Soneva Jani

Excellent service and a wonderful environment.

Perfect for families with children. We stayed for 4 nights and it felt too short; next time we'll definitely book a longer stay.

Satisfied. Facilities: Complete Hygiene: Clean

The Soneva Jani hotel, which cost 24,000 baht a night, proved to be worth the price; most hotels wouldn't go to such lengths. The staff on the island are a bit hard of hearing. When the breakfast staff asked for our room number, I whispered "83," and he suddenly shouted back, "83?!" The whole restaurant turned around. Now everyone knows we're staying in room 83. That evening, we discovered the 24,000 baht also included a hidden feature: an Indian Ocean insect extravaganza. Hundreds of flying ants, mosquitoes, and all sorts of unidentifiable insects suddenly appeared in our room, crawling on the walls, flying over the lights, and dozens even falling on our faces. We contacted our private butler, but she didn't show up. Perhaps even private butlers need their own time. The hotel said they'd send someone, and after 20 minutes, we'd almost killed off all the hundreds of insects. Finally, the pest control manager made a grand entrance with a household electric mosquito swatter and a bottle of 20-yuan supermarket insecticide spray. Finally, it was time for our return seaplane flight. The captain told my wife and me to "sit tighter," which I thought was a special seaplane ceremony in the Maldives. Later I realized we really had to squeeze in – because we needed to find other people to share the ride to another island. The small plane was like a rural bus, packed with people and no air conditioning. My wife got airsick and threw up, drenched in sweat, while I was getting ready to share the ride. The island where we were sharing the ride cost only a quarter of what we paid here, and the sea was even clearer than ours. Meanwhile, our island, which cost 24,000 yuan a night, was full of seaweed and insects. After the stay, I finally understood: true luxury isn't about water villas, slides, and private butlers; it's about never knowing what's going to happen next.

The environment is indeed beautiful, with few people and great scenery, and the service is excellent, with a car and butler always available. However, the seaplane service was a rip-off. I initially thought it was the hotel's own plane, which explained the high price, but it turned out to be using a third-party operator. They didn't even provide earplugs for the flight from Malé. When I asked the hotel, they said they hadn't promised to use their own plane, which left a bad impression. I doubt they'll have any repeat customers.

The entire resort is exceptionally well-integrated with environmental protection; most of the vegetables come from their own organic farm, and the seawater is absolutely beautiful, rain or shine! The hotel staff were all wonderful—friendly and talkative. A special thank you to Valencia for their professional and enthusiastic service; their arrangements for everything from deep-sea fishing and dolphin watching to the various restaurants were impeccable, ensuring a wonderful vacation on the island. Sovena will definitely be my first choice again next time—highly recommended!

The hotel has a 24-hour all-you-can-eat ice cream bar, as well as a simple all-day salad bar. There's also a sunset cocktail hour every Monday, where guests can enjoy some barbecue snacks.

Pros: The rooms are nicer than other hotels; the island reception was good upon arrival. Cons: 1. The scenery is average compared to other Maldives hotels I've visited. 2. The food is terrible (this is something you'll have to experience for yourself). In particular, I ordered fruit, but it wasn't even chilled. Shockingly, in such a hot place, this lacks such a nice touch. 3. The reception was terrible, even after arriving at the airport. At least there's a place to sit down when you get off at the Four Seasons, but there wasn't even one here. When I was leaving, the airport told me it would take 45 minutes to check in, but the hotel sent me to the airport at 10:20. Does that mean I can't check in without a tip? 4. The water activities at this hotel are average, ending earlier than at other hotels, and there's no evening entertainment. Overall: With such a high reputation, it's a complete waste of time. I'd rather spend less and go to the new Marriott.