More than a thousand tiny coral islands scattered like glitter in the turquoise Indian Ocean, make up the Republic of the Maldives. These islands are the epitome of an island castaway. Beautiful ice-white sands, coral reefs, and fantastic marine life and diving make the Maldives as beautiful a getaway as you are ever likely to experience.
One of these islands is especially beautiful to me, I have been there several times is Bandos. Bandos is located in North Mal Atoll, the closest atoll to the capital island of Mal and which features some of the other most popular island resorts as well as Bandos. Fly to Male and transfer is by boat and takes approximately 20 minutes. North Mal Atoll is secluded and has a relaxed feel.
Bandos has some of the most excellent dive sites in North Mal Atoll and the Maldives in particular. It is within easy reach of shipwrecks to explore, and is renowned in the diving world for its diverse range of marine life that are common and easy to see here, including white tip sharks, barracuda, and colourful reef fish. Bandos is also blessed with some excellent coral reef surf for the sport watersports enthusiasts amongst you.
Bandos is designated as a 4-star resort and is currently equipped with around 100 standard rooms. These rooms alternate between twin and double bed layout and are nicely furnished with tiled floors and balconies, but you might consider the bathrooms to be on the slightly smaller side. Many of the standard rooms face west and provide good sunsets and are additionally gifted with one of the best sections of beach on the island.
The 48 Junior suites on the resort are arranged in groups and are stylishly decorated, with a ochre color scheme and solid wooden four-poster beds. The only small downside, as far as I could tell, is the beach in this section of the resort is almost completely submerged at high tide, but then these rooms dont cost as much as the Water Bungalows so in a way some may think this a pleasant feature of their stay.
The resort has gone out of its way to accommodate families, with a purpose-built childcare facility complete with female staff on hand to look after the children and provide babysitting in the evenings. Some of the rooms in the standard and junior class have an interconnecting door for families split between several rooms.
The Bandos resort accommodates visitors getting married with the "Kuda Bandos Sunset Wedding" which features a taste of traditional island ceremony, a sunset boat ride, unique cultural costumes, Maldivian drums and traditional style and ceremony. The ceremony is held on the beach of one of the uninhabited islands in the atoll - Kuda Bandos - and is followed by a private cruise for the newlyweds on a Dhoni (Maldivian boat). Later, the newlyweds can enjoy a romantic private dinner set on the beach of Kuda Bandos.
Author Resource:
Jonathan is an enthusiastic diver and travels frequently to the Maldives to write articles on diving and about the Maldives in general. You can find more information about the Maldives at the Maldives Holiday Packages guide and about the superb diving island resort of Bandos Island Resort in particular.