We left Gatwick on time at 16:55 via Turkish Airlines en route for Istanbul, and a change of planes for the 8 hour flight across the Indian Ocean to Male, capital of the Maldives. We arrived in Amle at 11:45 and transferred to a seaplane for the final leg of our journey a 45 minute flight to the island of Innahura.
On arrival we were met by traditional drummers to offer us a welcome, and a very welcome cocktail.
Following check in we were led to our beachside cottage, there are two options, the sunrise side of the island and the sunset side, we chose the sunrise side. Our cottage was 20 metres from the beach and the azur blue waters of the lagoon. Innahura is the most peaceful, and tranquil haven you could possibly imagine.
Innahura is very remote, one of the northern inhabited islands, and one of the newer resorts. There are many activities, all water based, but there are none of the flashier “holiday” activities that you would expect of a holiday resort, something that really appealed to Susan and myself.
The day is punctuated by the regular meal times, breakfast, lunch, and then dinner, and you soon adapt to the rhythm of island life. The restaurant is superb, with a soft sandy floor, and open to the gentle breeze as it overlooks the sunset side of the island. There is absolutely no point in going on about the weather, we visited in March and the days and nights were a steady 29 degrees, given that all of the interior areas and cottages are air conditioned, this was not at uncomfortable.
Everything is designed to be sustainable, from the buildings to the decorations. Water is purified on site and twice a day the is and is sprayed with an organic pesticide to remove the mosquitos.
Food is served buffet style and is plentiful, with cuisines from around the world represented. You can elect to have food cooked if you prefer, and nothing is too much trouble for the extremely friendly staff, who all live on the island in staff accommodation.
Everything is included in th price, including the island activities, scuba, canoeing, wind surfing, if you want to take an excursion to a neighbouring island, that is extra, we decided to go to Kuredo, a half hour boat ride away, the island is small, and very “local” with no tourist industry. We wandered through the streets, and met local people, who were all really friendly.
Another trip we took was a sunset cruise to watch dolphins, which was absolutely magical, around 40 dolphins played and frolicked around the boat as we watched the sun set over the ocean.
Swimming is a big part of the day, and we snorkelled in the lagoon seeing a huge variety of fish on the coral reefs, we even saw baby sharks, happily their larger relatives are out beyond the coral barrier as they are too big to get in.
Innahura was perhaps the most relaxing holiday I have ever had, you soon adapt to island life, and the staff could not be more attentive and welcoming. Marc is an ideal time to go, we had no rain or bad weather at all. If you do decide to travel, you could do worse than choose Turkish Airlines, they looked after us really well, and the flights were superb. The whole trip, including flights for six nights was around £3500 for the two of us, and as it was a special occasion, well worth it.
