Villa Park Sun Island Resort

Just leaving what has been an amazing holiday. The hotel is very nice with rooms spread out over vast grounds but with the option of buggy’s to take you everywhere. We originally booked a Sunset Beachfront Bungalow with Sea View and Terrace which was clean, tidy and spacious…no complaints at all but we were lucky enough to receive an upgrade to a Beachfront Bungalow with Sea View, Private Pool and Terrace which was amazing and the pool is a great option to jump in and cool down at any time! Both rooms were spacious and large with good AC! A special thanks to our host Nihad who facilitated the upgrade and kept us up to date with events and activities throughout our stay was also very quick in replying to any questions that we had. The food was fine with some lovely options and great choices of various international cuisines in the Maaniya (buffet restaurant). I would point out that if you’re expecting to see food such as pizzas, burgers and fries, you won’t but that didn’t make a difference to us personally. Breakfast was also good. We had great service across the whole of our stay in the restaurant but especially from Rokib who looked after us very well so a huge thank you to him! The other bars & restaurants were also good. The service in them all was great and the guys working during the day and night at the Mekunu bar never stop and work very hard. We only visited the Thai restaurant as part of our AI option and it was lovely. The food was very nice and such a lovely setting…sitting overlooking the sea with the fish and whale sharks swimming under you is a fab experience. Would definitely recommend! The pool area is clean and tidy and the guys looking after the beds always try and make sure to help you get what you want. Again a special mention to Satheesh who every single day made sure we had beds in an area we preferred so again, huge thanks to him! I do think that there should be more beds available around the pool/beach as it can be a little difficult to get one after 08:00. The pool itself could definitely do with a lick of paint in our opinion but having said that it is still clean and tidy and doesn’t affect anything apart from visually. The swim up bar is a great little option too. Unlike some swim up bars, there are no restrictions to taking drinks back into the pool so not being stuck at the bar if you don’t want to. The guys work tirelessly in there and another huge mention to Sandeep who always had a smile on his face and took the time to have a chat as well as giving a great service! The beaches..wow! Stunning colours and to be able to go as far out as you can and still not have the water level above your chest was fantastic! The fish are everywhere and simply swim around and don’t get bothered when people are in the water so some great photo opportunities. I would also highly recommend getting as part of the AI package (or taking your own) snorkelling equipment as there are plenty of great places to go around the island and again I’d recommend going into the sea off the deck at the Italian kitchen…a great experience! We also hired a jet ski as that was a great experience too as the water was beautiful to ride on. I would also recommend walking around the full island on the beaches. You get some great views and plenty of opportunities to jump in the sea at different points! The only slight negative for us was around check out. We had a early afternoon departure from the island but once you have checked out you can’t use the AI benefits so basically, we had two hours where we couldn’t eat or drink as part of the AI which we’ve never experienced before nowhere else and equally, not mentioned at all so a tip would be to make sure you have breakfast if you have a departure time like we did. Personally, not sure what issues there are letting people have a further two hours of their AI package to grab a bite to eat and a drink in the hot temperatures. Overall, a fantastic stay and would definitely recommend. Thanks to everyone at Villa park and especially those mentioned!