Fihalhohi Island Resort

Room that I stayed in had termites! Had to sleep in their waste all night!

I would recomend this holiday to everyone, fihalholi island was wonderfull, people, stuff, everythings was excelent. Me and my boyfriend went on 18th of august for 2 weeks with a firstchoice.

The flight was nice 10hours on a plane and 45 min with a speedboat. We get a entertainment on a plane and food as well light refreshments. I loved every min. of it.

When we get there we receive not very nice room, no aircondition at all,but if u pay extra like we did, u can get nice room. So we change for a 190 dolars. They cleaned a room twice a day which one was so nice from loads of sand, is the best thing.

The breakfast is avarage like u need just a light for a morning it was a full english breakfast. Than dinner and lunch was excelent loads of choices, fish meat, nice salads, soup, dessert, fruite, excelent nice and clean plates the restaurant is so clean, tidy.

We have had great time, we went for a excursion for a different islands and we didnt like them islands we went for, because fihalholli was nicer,

We recomend this to everybody who like nice, calm, relax time.

Wonderful place

lovely staff and really helpful

My husband & I travelled to Fiha for our 28th wedding anniversary - we were only 46 at the time, married young, worked v hard - previously went to Meeru for our 25th so we did compare!!!

The island and reef is fantastic - better than meeru we think - the food was average. We found most of the staff to be very good, but some of the bar staff seem to be out to make money out of the guests, so check your tabs very carefully. We were charged for a lot of drinks we didn't have, needless to say we complained and had the bill altered!! When you save up to go to a place like this you don't need some staff to try to rip you off, we found this spoiled our holiday somewhat. We would rather tip than have it taken from us. We stayed in a water villa which was, but they need to sort the food out!

We did make the most of our holiday, but won't go back to Fiha. Ther are plenty of islands to choose from and we are saving up to go back for our 30th next year.

Fihalhoh Island Resort has adequate accomodation, food ok but not gourmet. Bars are pleasant and buffet restaurant ok. Generally had a great time but had to make own entertainment. Took a few movies with us films on my laptop. The reef is fantastic though, everything from manta rays & turtles to baby sharks & fabulous fish. House reef goes around much of the island and varies from a few feet to 30 metres, ideal for snorkeling, no need to dive. Beach is great and every room has its own sunbeds and lots of shade from trees if required.

I definitely recommend this place to anyone. If you want a true paradise for a reasonable price, take advantage and book up. You won't regret it

The flight with First Choice was excellent, no problems from beginning to end. Excellent in flight entertainment. We had extra leg room seats which work out at only $3 an hour and it was so, so worth it. Transfers were excellent, although the speed boat ride at the end of a long flight was taxing.

Just to make you all aware, as it seems to be quite common practice. We were offered to go to another resort for 2 nights at the end of the holiday. We were told it was so that we could try out their sister resort Club Faru, formerly Club Med. As it was all inclusive and for only 2 nights we said yes. When we got there, we found out that actually they were overbooked, the rep said this happens frequently. We were only there for 2 days but if you like Fihalhohi Island Resort the chances are you might not like Club Faru. The island is no-where near, as pretty as the view of nearby Male is, all the planes landing there spoil the peace. The current in the water is so strong it is very very difficult to snorkel, swim or even stand up. The water is not as clear, lots of weeds, debris and there is no house reef. On a good note, the food was OK, as were the rooms, but there was no fridge and to make the shower work you have to turn all lights on! I would just say, think twice before trying Club Faru.

Fihalhohi island is very pretty, with a good barrier reef and lots of tropical fish.

Unfortunately the atmosphere wasn't as good as we thought.

Everyone we spoke to seemed to have some complaint.

The non-motorised sport were not included in the package as stated on the First Choice website.

The comfort rooms weren't quite so comfortable, a lot of the rooms like ours had a lot of humidity coming through the walls.

The food was very repetitive and not fresh at all, so quite a few people had tummy bugs at some point of the holiday.

While we accept that it was a budget resort I didn't expect to have all these problems.

A couple of days before departure we asked to see a summary of our itemised bill.

The statement was produced, and when we started to go through it we realised that there must have been some mistake, as we had been overcharged on several occasions!

