This resort island in the Ari Atoll boasts one of the most beautiful house reefs in the Maldives. Whale sharks and manta rays can be seen all year round within a 45-minute boat ride. When you get out of the water, pampering and relaxation await you
Centara Grand Island Maldives – finally here! Time to ditch the suitcase, slip into my trunks and head for the pool deck. I put on my diving goggles and from the pool deck of my “Club Sunset Overwater Pool Villa” I descend a few steps into the enticing blue.
Am I swimming in an aquarium? After a few kicks of my fins, my eyes are overwhelmed: beautiful soft corals, sea anemones, brain corals and large table corals, with nurse sharks and black tip sharks of all sizes in between.
After just 10 or 15 metres I am overwhelmed by the onslaught of colours and shapes. Fish and colourful coral everywhere I look and swim. Despite long snorkelling trips, I have never seen as much as I did in a quarter of an hour on the house reef at Centara Grand Island Maldives during my last three visits to the Maldives.
„Centara Grand Island Maldives“: Dazzling House Reef
Trumpet fish, surgeon fish in all colours and shapes. Colourful white-throated surgeon fish en masse, yellow mask angelfish, large schools of rhinoceros fish and sweetlips, hundreds of cute anemone fish, large yellowtail pearlscale wrasses and yellow-breasted pearl-eye wrasses.
In between, parrotfish loudly rasp on corals, and massive titan triggerfish with their eerie white pop-eyes, throw chunks of coral around grumpily. Angelfish, graceful butterfly fish and the eccentrically colourful Picasso triggerfish provide cheerful splashes of colour.
And that’s just the sighting list of the first 20-minute snorkelling tour at the house reef, which starts just a few metres from our overwater villa and almost continuously extends in a wide arc around the small island.
On our other snorkelling trips, we saw stingrays, white tip sharks and black tip sharks, hawksbill turtles and triggerfish between the dive centre and the overwater villas numbered 9 to 18 in the south of the island.
On booking.com, an experienced diver writes about the resort’s house reef: “The coral reef on the island is sensational. I have been a diver for more than 20 years, but this is the first time I have been completely satisfied just snorkeling.” There is nothing more to say.
Location of „Centara Grand Island Maldives“
The resort „Centara Grand Island Maldives“ is located about 30 minutes by seaplane from Male in the South Ari Atoll. The small island, which measures around 250 by 300 metres, is known as Machchafushi among locals.
The journey from Male to the resort is spectacular: after taking off from the new seaplane terminal, the ‘fried eggs’ of small and large lagoons and islands quickly line up under the roaring Twin Otter. The sea shimmers in every imaginable shade of blue, from bright turquoise to the abysmal darkness of the open sea. All the guests silently gaze out of the windows.
The atoll is made up of 105 islands, 18 of which are inhabited ‚local‘ islands and almost a third of which are resort islands. The larger local islands in the 267 square kilometre atoll include Maamigili and Dhigurah, which is about four kilometres long. The latter is known for its long, narrow, south-facing sandbank, but more importantly for its diverse outer reef, where whale sharks can be seen all year round.
Guests of the „Centara Grand Island Maldives“ which is located about ten kilometres northwest of Dhigurah, can reach the whale shark area in just over 40 minutes by dhoni. According to the dive centre’s guides, they have a ’50-50 chance of seeing whale sharks‘.
And those who instead book a boat tour to Turtle Point, which is just under 30 minutes away by boat, have, we are promised at the Watersports Centre, ‘an 80 percent chance of seeing hawksbill and green sea turtles’.
The current around such so-called thilas, which are underwater coral mountains in tidal channels (kandu), is always very strong, so we have to secure ourselves with a rope and life jacket when snorkelling.
The plankton-rich waters of these tidal channels around the thilas, which drop to 30 metres at the edges, attract manta rays and whale sharks – and thus many snorkelers and divers.
During our snorkelling visit we see schools of blue-striped snappers and large groupers, as well as three small hawksbill turtles. After 45 minutes in the current, we are both satisfied and exhausted. On the way back, the dhoni rolls and stomps merrily over the sea in five Beaufort winds and waves up to four metres high.
„Centara Grand Island Maldives“: Accommodation options
The small island, which can be circumnavigated in 15 minutes, has room for 112 beachfront and overwater villas: Duplex Beach Villas, Club Two-Bedroom Beach Pool Villas, Overwater Villas with sun deck and access to the house reef, Family Overwater Villa with children’s room, Playstation and specially secured sun deck. The Club Sunset Overwater Pool Villas, with a large sundeck, pool and access to the house reef, are located in the front row and are ideal for sun worshippers and stargazers.
The Club Lounge at „Centara Grand Island Maldives“ offers an exclusive beach and pool area to all guests with a Club category villa, as well as à la carte breakfast in peace and quiet without the hustle and bustle of the buffet. In the afternoon, high tea, drinks and canapés await you as the sun sets. Excellent espresso, tea, wine, beer and expertly mixed cocktails are available throughout the day.
Culinary Delights at „Centara Grand Island Maldives“
A few steps from the water sports centre, and the „Aqua Bar“, you will find the „Suan Bua“ restaurant, which serves traditional Thai cuisine and comes highly recommended. Authentic, unadulterated and sometimes very spicy dishes are served at the Lotus Garden restaurant, which is named after its garden. The dishes are based on recipes from all regions of Thailand.
Our second favourite is „Azzuri Mare“, not so much for the pasta and pizza menu, which is of limited interest to Europeans who are mostly familiar with Italian cuisine, but for the famously prepared ‚fish of the day‘. Over the waters of the lagoon, you can watch sharks, rays, trumpetfish, boxfish and surgeonfish at lunch or dinner.
„Centara Grand Island Maldives“: Service and Vibes
Resident Manager Nalin Dissanayake’s team is extremely attentive and always courteous and forward thinking. This applies to the people who work in the restaurants and bars of Centara Grand Maldives, as well as the housekeeping staff, the dive centre staff and the therapists at Cenvaree Spa.
Without being obsequious, they are friendly, attentive to detail and highly reliable, which we appreciated when planning and organising our return trip when the never-ending storm presented us with major challenges. Communication with the front office via the hotel’s app went like clockwork, and requests and questions were answered in no time.
Who is „Centara Grand Island Maldives“ best for?
We recommend „Centara Grand Island Maldives“ for couples with a passion for the underwater world, as well as families with children, thanks to the specially secured Family Villas. Older children and teenagers can get close to the coral reef in just a few strokes and are sure to take home unforgettable memories.
Those who value peace and privacy should book a Club Sunset Overwater Pool Villa, with uninterrupted sea views, pamper themselves at the spa and enjoy good cocktails or mocktails and the calm atmosphere with a good book from the library.
If you prefer a lively atmosphere, head to the main restaurant Reef for lunch or dinner and to the large pool for a swim. Just steps from the pool, stingrays and reef sharks are fed every evening.
Infos Centara Grand Island Maldives
Examples of room rates and prices for „Centara Grand Island Maldives“
Club Sunset Overwater Pool Villa
Half-board+ from 650 euros, full-board from 1,160 euros per night*
Doublex Beach Villa
With almost 90 square metres. B&B from 255 euros, full-board from 425 euros*
Taxes and Services Charges to be added
Around 29 per cent for service charge, green tax and VAT
Seaplane Transfer
Mandatory, from/to Malé (439 euros per person, 220 euros per child) *
More Infos
centarahotelsresorts.com/centaragrand
Read our review of the multiple award-winning Cora Cora Maldives, which has a small but equally beautiful house reef.
