What 346 DialAFlight clients thought of The Maldives

I would like to thank Ben for sorting out a lovely holiday for us both - we had a fantastic time and we would recommend you to all our friends and family

The trip was excellent and all went to plan. Good communication from Des during the whole process. Will def use again.

Totally fantastic service, recommendations and flight times - will definitely be booking again.

Holiday destination was fantastic. Everything ran extremely well and DialAFlight did a amazing job for us. All bookings and changes we were kept informed of and all ran smoothly. I would have no hesitation in recommending them.

Always willing to assist and help with even the silliest of questions. Thank you for everything.

Stafford was brilliant, and kept us in the loop. He was really friendly and helpful, made our holiday process so easy and made sure we were happy with everything. Would definitely recommend DialAFlight.

Craig was brilliant from the initial enquiry to dealing with final requests and ensuring everything was OK a few days before departure.

Dylan is fantastic. Our operator changed the holiday twice due to Covid. Not only did he rebook but took the time to find best flight options and this was made 10x harder due to the final trip being in the Easter holidays. Always loved dealing with him but this time he really proved invaluable. Thanks so much!

Declan was brilliant. He was super patient and kind. He even called us just before the trip. We rebooked it 4 times due to lockdowns and illness and he wanted to make sure everything was in place and we were ok. Anyone else we spoke to was professional and helpful. There are not many companies you can say that about these days!

Sarah is absolutely fantastic. We will definitely be booking our next holiday with her

Excellent service as always and trip went according to plan. Maldives in particular was amazing

Stacey helped us book our holiday back in 2020. She was super helpful and then again when it all had to be changed due to Covid.

Les and Teddy, absolute stars!

Sean literally made our dream holiday come true. He’s amazing and we will hold the memory of this beautiful place in our hearts forever. Unforgettable holiday. We certainly found paradise in The Maldives.

Attention to detail, fast response and very polite and friendly staff - could not be any better.

Great service. Will definitely use you again.

Everything worked out perfectly.

Kylie was fantastic and a credit to your company

We had excellent advice from Marie and Tristan. They also made it stress free when we had to change our booking to new dates.

Dexter was excellent as always and made sure our first holiday with our baby went as smoothly as possible.

Superb support from Paul

Julie provided a first class holiday with no problems as usual.

Taylor helped us personally and professionally from start to finish. Happy to answer any questions however small. We felt comfortable that even if we needed support whilst we were away we had 24 hour help. We had the most amazing holiday of a lifetime! Thankyou. We have already recommended to friends

A superb efficient service as always and very reassuring when it came to making sure we had all the right paperwork for the trip

Fantastic communication throughout and excellent service - can’t fault it.

First class yet again from Neil and his team, excellent trip and excellent advice.

Kennedy is a star

Eric provided us with a first class service, always available and professional. Have no hesitation in recommending him and the company and will certainly use him again.

Holiday was perfect

I think it would be useful to provided specific information on what documents are required re: covid proofs by the airports, airlines and resorts visited on the holiday. A list and links to relevant sites would have been really helpful.

The Maldives is our joyzone!

These lovely islands are a hit with Ronan Keating and his family (but who expected Father Christmas to pay a visit on a banana boat?)

Going back to a place you have really enjoyed can be a bit of a risk. Can you recreate those happy memories?

We went to the Maldives four years ago and loved it. This time we returned over Christmas.

This was my first 'hot' Christmas. My wife Storm is from Australia, so when she was growing up, December 25 was a day spent on the beach or playing cricket on the lawn.

An aerial view of the exclusive Anantara Kihavah Resort

I, meanwhile, grew up in Ireland, so I'm used to wet, cold and damp days. If we were really lucky, we had snow.

FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY

As we were taking four children - my three older ones, Jack, 18, Missy, 16, and Ali, 12, and our baby Cooper, who was born last April - I was a little anxious. How would a non-traditional Christmas in the sun appeal to them? But from the moment we arrived at Anantara Kihavah Maldives Villas, they loved it. We were delighted to discover we even had a Christmas tree in our room - with gifts underneath.

It was the children's first trip to the Maldives, and the journey is a thrill in itself. After arriving in the capital Male, we took the seaplane for the half-hour flight to Kihavah Huravalhi. We flew over glorious desert islands before landing on a beautiful turquoise lagoon.

Enjoy the tranquilityand privacy of one of the beach pool villas

THE VILLA

As we stepped on to pristine white sand, the staff were waiting, singing welcome songs, clapping and beating drums - it was magical. Garlands were hung around our necks and we were handed glasses of fruit punch. We suddenly felt very cosseted.

Next came the excitement of being taken to our villa - an over-water one which was fantastic. In the bathroom there was a glass floor, which made for an interesting, if slightly unnerving, experience.

On the way to the villa we could see uninhabited islands surrounded by reefs which we were told are home to turtles, eels and beautiful coral formations. Anantara forms part of the Baa Atoll, with baby sharks, stingrays and every fish you can imagine. It meant the snorkelling was exceptional.

We needn't have worried about the children having a good time - the staff worked tirelessly to make certain everyone was happy.

LIKE A DREAM

The food was phenomenal, the service extraordinary, the weather brilliant, the sea perfect. We were floating on air.

And any anxieties about Christmas were swept away when Father Christmas arrived on a banana-boat!

At Anantara they take dining to new levels. At Sea, an underwater restaurant, you dine inside a tank and the fish are outside looking in at you.

One of its attractions is the world's first underwater wine cellar. Wine with depth, you might say. But when we were in Sea, we couldn't bring ourselves to order the fish - in the circumstances it seemed wrong!

A setting like no other: get pampered beside the crystal clear waters

HOLIDAY HIGHLIGHTS

We liked Fire, a Japanese teppanyaki restaurant, while Salt, an Asian fusion restaurant, was also superb. All the children loved the food. The new Sky Bar, with its own DJ, was a very cool place and it features an observatory. We could have sat there all night looking through the telescope at the stars.

The children were never bored. There was something going on all the time and lots of other children were there, so they were never short of people to hook up with for a game of beach volleyball, for example.

One day we all went on a boat trip which allowed us to snorkel out on the reef - we were right among the turtles.

Head down to the turquoise waters for a bit of snorkelling

EVENING ENTERTAINMENT

In the evenings, we loved the open-air cinema, watching movies under the stars.

The resort also had a good kids' club - Ali had a brilliant time making sushi.

In the evenings, there was a pool party with a DJ, and on New Year's Eve there was a band and fireworks. Did I succumb to the temptation of performing on New Year's Eve? Of course I did - I can't help myself. I sang my hit When You Say Nothing At All, which seemed to go down well.

When I was growing up in Ireland, we never left the country - Killarney was as good as it got for me. Every summer, we'd go for a couple of weeks to a guesthouse. We had a great time -but it's still quite a leap from Killarney to the Maldives!

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