Glenowal
Google
Having recently returned from Filitheyo I felt it time to write a review to hopefully help others considering here.||I stayed here for 17 nights in a superior villa on the all inclusive package. I had emailed prior to arriving to request a villa near to the sunset bar/pool area and was given room 48 which was perfectly located for this request. Unfortunately during my stay the beach had been washed away so from the sunset bar area all the way down to about room 62 had no beach, just the area in front of the villa in the trees, and if you wanted to lay out there you had people constantly walking past you in front of your villa, being close to the sunset bar/pool area though I would just go spend the day in that area instead. By the time I was leaving the island the beach had started to return but was still a long way off you being able to walk out to it due to the 3ft drop and branches/rocks. The area from room 62 up to the end of the island had a big beach but it had lots of broken coral laying around so it didn’t have the soft powdery sand I’ve had at other islands, and this also made getting in and out the sea quite hard at times as you try walking barefoot on lots of sharp and pointy rocks.||Once you get out in the sea though you realise it was worth the effort, I felt that this was the best island I have been to for snorkelling on the house reef, it has the most fish I’ve seen (having been to Reethi Beach many times I didn’t think that would be topped), and also the best coral I have seen. The coral is still bleached like everywhere in the Maldives, but there is so much different types to see here and in good condition, including lots of the soft anemone with all the clownfish in. I also managed to spot a few new things that I haven’t seen at other islands so that’s always good too.||The rooms are adequate, a little smaller than some I’ve stayed in but they are well kept with a nice outdoor bathroom. Having your wardrobe and fridge outside was a new one on me but it worked well, and other than the usual few ants there weren’t any bugs out there. You don’t seem to get the amount of toiletries than other islands offer, the jars looked like you’d struggle to get one shower out of it, but I had took my own so it wasn’t an issue. The room cleaner offered two cleans a day but I said I was happy with just the morning clean as that’s enough, plus makes it easier when getting ready for the evening as they usually come just when you want your shower.||The food quality was very good, but not as many options as other islands and most things had a bit of spice to them which whilst most will enjoy, as someone that has stomach issues and has to avoid spicy foods it can bring the choices down. Also, as someone that doesn’t drink hot drinks I will usually just have a fruit juice with my breakfast in the morning but the two choices of juices here I didn’t find very nice at all, so I had nothing. Every other island I have visited would always have orange juice and one other choice, but here they never have orange juice, just a mixed berry one, an apple one that was more like a syrup and another one that didn’t look appealing either.||The staff at all of the bars, restaurants, front desk and around the island were always happy and talkative so you soon feel very welcome, they are definitely a credit to the island, some have been working there for many years which is always a good sign as well.||This island also has cats, I counted at least 8, I knew this before going so took some bags of cat treats out with me, on the second day I had a cat come by the villa and gave it some, then as a result that was then my cat for the duration of the holiday, it would sleep on my chair on the decking during the night ready to greet me in the morning, or on my sun lounger, sometimes even joining me on the lounger and sleeping under my legs 😂 so I apologise to whoever got my room after me as you will of acquired your personal pet.||The pool area was very nice with a view of the sunset in the evening, the pool was easily accessible from two ends and it also has a swim up bar as well, the food from here was also very nice. The main bar was also a nice size with a lot of space to sit outside as well. There is no night time entertainment but that suited me as it made it a lot quieter.||One thing that was new to me was that there is no free WiFi, not even in the public areas like you seem to get at every other island I have been to, so you would have to buy one of there WiFi plans to access it, this didn’t affect me as I always buy a SIM card from the airport on the way to the island which gives me a stronger signal.
