We saved for a decade for this once in a lifetime vacation and Mirihi proved to be perfect. The staff were super friendly, helpful and genuinely cared if we were having a good time. The island, the rooms and reef around the island were all as good as the reviews had said.
As this was a small resort the experience was more intimate, genuine and overall romantic. We could not have been happier.
Dear philc554,
It’s so great for us to read that Mirihi has proven to be the perfect place for your “once in a lifetime vacation” here in Maldives and you enjoyed the intimate feeling as well as the very friendly, personal service of our staff which comes truly from the heart.
This year we felt very honored to have received the Condé Nast Johansens’ Award as Best for Romance in Asia and we are happy to hear that we could transfer this romantic ambiance to you during your holiday.
We hope you keep the wonderful memories with you for a long time and would look forward to welcome you one day back again here at Mirihi,
Warm regards,
Antje
Guest Relations Manager
Maldives was a bucket list place - at Mirihi, it’s the kind of place you’ll want to go back to, we were already planning our return trip during our stay there!
We had 6 nights of island bliss. It looks like their advertising shots, no filter required -just add sound of rustling palm trees, lapping water onto whitest sand, with water the colour that you have dreamed about and ABUNDANT marine life.
All the staff were outstanding and added so much to our experience! From management to the food services and house keeping each person we met had that wow factor. Quite remarkable! The food (we had 3 course meal plan ) was above and beyond. Bungalows were gorgeously simple and comfortable, not flashy, think thatch, wood glass walls, huge opening doors to your private deck that we snorkeled off daily.
It was everything we where looking for - a dreamy little island to relax and be surrounded by nature. There were so many varieties of fish I hadn’t seen before. (Plus octopus, eels, turtles and baby reef sharks).
The house reef coral has so much coral, most has been effected by bleaching, but you can see colorful ‘baby’ coral starting to form. The coral is still so wonderful and full of fish and marine life, it would be over the top if it was all pre-bleach colours!
Side note: we did the Whale shark trip ... fantastic trip on sail boat with the bonus of swimming with 7 or so whale sharks in 4 different sites. Didn’t expect that!
In a nut shell - just go there! It truly is Heaven on Earth!
Dear Mandy H,
We thank you so much for taking the time to write such a wonderful review about your stay in our little paradise. We are truly thrilled to read how much you liked our concept of a natural, green island resort to enjoy tranquil holidays in redefined luxury and privacy.
It is so great to hear that the entire team with its attention to detail could transport the “wow” factor and made your holidays incredible. We are all already looking very much forward to welcome you as repeater guest for your second stay in your little “heaven on earth”!
Sunny regards,
Antje Schoenborn
Guest Relations Manager
That was our first time to the Maldives and of course the first time to Mirihi. To be honest, since our group got 12 people including 6 seniors and 2 kids, I wasn't very sure about my choice at the beginning. Maybe this island could be too small. Within 15 minutes, you could finish a walking tour around this island. And since our seniors can't swim very well at their current age, they may feel bored. Now, I have to say, my choice to Mirihi is very right. Mirihi provided everything we needed and made everything perfect.
The best experience was about the whale shark trip. No need to mention how lucky we were that whale sharks were spotted, the most important thing was that the crews on board were so professional and warmhearted. Our senior people, my parents and some of my aunts who aged about 70, were not able to swim very fast and for relatively long distance. However, most of them were able to snorkel with whale sharks and mantas thanks to the great help and encouragement from the crews. This is one of their lifetime best experiences and memories that wouldn’t be possibly happened if wasn’t the help from the crew who protected and supported them in the water. I think this tops all other very good things we experienced in Mirihi.
The second best impression was the amazing hotel team. They are very well trained and care the very detail of their service planning and implementation. For example, their management team and restaurant staff can memorize our kids’ name after first meet. One of my aunts who was on her birthday received some secret gifts and greeting performance during our dinner. They surprised us by arranging special bed setup (towel art) for our lunar new year eve. And guess what, the same night, our kids even got red-envelop (40 USD inside as a Chinese tradition to show good wishes to kids) from the hotel manager as well. We were just overwhelmed by the detailed cares and preparations from the great hotel team.
Some other aspects that people may want to know:
House reef – one of the best resources of Mirihi among all Maldives islands. Very close to the water-villa. If you stay at the north part, you need to know the tide forecast, since the reef is somewhat shallow at the north side. You need high tide period to swim out to the reef drop-off. If you are on the south side, it doesn’t matter. Many fishes, spotting reef sharks and sea turtles is easy.
Food – We were on half board (Breakfast and dinner both at the buffet restaurant). They change style every night. As I travelled a lot, based on my experiences, I would say their buffet dinner was very carefully prepared and the food quality is very good. Your stomach will be spoiled.
My mom said, OK, let’s go back next year.
Dear alstamania,
On behalf of the entire Mirihi team we would like to thank you so much for this glorying review and for your wonderful words.
It was such a please to have you and your family as guests in our little paradise. We are amazed to hear that with our concept of redefined luxury and our staff going the extra mile we could create some “lifetime best experiences and memories” for you and your family.
We are already looking forward to welcome all of you next year again. With our beautifully natural island, our diverse house reef, our carefully prepared food and our focus on detail we are aiming to provide you another wonderful holiday experience.
