is a relaxation island and so you don't want it to be too much. You can always sit outside by the water or up the jetty or go around to the dead quiet Blue Lagoon bar which in this quieter season never has anyone in it at night because it's the other side of the island and is badly lit.

The Fisherman bar is the place for cocktails and Joseph the lovely man you will come accustomed to being served by is a cocktail wiz!

The staff in both bars are fantastic, my partner didn't like the food one night and told Joseph when he asked how dinner was, and the bar staff gave her a free helping of chocolate cake which kept her happy.



The evening is a great time to socialise and usually everyone there is nice. We made some friends from England who we are going to see again and spent many drunken nights with them! We also spent time chatting to people from all over the world, Europe mostly, French, Swedish, Italian, and a lot of Swiss.



Activities



Activities include, volleyball, snorkelling (you can rent snorkelling and dive equipment from the dive school) diving, all kinds of excursions including Dolphin trips (on which we were surrounded by large groups of Dolphins but other people didn't see any on their trip!) this trip also includes lunch on an uninhabited island where the reef is so far out that the lagoon is the calmest water I have ever seen, it's like an island, and is called Paradise Island, you will understand why if you go.

You can also go on speed boats and glass bottom boats, have candle lit dinners on the beach and get on banana boats.



Weather



This is where the problem is, the island is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen and for the first of our two weeks we were granted with absolutely superb weather, I was truly burnt up by the end of the first full day and everything was fantastic, I didn't want to leave EVER. Then came the second week, constant rain, constant thunder storms, water too choppy to go in - snorkelling out of the question - especially if you're not a confident swimmer, and so what does one do with ones self on a tiny island on which everything depends on the sun?

The unfortunate weather in our second week meant that I was actually eager to leave come the end of our stay, having spent about 5 days being constantly bored.



You see, if you're lucky and get the weather, then this is a great time to go as the island has only about 80 people on average on it, compared to 300 in the main season!! It's also cheaper this time of year and you don't have to share a table! And of course Water Bungalows are easier to come by, but if you go in the main season (dec-apr) you are practially guaranteed the weather, where as may-nov is a gamble.

We were there for 14 days and for 9 of them we had sublime weather which meant that my memories are nothing but great, however I can't help but wish we had been as fortunate as those who went a week earlier and had two weeks of brill weather! But that's life.



Conclusion



This was an amazing holiday and a truly unique island. The sand is incredible and if the weather holds up then you will be truly depressed come leaving time.

The staff are amazing, the food isn't great but is in no way horrid and the excursions are fantastic. Make sure you go on the snorkel safari where you get taken out into the ocean and told to jump off (although if you've recently watched the film Open Water then you may be a bit weary! - although large sharks aren't as frequent in these parts, mainly just reef sharks - and we never saw any sharks bigger than little silver tip babes).

Tipping is really down to your likeness of the people on the trips and your waiter, I don't believe it mandatory tips, if you weren't happy then don't do it, but on the most had I felt it appropriate to tip generously - they also look after you better when they know you're a tipper! One German fellow refused to tip anyone on his stay, this isn't really acceptable as all of staff work so hard and deserve the extra that tips bring in, we found out that some of the staff don't take days of very often because they don't want to miss out on tips, and when you consider that some of them come from homes consisting of one room buildings in shanty towns with tens of kids it's nice to know that you are helping someone that has never known the pleasures that you and me are used to everyday. Get talking to any of them about their lives (Joseph's good for a chat) and it's an incredible new world and a real eye opener, so be nice to them as they are to you!

If you've never been to a tropical island before then be prepared to fall in love and have memories that will last a life time, if you've been to the Maldives before then try out Fihalhohi and see how it compares to where you've been before and tell me so I don't go to any bad ones!



It goes without saying that I hope to return to the Maldives one day, and with so many islands to choose from it's often quite hard to decide where to go, we will try somewhere new next time we go, but are so glad we chose Fiha for our first trip. We hope any of you going have as good an experience as we did (oh and watch out for the falling coconuts as more people are killed by these than anything else in the Maldives! And on Fihalhohi they have a long way to fall!)



Fihalhohi, where the sands of time stand still it really is paradise, and I miss it everyday



Richard Boon

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Marionshaun's Response to Richard Boon's Review

Written on: 30/01/2005

Hi Richard
<br>Just read your review on fihalhohi and found it very helpful. You didn't mention the price of drinks? I would be interested to know how exspensive they were...both alcoholic and soft drinks.
<br>Regards M Mckenna

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Richard Boon's Response to Richard Boon's Review

Written on: 15/06/2005

Sally:
<br>
<br>The shop doesn't sell alcohol, well didn't when we were there anyway, but you can buy bottles of any drink at the bars and take them away. There are no mini bars, not even in the water bungalows! In the water bungalows you have a fridge.

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Sally Mason's Response to Richard Boon's Review

Written on: 06/06/2005

Hi,
<br>My husband and I went to Meeru Island in Nov 2004. It rained on and off nearly everyday but we still had a wonderful time. We have booked to go to Fiha next year and are really looking forward to it. Can't wait to get onto that house reef!! Can you buy alcohol in the shop or bar (beer or wine, not necessarily bottles of spirits) so that you can take it back to your room as I noticed there was no minibar in classic rooms?

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