Gili Lankanfushi

We had a wonderful stay at Gili Lankanfushi, in a perfect villa, with dedicated and super friendly staff and excellent food. We certainly recommend staying there. However make sure that you choose the right villa upon reservation. Quite a few of the villas have a distant view of the neighbouring industrial island, with its very bright lights which are particularly irritating at night and therefore spoiling the Robinson Crusoe effect.

As ever our trip was seamlessly organised for us by Jo at Angelfish Travel in the UK who has extensive knowledge of the different resort islands in the Maldives and was able to recommend particular villas which would suit our needs. Villa We chose to stay in a lagoon villa which allowed direct access into the lagoon. This meant that we could always swim directly from our villa. The villas are huge and have an upstairs where there are 2 beds which can be made up if required. The villa is rustic in construction but is so comfortable and well equipped. There are a wide range of toiletries in the villa and many more can be requested if needed. I honestly think virtually any request could be accommodated! The jetty’s are quite long and get a bit hot underfoot in the sun for bare feet. Fortunately we were provided with bamboo bicycles (with our names on should we forget where we’d parked them!) to get around the island. However, if bike riding isn’t for you then they were very happy to transport you by buggy. Food We stayed on a half board basis and I think this worked out well for us. Included were breakfast, all buffet nights and around the world dinners at Kashiveli. There was a $100 allowance to eat off the al a carte. We found the food to be excellent and particularly enjoyed the buffet nights (Asian Spice, Mediterranean and Indian). We then ate usually at Kashiveli either off the set menu or al a carte. Unfortunately we didn’t manage to get to the Japanese fusion restaurant. Breakfasts were spectacular and difficult to resist. We ended up having a leisurely, large breakfast and no lunch on most days. Watersports Gili doesn’t have a typical reef around the island and we don’t usually bother much with trying to snorkel over the drop off when we visit. However, on this occasion we went out with Matthew the marine biologist who showed us the route. After that we went snorkelling every day direct from our villa, usually before breakfast, helped by the excellent weather and calm conditions. We were rewarded by seeing lots of beautiful fish. If you are interested there is also a surf school. Bar and Wine The overwater bar is a lovely place to unwind and watch the sunset whilst drinking a cocktail. However it is much more than that, as you can eat there as an alternative to the more formal restaurants. It is the main bar on the island and home to a fantastic team of barmen/mixologists who produce excellent cocktails and drinks. During our stay we had a superb wine tasting with cheese and chocolate in the spectacular (cooled) underground wine cellar. We tasted some excellent wine explained in detail with enthusiasm by Rohan. Service By far the most impressive aspect of Gili is the level of service and friendliness by all members of staff from service in the restaurants and bar to small things like everyone pulling in to side of the paths/ jetty’s to let you wobble past on your bike. I hesitate to name particular members of staff however, we would like to thank particularly; Matthew in Marine Biology for his help with the snorkelling and general enthusiasm. Overwater Bar - Kuchi - always happy and willing to chat, James - who I believe has fairly recently started as an intern, but made a big impression on us with his professionalism and friendliness. We hope to see him when we return. Azmee who looked after us when we ate one evening in the overwater bar. Bartenders - Shyla, Bryan, Stanley. We went to a ‘battle of the bartenders’ one evening and it was a lot of fun. The night we went Bryan and Stanley were there and they made us some delicious cocktails which were themed and provided a lot of entertainment! Shyla was always so friendly and would come out to chat to us and explain about the cocktails. Kashiveli; Wabbe was our ever-present attendant at meals whatever time of day. He has been promoted since we were last here and its well deserved. He was always so friendly and had a remarkable ability to remember our likes and dislikes and was always suggesting and advising on food as well as life in general. Great sense of humour. Hassan, always smiling and helping when needed. He is a barista and made some great coffee for us at breakfast. Santoc, Ali, Alysha, Cherrito were all excellent. Anoof - young chef who we came across principally at breakfast when he was manning the huge fruit counter. He had a very important job as keeper of the mangoes. Neaf - who looked after us around the pool Rohan and Gayan wine sommeliers. We had a delicous birthday meal at a spectacular table set up by Wabbe and prepared by Chef Hari with wine chosen with Rohan. A special evening. It was also good to see Rodrigo in his new role as General Manager and to meet Florian as the new Resort Manager. Our villa was looked after twice a day by Nasif who did an amazing job. Most importantly we would like to thank our Mr Friday Alif who, as previously, was quietly efficient when he needed to be but was always available and seemingly able to arrange anything whenever it was required!

We visited the Gili for the seventh time this year and it is still our favourite island. What makes it so special? Everything but especially the whole Gili team! Coming back feels like coming home due to the warmest welcome and mainly familiar faces. Special thanks to Mifzal who took again incredibly well care of us! Thanks to the whole breakfast team especially Irufan, thanks to Rachman and to name somebody new: James - a great example of how special the gili spirit has been adopted form the beginning. We could extend the list by so many names as everbody is so kind and warm. We visited many island but will for sure come back to Gili next year! The reasons apart form the 'Gili spirit' are: beautiful villas, amazing food offer/concept, best breakfast menue ever, beautiful sundowner deck, etc. Thanks again for making our stay so special!

Unbelievable experience, every member of staff gets a mention for their outstanding service. Miffy, our Mr Friday was superb and took very good care of us throughout our stay. The sunrise yoga with Kamal is not to be missed, a great way to start the day with an excellent yoga master. The spa is beautiful. The Ayurvedic treatments are amazing and Anu is a superb Ayurvedic therapist. I experienced one of the best massage treatments I have ever had pretty much anywhere. The food is fabulous and the Teppanyaki at By The Sea is delicious and very entertaining. The rooms are superb, comfortable and very spacious. The overall atmosphere is so relaxing and the resort is very peaceful. We have travelled to the Maldives 7 times and this resort is one of the best we have stayed at. We hope to be back.

Gili Lankanfushi is an amazing place, paradise - it is what it is advertised to be. Highly recommend it. We spend a glorious 10 days.