Wide-open business class Avios availability to the Maldives now bookable to February

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• patrick says:

  1 May1 May 05:56

  Buying HH points and staying at The Amingiri with a quick speedboat ride replacing the interminable seaplane is my favoured option here. The free breakfast is outstanding although the afternoon snack @ happy hour is negligible.

  • Tom says:

    1 May1 May 12:06

    How much does this work out a night, out of interest?

    • Kevin C says:

      1 May1 May 15:59

      It worked out about £400 per night buying points in a sale and using the 5 for 4 deal. That is bed and breakfast (providing you have status). We stayed for a week so five nights would be a little cheaper per night.

• Paul says:

  1 May1 May 07:05

  Nice though this is hotel rates are beyond exhorbitant. Much like BA’s fees!

  • JDB says:

    1 May1 May 07:17

    @Paul – how are you calculating this ‘beyond exorbitant’ in respect of BA fees? BA’s cash fee for Club return to the Maldives is £450.

    £194 is APD, £50 Heathrow PSC and Maldives airport charges are £95.60 so BA gets to keep around £110.

  • Gordon says:

    1 May1 May 09:12

    @Paul – The example from the OP was a pretty poor one, as the fees below for MLE were dramatically increased by the below amounts on 1st January 2021, also I guess your disapproval of the high taxes and fees were in general, and not just related to this article, there are plenty of readers of HFP that would agree with you including myself, that’s why if you have read HFP for some time, there is the emphasis on ex eu flights now!

    * $10 in economy class, representing a 20% increase
    * $70 in business class, representing a 140% increase
    * $130 in first class, representing a 260% increase

    There are many other Airports that are as equally lucrative to BA regarding taxes and fees, so I would not feel too sorry for them!

• Joan says:

  1 May1 May 07:12

  I booked business class flights last Friday with companion voucher after reading Rob’s article and have been searching for hotels for 10 nights in January ever since !
  I had no knowledge of the Maldives and didn’t realise how many hotels there were!
  I have seriously considered Rob’s suggestion of buying Hilton points . I have none and don’t have HH status but I am a member so could buy points at least and get my daughter to do same and transfer hers to me . My partner has only just joined so can’t buy points for 30 days … don’t want to risk buying all the points then there’s no availability at Hilton Maldives !
  Jenny I had pretty much decided last night on JA Manafaru all inclusive until I saw it seems to be the furthest away resort with a bit of a trek by sea plane – suggestion for best agent to get best price would be great! Or a nice hotel bit nearer . Looking at the Alili now – Travel Republic price is quite good .
  Our flight back to London is 11.45 am … would we make it back to Male in time ?
  Also the sea plane costs more then our £450 each BA redemption flights 😬
  And to book the good club seats on the BA flight is another £480 for us … as we only have BA bronze now . Think I’ll just leave that to chance and not pay for seats .

  • Tracey says:

    1 May1 May 08:14

    No worries on the timing of your return. The hotel will schedule the seaplane at the right time for you.
    Try and find a hotel that includes transfers.
    Check tripadvisor forum for help with choosing a hotel, we prefer local hotels rather than the big chains, they offer more value for money. Benchmark prices against simplymaldives and hotel.com

  • Jess says:

    1 May1 May 08:29

    We booked JA Manafaru AI including transfers through Luxury Escapes for November 2022 and booked with Luxury Holidays (online) for a return last November. This company went to and forth to the resort for a good price and we actually paid less than the first year.
    It is the most northerly resort so there are no aircraft flying over or passing boats. It is an idyllic place with fabulous staff and wonderful food. We usually wouldn’t return somewhere we have recently visited but we loved it so much.
    I would recommend the beach villa as you have a private plunge pool and back courtyard, and the beach in front of the villa remains pretty deserted. You also have loungers on the beach, as well as far more privacy and outside space than an overwater villa.

• patrick says:

  1 May1 May 09:13

  I agree that these trips are incredibly good value. Travelling on Avios and buying HH points is certainly one sweet spot and there is never any problem regarding redemption availability if booking this far in advance for Rangali and Amingiri.

• Joan says:

  1 May1 May 09:29

  Thanks so much Jess Tracey and Patrick 😊 ( and of course to Rob and team )

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