Have you ever wondered what Heaven feels like? Don’t look any further – just book a room at the Adaaran Prestige Vadoo resort ;)
My mom’s birthday was quickly coming up and I had the basic details: she would be surprised with a ticket to the Maldives on a mother-daughter getaway, with a nice mix of local islands and one luxurious resort with an overwater bungalow … But where would I find that bungalow?!
After hours of combing through hotel websites, I finally found the Adaaran Prestige Vadoo – and now I’m here to tell you all about it!
We visited the Adaaran Prestige Vadoo resort for two nights, between September 17 to 19, 2018. Everything that I wrote is 100% my personal opinion, as I booked the hotel with my own money and was not sponsored in any way.
Ready to see what I thought? Let’s check it out!
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LOCATION
I would argue that the Adaaran Prestige Vadoo has one of the best locations in the world — because it has its own private island! Although there are over a thousand islands in the Maldives, only 200 are actually inhabited… and out of those, a majority of all-inclusive resorts in the Maldives have their own private island.
Logistics aside, I felt that the resort had a great location. Since it’s only a few miles away from Male City, we didn’t need to take an overpriced seaplane (those can run over $500 per person!), and instead, took a comfortable 15-minute speedboat ride.
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CHECK-IN
We checked into the Adaaran Prestige resort before we got to the actual hotel. If this sounds weird, don’t worry — there’s a reason! ;)
I mentioned before that we had to take a speedboat transfer in order to reach the resort’s private island, so technically, we had to do a “pre-check in” at the airport counter to reserve our spot on the boat, and to get the staff ready for our arrival. In Male Airport (MLE) there are about 30 or so desks near the arrivals gate. Guests who stay at resorts go here to arrange transportation or get in touch with the resort staff if they have a question.
When we arrived at the Adaaran airport kiosk there was no representative, so we nicely asked the workers at the nearby desks if they could help us. After a few minutes, a lady from the hotel showed up, took our info, and told us to sit down and wait for a bit. Since the speedboat transfer isn’t private, you’ll have to wait until the other guests show up so you can all go to the resort together.
The speedboat transfer was a short ride away, and when we got to the pier, there was such a lovely welcome from the staff. There were about 10 or so employees on each side that helped us with our luggage, put on handmade “leis” from palm leaves, and escorted us through the check-in process.
Although it sounds time-consuming, the check-in process was very simple. An employee escorted us to the indoor bar/cafe area and got us a welcome drink while we waited for our turn. Within about 10 minutes, he came and showed us to the main check-in area (the lobby). The resort manager gave us some paperwork to check (to make sure that it was the room that we ordered, the price, and so on), had us sign the paper, and that was it!
After our check-in, we were introduced to our personal butler. If you fell out of your chair reading that, come back, sit down, and keep reading :)
I had read about some resorts in the Maldives that assigned you personal butlers, but when we actually got to this point, it was such a weird feeling. I had never stayed at an ultra-luxurious hotel or resort before and never got to have my own butler — until now! I have a whole section about our butler a few paragraphs below, so keep reading if you’re interested in learning more.
Our butler was super friendly, organized, and personable when he gave us a complete tour of the resort. We walked to the different cafes and restaurants; went upstairs to the spa; to the different pools, lounge areas, and beach; and finally ended the tour at our overwater bungalow. He was kind enough to write down all of the details (such as the times for breakfast, lunch, and dinner) and his extension in case we needed to contact him.
With that, our check-in was complete! Let’s talk a little more about the types of rooms and options before jumping to our bungalow.
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ATMOSPHERE
The atmosphere of Adaaran Prestige Vadoo hotel felt like my home away from home — that is, if I owned an overwater bungalow in the Maldives ;)
The vibe of the resort didn’t feel stuffy and overly-luxurious that you might feel at an expensive hotel. Instead, it felt warm, pleasant, and like a tropical paradise. It might sound cliche and too good to be true, but I felt comfortable walking around, talking to other guests and employees, and chilling out at the beach and pool. There was no “I’m better than you” attitude that I expected before traveling to the Maldives – in fact, it was quite the opposite! Everyone was so lovely and looked happy, which only contributed to the positive vibe.
