What 368 DialAFlight clients thought of The Maldives

Eric could not have been more helpful every step of the way - we WILL be using DialAFlight again

Glen was amazing!

Jim Camahin was exceptionally polite, professional, friendly and helpful. He made the experience very seamless and stress free - couldn’t ask for more.

Danny Sharma was amazing in all respects. Thank you

Please tell other visitors to Maldives they need to fill out immigration info online before leaving UK as very stressful doing it in airport after queuing for an hour only to be sent away .. staff member Nicole is a diamond

Roy gets it right every time

Excellent service as always from Stacey Rayner. Great holiday and some wonderful memories. A*

Thank you Bradley! Incredible holiday. It was flawless

Jim is an excellent and professional member of your team - second time we have booked with him and he's been amazing.

Lloyd was excellent. Really felt looked after. Thank you

Excellent arrangements. Darren Is amazing as always. Definitely recommend to friends and colleagues.

Excellent as always

Excellent customer service

Very helpful and great service

Would not recommend a stop in Abu Dhabi if layover is 4 plus hours as facilities are poor.

Not only excellent service from staff but also very competitive price for holiday

Gary and Tammy were very helpful and ensured that best flights were booked despite the airline constantly changing them.

Excellent. Richard is been amazing. Nothing is too much trouble.

Toby was excellent, easy to get hold of and delivered as per request. We will use him again for future holidays for sure.

Glen Blackburn really understood what my wife and I required from our holiday. He provided us with all the relevant details that really made it easy for us to make a decision. He understood exactly what we wanted, keeping in line with our budget and provided a first class service.

Marie was amazing throughout the whole process.

Thank you to Seymour who organised this long awaited break. We are both front line NHS staff and we really needed this. So thank you for not turning me away as many other companies I contacted who would not help or reply or consider looking for deals! Thank you. We will definitely recommend to our friends and family.

Very efficient service.

As ever, another smooth holiday just finished. Excellent service. We always book through DialAFlight with Clark Maroof and his colleagues!

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.

Maldives rediscovered

Love and marriage in the Maldives

Louise Atkinson finds romance in the air in these idyllic islands - 20 years after she honeymooned here...

Perhaps we were mad to go back to the Maldives 20 years after honeymooning there. We remembered it as deliciously romantic, with impossibly white sand and turquoise seas. Bounty Bar stuff. We were young and in the first flush of love – and now we are 50-something.

This time, we picked JA Manafaru because it promised a level of luxury we couldn't possibly have afforded when we got married.

You get a choice of a secluded beach bungalow hidden in the jungle undergrowth with its own private plunge pool and sectioned-off area of beach; or a water villa suspended on stilts over the crystal clear water. Oh, all right then.

Overwater bungalow with uninterrupted views to the horizon

I'd always hankered after the idea of stepping off private decking into your own personal bit of sea. In addition we have a hot tub, outdoor shower, a glass floor in the bedroom to watch fish below and a secluded black-tiled infinity pool on the deck.

On our honeymoon island there had been one restaurant with a one-choice menu each day.

Table-side drama of JA Manafaru's Asian fusion White Orchid restaurant

But here we have seven options: White Orchid for Asian fusion, Ocean Grill for seafood and steaks served right on the beach, Andiamo for pizza and pasta beside a calm, dark green jungle swimming pool, Infinity, serving salads and sandwiches, Kakuni for a gourmet breakfast spread, The Cellar for dinner and prestigious wines and Horizon Lounge for fabulous smoothies.

We'd gained a few pounds and a few grey hairs since we were last in the Maldives, and the islands have changed too. First time around we chummed-up with other honeymooners on the beach. Now, although we are told the resort is almost full, we stroll the whole island - which is 800 metres long and 600 metres wide - without seeing a soul.

Dining on the beach at JA Manafaru's Ocean Grill restaurant

It was on our first honeymoon that I noticed a fundamental difference between me and my beloved - he can happily spend hours lying about in the sun, whereas I need to keep busy.

I won't deny our differences have been the source of stern words over the years. But this is a special holiday, so all bets are off.

We have the options of windsurfing, kayaking, sailing, jet-skiing, wake-boarding, water-skiing and scuba diving, but I book twice daily yoga sessions and leave Jon studiously 'tanning his edges' at the beach, to join the resort's marine biologist on a snorkelling trip.

I am rewarded by the appearance of a huge pod of wild dolphins pirouetting out of the water and performing wonderful synchronised manoeuvres below us – one more item from my bucket list unexpectedly getting a tick alongside it.

Daily yoga sessions are just one of the many activities on offer at JA Manafaru

You won't find many Maldivian resorts without a spa, and JA Manafaru is no exception. After a rigorous side-by-side couples massage, we are ushered into a side room where a huge round bed has been scattered with petals and bamboo spelling out 'happy second honeymoon'.

Well, inviting indeed. Perhaps 20 years ago we might have thrown the petals aside and caution to the wind, but my husband's massage has rendered him monosyllabic and I still have the imprint of the bed etched on my face. But it was a nice thought.

But later, with a glass of champagne, no kids, incredible comfort and doting attention, I don't mind confessing that the earth shakes - just a little.

Yes, we could have arranged to renew our vows; we could have booked a 'romantic cruise on a love dhoni' - a dhoni is a sailing boat with an auxiliary motor that is unique to the Maldives and has played a significant part in transport between the islands – not to mention romance.

But when the sand is so white and the sea so blue and you don't have to worry about a thing, a place like this could wring romance out of a stone.

First published in the Daily Mail - April 2019

More articles below...

For more inspiration, read what travel writers have to say...