Angsana Velavaru

We had a fantastic stay at Angsana Velavaru. This was our first experience of the Maldives and it certainly didn't disappoint - the tone was set from the 40 minute seaplane transfer over turquoise ocean, followed with a warm welcome and seamless check in.

We stayed in a Deluxe Beachfront Villa with private pool and we were more than happy with the spacious villa, luxurious outdoor freestanding bathtub, generous private pool and path through to the idyllic white sand beach boasting our own personal sun loungers. Angsana has a real back to nature feel that made it really special for us. You can often see the Maldivian national bird (the white breasted water hen) pottering around your pool, hermit crabs making homes from every shell imaginable (so definitely don't take any with you!) and a real highlight was the resort's flock of love birds that have free roam of the island but come to eat sunflower seeds out of guests hands twice a day. The 10.30 feeding is particularly incredible, whereas the birds are a bit lazier and more reluctant to visit in the heat of the afternoon!

The hotel runs a complimentary snorkelling trip to the house reef once per day (at 11am, lasting about an hour and a half in total including approx 40 mins snorkelling). We saw turtles and the whole cast of Finding Nemo so this was well worth doing, although you have to complete a short snorkelling test to be able to join.

The food quality was decent with the buffet theme changing each day and a couple of live cooking stations, but options are a little limited for those with dietary requirements. I would highly recommend upgrading to premium all inclusive if you have any dietary requirements, so you can take advantage of Funa Restaurant (which has a vegetarian menu) and in-villa dining. The drinks selection on the standard all inclusive package was extensive - and the free-poured cocktails are dangerously good!

Top tip: After dinner, make sure you spend some time enjoying the night sky from your beach sun lounger. The stargazing was phenomenal, with many constellations and shooting stars visible on a clear night!