Palaces in Gaafu Alifu Atoll

"Bedroom it’s self clean but spares, no chair, no table, mini fridge unplugged, remote for TV broken. No water in the room, old soap in the bathroom with a strand of someone’s ’personal hair ‘ on it, loo rolls had been wet at some time. Bum gun worked. Asked for water and soap water arrived soap didn’t. Breakfast adequate but in a room with a Motor Bike. Owner or their agent arrange motor boat from airport to hotel, was told it was $25 , the guy asked me for $32.80, I had $40 and said change will be ok in local currency. I do not have any money was the reply, condsidering he had a new car I felt ripped off."

"THE ROOMS ARE AMAZING!! I stayed in the Aqua Villa and it was truly breathtaking staying in a room underwater. There isn't another hotel that does this better, it truly made the whole trip! Property and staff were also amazing. In terms of negatives: TERRIBLE pre-stay communication (return emails would sometimes take days to come back even for things that were very time sensitive!), food was just ok (breakfast saved the day), getting to the hotel was very frustrating."

"The staff was fantastic, the food extraordinary good and the overall surroundings super nice. A nice surprise that I got upgraded to an over water villa, big thanks for that. I can only recommend this resort. The travel there is a bit long but definitely worth it."

"My wife and I visited in February and it felt like a dream! We loved our overwater villa. The water had so many colors. We loved the size of the resort. It felt intimate and quiet-which we loved because we live in a big city and we want to feel relaxed on vacation. The staff is wonderful. Yassir was our butler and he took care of us. The Raffles worker who greeted us at the airport (I believe his name was Ahmed) helped us tremendously. He got us all checked in for our domestic flight and showed us where to go. He even got us on an earlier flight to the resort which we so appreciated! The General Manager Tracey is fantastic and helpful. And we have wonderful things to say about the chef, Shane. My wife has dairy and gluten allergies and she can’t eat most meats. Shane did a great job catering a menu to my wife and he was so friendly! We miss the staff at Raffles, including the waiters. All of them made Raffles feel like home. Raffles is definitely a paradise island. Very unique. And if you are looking to go to the Maldives for the first time or visit a new place in the Maldives, we definitely recommend Raffles! You won’t regret it. Everything about Raffles was perfect. The house coral reef is excellent with lots of exotic fish. This was our first time in the Maldives. And we plan to visit Raffles Maldives again. We’ve stayed at nice resorts around the world in around 50 countries, including Four Seasons in Bora Bora. Raffles Maldives might be my favorite. "