The resort had a happy hour for cocktails, from 6 to 8pm, and a promotion on Australian wines during the first week of our stay but on the final bill they always charged us the standard rate regardless.

When we queried the statement and asked to see the bill, they were very slow to produce the bills, in-fact it took them days.

Eventually the day before departure they showed us some bills. When we asked for an explanation on the different price charges, they were unable to come up with any explanation and I was told quite abruptly that I should, just pay your bill sir!

Of course, during the stay we weren't given any receipts, occasionally we were asked to signed for goods consumed but not always.

So we were unable to take the matter any further without any bill copy proof.

At that point we knew we had been incorrectly charged and we had no choice but to pay the additional unreasonable charges!

The extra charges amounted approximately to $100 or so for the two of us.

The day before departure the First Choice Rep got in touch with us and I explained the situation to her.

She said she was sorry to hear about the overcharging incident but unfortunately this had nothing to do with First Choice.

This is not our first holiday to the Maldives, we have been to Holiday Island and Kuramati Island previously and we loved both Islands.

Needless to say, we will not consider or recommend anyone we know a holiday at Fihalhohi Island resort, as we feel that dishonesty is the worst complaint of all!

My boyfriend and I travelled to the Fihalhohi Island Resort in the Maldives with First Choice Airways. We appreciated the longer leg room they offer compared to other tour operators. My boyfriend is 6ft 3", and he travelled well considering the flight was 10 hours.

Upon arriving at Male airport you collect your baggage and find your rep., and then wait outside a cafe. They sell drinks here but they can be a little pricey. We asked for 2 waters and we were given 4 being told that we'll need them for our boat trip. Anyway, they cost us $20 for 4 330ml bottles.

After the 50 minute speedboat transfer (which was VERY choppy on our way there) you arrive at Fiha and are greeted by staff with cool towels for you, as well as a fresh coconut drink. You are given the chance to upgrade to water bungalows for $90 a night.

Bag boys carry your luggage to your room for you, and we tipped them a dollar per case. We had a comfort room which was very nice. It had an indoor bathroom with bath, as well as a shower, a mini fridge and air conditioning. With the classic rooms you have to pay an extra $10 per day for air conditioning. Some comfort rooms are 2 storey. We had one on the bottom, and we weren't disturbed by noise from any of our 'neighbours' at any time.

The island has 1 small shop selling snacks (Pringles, biscuits and chocolate bars etc.), as well as souvenirs. My boyfriend bought a couple of detailed hand painted t-shirts, and we were actually able to see him painting the t-shirt we had chosen and helped design.

There is also the fishermans bar and the surf cafe. We ate lunch at the surf cafe a few times, as the food was very reasonably priced and extremely yummy! They do things like burgers, sandwiches, pizzas, salads and milkshakes made with ice cream in lots of flavours, which I would highly recommend. In the evening you could have a candle-lit lobster dinner.

The main restaurant is buffet style. When you first enter the restaurant you will be appointed a waiter who you will have for the whole of your stay. Our waiter was lovely, and my boyfriend and I loved to hear about where he was from and his family, and he gave us a brilliant insight into Maldivian life.

If you love spicy food and curries you'll love the food. I can not eat spicy food, so I found myself mainly eating bits of salad, bread, grilled fish (when it wasn't in spicy sauce) and poppadoms for 2 weeks. My boyfriend loved the curries, and was especially delighted when they did huge minted lamb chops one night! Every night is themed, and they even did farmhouse night where the waiters also dressed up as cow-boys, and there was a fish and chips night.

Snorkeling is a must. We saw a few sea-turtles which swam right up to us, as well as 'Nemo', squid, baby shark and so many other fish. I couldn't possibly name them all. Round the jetty was the best place to snorkel for us. We went on the snorkel safari and travelled to 3 different reefs. This was good, but I was quite tired towards the end and just wanted to go back!!

The only other trip we went on was the sunset fishing, where we went to various different places on a boat and used a fishing line each to catch fish. We caught 2 each, but some people didn't catch any. Later on that night they cooked the fish and you could eat it if you wished.

Although I didn't go on the dolphin trip, I would advise against it, as it is pure luck if you see them or not. We spoke to people who went on the 3 hour trip and they didn't see any, which would be a let down after paying $28 per person for it. When we were on the snorkeling trip, they were swimming alongside and in front of our boat, and you can also see them playing in the sea from the island, occasionally anyway.

