We have just returned from this beautiful island after 13 glorious nights. Myself and my husband are returning customers, last visiting in October 2017. We were a little worried that the development of the pool villas, water villas and grand residence may have changed the intimacy and personal touch we felt at our last visit but these fears were quickly dissipated the moment we arrived. We were greeted by the drumming ceremonious welcoming party which makes arriving to this island a very special event. We were introduced to our smily guest relations officer (GRO) Sandy who escorted us to our villa following a tour of the island. We were to arrange anything we needed during our stay via Sandy using WhatsApp. We would regularly see her at breakfast and dinner always with a beautiful smile and whenever we messaged her regarding making a dinner reservations or booking a trip or general enquiry she would instantly reply no matter what time of day or night. She kept us updated with the daily programme and sent reminders of any bookings on the day. She was invaluable to us during our stay and went above and beyond to ensure we had everything we needed during our stay including arranging some sea sickness tablets for us for our fishing trip. We stayed in a beach villa simar to our last visit and the spaciousness of the villa and beautiful bathroom were as we remembered. Being directly on the beach gave instant access to the sea we had lazy mornings on the beach to sunbathe. Thank you to our room boy Aisharu who kept our room spotless. We were located just a few minutes walk from Sunset bar which we often ended up in the afternoon for lunch. The bar staff at Sunset were always so attentive and keen to keep you supplied with a drink of your choice. A special mention to head bar man Sonalal who could make any cocktail we requested and worked tirelessly to keep guests supplied with any beverage desired. Waiter Nilaal New to the Kanfushi team always had a smile on his face and Rajitha and Mufeed were always keen to keep guests supplied with drinks. The adults only pool was never over crowded and a sunbed was always available when we visited. The island operates a shuttle service from 07:00 -23:00 hours with two shuttles running simultaneously up and down the island. You could check on a App to see where the shuttle was in relation to your location which was a brilliant idea and a new development since visiting last. We of course could have walked or hired bikes which lots of people did but it was never long before a shuttle came along. Just Veg restaurant located at the far end of the island served a delicious aray of vegetarian food especially designed by a renowned italian chef. We are normally meat eaters but the food here is so flavoursome we had several reservations during our stay. I would recommend the thai green curry and the paneer tikka masala but everything we had was absolutely scrummy. The location is beautiful and often baby sharks could be seen in the water below. Pier 6 a new restaurant since visiting last is located next to the water villas. We had two evening meals here and the food was outstanding. A visit is a must! Fresh lobster, tuna, scallops, dumplings are to name just a few. My husbands not a great fish lover so opted for the steak and lamb which he devoured. The setting was so romantic, especially if seated outside and the staff were excellently attentive as always, refilling wine glasses and checking everything was ok. A massive shout out to ibaad who remembered us from our last visit, now the manager of Pier 6. It was great to see a familiar friendly face. Spice is the main restaurant on the island which has a buffet service for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The staff here work tirelessly to provide excellent food. We were greeted at every visit by the lovely Ambika who always said good morning/evening Mr Peter and Mrs Dawn from the day we arrived and she looked after us at each visit. My husband likes to drink red wine but this is often chilled due to warm conditions of the island and it helps preserve the wine, however, my husband likes red wine at room temperature. From the moment she was aware of this a bottle of room temperature wine was always made available to him. How is that for service? Gebriyal looked after us well too, always smiling and refilling our glasses, a real gentleman. Even during a busy service everyone was attentive to provide excellent service. Ram the head chef has an amazing team behind him. Fresh food is constantly being brought out, from fish, vegetarian dishes to meat lovers. My husband was in heaven the fact you could even have a curry for breakfast! The dosa and egg station was one of my favourite breakfast go to. Eggs benidict, poached eggs, omelettes galore all freshly made in front of you. I would follow this with freshly sliced fruit. My husband would opt for pastries or the fried breakfast of beef bacon, hash browns and beans. We only had lunch here once during our stay but again enjoyed the freshly made pasta and pizza. Dinner at spice was always delicious, everyone walked around with delight in their eyes at the different sections. The naan breads, grill station, speciality dishes had people queuing for the tasty dishes. Ram the head chef had asked my husband if there was a dish he would like to see on the menu. He mentioned how he loved a biriyani and the next evening when Ram saw us he said I have something for you and we were delivered our own freshly made biriyani which was absolutely delicious! It was totally unexpected and a wonderful surprise. Thank you Ram. Spice also hold an Indian Ocean festival on a Sunday evening, weather permitting this is outside. Introduced by the General Manager Mei and what a fabulous events this is and is not to be missed. You honestly feel like you are at a wedding. Beautifully illuminated food stations all situated outside with dining tables on the beach with specially prepared Maldivian foods as well as other delicious delights. This was honestly one of the best evenings we had during our stay along with live band for entertainment it was truly spectacular. Well done Mei! It was my birthday during our stay and I was totally spoilt ALL day. Heni the assistant food and beverage manager seated us for breakfast and brought us a glass of buck fizz to start. I literally felt on top of the world. We had booked a couples Balinese spa which was so relaxing I could have been in heaven. The massage could be as firm or gentle as desired with your choice of essential oils it was a real birthday treat. A wonderful birthday surprise was spending our final two nights on a water villa with pool. This was everything I dreamed it would be with spectacular views of the sea and gorgeous sunset, beautifully designed bathroom with glass floor to the sea below and your own personal pool. The extra cost of experiencing a water villa is most definitely worth it to get the most out of your stay so we would definitely plan to split our next visit equally between beach and water villa. We didnt use the recreation centre or gym but did pop in for a visit. There were plenty of games, pool table, tennis courts, table tennis to keep big and little kids entertained. We were invited to a special cocktail event with canapes as returning guests and met the manager's of Atmosphere Kanifushi who personally thanked us for returning. Well who wouldn't want to return to this beautiful island. Special thanks to Maxi, Mei, Raman and Heni for making our stay everything we could wish for and more. You all do an amazing job and the results are clear to see in all the staff, from the hard working landscaping staff, waiters/waitresses, bar staff, GRO's, chefs, shuttle men to the room boys. They are a real credit to you and these people make your wonderful island and the reason we will return again and again. Sandy our GRO even messaged us to check we were home safely. You truly are a lovely young lady. If you ever want to visit London please come stay with us!…
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