If I had to sum up the atmosphere in two words, I would say it felt like friendly luxury.
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CHOOSING A ROOM
When booking a room at the Adaaran Prestige Vadoo, you need to make two important choices: the type of room that you want and the type of board (breakfast only, half-board, or all-inclusive). I’ll outline each of these below to make it easier for you. :)
THE VILLAS
There are three types of villas offered at the Adaaran Prestige resort: Each one comes with a room (more on that later), private plunge pool (infinity pool?), and a deck with a sunbed and table.
I was a little confused about the differences between the rooms, so I broke it down below:
Sunrise Water Villa with Private Pool – Rooms facing the east with a view of the sunrise; this villa has a little less privacy because it’s facing the beach
Sunset Water Villa with Private Pool – Rooms facing the west (towards the ocean) with a view of the sunset
Honeymoon Villa with Private Pool – Separate from the Sunrise and Sunset villas and can face either east or west
If you’re undecided, I highly recommend upgrading to the Sunset Water Villa, which is what I ended up reserving. It costs a little extra, but you’ll have an unobstructed view of the ocean (instead of the island) and see the sunset. The gorgeous pinkish-purple sunset was one of the highlights of our trip because we’ve never seen the sky in so many beautiful colors!
THE BOARDING OPTIONS
Now that we have a room picked out, it’s time to eat! The Adaaran Prestige Vadhoo resort offers three dining options:
Breakfast Only: Only breakfast is included in the price
Breakfast & Dinner: Only breakfast and dinner; lunch not included
All-Inclusive: Breakfast, lunch, high tea, dinner, and alcohol included, along with a few bonuses…
-Free snorkeling equipment rental
-1x Marine life excursion
-25% discount on one spa treatment and 20% discount on one dive package
-Champagne or non-alcoholic drink in your room
-Fresh fruit platter in your room
-Canape snacks delivered every evening by your butler
-Daily fresh fruit
-1x Beach dining experience (romantic dinner) if you stay a minimum of 5 nights
Originally I wanted to do the Breakfast & Dinner option, but after taking a look at the fine print and seeing how many cool things were included, I ended up with the all-inclusive package — and it was less than $100 to upgrade! I highly recommend the All-Inclusive option because there are no other cafes or restaurants – you can’t waltz into a 7-11 and buy a few bananas and bottles of water because there are no convenience stores on the island (Unfortunately!)
This means you’ll have to end up paying for each dish separately, which can cost way more than just starting off with an all-inclusive package in the first place. Besides the unlimited food, we also loved the free snorkeling equipment and delicious goodies (champagne, fresh fruit, and little snacks in the evening *drool*).
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THE ROOM
The moment we’ve all been waiting for: a tour of our overwater bungalow!
I booked the Sunset Water Villa with Private Pool and stayed in room 826, which is towards the end of the pier. The entire resort is peaceful, but if you’re looking for complete quietness, I recommend requesting a room towards the end since there are fewer golf carts driving by.
We had a private pier that led up to the entrance of our bungalow and our neighbors to the left. There’s a huge thatched fence for privacy and a wooden door, complete with a “do not disturb” sign and a doorbell.
Our deck was very spacious and included a huge square-shaped chaise lounger, a table and some chairs, and a private plunge pool built into the deck. There were also some stairs that lead directly into the ocean, which we jokingly called our “ocean backyard.” :)
The entrance to our bungalow were these giant folding glass doors (with a lock!), which you could easily open to enjoy the view of the ocean (or to drag your inflatable unicorn floaty *cough*).
The room decor was very polished and minimalistic with hints of Japanese decor. Inside there were two couches on each side of the room; a bed; a desk; and two tables with chairs.