Being monsoon season, we did expect rain, and we got a little, but to be honest it hardly affected our holiday at all. It was mostly either at night or in the morning, and by the time we'd had breakfast it had finished.

As you sign for drinks and extra meals whilst you're there, I'd advise you to keep a note of what you have spent so that when you get your bill at the end you can check quickly that it's right. Also, bear in mind that everything you sign for has a 10% service charge added (which goes to the people 'behind the scenes'), so include that in your budget if you're on one.

I would definitely recommend this island to anyone who wants to relax, and who loves snorkeling or diving. We had a brilliant time and would have loved to stay longer than our 2 weeks there.

Two adults and one child aged 8 travelled to Fihalhohi Island Resort in the Maldives for two weeks from 17th May until 31st May 2006.

We flew with First Choice which was excellent, and we would find it hard to fly with anyone else now. Once we got to the Male airport we were last off the plane and last to get our hotel details off our rep, which meant more time in an air conditioned airport rather than the heat outside, so only had 5 minutes to wait for our speed boat transfer. This only took approximately 50 minutes, but it was a very enjoyable trip.

Once we arrived at the resort a warm welcome and cool towels were given to us, and after check-in we were shown our room. We had booked a comfort room on the north side of the island, and what a lovely room it was too. Very spacious (even with an extra bed), clean and light. Lovely clean modern bathrooms and plenty of clothes hangers in the wardrobe. There's a front door and a door leading on to a veranda with chairs and a table. At the front door there's a tap to wash the sand off your feet, and at the veranda door a terracotta container for the same thing.

The island is nice and small, with only one main restaurant where all meals are buffet style. Now I'm a fussy eater and I don't eat fish and my daughter would live off chicken nuggets every day if we let her, but we both still found plenty of food for us to eat. What we had we certainly enjoyed. My husband eats anything and everything and he loved it all. We did eat lunch at the surf cafe on the odd occasion, and they served toasties, burgers and pizzas etc., at very very reasonable prices. You can also treat yourself to a Walls ice cream if you want to.

We didn't do many of the excursions. In fact, the only one we did was the dolphin trip which was brilliant. Our daughter said it was the funnest day of her life (her words)! We saw literally 100's of dolphins who put on a spectacular show for us, and an added bonus was that we saw 4 very large manta rays. The only other things we did were hire a catamaran which took us to a sand bank, or should I call it the rubbish tip! unfortunately, a lot of the rubbish washes up on these banks, but the ride itself was great, and again we saw dolphins. The island has it's own glass bottom boat which we rented for $40. It took us all around the island and it was a good way for our daughter to see the different fish, as she's not confident enough to go out snorkeling very far.

Entertainment is very low key, but that's how we like it. We joined in some of the things like crab racing, bingo and we watched the underwater video. The entertainment staff are great. There were very few children on the island and they made my daughter feel very much at home. They always greeted her by name and made a big fuss of her every time they saw her. In fact, I cannot single them out as all the staff on the island are brilliant, and you will not find friendlier people anywhere.

The room boy always put flowers in our room from the lovely plants that grow on the island, and he also brought us coconuts split and ready to eat, and beach towels were changed every other day. We tipped our waiter and room boy $15 for the first week and then $20 for the second week because we appreciated the service. We also tipped the waiters at the surf bar at the end of the holiday because of the service, and yes there is a 10% charge on everything you buy, but that's not a great deal, and it's mainly for the staff that work hard on the island, but you don't really see, such as the kitchen staff, the men who rake the sand every morning, and the man who goes around the island spraying the trees etc. It does annoy me a little when people moan about this measly 10%.

When the sad time comes when you have to leave the island, you will not find a fonder farewell. They shook our hands, kissed and hugged our daughter, and then they all stood on the dock waving us all off. A perfect end to a perfect holiday!

We are now looking forward to going back to Fihalhohi next year for 3 weeks, as 2 weeks were not long enough. My only worry is that one day in the future, like so many islands, this lovely resort will be taken over and made into a 5 star resort with 5 star prices. In my eyes, it is already a 5 star resort but with reasonable prices.