Nika Island Resort & Spa

The island and resort was beautiful, we have 3 young children and the family beach Villa was the perfect set up. It's often difficult to travel with children, but we couldn't have asked for a better place. We could be swimming at our private beach while the baby napped right inside as the baby monitor reached. The food was delicious and the staff very friendly and accommodating. Also, there was great snorkeling along the house reef. The meals are scheduled as follows: 9am breakfast, 2pm lunch, 9pm dinner. I wish I had known ahead of time as our kids are usually going to bed about 730, so we had some schedule adjusting to do. Also, the island time is 2 hours ahead of the official Maldivian time as an FYI. there are general bugs and ants around, which is to be expected on a tropical island, so don't be surprised when you see them, and they will come inside if you leave food out!

My family stayed at Nika for three nights. The island is small, easily a five-minute-walk around the inner island. Beach villas have private beaches. These are very clean (~30 meters in width); sand is mostly soft. Each villa will get its collection of tropical trees, in which exotic creatures find their home. Ocean is great. A variety of triggerfishes and surgeonfishes keep snorkeling colorful. A shy baby reef shark calls the public beach its residence. Food-wise, Nika provides an A La Carte meal everyday (at lunch or at dinner), and features Italian dishes especially. Pineapples, melons, and papayas are fresh local products. Coconut is not on the list. One thing to note is that all drinks served during lunch and dinner are NOT included in the full board package. A lovely sight is the pet parrot named Ruby, who shows up occasionally at meals. Nika has a diving center which arranges open water dives and gives PADI courses. Special thanks to Fabio. The Italian Divemaster is friendly and helpful with guests, and is a reliable guide for diving in the area. Excursions, sadly, are mostly disappointments for my family. We went fishing but got none; manta seeking and no rays; yet when we hopped on for the sunset aperitif cruise, we saw flying fishes and dolphins. In general, Nika was a good choice for us, who are first time visitors to the Maldives. Maybe we would give other islands their shots before deciding whether Nika is the one we would like to frequent.

Wanted to book for 2 water villas but only 1 available. Turned out a nice experience having 1 water villa and 1 beach villa for a group of friends so that we can try the different locations. Water villa is good for checking the house reef around. Lots of fishes but beware of the current. Always swim with friends and with a floating tool if you are not a good swimmer. The water villa is very nice and spacious with 2 satellites linked to the sun deck. The only thing I don't prefer is the sand area outside the sun deck as you would get some sand into the room. As for the beach villa, it's good for friends gathering in your own private beach. The baby sharks are regular visitors throughout the day, but no harm at all. The only problem is that we had encountered some small bites by some flea in the couch of the beach bar and restaurant. Gotta prepare some ointment for yourself. Other than that, Nika is a nice place to check out. All the staff are very friendly and helpful.