Well, what can we say that hasn't been said. This place is heaven. So as not to waste any time, we have written a guide to what we think are the "need to knows". Hope this is of help to people!

Booking

Excellent. Booking done through Kuoni, no problems.

Travel

We flew BA from Gatwick, in economy. We travelled from Jersey, so all our bags went direct from Jersey to Male (brilliant). We checked the flight online and noted it wasn't full, so we didn't pay for an upgrade. The flight was empty and we had 3 seats each in Economy. That said, the 777s are pretty comfy so you'll live, its only 10 hours. Premium Economy was full on our flights (several of the premium economy passengers moved to economy!). Use SeatGuru to pick your seats for online check-in.

Transfers

We paid for the seaplane transfer. This is our number 2 tip (see below for number 1). The sea plane is about $50 each I think. On landing in Male, you are taken to a special Kuramathi seaplane lounge, where the luxury begins. Imagine a white heaven, with comfy chairs, chilled drinks, fresh cakes, a view over the seaplane area. A perfect place to wind down after the flight and wait the hour or so for your transfer. If you get the boat, we understand there is a lot more waiting around in public areas (which we can't comment on as didn't use).

Food / Drink

Number 1 tip - get the super all inclusive. Without this, the resort is expensive. With it, you get EVERYTHING for free except for lobster, cigarettes ($3 a pack), cigars, certain wines and certain other special foods ($80+ foods). You do get unlimited minibar (refilled every day), unlimited cocktails, beers (Tiger or Carlsberg I think, both draught, lovely), wine (house wine in the day, wine list in the evenings, all very good), food all day in any restaurant on the island, etc. Fillet steak? Included! Without it you are stuck in your one allocated buffet restaurant, which we ate it for one night but didn't love. The Island Coffee Shop does the best lunch on the island by a long way (the fish burger is to die for). Best steak was at the Island Barbecue (Australian Tenderloin aka Fillet Steak - heaven). The Indian and Thai places were both also excellent. We didn't rate the Italian, but the setting is fantastic.

Accommodation

We stayed in a beach villa and we loved it. We didn't like the look of the water villas when we were there, so we would recommend these. They are between 10 and 50 yards from the beach in beautiful jungle like manicured gardens. These were our favourite when walking around. If you are going to upgrade, then upgrade your food option BEFORE your room if you have to choose. The best beach is on this side of the island too.

Diving

We both dive. The dive school is excellent and guided dives are fairly priced (but don't do courses there, it is VERY expensive). We did 10 dives over our holiday and paid $450 each total (we have our own gear). This included my 15 litre tank fee (air hog). Nitrox 32 is free. Depth limit is 30 metres by law in the Maldives. All dives are limited to one hour (again, its the law) and the dives all lasted an hour which is good value. We didn't enjoy the hammerhead dive as we didn't see any so it was just floating in the blue for an hour. Stinging plankton are fine, the odd little itch but its really not bad. We'd recommend short wetsuits. Definitely do the one day dive safari - spectacular diving. All diving (except house reef) must be guided in the Maldives as well. We would recommend you get your advanced as otherwise dive options are limited.

Sailing

I did a little dinghy sailing on the last day. The sailing is quite safe and very well monitored. If you are rubbish, they will go and get you, so don't panic. Fleet is quite new but limited (I took out an RS Q'Ba which is similar to a Laser). If you're a keen sailor and this is your purpose for the holiday then this isn't the place for you. If you want to go out for an hour on the odd day, then its fine (useful for divers on the last day in your no dive time).

Getting round the island

The island is about a mile long, so quite big. We aren't disabled but would warn that most paths are sandy so for that reason we couldn't recommend wheelchair bound people to go here. DO NOT TAKE HIGH HEELS. The website even says this. You won't be able to walk, you will have to carry them, you will look ridiculous. Flip flops or barefoot and put your flip flops back on in bars, etc. There is a little bus which goes round the island and gives lifts, which is great.

Other things

- Men aren't allowed to sit topless in the bars
- Topless sunbathing is illegal in the Maldives (for women obviously)
- There is a local island nearby which you can visit. We didn't bother
- The sunset cruise is lovely, do it (its free)
- The mix of guests is about 45% English, 45% German, 5% Russian, 5% Other
- The resort was 100% full when we visited. It never felt cramped or full and we could walk round without really noticing people, but the bars in the evening had a good atmosphere. Just what we wanted

We had a very enjoyable holiday! There has been many reviews and lots said, however just a couple of tips to add.
Take an old t shirt to go snorkeling in as you will burn if you stay in as long as I did. I found the easiest place to go was off the jetty opposite the reception area as you can walk straight onto the reef from there. This got busy sometimes but we went early in the mornings and had the place to ourselves . I also noticed when you spot a small group of people together for a while it was worth a look as they probably were watching a turtle or something interesting. Buy a cheap disposable underwater camera to take with you as they are expensive on the island.
The sandbank was mostly empty early in the morning to take pictures too. Girls it's worth wearing a floaty dress or such with such a stunning backdrop for your pics!.
Happy holidays all!

We went to Kuramathi for our honeymoon and spent 10 nights in a Jacuzzi water villa.
We chose the speedboat transfer (I am not a great flyer) and whilst the journey is over an hour, it is much easier than the seaplane option in our eyes (bus to seaplane terminal, wait for plane, stop at 2 other islands, lands in sea and final stage by boat!). Staff on the boat gave us cold towels and bottles of water and spoke to us about the resort.
Our accommodation was fantastic – large space, very clean and views of the sea to die for. Steps down to the sea meant my husband could step off onto the hose reef to snorkel – perfect! The villas were very private and so well maintained.
We had the select all-inclusive package due as we upgraded our accommodation and are eternally grateful we did. A fabulous choice of restaurant and tried everyone. The Siam Garden (thai) and the Island BBQ were favourites, with the food and service both exceptional.
Considering it is one of the largest islands in the Maldives, it never feels like it. Yes, you see other people at meal times and wandering it around but it was never overcrowded, we never had to queue for anything and the staff did treat you like individuals.
The only small criticism we had (and it is barely worth mentioning) is there is no room service for that one night you would live to stay on your deck, watch the sunset and have a drink or a bite to eat. We understand the logistics of it would probably be a nightmare, but it would have been a great optional extra.
The Island is stunning and maintained by a fantastic ‘gardening’ team. All the staff are helpful and polite – the perfect resort! You will not be disappointed!