19
Aug
2015
0

Ten Reasons to Love Reethi Beach Resort

Our previous post makes it evident that we had a great time in Maldives earlier this year. Reethi Beach Resort was our home for four fun filled days. Small things at Reethi Beach Resort made us fall in love with the island and will make sure that we return ….

Cheers ....to a great vacation!

Cheers… to a great vacation!

Barefoot Resort, made easy…

While most islands in Maldives claim to be barefeet resorts, you will feel the need to wear flip flops if you stay in the water villas and have to walk over hot wooden planks in the afternoon to get to your water bungalow after lunch. Reethi has a little place to ‘park’ your slippers where the wooden walk way starts so you can have your footwear handy for this stretch and enjoy the powdery sand under your feet as you walk around the island.

'Park' your flip flops here

‘Park’ your flip flops here

There is a bar… everywhere….

I am not too much in love with alcohol. However, I do enjoy a pinacolada by the beach and wine at sundown. Ankur loves his beer. Reethi has five bars, including three beach bars. You just need to walk for 150 meters to get from one bar to the other, each offering a different set up.

Sunset Bar

Sunset Bar

I loved the Sunset Bar for obvious reasons, while Ankur preferred the Handhuvaru Bar close to the water bungalows that gave an ‘in the jungle’ feeling.

Every sunset is different!

Every sunset is different!

Behind the scenes…

Ever wondered how does a Maldivian resort run, isolated from the mainland? How and when do they get the vegetables? How do they maintain the supply of electricity that runs the air conditioners and refrigeration units? Where does the staff stay?

All your questions are answered during a ‘Technical Tour’ organised by the Reethi staff!

There was a cocktail with the management organised on one of the evenings as well to let the guests interact with those that run the ship. Cheers with some yummy sangria!

Drinks with the resort team

Drinks with the resort team

Living house reef…

Reethi has its own house reef…about 400 meters of coral and aquatic life. While I have seen better coral at the Red Sea and in Vilamendhoo Resort, I haven’t seen such a large number of fish at such close quarters. Whether you are a SCUBA diver or not, snorkeling here is a must do if you would want to peek into the underwater world.

Titan Trigger Fish at the house reef

Titan Trigger Fish at the house reef

There might be current at certain time of the day. Hence, it is best to enter the reef at the center and exit the end, depending on which direction the current is.

Sting Ray feeding…

I have seen sting ray feeding sessions in marine parks in Asia and have never found it exciting. After all, once you see marine life in its natural habitat, ocean parks stop exciting you.

Don’t miss the sting ray feeding at 6 pm every day (jetty near the dive school). There are loads of sting rays that come for a snack…and we were lucky to see a guitar ray as well!

Sting ray feeding

Sting ray feeding

If you are diving at the house reef, try doing it during the second half of the day – that’s when the rays arrive. In fact, the days I dived the reef, I heard a fellow diver mention that he had seen two manta rays earlier during the day …who weren’t there for the snack. They had simply decided to come pay a visit!

Foosball table…

Reethi has an activity center near the main bar that houses a pool table, table tennis table, a library and our favourite…the foosball table!

While Ankur and I both enjoy foosbal, Ankur likes it more. I think he has a hidden agenda of wanting to sell off our dining table and replace it with a foosball table. Just to make sure that we continue to have a dining table at home, I ensure that we play a few games of foosball whenever we find a table…and Reethi was one such place.

Foosball Reethi Beach Resort

Foooooooosssssbaaaallllll

The last we played was at Loft Hostel in Iceland, almost six months ago. I will not divulge who won and who lost…and let you guess who the champion is!

Allocated sunbeds…

Reethi has sun beds for everyone, along with a thatched shade. The room number is written on the lounger. We had our very own sun beds and never had to run to lay our towels, lest we would not find a good spot. Reethi ensured that everyone had a good spot!

Sunbeds with room numbers

Sunbeds with room numbers

Weather forecast…

Snorkeling while the clouds hide the Sun can be a bummer. Everything is gray…the sky up above and the sea below. On a cloudy day, we would prefer a pampering session at the spa instead of finding Nemo at the house reef.

Reeti helped us plan our day better. Our room was cleaned twice a day and a wooden plaque, indicating the forecast of the temperature and cloud cover would be left on our bed!

Robinson Crusoe feeling…

Reethi is located at a distance of 125 km from Male. You will not hear flights land and take off all through the day…maybe a buzz once a day when a sea plane lands.

At the deck of the water bungalow

At the deck of the water bungalow

While we could see a neighbouring island from the Sunset Bar, the sun deck of our water bungalow gave us the ‘Robinson Crusoe’ feel, albeit in comfort. Uninterrupted views of the blue sea for miles and miles and miles truly isolated us from the humdrum of regular work life.

Care for the environment…

Reethi has a ‘jungle’ like feel in the central area of the island. We would wander along paths as we walked from the restaurant to our water bungalow enjoying the cool shade. We would stop to hear the birds tweet or watch the garden lizard change its coulors.

Waiting to turn totally green...or red?

Waiting to turn totally green…or red?

Sea Explorer, the dive school, takes a lot of effort in educating tourists, snorkelers and divers. There was a presentation by marine biologist Lico in the bar, highlighting how humans are harming the sea and little steps that we can take to do our bit! Much appreciated!

Atoll en route to Reethi Beach Resort

Atoll en route to Reethi Beach Resort

Reethi Beach Resort is one of the TUI Environmental Champions 2015 and consumes less than average electricity than most Maldivian resorts. Thumbs up for the world we live it!

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