Family Friendly Constance Haleveli in the Maldives

The Maldives are often thought of as a honeymoon destination (indeed we spent part of our honeymoon here) but they are increasingly becoming a family destination. This summer we spent two glorious weeks at the family friendly Constance Haleveli in the Maldives.

CONSTANCE HALEVELI

There are a huge number of different accommodation choices in the Maldives. We opted for Constance Haleveli and were extraordinarily happy with the choice. It’s now our favourite beach destination in the world and the best resort we’ve ever stayed in..!

ARRIVING

Getting to the Maldives is very much part of the adventure. We flew Emirates via Dubai from the UK. We arrived into the capital of Malé and were met by a Constance Hotels rep. He walked us over to the seaplane check-in, got us boarding passes for our flight to Haleveli, and then took us to the sea plane terminal, a five minute mini-van transfer away. We were taken to the Constance lounge where snacks and drinks are available. A little while later we boarded our seaplane for the twenty five minute flight to Constance Haleveli. We were all excited to be in a sea plane again and the views of the islands and reefs were spectacular.

Arriving at Constance Haleveli our seaplane was met by many of the resort staff. As we walked along the seaplane jetty the crystal blue sea and the white sandy beaches caught our attention. As did some baby reef sharks playing in the shallows!

At Constance Haleveli you’re assigned a Villa Host. Our host, gave us a quick tour and then drove us to our beach villa (number 1). Waiting in our villa were some welcome delights. After a long flight through Dubai they were quickly devoured!

THE VILLA

We had opted for a beach villa. These are two storey and easily able to accommodate a family of five. In fact they are huge. These are very well-designed villas. Downstairs there’s a central bed area with glass doors opening onto a patio area. Then there’s an open-air bathroom, complete with huge bath and shower. Upstairs there’s a second bedroom with plenty of space for three beds and another bathroom. Outside is a patio area with table and chairs, and sun loungers, as well as a plunge pool and garden area. Our villa fronted directly onto the beach, with our very own section of sand complete with sun longers.

To us our villa felt very luxurious, perfect for our family in every way.

THE BEACH

Our very own section of beach was immediately in front of our villa. We certainly made the most of it! The white sandy beaches of the Maldives are beautiful, just like talcum powder. The reason they are white is that they are made up of calcium carbonate, which comes from the shells and skeletons of reef-living marine organisms, including corals, molluscs and micro organisms. And, the sand never gets hot! Unlike ordinary quartz based sand, sand formed from coral does not heat up and therefore is comfortable to walk on even on the hottest day. The beach at Constance Haleveli is perfect in every way.

THE FOOD

There are three restaurants at Constance Haleveli: Meeru, a la carte on the beach; Jing, the resort’s signature restaurant located on the jetty; and Jahaz, the main resort restaurant where breakfast is served every morning. We ate many dinners at Jahaz, the main restaurant, as it was buffet style with a different nightly theme. Our favourites were the Seafood, Indian and Japanese buffets. We opted for a half-board meal plan with breakfast and dinner included. There’s also the Jahaz Bar where we had ice cream most days and frequently watched the sunset with a cocktail or two!

THE POOL

Even with unlimited swimming in the crystal blue sea, we enjoyed spending time at the pool. Whilst we were at Constance Haleveli there were some water polo goals in the pool. The boys spent hours playing water polo with friends. There are also games on the beach next to the pool, including pétanque, giant chess and football.

FITNESS

If you’re a fitness fanatic there’s plenty to keep you occupied at Constance Haleveli. There is a tennis court with a tennis coach providing coaching and a gym with all manor of equipment. There is also the island to run around, about a kilometre in circumference.

THE ACTIVITIES

Constance Haleveli offers many different activities from watersports, including diving and snorkelling, plus all sorts of excursions. We didn’t sign up for any of the excursions but we did try snorkelling around the island on a number of occasions. The snorkelling is off the beach and jetties and easily accessible as long as your children are good swimmers. There is a huge variety of reef fish as well as black tip reef sharks and the odd turtle (which we were lucky enough to see). We also enjoyed the free pedalo’s and kayaks which the boys really enjoyed splashing about on. A twice weekly event is the  shark feeding from the jetty at the dive centre. This is a sight worth seeing as the black tip reef sharks and enormous jack fish all feed off fish thrown into the sea. You wouldn’t want to fall in at the wrong moment!

KIDS ACTIVITIES

Constance Haleveli has a kids club with a full programme of activities for children and teens. Our boys are getting a bit old for kids clubs preferring to entertain themselves. However, there was something each day that the boys engaged in, sometimes with a specific activity being organised just for them. They did tennis lessons, water polo, pizza making, sushi making, pool games and cocktail making. The staff at the kids club, indeed all the staff at the resort, went out of the way to make sure the boys had fun at all times. Don’t hesitate to stay at Constance Haleveli with kids! Your kids will love it.

THINGS WE LOVED

• Games on the beach – rugby, football, pétanque
• Splashing about in the crystal blue warm sea
• Water polo in the pool
• The spectacular sunsets
• The fun activities provided for the boys – cocktail, sushi and pizza making
• Seeing a turtle on the house reef
• Shark feeding
• The treats in our room
• The wifi was excellent – far faster than we had expected.
• The friendly staff – everyone knew your name after the first day and was always ready with a smile or chat. Nothing was ever too much trouble.

We were very sad to leave the super family friendly Constance Haleveli in the Maldives.

FOR MORE FAMILY FRIENDLY RESORTS IN THE MALDIVES…

Wandermust Family – Bandos Resort Maldives -A Perfect Maldives Experience for Families

Mumpack Travel – Fabulous Family Maldives: Sun Siyam Iru Fushi