BA outbound flights were not up to standard, inbound much better
My travel went very smoothly, couldn’t have asked for more.
We couldn't have wished for a better service. We were looked after incredibly well every step of the way by Daniel Webb. Our resort was beautiful, the transfers were managed well and we couldn't have wished for a better holiday. As regular customers of DialAFlight, we know we can always rely on you to provide a great service and lots of helpful advice.
Rupert and team were phenomenal. Thanks so much
Thank you Jason!
Justin was fabulous- personal touch, great communication - absolutely brilliant service
The best and only travel agent I use. Always a great deal, great service and very competitive. My agent is the best !
Perfect handling of my holiday from start to finish. Thanks again Ross for all you do.
The service was top notch help when need. Prompted about things that needed to be done. Out of hours service is a help in a pinch. Start to finish A1 service
Too many times airlines change flight times which happened twice to us. More pressure should be put on airlines to financially compensate for this. I can't fault DialAFlight.
Everything was sorted and worked like clockwork. We had the best honeymoon and didn’t have to arrange a thing.
Orlando was a star as always. From the original enquiry to just before we departed he kept in contact and made us feel that we were always in his mind. Great service from a very helpful employee
Fabulous holiday with room we wanted. Thanks as ever, Kylie. We had a great time. Not being a whizz on the computer, we found the Maldivian health online form a bit of a challenge. It worked much better on our phone, in the end.
Mark was very professional and gave us all the information that we needed for a successful and stress free trip
Very good service all round but it would have been really beneficial to have had our passenger ticket numbers earlier than the day of departure. This would have enabled us to check in online 24 hours before departure rather than on the day itself
Service was brilliant. Always updated when needed and contact with Niall was always quick and easy if we had any queries. Would definitely recommend and we will be using again to book our holidays
Amelia is excellent, always willing to help!
Had a great holiday, thank you for an amazing time
Not overly impressed with BA Premium Economy.
Great customer service
Arthur is the dream maker of DialAFlight
Yet another well organised holiday. Over 15 trips with DialAFlight and they never fail to deliver .
Troy Morris always does an excellent Job
Stacey arranged an amazing holiday for us!
Another wonderful trip organised for us by Eric. Can’t wait to rebook again soon!
Outstanding service from the outset. We had some difficulties due to personal reasons meaning our holiday had to change twice. Harvey was nothing put patient, courteous and professional. Out holiday was fantastic and went smoothly. I will definitely use again and would recommend to others.
John Huff arranged another perfect holiday for us. From start to finish he thought of everything. It’s so nice to travel stress free. The resort he chose was absolutely perfect. Big thank you's!
Over the moon with the experience from start to finish. We will definitely use you guys again.
100% perfect! Well done
Check in reminder for return flight would have been helpful but other than that DialAFlight delivered the goods yet again. Have been using them for over 10 years and their calm, professional and efficient service is always so much appreciated. A special thanks to Gino on this trip. It went like a dream in spite of some irritating last minute changes made by me.
My first family break was in 1978 to Burgh Island, the Art Deco hotel in Devon that inspired Agatha Christie to write And Then There Were None. For me, however, the place's major delight was not its murder-mystery connections but the brilliant sea tractor ride from Bigbury-on-Sea.
I spent endless sunny days hunting spider crabs, and then eating hot crumpets at 4pm. It was the best time of my life. Granted, it was the only holiday of my life at that stage, but I can remember it as clearly as yesterday, and what are great holidays but memories glued like fading polaroids to the albums of our minds?
It was a question I asked myself again as I waved goodbye to Martin Cody, manager of the Four Seasons Landaa Giraavaru in the Maldives. The ingredients of a brilliant break are well-documented - good weather, impressive accommodation, wonderful food - yet the end product is less clear-cut.
I've stayed in some of the finest hotels in Dubai and yet have no memory of them whatsoever. However, I'll never forget the weekend in a crumbling two-star hotel in Bangkok en route to my first bar job in Koh Samui - but that's another story.
Manager Martin told me that there are never too many guests on Landaa Giraavaru. My guess is that is because few can pronounce it, let alone spell it. But once you have overcome this potential pitfall, I can promise that you won't be disappointed - nor should you be with rooms costing up to £30,000 a night.
The Maldives are going through a period of one-upmanship in an effort to attract suitors from Russia and the Middle East. Essentially, this means building villas the size of leisure centres. While this has little impact on us mere mortals, it does make for some interesting gossip around the pool.
The resort is situated just 30 minutes north of Male and reached by seaplane. As you can imagine, this caused much excitement among my two young boys - Sid, five, and four-year-old Kit.
It's quite large by Maldivian standards, measuring 44 acres, and Sri Lankan-based architect Geoff Bawa has done a clever job of blending understated luxury with complete privacy. The 102 thatched bungalows and villas are located on the beach, over the lagoon or within the lush gardens.
The spa and Ayurvedic retreat was a big hit with my wife Sophie. Here our Ayurvedic physician suggested a chakra blessing, which at one stage involved sitting on a terracotta chimney pot as he lit incense beneath us. With our chakras suitably blessed, it was time to visit the Marine Discovery Centre.
The centre is in the nearby Baa Atoll and was recently awarded Unesco World Biosphere status. This means you can enjoy the company of manta rays and whale sharks at the atoll's Hanifaru Bay. Sign up for the Manta-On-Call programme and you'll even receive a text to invite you to swim with giant mantas when the beasts make an appearance.
For the less adventurous, you could always spend some time with Elisa the turtle. According to the WWF, six of the world's seven species of sea turtles are endangered because of the human consumption of their eggs and the effects of rising ocean temperatures. Elisa is fitted with a GPS device, which helps track her movements on the atoll. Such a device was not something I needed in the Maldives - the most energetic thing I did most days was to decide where to eat.
Any Four Seasoned traveller knows that the dining experience is a priority, and Landaa doesn't disappoint. Our favourite was Blu, an Italian bar/restaurant with a view over a narrowing strip of beach which disappeared where the sea meets the sky. While the boys raced crabs, mum and dad sank watermelon cocktails.
During the day, the boys often went to the Kuda Velaa kids' club and were kept occupied with a programme that included craft sessions and making ice cream. If it's tranquillity you're after, lazing by the pool and being interrupted occasionally by a spot of pampering in the spa, Landaa hits the spot.
If, however, you fancy something a little more active, there's plenty to get you off your lounger - from motorised underwater scooters to yacht parties, arranging a private picnic on your own private island, or being serenaded under the stars by a local choir.
In fact, you'd be hard-pressed to find a hotel that offers a better definition of the perfect holiday - and that includes Burgh Island.
First published in the Mail on Sunday - May 2016
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