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Vihamanaafushi, North Male Atoll
The fact that my tots and I finally land at Male airport and don’t have to hop on to another plane to get to our digs in Maldives; for me that’s reason enough to fall in love with Kurumba. Maldives’ very first resort is also the closest one to the airport and the mere 10-minute speedboat ride from Male seals the deal for many who are travelling with children and don’t want the added headache (and expenditure) of an internal flight. This, though, also means some Male facing rooms as well as the distant sound of airplanes taking off at the airport. At the resort, the warm welcome followed by chilled coconut ice cream just hit the spot and reassured us that we were in for a great family holiday. This, of course, was before we met a gentleman who had been coming to this family-friendly resort, all the way from the Netherlands every year for the past 23 years. Enough said.
- Baby cot
- Bottle sterilizer
- Bottle warmer
- Baby bathtub
- Stroller
- Highchair
- Child menu
- Doctor on call
- Babysitting services (US $15+/child/hour)
- Accommodation ranges from rooms to pool villas. We had a perfect west-facing villa on the beach with the most amazing sunsets (I should know –I lived in Fiji!). The highlight, however, was that the patch of beach outside our villa that seemed to attract two small Black Tip reef sharks, who were always around. The Deluxe Pool Villas are particularly fun for a family with kids. It is worth noting that rooms/villas at Kurumba are not overtly luxurious, when compared to some of the newer resorts and reflect the age of the resort. However, the difference in pricing adequately compensates this. Also, do request for rooms that don’t look out into Male. Those who come to Maldives looking for its signature water villas will be disappointed, for Kurumba has none.
- The waters are typically Maldivian turquoise and clear. With a reef wall around the entire resort (which also means that the turquoise doesn’t go on forever), expect calm waters and fine sand.
- The supervised Maaja Kids’ Club (9 am – 6 pm) caters to kids from three to 13 and is a great place to park the kids on those hot Maldivian afternoons. Activities here range from snorkeling, coconut walks, glass boat rides, treasure hunts, pizza making and more. Most activities are either free or very reasonably priced. Coral gardening here was a one of a kind activity that I would highly recommend
Also, the in-villa babysitters we hired when we stepped out for dinner were excellent. - A wide range of family-friendly activities that range from sandbank picnics, sea plane rides, snorkeling safaris, fishing trips to water sports and more.
- A whopping 8 restaurants call this resort home. A variety of full board and half board meal options are available, with the former being more popular. We took a package that allows use of both breakfasts (one buffet and one gourmet with al la carte options) which I would recommend as the buffet tends to get boring after a point. Kids meals were very reasonably priced. I was always given a complimentary fresh puree for my baby daughter every meal.
- There was an activity planned for all guests every evening. These included guest meet and greet with food and drinks, cooking classes and more, with wine tasting in the lagoon being our favourite.
- Veli Spa offering treatments both indoor and outdoor.
- 10-minute speedboat ride from Male airport
- Private island resort on Vihamanaafushi Island
- 180 Rooms & villas
- 8 Restaurants
- 3 Bars
- 4 Swimming pools
- Spa
- Tennis Courts
- Fitness Centre
Mandy’s Tip: Some rooms look out into Male, so best to request for rooms facing in other directions. Also, it is not unusual to hear planes taking off from the airport in a distance.
Speedboat transfers from the airport to the resort are available 24 hours a day, which is a big advantage for international flights coming in late in the evening or at night, as sea planes to other resorts only operate for limited hours during the day.
Travelling mom Purva Saikia contributed parts of this review.
Travelling to Maldives? Check out our other fabulous family-friendly hotels here