When you want to mark a special occasion, there’s nothing quite like a trip to the Maldives. While the island nation has long been a favourite among honeymooners, the Maldives has now branched out and reinvented itself as a sought-after destination for family holidays. Selected resorts have found the sweet spot, catering to couples and families alike. We were lucky enough to celebrate a special birthday at the Amay Kuda Rah resort.
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How to Get to the Maldives
The Maldives is an island nation surrounded by the Indian Ocean, made up over 1,000 islands located about 1,000 kilometres southwest of Sri Lanka. While there are no direct flights from Australia to the Maldives, smooth connections make traveling a breeze.
We travelled to the Maldives from Australia with a transit in Colombo in Sri Lanka, flying with SriLankan Airlines. You could also transit in Singapore or Kuala Lumpur. The flight time from both Melbourne and Sydney to Male is around 12 hours, plus transit time. Here are a few examples for how to get from Australia to the Maldives:
- SriLankan Airlines: Melbourne – transit in Colombo, Sri Lanka – Male, Maldives
- Singapore Airlines: Melbourne – transit in Singapore – Male, Maldives
Sydney – transit in Singapore – Male, Maldives - AirAsia: Melbourne – transit in Kuala Lumpur – Male, Maldives
Sydney – transit in Kuala Lumpur – Male, Maldives
For more details, we have published an extensive article on how to get to the Maldives.
In the Maldives, commercial airlines land in the capital city of Male. If you arrive early in the day, you can catch a sea plane to your resort on the same day. After landing in Male, you’ll be ushered into a waiting lounge to catch a sea plane to your resort. The short flight (about 25 minutes or so) from Male to Amaya Ku Rah is an experience in and of itself as the views looking over the atolls are sublime.
Welcome to Paradise
Like every resort in the Maldives, Amay Kuda Rah occupies its own private island. Our sea plane landed on a pontoon in the turquoise lagoon and from there, it was only a moment’s boat ride to reach the resort’s jetty. Then it was time to explore our new island home!
Amaya Kuda Rah is everything you’d want from a Maldivian island – an idyllic islet coloured by tropical greenery; framed by powder white sand and mesmerizingly turquoise water. Like every island in the Maldives, this one is miniscule in size and you can easily (and idyllically) explore it on one of the bicycles provided.
All-Inclusive Bliss
From delicious dining to fun-filled activities, Amaya Kuda Rah offers an immersive experience in all-inclusive luxury. A stay at this five-star resort includes full-board gourmet meals along with selected alcoholic/non-alcoholic beverages. If venturing out to the beach bar for complimentary cocktails seems like too much of an effort, the villas’ mini bars are also replenish twice a day.
Guests are also treated to one complimentary excursion during their stay, ranging from dolphin watching to a sunset cruise. Parents get to catch their breath thanks to complimentary activities offered at Nemo Kids Club and the whole family will have access to the resort’s bicycles and snorkelling equipment free of charge. We had a blast snorkelling in front of our beachfront villa with the resort’s diving centre located just a coconut’s throw away. And on that note…
Villa Heaven
Our villa at Amaya Kuda Rah was a Two Bedroom Family Duplex but since we were staying as couple, one of the bedrooms was locked off. The setup is great for families as the villa has two equally sized bedrooms with one on the ground floor and one upstairs. The villa is located right on the beach with direct access to epic snorkelling (snorkels, masks and fins are all provided) but hidden amidst tropical greenery, the setting is still incredibly private which we loved.
Besides the one and two-bedroom beach villas, the resort also features overwater villas built over the lagoon – the very dreamy kind of stilt houses the Maldives has become synonymous with.
Foodies Welcome
Like any resort island worth its salt, Amaya Kuda Rah offers some fantastic dining options. The resort is clearly catering to an international clientele with restaurants appeasing all manner of taste buds, with cuisines from Asian to Western and from Maldivian to Middle Eastern all on offer. The menus offered in the resort’s three restaurants are extensive – and, we’re happy to report, so is the wine list!
We were celebrating a special birthday while staying at Amaya Kuda Rah and the staff went above and beyond to make our celebratory dinner special. After dinner, it was time for karaoke – just one of the fun-filled activities offered at the resort.
From start to finish, our stay at Amay Kuda Rah was a perfect 10. We were blown away by the level of service and inclusions the resort offers – and it doesn’t exactly hurt that your stay here comes at a considerably lower price point than most resorts in the Maldives. For any enquiries about villa holidays in the Maldives, get in touch with our villa specialists by filling out the form below.
