Maldives Day 2

 07/13/2021 Tuesday

We woke up early this morning as we slept early last night due to jet lag. Watched the sunrise from our deck and called our butler for the golf cart to take us to Tasting Table for our breakfast.

It was a nice drive from our villa to the restaurant as we passed by the beautiful ocean.

                                        

                                        

                                        

The breakfast buffet was really good with a wide selection of dishes and fresh juices. The view for our table was amazing.

After a fulfilling breakfast, we went back to our villa to take a break and just chill out at our swing while my son swam in the private infinity pool in our villa. The nice breeze makes me want to sleep after a nice meal. This is what a vacation should be: doing nothing and just relaxing.

After resting for a while, we ordered room service for lunch and went biking afterwards. Each of us has a bike, so we went around the island to check out what they have.

There is a private island that can only be accessed by boat. 

The boys snorkeling around the water and afterwards, we went back to our villa to rest up before heading for happy hour at Peacock Alley.

After happy hour, we spent some time around the pier to check out the fishes and baby reef shark there.

It's so beautiful everywhere we go in the island.

We headed back to the gym for some light workout before heading back to our villa to catch the sunset from our room.

Tonight, we have made reservation to eat at Tasting Table where we had our breakfast. The weather in Maldives is really hot and humid, thus we don't have much appetite to eat.

This ends our first full day in Maldives.

Maldives Day 1

07/12/2021 Monday

First time staying at Waldorf Astoria Maldives Ithaafushi (07/12/2021 to 7/19/2021)

Itinerary:

• Waldorf Astoria Maldives Ithaafushi

This is our first time at Maldives and also our first time staying at Waldorf Astoria hotel. The hotel we picked is pretty new as it opened in July 2019 and that's one of the reason why I picked the hotel as I would like to stay at a newer hotel.

Once we reached Maldives, we took the bus from the plane to the customs. After answering some questions and also presenting the negative PCR results, we were given a 30 day visa on arrival. Next, we picked our luggage right next to customs and once we are out of the gates, we saw the hotel employees holding Waldorf Astoria Maldives sign.

The hotel staff quickly helped us with our luggage and took us across the street to where the yacht is. 

There were 2 other families who were aboard with us to the same hotel. The hotel was on an island called Ithaafushi which is made up of 3 small islands (including a private island) that stretches about 3.4 km or so.

                                                    WA Maldives Yacht in the background

The yacht ride was about 45 to 50 minutes from the airport and on the way there, there was a stretch of ~10 minutes where the waves were rough and I got a little seasick. The hotel staff onboard quickly gave me a seaband to put on. 

Soon, we arrive at the hotel and several staff were at the pier welcoming us. 

We were given some welcome drinks and our butler was there to meet us. He took us to our room in his buggy and also showed us the different restaurants and facilities along the way. 

We finished our check in at our room and our butler gave us a small Nokia analog phone which has his number so that we can reach him anytime. We also have very good Wi-Fi in the island.

The reef villa room that we had was amazing and had a great outdoor space with its own infinity pool, hammocks, and swings. Half of the villa is on the beach and the other half is on the water. We spent many days just lying on the sofa swing and also in the pool. Part of our room was in the middle of the Indian ocean and we were able to just go into the ocean and snorkel. We saw many fishes and sea turtles there and every evening, we would also have guests snorkeling in front of our villa. We talked to the staff and it looks like our villa is one of the better snorkeling sites in the island.

Housekeeping was twice a day and in the evening, the housekeeper will replenish our fruits and water. He would also remake the beds, change the towels and put a small dessert for us. 

The hotel also provided bikes for us which we made good use while we travel around the island. The only time we didn't bike is at night where it's hard to see, so we called the buggy. 

There are over 400 staff working at the island while there are only 119 villas. At all times, we saw many staff cleaning up the island and working hard. Really grateful to them for making the island such a pleasant stay for us.

When we left, they had a special concierge who took us along the express lane inside the airport and helped us check in. It was a special service that the hotel provided.

Qatar Airways - QSuites

 First time on Qatar Airways (07/10/2021)

Itinerary:

• San Francisco to Doha, Doha to Maldives (Qsuite on Airbus 350-1000)

Maldives has been on my bucket list since I was a child and finally, we were able to make the trip. This is our first trip since the COVID-19 pandemic and we were both excited and nervous.

I have read a lot of good things about Qatar Airways, especially their Qsuite which is one of the best business class. After trying out different business class in China Airlines, EVA, Emirates and Qatar Airways, I can say that the Qsuite for Qatar Airways is indeed the best business class that I have sat in.

We received an email to check in 4 hours before our flight due to the extra time needed to check the PCR test results for each passenger. However, the counter was not opened till 3 hours and 30 minutes before the flight, so we were just standing in line waiting for 30 minutes. If you are also flying with Qatar Airways, then I suggest that you show up 3 hours and 30 minutes before your flight, so you don't wait there.

The Qsuite is very spacious and private but best of all is their service. The flight attendant is very attentive and dining is at any time of the flight, not on a fixed schedule. They also provide slippers and pajamas for our long 15 hour flight and made our bed for us when we decided to sleep. In addition, they also clean the bathroom after each use which to me is a plus as my flight on Emirates was the opposite experience. The restroom was so dirty that I had to look for other cleaner restroom to use.

                                                        Extra storage and also bottle of water

                                                                        Lots of leg room

                                                                    Welcome drink

                                                                        Lemon Mint Tea 

One of the best chicken biryani I had on a plane

                                                        Hot Karak Chai Tea which I loved

                                                                       Ice Chai Latte

Afternoon Tea

When we reached Doha airport, there was a separate line for business class passengers, so we were out of the security line quickly. Since we were transiting, we booked the transit hotel inside the airport and did not leave the airport. We were also allowed in their business lounge which has really good food and service as well. There are 2 sections of dine-in options and the one upstairs is the better choice as they have much larger selection of food and also Ala Carte that you are order after you scan their QR code menu. After checking into our transit hotel, we had both our dinner in the business lounge as we landed in Doha around 5:10PM and also breakfast the next morning before our flight to Maldives.