The bed was extremely soft and comfortable with plenty of pillows and blankets. In fact, there was even a pillow closet where you could choose a pillow based on your preferences (there was even an allergy-free pillow!). On each side of the bed was a control for the air conditioner and a few universal sockets for your electrical devices. I really loved the fact that we didn’t need an adaptor to use our phone chargers – it was such a nice touch. :)
The second half of the room was the bathroom, which was behind the wall and closed off by two doors. This was the fanciest bathroom I’ve ever seen – there was even a glass floor where you could sit on the couch and see the fish swimming below!
The bathroom had two huge sinks, a rainfall shower, a toilet, an outdoor jacuzzi… and a TV 
The one thing that I loved about the bathroom were all of the complimentary toiletries, which smelled so good! They also came packaged in these fancy stone containers.
Between the two rooms were a closet on the left side and a minibar on the right side. Most of the non-alcoholic drinks were free, while the whiskey, beer, spirits, and so on were paid (there’s a price list inside).
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Find out this and 16 other useful tips for your trip to the Maldives in this post :) |
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SERVICE
Overall, the service was fantastic and one of the highlights of our trip. Everyone was so friendly and on top of their customer service game — even when we walked by an employee, they would greet us by name (how did they know our name? When we checked in, everyone who worked there got our information!)
My mom and I usually talk in Russian to each other because it’s easier, and when we went to the restaurant, the waitress asked us where we’re from. We answered that we’re from Ukraine, she told us to hold on for a second, and came back with a waiter who spoke Russian (
) – how amazing is that? After our first visit to the restaurant, we asked if our new friend Ismael could be our waiter every time, and we had a wonderful time chatting with him and learning more about the Maldives and his home island.
Likewise, the housekeeping is also on point! When we left our room to get snorkeling equipment and came back 20 minutes later, our room was tidied up. The next day we were gone for about an hour and came back to a sparkling clean room (even though it looked like a tornado was there before) – they even organized my swimsuits in a neat line!
Finally, we left our unicorn floaty on the beach and had to get it in the evening to take back to the room. We were lucky enough to run into Mandara, the buggy driver, who didn’t bat an eye when we asked him if we could transport this huge unicorn float on his cart. In fact, he even helped us put the floaty on top of the roof of the cart! Top service right there :)
And speaking of service, there’s someone we want to give a special shout out to…
OUR BUTLER
As I mentioned in the beginning, when you check into a resort in the Maldives, you’ll usually be assigned a personal butler that will show you around, answer all of your requests, and take care of any problems.
Our butler was the wonderful Mr. Vijendra, who was there to help with everything. When I reserved a room through Booking.com, I asked if it was possible to come up with a surprise for my mother’s birthday. Nothing too crazy, maybe a few flower petals scattered around or a little fruit platter. When we met in person, Vijendra pulled me aside and said that he would take care of planning the entire surprise, which included a reservation to the resort’s best restaurant and a few smaller surprises along the way. Being a self-described micromanager, I had no problem giving him control over the situation – and I was pretty excited to see what he could come up with!
Aside from that, Vijendra checked in with us every few hours to make sure we were settling in and if we needed anything. It wasn’t invasive at all, and in fact, it felt like talking to an old friend! On the first night when we were relaxing in our room and getting ready for dinner, he knocked on the door and left us a small plate of gourmet snacks (how did he know we love food?)
The next day, I had the sudden idea of doing a mini-photoshoot for my mom’s birthday. We had two people, four hands, but no tripod – who would be taking our photos?
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THE SURPRISE
The main surprise for my mom’s birthday was staying at the Adaaran Prestige Vadoo, but I also wanted to surprise her with a low-key dinner at the resort’s Japanese restaurant. Our butler, Vijendra, mentioned that the restaurant was hard to get a reservation (it only has 6 seats per night!) but he would do his best. On the night before my mom’s birthday, he gave me a call through our room phone and said that everything was good to go – all we had to do was show up at the specified time and check in with the staff.
