West Sands Ukulhas — Hotel in North Ari Atoll

A bit difficult to review, as there are likes and dislikes for West Sands specifically, and the same for Ukulhas as a whole.

West Sands Pros: -Extremely attentive owner, very prompt with communication and tending to issues or questions. -Buffet featuring Maldivian cuisine -Comfortable bed, strong A/C -Fair excursion prices

West Sands Cons: -Lackluster, overgrown beachfront property. Broken or uncomfortable chairs. Nicer chairs and ambiance at the bar next door, but you must purchase drinks to use. -Loud music from next door beachfront bar runs from 10am past 10pm. The bass is felt in the rooms. -Odd storage of spare mattresses etc outside of our room was not esthetically pleasing. -Strong sewer odor coming from drain adjacent to toilet.

Ukulhas Pros: -Majority of the island is public beach, which is incredibly beautiful. -Great snorkeling accessible from shore. -Ability to observe residential Maldivian life.

Ukulhas Cons: -Lots of glass and trash on the beach, especially at low tide. -Infrastructure is a constant work in progress as this is a locals island, not a resort. Expect to see lots of construction (though noise was not an issue), poorly drained dirt roads (have to walk through to get to hotels from speedboat). -Sewer smell around town

I think that West Sands can offer a great Maldives experience to those on a budget who wouldn’t mind a more rustic experience. We booked their nicest room (Jacuzzi Suite) and felt the the price didn’t reflect the value, especially as the jacuzzi wasn’t functioning properly. The owner apologized and acted immediately to remedy the solution. While the jacuzzi couldn’t be used the first day, the owner compensated us for the inconvenience by upgrading our meals to Half Board and let us join a 1 hour Manta Ray excursion the following day. In summary, if you are looking for a more luxurious experience (and have the funds to afford it), consider sticking to private resorts. If you want the Maldivian experience but can compromise a bit on esthetics and amenities, West Sands is a good...

We stayed at West Sands Ukulhas in early January this year and had an absolutely wonderful time. The atmosphere was warm and welcoming, the rooms were cozy, and the food was truly delicious. Our 5-year-old son felt completely at home, and we as a family were able to fully relax.||One of the highlights was definitely the excursions – we strongly recommend booking directly with the West Sands team. It’s cheaper, super easy, and they organize everything for you. We went swimming with nurse sharks several times and even snorkeled with manta rays – such amazing experiences we’ll never forget!||The beach in Ukulhas is stunning – powdery white sand as far as the eye can see and kept incredibly clean. On our very first day, we spotted a stingray. We also saw wild parrots and lots of bats flying around in the evening – we could even watch them from the staircase at the hotel, which was one of my personal highlights.||The island itself is charming and has several small local shops – we recommend supporting them! Every evening we picked up a refreshing iced tea from Uncle Bobo, which was delicious, and then went to the harbor to watch the reef sharks. For our little boy, that was the absolute best part – a magical experience for any child.||Unfortunately, we had to cut our trip short due to a medical emergency involving my husband. He was examined on the island, and the hotel team acted immediately, driving us to the local clinic without hesitation. The manager and staff truly went above and beyond, helping us with everything – we are incredibly grateful. Eventually, my husband had to undergo surgery in Malé, which also went smoothly.||Despite this unexpected situation, we are so thankful for the time we had at West Sands and the wonderful people who took such good care of us.|We hope to return one day and can wholeheartedly recommend this place to families, couples, and anyone looking for a peaceful island escape with genuine...

Out stay at West sand was amazing. We stayed for 3 nights here, and we did enjoy our stay much as we enjoyed the vacation. The room is super cool and gorgeous. i loved every bit of interior touch they have in the room. Interior mixed with traditional Maldivian style and modernized upgrades. We had ground 103, and the bed was in the middle of the room. The dressing table and wardrobe behind the bed was one of the attracted in the room. One more thing, the toilet door, which is used at the old days, old homes main house doors. Which are wooden heavy big doors with wooden big handles which slide aside without modern rollers. No lock, but who cares, i was with my wife. Spacious big, beautiful wooden themed toilet. Wooden old style wardrobe and fully wood stong bed with side table with the beds headboard. Equipped with 2 charging cockets on each side of the bed. Super comfy mattress. The room had a minibar, and water kettle, 2 cups for tea/coffee, two glasses for water. A reusable water bottle is served in a convenient way. We can take empty water bottles to the refilled wster bottle rack which is near reception and take a refilled bottle by leaving the empty one there. Therr are always refilledwater bottles there.No fan but air-conditioned. Hot and cold water for showers with soap and shampoo. A TV is installed too but no channel connections. They do have snorkeling gears for rent. Card tap locking doors. The hotel had board football and few more indoor games. They has a big restaurant, and had buffet all time of meals and damn loved the food. Adorable stay we loved it, surely coming back here. One thing i would ask is to replace the blanket sheet to a thicker blanket or a quilt as no fan but an air-condition is therr in the room. None other .super place highly recommend to stay here if...