For our second week in the Maldives we stayed at another island resort, this one a 45 minute speedboat trip from Malé. Meeru Island Resort and Spa was nice, though it was a big step down from Niyama in terms of luxury (and price).
The resort was another full board extravaganza. By now (after two weeks of cruising and a week of resort stay), the regular trip to the buffet was starting to elicit some groans. The food was fantastic, especially the Indian options where some nice curries were dished up. However returning to the table with our plates, portions were getting smaller and we seemed to all be more selective in choosing only those dishes we really wanted to eat rather than trying to sample a large range of goodies.
We stayed in a comfortable cabin about 20 meters from the beach on the eastern side of the island with a large shallow lagoon immediately off the beach with one deep spot that proved great for snorkelling.
So how did we spend our time? Well we did a lot of resting. The monsoon paid a visit during the week for about three days and a lot of this time was spend in the room, although the rain doesn't really stop you from swimming especially as it wasn't too windy.
The resort was very sports focussed and not just water sports. They had quite a few pool tables so following our games at Niyama we had a few more family pool battles. Quite surprisingly the resort also hosted one full sized snooker table in immaculate condition and I started to teach Elise how to play snooker. It seemed like the resort didn't know much about using their asset though. The table didn't even have spots and I'm not sure the staff knew how to set up the balls correctly. It got very little use except for us and a few Brits. Not a surprise since the pockets were championship tight and average punters were in for a frustrating time especially if they were used to playing pool.
When the soccer field wasn't waterlogged, the resort staff played against each other and in a weekly challenge against the guests. The guests didn't look like they were going that well while I was watching.
Meeru boasts one of the only golf courses on the Maldives although if only has 9 holes of Pitch and Putt plus a netted driving range. The greens were artificial and looked like they would be more at home on an extreme mini golf layout (when they weren't underwater that is). We didn't bother having a hit. Nor did we play tennis or badminton.
The Kids club was really designed just for the littlies without the great options for the nine to twelve year age group like Niyama. Even though we were a week closer to Christmas there still weren't that many kids of Samuels age staying so he played a lot of solo PlayStation when he wasn't with us. He did make friends with one Brazilian boy whose family became the toast of the resort after his parents (doctors) saved the life of a staff member.
Snorkelling at the resort was very good. As with Niyama, bleaching had wrecked most of the coral (the resort is working actively to encourage regrowth), but the fish life was still prolific, both in the hole off the beach in front of our villa, and further up our side of the island where there were large shallow beds of sea grass. Elise and Sam don't really snorkel (Elise went a little bit), but I saw sharks, rays and lots of fish including some really big schools. One generous touch was the resort putting on a free boat trip to their "house" reef about a kilometre offshore twice a day. I went twice and saw a few nice things but it wasn't any better for spotting sea life than the island based snorkelling.
With Christmas approaching, in the last days before our departure, the Christmas decorations were going up around the island and the resort was filling up with arriving vacationers.
On our last afternoon before our speedboat departed back to Malé, Elise and I took the opportunity to take a final walk around the island.
Although we weren't living in the same level of luxury as at Niyama, the resort was still very good. No complaints and plenty of complements. In particular the sound environmental attitude was a highlight. Free chilled water refills were available at all restaurants at any time if you forked out a very fair $5 for a Meeru metal water bottle which made a nice souvenir of our stay. The staff were great, always friendly and happy to help.
Again like Niyama we would happily return if we have the chance.
The resort was another full board extravaganza. By now (after two weeks of cruising and a week of resort stay), the regular trip to the buffet was starting to elicit some groans. The food was fantastic, especially the Indian options where some nice curries were dished up. However returning to the table with our plates, portions were getting smaller and we seemed to all be more selective in choosing only those dishes we really wanted to eat rather than trying to sample a large range of goodies.
We stayed in a comfortable cabin about 20 meters from the beach on the eastern side of the island with a large shallow lagoon immediately off the beach with one deep spot that proved great for snorkelling.
So how did we spend our time? Well we did a lot of resting. The monsoon paid a visit during the week for about three days and a lot of this time was spend in the room, although the rain doesn't really stop you from swimming especially as it wasn't too windy.
The resort was very sports focussed and not just water sports. They had quite a few pool tables so following our games at Niyama we had a few more family pool battles. Quite surprisingly the resort also hosted one full sized snooker table in immaculate condition and I started to teach Elise how to play snooker. It seemed like the resort didn't know much about using their asset though. The table didn't even have spots and I'm not sure the staff knew how to set up the balls correctly. It got very little use except for us and a few Brits. Not a surprise since the pockets were championship tight and average punters were in for a frustrating time especially if they were used to playing pool.
When the soccer field wasn't waterlogged, the resort staff played against each other and in a weekly challenge against the guests. The guests didn't look like they were going that well while I was watching.
Meeru boasts one of the only golf courses on the Maldives although if only has 9 holes of Pitch and Putt plus a netted driving range. The greens were artificial and looked like they would be more at home on an extreme mini golf layout (when they weren't underwater that is). We didn't bother having a hit. Nor did we play tennis or badminton.
The Kids club was really designed just for the littlies without the great options for the nine to twelve year age group like Niyama. Even though we were a week closer to Christmas there still weren't that many kids of Samuels age staying so he played a lot of solo PlayStation when he wasn't with us. He did make friends with one Brazilian boy whose family became the toast of the resort after his parents (doctors) saved the life of a staff member.
Snorkelling at the resort was very good. As with Niyama, bleaching had wrecked most of the coral (the resort is working actively to encourage regrowth), but the fish life was still prolific, both in the hole off the beach in front of our villa, and further up our side of the island where there were large shallow beds of sea grass. Elise and Sam don't really snorkel (Elise went a little bit), but I saw sharks, rays and lots of fish including some really big schools. One generous touch was the resort putting on a free boat trip to their "house" reef about a kilometre offshore twice a day. I went twice and saw a few nice things but it wasn't any better for spotting sea life than the island based snorkelling.
On our last afternoon before our speedboat departed back to Malé, Elise and I took the opportunity to take a final walk around the island.
Although we weren't living in the same level of luxury as at Niyama, the resort was still very good. No complaints and plenty of complements. In particular the sound environmental attitude was a highlight. Free chilled water refills were available at all restaurants at any time if you forked out a very fair $5 for a Meeru metal water bottle which made a nice souvenir of our stay. The staff were great, always friendly and happy to help.
Again like Niyama we would happily return if we have the chance.
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