Sun Siyam Vilu Reef — Hotel in South Nilandhe Atoll

Our visit to the Maldives was fantastic.

We had to travel during the tense period of the Iran-Israel conflict, but despite global uncertainties, we headed to Bahrain Airport on June 24th, confident that our trip would go smoothly. Unfortunately, by the time we landed in Qatar, we were saddened to learn that our connecting flight to the Maldives had already departed. As a result, we had to wait until June 26th for the next available flight.

Fortunately, on June 26th, we finally arrived in the Maldives. The Vilu Reef staff provided meet-and-greet service at the Malé airport, and from that moment on, we felt completely at ease. Once you spot the Vilu Reef team, you can truly relax — they handled our luggage and all transfers smoothly, without giving us any hassle. We then enjoyed an unforgettable seaplane ride to the resort.

The moment we landed at Sun Siyam Vilu Reef Resort, all our frustration, tiredness, and stress melted away. The staff welcomed us warmly with fresh king coconut drinks and vibrant Bodu Beru music. What truly amazed us was that the heads of each department personally came to greet us — a gesture I’ve never experienced at any resort before.

Among the welcome team were Mr. Kitsiri (Head of Finance), Mr. Migara (Head of Housekeeping), and Simal from Guest Relations, who was assigned as our single point of contact throughout the stay. Simal was in touch with us 24/7 and took care of everything with just a WhatsApp message — an amazing guy, and also a great football player!

The resort itself is breathtaking, surrounded by a stunning turquoise ocean. Our room was spotlessly clean and located very close to the beach. Not a single speck of dust could be found. As soon as we entered the room, a chilled bottle of champagne was delivered, and our bed was beautifully decorated with a personalized message.

We spent most of our days at the beach, soaking in the natural beauty. But what truly stood out was the exceptional service. The staff were incredibly friendly, always smiling, and never hesitated to greet us. Their genuine hospitality created a warm, joyful atmosphere throughout the resort.

We were especially impressed by the buggy drivers at night, who would turn off the engine and headlights when they saw guests walking — a small but respectful gesture that shows how much they care. The food was another highlight. A talented Indonesian lady chef prepared a delicious rice dish for us, and Chef Chaminda along with service staff member Dilshan were especially outstanding.

On Friday night, the resort organized a traditional Bodu Beru performance, a video about Maldivian history, and a fun quiz. These events were creative, engaging, and full of energy. At the main restaurant, the staff made sure our glasses were never empty, and the DJ played excellent music, creating a great vibe. On Saturday night, we enjoyed a flavorful Indian dinner at The Spice restaurant. Special thanks to Mr. Nitin, who shared a healthy and delicious recipe with my wife.

We also took part in a friendly football match organized by the resort, which was a fun and memorable experience for the whole family.

Overall, our 3-day stay at Sun Siyam Vilu Reef was nothing short of amazing. I highly recommend this resort to anyone planning a trip to the Maldives. I’m confident future guests will have just as wonderful a time as we did.

Our entire family had a truly memorable experience. I believe the beauty of this resort is only matched by the quality of its service. It doesn’t feel like all the staff are formally trained — rather, it seems the supervisors guide them with genuine care and dedication, which is why everything is so clean and the staff so warm and attentive.

One suggestion: The resort currently doesn’t have a customer feedback or service survey system. I hope they consider implementing one soon to continue enhancing their already excellent service.

We would absolutely love to return to this beautiful resort again. Thank...

It was our first trip to Maldives, so we can’t compare it with any other local island – I assume they are rather similar. We certainly got all the remoteness, isolation and rich sea life that are usually associated with Maldives in Sun Siyam Vilu Reef. The island is very small (we walked the full perimeter in 24 minutes), and most of the time we felt almost like we were the only guests: none of the common spaces (restaurant, bar, beach) were ever crowded, and we were treated like royalty by the staff (see acknowledgements below). We went for 10 days in mid-June. It’s in the monsoon season, but we didn’t feel it at all – the weather was gorgeous throughout our stay. One day was a bit wet and windy, but it was very easy to avoid the rain.

If like ourselves, you are into snorkelling and sea life, this will be an absolute paradise. We bought a booklet guide to the local marine life, and we easily ticked off almost all of them by just snorkelling around the island, including the common octopus, spotted eagle ray, hawksbill turtle and dozens of fish species. We even saw dolphins in the strait between the hotel island and the local island. Stingrays and sharks are in abundance, as they get fed every evening off the main jetty.

The island has a diving school that offers various activities, you get excursions, and there is a possibility to rent snorkelling equipment and do water sports. The sunset cruise with the dolphins was amazing. There is some entertainment in the evenings, but we usually felt too tired to join. There is a small souvenir store where you can also buy sun block etc, swimsuits, snorkelling masks and the like. All prices are in USD, and credit cards are accepted. Many activities come with a price tag; that includes special menu dinners, destination dining, excursions, renting equipment.

