Coco Palm Dhuni Kolhu, Maldives

Just back from a perfect 10 day stay in Coco Palm, Dhuni Kolhu. If you are lucky enough to have booked this trip and are reading this, I'm already jealous! If you are reading reviews and wondering if it will be nice - BOOK IT - you will thank me :-) - I'm still in an amazed daze at the experience of a lifetime we have just had! The atmosphere is lovely and relaxed - but with a fabulous holiday vibe. The natural beauty of the beaches, the jungle with soft sand paths lit up at night with fairy lights and the lovely sounds of the jungle birds... The sun sets and rises, the sound of waves with appropriate background music transports you immediately from your normal life and relaxing just happens instantly. Not forgetting to mention the sky at night and all the wonderful wildlife - breath taking! We stayed in Villa 85, a Deluxe Villa with a Pool. Huge and pefect! I was a little worried about the outdoor bathroom but I loved that immediately too, having a bubble bath outside with a glass of bubbles and watching the stars and bats and geckos was a highlight for me! The Villa's are classical, rustic luxury. There is nothing you might want that you can't find here. A lovely room attendant will visit twice a day to clean, ensuring you have everything you need and leave your room looking untouched (ours was Hari, if you are lucky enough to have him, he's great - as are ALL to be honest). All you really need to take is a small toothpaste (some is provided) and your face creams etc. a lovely shower gel, shampoo and conditioner & body cream is provided - my hair is super soft after using their products all week. We did take x4 bottles of factor 50 P20 and used x3.5 of these. We buy these from Savers at the great price of £18 per bottle and a once a day application remains intact and waterproof. You will need this or equivalent, so definitely take enough and the right quality of 5* UV protection to respect the sun and your proximity to the Equator. I always use aftersun every day too and would recommend you take some. The whole resort is spotlessly clean, there is not one area that isn't perfect in my opinion. The Reception and Library are stunning, so much information to be found here, presented beautifully. The Reception staff are all lovely and super efficient (special thanks to Hajiba). The staff are the best in the World! Maldivian people (along with many other nationalities) are the friendliest we have ever come across. The food is delicious, varied and plentiful. We were all inclusive and it was an amazing package including: *Daily water bottles in your room *Mini bar items free included diet coke, code, fanta, lemon tea, tonic water *Breakfast, lunch and dinner at Cowrie restaurant - while it's a buffet restaurant, it's far more special than any we have ever visited due to all the live cooking, they will cook you anything you ask for to your taste. *Wines, beers, a whole list of cocktails, mocktails, tea, coffee etc. and much more! I packed snacks such as nuts (these are given with drinks at the beach bar) - we definitely didn't need any snacks! - maybe just a few came in handy for the airport. The Trips - book them! The amazing guide Zaiid will give you once in a lifetime experiences, seeing the Dolphins, swimming with Giant friendly Manatas, reef snorkelling and much more! The are fairly priced and you are only away for a few hours each trip, even on the boat you will be given healthy fruit/salad kebabs, water, you will see flying fish and be looked after by the most lovely boat crew and of course Zaiid and lovely Rosalie too often. We wanted to do a Dive and Harsha and all the fabulous Dive team were amazing. We took the free trial and that was great, having never Scuba Dived before. Sadly my partner got an ear infection so this was the only thing we missed. The Turtle Sanctuary is a must visit. You will get to the know about the great work they do with the Olive Ridley project. We were lucky enough to see one of the rehabilitated turtles released on our last day. The Marine Biologist Rosalie is a delight, so warm and easy to talk to, hearing all about the turtles, Coral and marine animals is so interesting. I went on an hour snorkelling around the house reef with her, I highly recommend and it's very reasonable, will cost around £30 equivalent. She will point out things you would probably miss on your own. Akash the Head Chef along with Sous Chef Danish and many, many more are wonderful. The Island garden is worth a visit and it's amazing how much they grow and use in the food. My husband is a Head Chef in London