Warm regards from Maldives,
Antje
After our 1st visit in 2018 we spent another holiday this year at Mirihi. The standards are still very high and it feels good the see again the same people than last year. Fernando and Felix do still present you the exellent dinner buffet. The reef is full of fishes and I think that it is slowly recovering. We had a late flight on departure and we could keep our room which was higly appreciated so we could have a last snorkeling and a nice pizza for lunch. Also I would like to mention the friendly lady at the lounge at the Airport. We could stay at the lounge before our flight and she accompanied us to the departure hall.Was very nice to see her again as the first and the last person of the wonderful trip. See you again in 2020
Dear Namibia71,
It was so great welcoming you again to our island and thank you for awarding us with the highest rating and for recommending Mirihi Island Resort to other travelers.
Your observations and kind words about the staff and the service they deliver are greatly appreciated and keep us driven to provide remarkable service and a unique experience to all our guests. We are glad to read that you particularly enjoyed the food and our house reef which is indeed slowly recovering, we are happy to know you enjoyed your experience.
We can't wait to host you again in 2020 for another splendid experience.
Kind regards,
Madlen
This was our 2nd visit to the Maldives in less than one calendar year. We previously stayed at a water villa on Komandoo and booked here on another resort guest's advice that each atoll has a different vibe. On research, it seems Mirihi offers the best house reef and likely opportunity to swim with whale sharks. The whale shark being the primary reason I booked this resort.
Both resorts are small and exclusive. In fact, the house reef at Mirihi is better than Komandoo but not by much. At least not enough to make up for the huge (nearly double) price difference in their all inclusive package versus that of Komandoo. Komandoo's all-inclusive really is just that. House wine, beer and cocktails a part of the package also. Not the case at Mirihi, the drinks...even drinking water at dinner are added costs. Our water villa at Komandoo was decorated daily with towel art, or a creative arrangement of palm leaves and flowers. Their nightly turn down service always came with a small edible. The turn down service at Mirihi wasn't consistent. Nothing the first 2 nights, a forgotten cookie the 3rd night so the spouse and I split it. Minor but still...The finally got it right the last night of our stay.
In addition, there are no whale sharks at Mirihi. The resort actually promotes a half-day excursion to see the whale sharks and it is quite costly (since we were the only 2 participant-$710 US). No discount offered if there is no sighting either.
The food was comparable at both resorts although there seemed to be greater focus on meat items at Mirihi. I could see how some guests might feel the various imported meats make up for the expense of their stay.
Overall, the water villa and in-room facilities (television, hot tub, space) and the all-inclusive package which really is all-inclusive was better at Komandoo. I'd be willing to trade-off the slightly better house reef for those things because we'd have to leave the resort to see the whale sharks anyhow.
Both resorts had the bioluminescent dinoflagellates. I could see them in the water below and around our villa at night. Unfortunately, at Mirihi I only saw them the first couple of nights after which they had guests check into the adjoining villa. Even though the lights under the villa go off at 1am, our neighbors in the adjoining villa opted to keep their deck lights on all night long spoiling our view of the bioluminescence for the remainder of our stay. The water villas at Komandoo were all individual allowing for more space in the room itself and also remain unaffected by what our neighbors might choose.
Lastly, the hierarchy of the staff reveals overtones of white imperialism. We were the only non-white guests there. The staff is all dark-skinned except for a few appointed office/administrative personnel. They make their rounds at mealtime. I once asked one of them to please order on my behalf a drink after which he (in front of us) summoned over one of the dark skinned staff to make and serve by drink. Even if is the duty of the underling to prepare and serve my drink, the request should have been made away from our table or a the very least, out of our view.
Dear iAmTaj,
It is with regret to have learned of your experience here at the Island and it is disconcerting to us since we had the opportunity to personally meet with you several times during your short stay. Sadly, you have left the resort with the wrong impression of our product and the team’s heartfelt effort to ensure your holiday with us meets your expectations. We appreciate that every guest has a different expectation and it is disappointing that we were not able to meet yours on this occasion. We take our guests’ experience very seriously and can assure you that we would have looked into each of the mentioned points if one of us would have been notified of these issues prior to your departure.
Please note Mirihi does not offer all Inclusive packages and our villas come without TV's, hot tub or pools. The primary intention is to offer our valued guests exclusive services and facilities that will allow you to truly enjoy the natural beauty of the Maldives without any distractions. This fact is well known to our guests and to anyone interested.
While we are always happy to look at how we can improve our offering, we believe some of these comments are without any foundation, particularly the comment regarding "white imperialism". This cannot be further from the reality. We are a team of 157 members from 12 different nationalities lead by a Maldivian General Manager and Iranian/Dutch Resident Manager. Being a five star hotel that caters to an international clientele we seek expertise from all over the world, prioritizing their skill set rather than nationality.
In aspect of the price difference between the two resorts the comparison effects two different years on the one side and secondly please note January belongs to the high season while May is already lower season.
Mirihi Island Resort is an exclusive island hideaway and is an ideal getaway location for guests who wish a closer to the nature, rich, colorful tropical experience, blessed with white sandy beaches and turquoise blue water. Even though our concept is very much thought through and has proven to be appreciated by our guests over the last years we were saddened to read that it did not meet your expectations.
We would like to sincerely thank you for the time you have taken to share your feelings with us. It is always very valuable for us to read guests' feedback – positive or not - to help us work on our areas of improvement.
We all wish you always safe travels and wonderful experiences on your holidays.
Greetings,
Madlen
