Calala Island

Truly special and unique. The friendly team of locals combined with Claudia & Leon’s (GMs) experience of Western expectations from a luxury private islands make Calala an incredible paradise. The island has many surprises including turtle nesting, sloths, a million beautiful crabs and birds, corals for snorkelling, clear skies for star gazing, fireflies in palm trees and much more. The team supplement this with high end dining, fun and diverse cocktails, different evening activities every night, kayaking, fishing, island hopping and just incredible service 24/7. We were very lucky to get engaged on the island with an incredible set up (which the team had to put up twice because the sunset on the first night had a cloud in the way!). Baby turtles hatched just before our special moment so we got to release tiny turtles into the ocean as part of the proposal - there are no words for how special this was. The Calala team went above and beyond for us with engagement presents and decorations at dinner congratulating us two nights in a row. The food is fantastic with local produce and there are different dinner themes every night including tasting menus, rum tasting, live music, a buffet of local delicacies with the team introducing themselves and telling us about their backgrounds, hermit crab racing etc. I am allergic to dairy and I was particularly grateful for just how well they catered for me - incredible that they went above and beyond to get several different types of dairy free cheeses and milks for me on such a tiny island. Every morning you wake up with delicious coffee (and we added 2 coconuts to our coffee order) with the most stunning view. The villas are only a few steps away from the ocean. We were worried about the boat ride and the bugs because of reading reviews but really enjoyed the travel to and from the island and the bugs are really no worse than Europe and certainly a lot less bad than our Asia travels, provided you put the bug spray on which the Calala team makes available to you everywhere you’ll be. The other guests are always warm and lovely people. We really expected to keep to ourselves and it surprised us to quickly feel part of a little community in paradise. We are so grateful to have been so lucky to have this unforgettable experience. Thank you Claudia, Leon and Calala team!

Dreaming of going back as soon as life returns to normal. A+++

A truly extraordinary place - a stunning island with beautiful accommodation, absolutely in keeping with the local environment. Maximum 10 guests on the island and 27 staff looking after your every need - even bringing cocktails to wherever you are on the island. The food is delicious and beautifully presented, and the spa is a welcome treat for aching joints after a day spent luxuriously relaxing by the pool. No wonder this place is ranked among the top 10 private islands in the world!

Came here for my honeymoon during covid. Claudia and Leon (the general managers) and their crew are nothing short of amazing! Claudia contacted us before our trip to give us a thorough run down of what to expect from getting to the island via boat ride , the island itself, activities to do, recent weather, what to wear, and just anything you can think of! The ride to the island can be pretty rough. I get motion sickness, so I recommend taking dramamine or some type of motion sickness pill 10 mins before getting on the boat. Get ready for a core work out! They also prepare raincoats in case of any rain. The island was an amazing beautiful little island. It’s a nice getaway from everyone and everything going on. There’s WiFi available, but you can’t help but get off your phone to enjoy the beautiful ambiance of the island breeze and sound of soothing waves. Not to mention, the crew is so great! You get a lot of privacy, but staff make sure you’re hydrated with drinks (both alcoholic and non-alcohol). The chef and kitchen crew will always prepare delicious meals, which have the quality of Michelin star restaurants. The chef has wide background of creating many dishes with a modern twist. I had too many favorites! The crew are locals that have experience on cruise ships or other services. They will generally speak a handful of languages and have many of fun stories to tell! I’d love to give everyone an individual shout out, but there were about 22 staff that assisted us. Kudos to Shervin, Mike, and Ruben who we spent most of our time with! Doris, the massage therapist, is very magical with her hands (highly recommend!) Things to keep in mind: - the bugs! Use plenty of bug repellent before sleeping and drown the bed in it. - wear sunscreen, it’s so easy to burn in the sun - stay hydrated - bring waterproof case for your phone to capture great pics (it also rains frequently) - bring motion sickness pills for the boat ride to and from the island - pack your luggage really well in preparation for the rough boat ride - download WhatsApp to communicate with the GMs and crew

Calala island was beyond any dream I could ever have imagined. I checked all the reviews before booking and none of them will ever be able to summarize how truly amazing this experience is. The staff, the atmosphere, the activities, the FOOD! Everything was undeniably perfect. The journey to Calala may not be easy, but oh is it worth it 10x over. We arrived and were greeted by everyone on the island with smiling faces. Those smiles never faded. The genuine appreciation and care that the staff expressed was shocking. I left Calala in tears, not because I was sad about leaving but because I was genuinely going to miss all the wonderful people I had met and made lasting connections with. Any desire on Calala is met – and then some. You wouldn’t even need to know you wanted something before they had it in your hand or at your door. You arrive and are taken care of! From the luxuries like sunset cocktails and specially modified meals, to the forgotten necessities like bug spray or allergy medicine – the Calala team is ready for you. The island itself is beyond beautiful and the moment you arrive you realize just how underpriced this experience is. Everything is so clean and brand new we’d forget that we were out on a island practically in the middle of no where. How they kept the island so well maintained and pristine is beyond me! It goes to show how hard they work, because at all times the entire island looked post-card worthy. The food! OH THE FOOD! Undeniably some of the best meals I have had in my life. Incredible diversity, beautiful plating, and extraordinarily flavorful dishes. I couldn’t compliment the chefs enough. My fiancé and I cleaned every plate and by the end of the trip probably didn’t fit into some of our bathing suits! Haha. Not a single meal was missed – and we have NO regrets about that! There is so much to say about this island I could write a book, but honestly you need to experience it yourself. I honestly believe Calala is underpriced after experiencing all they have to offer. There is a slim chance that I will ever be fortunate enough to experience something like this again. Thank you to everyone at Calala for this life changing experience. I wish I could better dictate just how much everything meant to me. These stories/memories will last my lifetime!

It’s a paradise ! I love it . I want to live there forever

Unique experience. Lucky enough to be going there again in 2021

Stevie T now lives here😂😂😂