and can be quite fussy - he loved the food and was super impressed by the entire food operation and we were both so appreciative of the hotels respect of nature and eco approach. The beach bar is the place to be around 6pm to enjoy a lovely cocktail/beer etc. and watch the sun set - stunning views! You will no doubt be joined by a cheeky, beautiful cockatoo, see the bats flying around and even colourful little love birds if you're quick - they are quite shy. I had a lovely massage from Komang at the beautiful spa - highly recommend. Our waiter Nalinda was the best, as are all the waiters. They do not skimp with staff at Coco Palm so you will not be left waiting and as I may have already mentioned, every staff member is the nicest person you will ever meet! The sea plane is an experience. Definitely wear light clothes. I was sick on the way over after a drop off landed in a rocky sea - on the way home I was a little nervous that I would experience it again but a lovely lady (Mrs Cook who is a 50+ repeater to Coco Palm!!! which says it all really) gave me a Kwalms tablet to take 30 mins before the flight - I was fine - very releived! The views are breath taking and you feel totally safe. Everything is well organised. Back to Coco Palm - I'm still in a daze at the beauty and nature I experienced here, I am saving immediately to be able to return one day 100%. If you love nature, you will see, every/size colour fish, bird, lizard, gecko, turtle, Eagle rays, reef sharks, fruit bats and much more. We didn't experience any mosquito bites! Didn't even bother with the Jungle spray we took after the first few days bit free! My husband had a sore throat and earache for a few days and we saw a medic instantly and were provided strepsils and a mouthwash for free, amazing service, no waiting! This holiday was our honeymoon and also my husband turned 50 during our stay. Our room was decorated beautifully with flowers etc. So special. We were also given lots of lovely free gifts. The Seafood Beach BBQ was a lovely experience, very delicious, will cost around £150 for x2 - for a meal under the Maldivian sky, it was a must try for us. We had a delicious 3 course meal in Cornus restaurant in a beautiful jungle setting, this was a gift from the hotel, highly recommend. We also had the private cinema experience, a movie on the beach in a cosy, private setting under the stars. You will get a glass of bubbles each, popcorn, ice cream and enough cashew nuts to feed the island :-) - a great experience but pick a bright film. We picked a film that was mainly set at night so it was a little hard to see - totally our fault, wasn't a great film choice by us, would still highly recommend. The Maldivian afternoon tea offers delicious treats (savoury and sweet) to try while getting to mingle and chat with all the wonderful staff, volunteers and other holiday makers at sunset - again, I highly recommend. The lovely shop is worth a visit too for souvenirs and don't miss any of the Presentation nights, they are great and interesting and set at the Conch bar. The singer is great and we saw guests up dancing and singing along. I could go on forever but I need to get back to reality now - boo lol! Thank you to EVERY SINGLE person at Coco Palm, this was the holiday of our dreams and I really hope to see you again one day.

An absolutely fabulous quiet place to relax and enjoy some sunshine. Sitting the the baa atoll Coco Palm boasts beautiful views, fine sandy beaches and the blue seas you'd expect from the Maldives. However the consistent courteous and attentive service and great food, with more than a nod to conservation push this place into outstanding.

We stayed over Christmas and New Year and had an amazing time, and a big thank you to all the staff for making it even more memorable. The Christmas and New Year’s Eve Gala Dinner’s were very special, well done to the catering team. A true Maldives island, sun, sand, fish, turtles.

Location was simply fantastic. Rooms were large and appropriate as expected, cleaned many times every day. Zero noise, only nature :)

Absolutely amazing and relaxing Holiday in Paradise! They have a great package for solo travelers which I really recommend and YES Maldives is great for Solo travelers at Coco Palm Dhuni Kolhu I felt so welcomed! The buffet food, SPA and Snorkeling trips were fantastic. The Island is so raw and untouched covered in nature and pristine beaches. Got the chance to see a turtle hatch which was one of the most beautiful things I have ever experienced. The house reef is really great with lots to see! Definitely coming back!