What 785 DialAFlight clients thought of Indian Ocean

Personalised service and support throughout the whole process which involved postponement due to covid. Stuart especially went the extra mile to ensure we got the best deal and had the best holiday!

Thanks for setting up a great trip. Hoping you can find us another exciting deal for next year!

I received a very prompt and quick reply of any query. I do recommend other people

Lee and the team very helpful and proactive. I knew I’d be in good hands if I got into a pickle overseas.

In the face of adversity Ryan smooths out all the creases and we don’t go elsewhere now down to that relationship. Thank you.

Thanks to Libby, Raphael and Julian for going above and beyond, sending us everything we needed and even changing last minute flights.

Aidan was brilliant

Fantastic service! Always go above and beyond to ensure you get your perfect holiday for a great price! You are my go to travel agents. Thank you!

Gary was great as always, he helped us through the refund process on a holiday we booked just before Lockdown. He was then super proactive in helping us find an alternative trip, double-checking cancellation policies and giving us peace of mind.

Great communication with Teddy - every time!

Delighted with service from main contacts especially Helen and Michael

Fantastic experience and will be using you for our next trip!

Yet another great holiday to the Maldives organised by Rory. Great company to arrange your holiday, great personal service as not many companies do nowadays? Hopefully organising another trip for Xmas 2021 to Mauritius.

I am thankful more than ever to Gary for his amazing attentive service. He expertly navigated me through the covid restrictions and last minute change of hotel due to unforeseen circumstances. I am also very happy at the service he has provided to every one of my referrals who have come back to me so thankful for the introduction. Keep up the great work Gary. Look forward to the next booking

Fantastic communication from start to finish. Personalised service. With the added stress of the second lockdown in November, Miles and his team did a great job reorganising the flights and hotel.

Josh was extremely efficient and helpful especially because we were stranded out of the UK because of the Covid-19. Josh arranged new flights and was contactable 7 days a week.

During a difficult time abroad with the development of the Coronavirus, your assistance and reassurance was greatly appreciated.

Amy and Shane provided excellent customer service. Contacted me in Mauritius and ensured I was able to get back home before airport shut down. They were brilliant. Thank you both.

As always, excellent service

Excellent help, quick with flights - and they have been amazing considering what the country is going through

Thanks Troy for getting us home. We will always come to you for our travel needs

My whole experience of using DialAFlight has gone way above expectations. Brody has been fantastic, but also praise to everyone else who we spoke to during our trip to Mauritius. Our flights had to be changed and it couldn’t have gone any smoother. Whilst others in the hotel struggled we got a flight, got the seats we wanted, didn’t have to pay any extra - it was all completely seamless. Your customer care is some of the best I have ever experienced. We’ve booked with other operators and booked direct but won’t be going back. I’ve recommended your services to every person who has mentioned flights.

Great to speak to a human and not a robot.

Fabulous trip, everything went like clockwork as usual from Neil and his team

Thanks to Finn for arranging everything as promised

Jim comes up with the best suggestions every time.

Would have been nice to know Jan to Mar is the cyclone/rainy season

Eric was outstanding

Gino was great and looked after us well,

A big thank you to Michelle

Luxury in the Indian Ocean

Honeymoon heaven? Maybe, but it's paradise for kids too

Imogen Edwards-Jones thought the Maldives were just for romantic couples - until she took her children there and found they fitted in perfectly

The idea of taking two small children to the Maldives is not something anyone of sound mind would usually entertain. The Maldives is a honeymoon destination, right?

The 26 atolls are renowned for their serenity… I'd been promised that the LUX* South Ari Atoll was different. Beloved of hand-holding couples but also child and eco-friendly, with a marine biology programme.

But on the flight, with husband Kenton, four-year-old Rafe and Allegra, eight, I was still questioning my decision to head there as a family.

On arrival there followed a 25-minute seaplane hop to our final destination.