Beware of the sun, which can burn starting from 8-9am; bring loads of sunblock (or surfer costumes). Sea shoes are advisable too. We went as a couple, but we saw many families with kids of various ages, from a few months to 10+, and they all seemed happy and sufficiently entertained. If you plan to go with kids, it’s a good idea to get them full-body swimsuits and caps to protect them from the sun, and sea shoes are a must unless you plan to stay in the swimming pool. The swimming pool is quite a decent length (I think over 20 metres) – we saw a few people doing laps.

We had an emerald ‘All Inclusive’ package, which provides a very enjoyable stay. You get a minibar and a Nespresso coffee maker in the room; drinks and coffee capsules are topped up when the room is cleaned (twice a day). All the staff is going above and beyond to make your stay comfortable, so if you need anything, all you have to do is ask. 😊

And here are the acknowledgements 😊 Dear Sun Siyam Vilu Reef management and staff, Thank you very much for having us, we had an amazing time and we will try to visit again when we can. Special thanks go to: • Ippu, our villa host, for being always available via WhatsApp and happy to help, and for organising surprises and small favours • Maitur for keeping the villa spotless, delivering sweet surprises, and always bringing extra drinking water • Gardener Noor for spending time to show us his team’s brilliant work and for helping us plant a coconut tree (and thanks to Ainth for helping with translation) • Waiters at the main buffet restaurant: Sudeera, Dilshad, Rita, Eem, Shayan, Bhuwan, Vijay and Maihaan • Aami at Well Done – for serving us dinners and lunches and for dancing the local dance during the Boduberu entertainment • Cooks Chaminda, Sanjeewa, Nitin and Younus for taking excellent care of our appetites! I hope you took it as a compliment that we were often the first when the buffet opened • Thanks to Rathna and Ainth for checking on us – your teams are doing...

We have spent marvellous time in Sun Siyam Villu Reef Hotel from the 27th of June to the 8th of July (11 nights).

We travel as a family of four with two kids aged 6 and 9 which vastly affects both our viewpoint and activities in which we were involved. If you are after e.g. beach parties and related stuff our review may not be that valuable;)

We had some concerns regarding the fact it is a rainy season. Nevertheless the weather was great with only 3 episodes of rain (albeit heavy) lasting for 2-3 hours in the afternoon. For the rest of the time it was sunny with only few clouds and we definitely saw beautiful Maldives colors. Perhaps we were lucky, perhaps the rainy season is not that rainy here.

The biggest draw of the hotel for us was the presence of a coral reef right off the hotel shores. And it did not disappoint - we were snorkelling every day and saw the countless sea creatures. Apart from the 'usual suspects' we even spotted some sharks, dolphins and sea turtles. We snorkelled with our kids who felt very safe while doing it as you enter the reef from the beach, water is very warm and you don't have to go to the deeper spots to get great views. And the current is usually helping you by gently pushing you across the reef and to the beach. Overall a great experience! We recommend snorkelling on the side of the island that is facing the Meadhoo island. On the other side there is a nice shallow lagoon which is better suited for watersports with underwater views obscured by sand. Oh and if you want to book a villa you get best views on the western ('watersport') side of the island. We had a beach villa with a private pool and this option was great for us and definitely can recommend it.

Another great advantage of the hotel is the staff which can only be described as most friendly and helpful. Our conscierge Shazu was constantly in touch with us via Whatsapp and did her best to make our stay perfect. Should any problem arise she was there for us and we are most grateful. Other members of staff were also incredibly nice engaging in friendly conversations with us and our kids. We really apreciate the fantastic job of the whole Team, and give our special thanks to always smiling Poonam who recommended us best sweets, and Sudeera from Aqua Restaurant. What's more, thank you for preparing a beatiful table decoration for us as we were leaving! Such small yet memorable things made us feeling welcome.

The food - overall quality was very good with dishes varying on a daily basis. If you are into regional/indian cuisine you should very be happy. There were some themes during dinner every day (e.g. italian cuisine, tex/mex, streetfood) but those indian/maldivian specialties were a mainstay. There is also a vegan corner, live cooking stations (wok/pasta) and you can also get a freshly fried reef fish and tuna steak. Cooks and chefs are all very friendly and it appears that they are truly dedicated to their craft.

We took two excursions - dolphin sunset excursion and sort of snorkelling safari to swim with nurse sharks and a shipwreck lying on some shallow.

Both of them are very nice. The first one, if you are lucky, offers you o view of many dolphins swimming along the boat and jumping at the beautiful part of the day. The second was very exciting as you could snorkel with gentle yet large nurse sharks, then you are resting on a secluded beach bank and in the end you snorkell nearby a sunken ship (Vaavu shipwreck). It looks incredible and our kids were very moved as it resembled a little sunken pirate ship;)

Other activities - we can definitely recommend daily stingray feeding. We have also booked 'a cinema under stars' and watched our favourite movie at night on the beach while eating popcorn and having drinks. Definitely a...