If there was ever such an epic birthday surprise, this would be it. The staff were so careful with planning and executing the whole thing that I wish I could thank them each individually. My mom still raves about her surprise even though it’s been four months after we came back!
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FOOD
Don’t you hate it when you book an all-inclusive and there’s a huge gap between breakfast and lunch? Not at the Adaaran Prestige Vadoo! There were four — yes, four — meal times every day with plenty of food. If you count the mini snacks delivered to our bungalow, you could even say that there are five meal times. :)
Here’s a quick overview:
Breakfast: 6:30am to 10am
Lunch: 12:30 pm to 2pm
High Tea: 4:30pm to 5:30pm
Dinner: 7:30pm to 10pm
As I mentioned before, there are a few different boarding options (breakfast, half board, and all inclusive). We reserved the all-inclusive option, which meant that we would have unlimited food during our stay.
There is one main restaurant where everybody eats, along with a smaller indoor lounge area, a bar and disco floor, and a reservation-only Japanese restaurant.
High tea was also a fun experience because the hotel serves traditional Maldivian snacks called Hedhika alongside tea and coffee.
One thing that I loved was the live music that was played every evening. There was an extremely talented duo singing classical and contemporary songs, and you could even make a request! Hopefully all of the restaurant guests enjoyed listening to Perfect by Ed Sheeran. ;)
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PRICE
The price of an overwater bungalow at the Adaaran Prestige Vadoo resort starts around $500 USD per night for the basic package (Sunrise Villa) and goes up from there. I paid around $2,000 USD total for two nights and two guests for our Sunset Water Villa with the All-Inclusive option.
One thing to note is the extra fees that are added when you book a room. The Maldives has a 23% “tourist tax” (more info on that here); a $6 environmental fee per person per night; and a shuttle fee. We had to pay $130 per person for our round-trip speedboat transfer to and from Male City, which was a little steep but very cheap compared to other resort’s transfer fees (some charge anywhere from $400 to $600/person!)
Even though the price might seem steep, it’s all worth it – even if you’re there for one night. Staying in an overwater bungalow in the Maldives was a bucket list dream for me, and the happiness that I saw in my mom made it all worth it in the end. :)
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PROS & CONS
If you prefer the TLDR version, here are the pros and cons of booking a room at the Adaaran Prestige Vadoo.
PROS
+ Close to Male City, which means convenient and budget-friendly transportation
+ Bungalow rooms are very nicely kept
+ Housekeeping is excellent and cleans the room multiple times a day
+ Quiet and secluded – there are only 50 bungalows
+ I loved the extra amenities, like a pool, water sports shop, disco floor and bar, etc.
+ Delicious food with a ton of choices
+ Live music for dinner every evening!
+ I loved the little surprises that were sprinkled throughout the day
+ Excellent all-inclusive package with plenty of complimentary add-ons
+ Well-priced and competitive with similar resorts
+ Our fantastic butler! 
CONS
– No nightlife (although that could be considered a plus)
– The lady who was in charge of transfers at Male Airport could have been a little more organized
– Communication could have gone better – I accidentally booked a room for only one person, and, quickly realizing my error, emailed their office staff and asked if I could change it. I received a quick reply saying that they would look into it, but there was no follow-up for almost two weeks. On the day before we were supposed to go to the resort, I had to ask our hotel manager in Male City to give the resort a call so that they would make sure everything was set. In the end, everything was alright, but my blood pressure went up a few times when I didn’t get a reply from the office.
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OVERALL
Despite the few cons, I would give this hotel a 9.5 out of 10. The Adaaran Prestige Vadoo was one of my favorite hotels that I’ve ever stayed at, and I definitely recommend it to anyone who is looking to book a resort or overwater bungalow in the Maldives. My mom is extremely picky (in her own words) and was absolutely blown away by her stay as well.
This is going to sound cheesy but when we were leaving, both my mom and I teared up a little because we were going to miss the resort and the employees so much. A good reason to come again next year! ;)
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BOOK A ROOM AT THE ADAARAN PRESTIGE VADOO
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