Thulhagiri Island Resort & Spa

It is rare that I give a 5 star review across the board to any resort or venue. Thulhagiri exceeded all expectations in every category and, for me, it truly was a paradise island. I was very much looking for a restful, warm and peaceful environment, and whilst I found all of that, I also found much more. This is a tiny island, with white powder sand and crystal blue waters; a 'barefoot' island, where you can literally walk everywhere without shoes, flip-flops et cetera. About 160 guests and it takes around 15 minutes to walk around the island, but it never feels busy, noisy and you are not bothered by an animation team, hawkers. There are plenty of loungers, though there are no cushioning mattresses on the beach ones. The island is designed very sympathetically to its location, with vegetation hiding most of the services and retaining privacy for both guests and the staff. Staff are attentive, polite, helpful and any matter is attended to promptly. If you are AI there are additional benefits such as free hire of snorkels, flippers and masks during your holiday. The journey begins from the airport at Male where you are transferred to a speedboat for a 15 minute journey to Thulhagiri. I was impressed with the safety procedures undertaken by the staff during the boat, assisting passengers and lifting the luggage into and out of the boat. Each beachside villa looks out to sea, and there are sandy paths to the rear of the villas, cutting across the island. This way you never see or hear the many services from your beachside resting point. There is a large swimming pool with further loungers around it, but most people sought it for shade, rather than swimming, as the beach predominantly is shallow particularly low tide for around 20 m. In your accommodation aside from the usual, you will find 2 lifejackets. We found these very useful when snorkelling at deeper depths, or beyond the reef. Although I have read reports that there were not many fish, I did not find this to be the case-see pictures below. The baby sharks were a regular feature, easily watched from the swimming pool or pier areas. They are not a problem. We were exceptionally fortunate to be upgraded to a superior water villa for part of our holiday. Tipping is not expected, but much appreciated and many of the staff send money home to families. Turning to the food, it was plentiful and varied at all meals. There were plenty of choices for drinks, served at your table and, although the meals are buffet style, careful attention is paid to the heat of the food, allergies and any special needs. There is a dive centre on the island and they can arrange a variety of trips; snorkelling, diving and windsurfing. The bar on the west side of the island gets a bit busier on the beach near sunset and it is a pleasure to sit and watch the sun go down with 1 of the many cocktails, although you might have to wait a few minutes at this busy time. As there are relatively few guests, it almost becomes a larg

We visited the resort at the end of October and it was our second holiday in this hotel. Having experience from other islands (13 times in Maldives), we can compare Thulhagiri in different aspects. The fact that we returned to the same resort after a year testifies to our great previous satisfaction. We appreciate the efforts of the hotel management to constantly improve the service and appearance of the resort. We noticed some improvements this year and the resort has a very relaxed atmosphere. Since the weather and strong current did not allow us to snorkel every day, we spent more time at the bar. Our favorite Toast from the Sand Bar and Saigon beer made our afternoon more enjoyable. We spent the sunset at the Beach Bar, where we watched the celestial theater with a cocktail in hand. Both bars are managed by a very experienced manager, Mr. Mohamed. Special thanks to very skilled bartender Giham and to smiling waitress Sonu - they fulfilled all our wishes very quickly and efficiently. During our vacation we had the HB+ meal plan, which I can recommend to guests who don't want to overeat but like to enjoy cocktails and drinks in the bars. The meal in the buffet restaurant was even better this year than during our last stay here. There was a wider selection of fruits and we enjoyed the delicious soups. The evening entertainment at the Sand Bar was enough for us. We enjoyed the crab race very much. The crab team guys were very fun and professional. Good job and thanks for our winnings ! Finally this review I would like to thank all the staff for our unforgettable holiday . See you... Katarina & Zdenko from Slovakia

We had a very good time here! the weather was amazing and there was lots to sign up for! the food was veeeeery nice and we had a really nice ober! We came to be relaxed so this vacation is perfect for that All the workers are also very nice and treated us well! They are all hard workers and really nice to everyone! And we would watch the sunset every day and that was beautiful!!!!! i really recommend it here

As stated in most reviews the resort is fantastic, staff attentive and friendly felt like part of a family, we used both beach bungalow which was fabulous, comfortable and clean and loved being on the beach, the deluxe overwater bungalow was stunning and felt more private and luxurious. Food was excellent and staff incredible remembering what you like and making you feel well cared for. Water suppers fantastic, house reef was amazing to snorkel, lots of amazing fish also saw reef sharks and turtles. Island is stunning, beach bar and sunset view at the end of each day beautiful

I love the energy in this place, especially staff attitude and the best person in this island is SUSMA, she is so caring person, she always positive , she has the best energy, and she always trying the best for the people here and for our couple also. LOVE SUSMA

Pros: Beautiful tiny island with smiling friendly staff. Food exceptional - so much to choose from and all delicious! Shout out to Susma, Sonu and Hassan for making our stay so memorable. The shape of the island actually changed whilst we were there - more beach appeared on one side of the island and disappeared from the other side - keeps it interesting. Lots of fish visible without even snorkeling - saw rays, reef sharks and even a turtle. Maintenance works go on all the time but the staff go about it quietly and considerately. Both the Beach and Water bungalows are super spacious offering unique and stunning views. Resident heron, water hens, budgies and koi carp. Entertainment well spaced out: crab racing is fun, there's a hilarious magician, the DJ is great and the live band are really good. You're allocated the same table and same waiter for the entire stay which prevents confusion. Check out the Sunset Dolphin Tour if possible! Opportunities for improvement: The resort manager is not there often and the staff have little autonomy to make decisions in his absence. I would encourage greater autonomy for the hard-working staff who are there all the time so they can handle difficult guests/ requests/ situations with confidence. The island is sprayed twice a day to repel mosquitos -- recommend the decking on the beach bungalows and around both the pools are sprayed too. Bed mattresses are very hard but you can request a mattress topper which helps.