If you’re looking for an active Maldivian adventure with all-inclusive benefits, then it’s hard to go past Club Med Kani.
I think I’ve fallen in love with Club Med. Only a year ago, I’d never been to one. Almost by chance my family and I stayed at Club Med Bintan Island and we had such a wondrous time we were clamouring for more. Now that I’ve stayed at Club Med Kani Maldives, I can see how the ethos and spirit of the brand transcends its locations, but also, how unique each experience can be.
Club Med is focused on family stays, perfect for my young family, with kids aged 13, 11 and 9. But it’s also a luxury stay in its own right and famously all-inclusive. In a destination like the Maldives, where food and booze are particularly expensive, the appeal of being “all-inclusive” is sure to lure all demographics, not just families.
Add in some killer activities like snorkelling and surfing, and a long, spread-out island ringed by palm-lined beaches and aqua waters, there’s a lot to love. Even if it’s not perfect.
The Kids Are Alright
You don’t have to be travelling with kids to enjoy Club Med Kani, but you sure have to be ok with them. It’s inaccurate to say families are the centrepiece of the Club Med experience, but it’s definitely all ages, from top to bottom. Whether you’re sipping cocktails by the pool, waiting your turn on the trapeze or settling in for one of the nightly shows, the sounds of happy, excited children will be with you.
But when kids are entertained and fed, they are happy. And they get plenty of both at Club Med, which is awesome for families and adult guests both. The endless itinerary of activities and sports are led by the brilliant staff, leaving adults to drink and chat and relax and swim without a care in the world.
Tennis, soccer, sailing, yoga, volleyball, water polo, table tennis, basketball and more join the aforementioned snorkelling, surfing – the house break is really fun – and trapeze in a long list of well-looked after facilities. There’s a spacious gym, too, and a spa. Even experiences that cost more – like motorised water sports – are cheaper here than elsewhere. As if Club Med is doing its best to “include” them, even when it can’t.
I’m quite fond of the nightly shows, too. They are wonderfully amateur, with the day-to-day staff transforming into actors, dancers, singers and acrobats. While not professionals, these multi-talented twenty-somethings give it their all. And the results are entertaining and endearing in ways you won’t predict.
The key here is that Club Med Kani is a resort of “doing” more so than “relaxing.” Although the latter is always on offer, too.
Club Med Kani Indulging
When Club Med says all-inclusive, it means it. While the three main meal times mark the passing of time, you can always find something to eat whenever the stomach grumbles. Most meals happen at the main buffet, but while that word suggests quantity over quality, the truth is quite different.
The variety on offer and the shuffle between stations laden with food may be reminiscent of a typical buffet experience, but in between you’ll find over half-a-dozen chef’s specials. These change each meal and offer gourmet delights from prawns and octopus, to wagyu beef, swordfish, curries and more, ensuring each sit-down is an adventure worth anticipating. Bookended by delicious desserts, fondue chocolate fountains and endless ice-creams.
You can match these with wines, of course, or choose from a wide selection of spirits, beers and cocktails at all times of the day. There’s even a publicly accessible beer tap in the restaurant you can hit at your pleasure – how good!
Rest assured you’ll eat, drink and be merry to your heart’s content at Club Med Kani and this freedom of consumption is absolutely a highlight of the experience.
One night, we even enjoyed a full beach dinner experience, with a live band, acrobatic show and great light setup to go with the starry backdrop. When we were all fed, guests joined a conga line, and were led away to a dance floor and a DJ set that went deep into the night.
This is the Club Med way.
Comfortable Villa Life
There’s a lot of villas at Club Med Kani, starting with hotel-like blocks that feature four rooms across two storeys in a square configuration. To superior and deluxe beachfront or garden villas, with a wall splitting each building into two rooms – the deluxe variant is where I stayed. And then the private overwater villa dwellings, which have direct entry to the ocean, but no pools.
My deluxe villa was large and well-appointed, with thick concrete walls and tiled floors doing their best to fight off the outside heat. Combined with the air-conditioning, it was always at a comfortable temperature.
A walk-through wardrobe offers storage and hanging space in the back half of the villa, opening into a spacious bathroom kitted out with the essentials, dual basins and a large shower (with average pressure). The deluxe rooms have a private outdoor shower area, too, with a waterfall-like head that I loved.
The front half of the villa offers a very comfortable King bed, a so-so TV with basic channels, fridge, desk and sunbed-like sofa that can become a third place to sleep. Indeed, in the kids room, the King was set up as two singles, with my third child taking the sunbed. It worked great.
The balcony offers two sun-lounges and a wet rack. We faced the sunrise and the way the hedging frames the sandy walk out to the beach and its sublime water provides a feeling of a private space, despite the proximity of neighbouring villas.
Fun in the Sun
The Club Med Kani rooms are definitely in need of some TLC. It’s perfectly clean and well-serviced, but there are broken bits and pieces to be found in most corners if you look closely. For example, our balcony door lock was busted. While important to note in this review, the need for a freshen-up didn’t distract from my experience.
To be honest, there is so much to do at Club Med Kani, I didn’t really spend enough time in the villa to care.
Which is where your head needs to be at with Club Med Kani. If you’re looking for pure luxury accommodation, isolation and quiet, relaxing in your room reading a book, then there are better options out there for you. Even just getting from A to B at Club Med Kani requires quite the hike.
However, if you want to be active and make the most of the location, it’s a different story. If you want to indulge in food and alcohol, between snorkelling and sports and dances and shows. Or sit by the pool with one eye on a cocktail and the other on your kids having the absolute time of their lives independent of your involvement. If this is you, then Club Med is a lay down misère.
Club Med is what you want.
FOUR AND HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Writer stayed for four nights as a guest of Club Med.
To find out more or to making a booking, visit the Club Med Kani -Maldives Resort website HERE.
