Anantara Kihavah house reef snorkelling April 2023

[@dysjourneys]

How do you compare snorkeling experience here with Kandolhu?

[@bajknighton]

The snorkelling at AK was very special, among the best of all the island house reefs we’ve done (>15 islands). The coral is in great condition, and the variety and volume of life is fantastic. At Kandolhu, the coral isn’t in such good condition - some areas are quite bare and dead. But it is improving and there is plenty to see. There are LOADS of turtles (so many more than other islands) whereas at AK there aren’t as many turtles but we also saw green turtles, which is pretty rare and such a treat. Both islands have some areas where the snorkelling becomes challenging with strong currents, but these vary throughout the day. Sadly, although the snorkelling was wonderful, I didn’t enjoy AK - the service was just a bit odd, so I wouldn’t go back, which is sad because the snorkelling is sooo good.

[@dysjourneys]

@@bajknighton thanks for the insight, would you mind telling more about the service? We enjoyed our trip to Kandolhu last time and trying to figure out if we should go there again or try other island.

[@bajknighton]

@@dysjourneys hi. The issues we had were probably quite unique to us, and I’m sure loads of people would love AK - it was maybe just personal taste and our specific experience. The island is beautiful (but much bigger than most that we’ve been to, which is maybe part of the problem), the house reef snorkelling is insane, and the underwater restaurant is stunning (especially at breakfast). With the service, I just felt it was all very corporate. They seemed to want to cater to big functions over individual guests. A few times we tried to visit the bar for sunset but it was closed off for large private corporate groups. We tried requesting a few things in advance but when we arrived they had all been ignored (basic requests). For example, where possible we prefer villas closer to the reef so we can get to the drop off and start snorkelling quickly, but they just said ‘none of the villas have sunset views’. So they didn’t even bother understanding the reason for our request, they just assumed we wanted a sunset view and then stuck us in a villa with a very long swim to get out to the nearest reef. If they are full and canny accommodate it, that’s not a problem, but they just didn’t bother. We love resorts where you can snorkel a full lap of the island (like at Kandolhu). This is possible at AK, but as we went passed the restaurant the staff came out and shouted at us to go away in case we disturbed the view for the underwater diners. We would literally have only been there a few minutes as we moved passed, but the staff were furious. There were many similar examples that just made us feel really uncomfortable. Most Maldives islands feel really special and magical, and the staff go out of their way to make you feel welcome. At AK, they only ever did anything for you when you were spending a lot of money. Of all the different Maldives resorts we’ve visited, this was the only one that made us feel unwelcome.

[@dysjourneys]

@@bajknighton wow that definitely give me a pause, thanks for the details. Based on your experience, what are the other resort offer equal or better snorkeling experience compared to Kandolhu that you would recommend?