LUX Resort's overwater bungalows

South Ari Atoll is a big island resort by Maldivian standards. There are just over 190 villas and suites (either on stilts or nestled along the beach), nine bars and restaurants, a delicious ice-cream parlour, two pools, and countless watersports. But their ethos is to be a bit different from the usual family-orientated resort.

It is full of little secrets and surprises, such as a bright red phone box where you can call home for free, or the open-air photo-booth where my children amused themselves for hours by pulling funny faces at the camera.

There were messages in bottles hidden all over the hotel every morning, offering the lucky finder free pizza or bottle of wine. And a bar that popped up in various palm-fringed coves, where you could help yourself to a cocktail or three.

There were fresh coconut stalls, and stashes of chopped fruit here and piles of nuts there. In short, the walk to breakfast was fun. There was no better way to motivate Rafe to make the ten-minute walk down the beach each day for his boiled egg and soldiers than the prospect of finding a hidden treat along the way.

South Ari Atoll knows how to cater for children: there's a kids' pool, films on the beach, a kids' club with arts and crafts, and, best of all, the marine biology centre run by Italian powerhouse Francesca.

My daughter became rather obsessed with Francesca, a gorgeous polyglot, with a degree in marine biology and a passion for whale sharks with which she managed to enthuse everyone.

The resort has a major whale shark-spotting area on its doorstep, and Francesca and the rest of the marine centre staff photograph and monitor these gentle giants (they can grow to 40ft and weigh 21 tons) as part of a global preservation plan.

Swimming with giants

We spent most of our week on, or in, the water, either swimming in the crystal-clear ocean, snorkelling, or sailing. One evening, instead of going to watch stingrays being fed outside the Umami sushi restaurant, we fished for our supper. As a storm came in and the rain lashed down, the children became all the more determined to land any sort of catch - but to no avail.

Fortunately, some Japanese tourists who came with us caught plenty so gave us some of theirs. And what a delicious meal it made. There's nothing more glamorous than having your chef barbecue freshly caught fish while you sip a glass of rosé.

The best was yet to come. On our last day we went sailing on the resort's catamaran and we were joined by 30 or so over-excited dolphins that showed off their swimming skills for at least half an hour, much to Allegra's delight.

Just then the call went out from Dolores, from the marine centre: 'A whale shark! Over the starboard deck.' There was a mad scramble for masks and snorkels before we all threw ourselves over the side.

By a stroke of luck, as everyone else was swept in the wrong direction, I landed within a few feet of the whale shark's head.

Dark grey and the size of six London buses, it was one of the most beautiful, serene and impressive animals I have ever seen. For ten minutes we swam side by side, one of its large soulful eyes staring at me, and me staring right back. It was a heart-stopping, privileged moment I will never forget.

The hotel food was delicious, particularly the Umami sushi. However, it was the ice-cream parlour ICI that drove my children wild - choc, double choc, or choc with extra choc delight. There were marshmallows and sprinkles and Smarties to throw over the top. It was as if Willy Wonka himself had set up shop.

LUX South Ari Atoll is a delightful family resort

On that final day, as we stood on the jetty with our bags packed waiting for the seaplane, I did feel a terrible twinge of jealousy as a group of new guests arrived for their week of delights, while ours was over.

Whoever suggests the Maldives is not for families doesn't know what they are talking about - ask my children, one of whom came home a stingray-feeding pirate, while the other discovered she is actually a marine biologist.

Why our customers love us

Amazingly, it is simple old-fashioned service that sets us apart from other travel firms. And yes, we really do answer the phone within 5 seconds!

Check out the reviews on Trustpilot and the word ‘service’ appears again and again. And you’ll find many reviews from customers saying they wasted hours trying to plan a holiday themselves before calling us - often on the advice of a friend - only to find we could offer numerous options not available online, which also saved them money.

Our team of 300 travel managers has been arranging tailor-made holidays for over 40 years and we believe no one does it better. Judge for yourself.

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