This place really is the mut's nut! Went there with another couple and my lovely wifey for her fortieth birthday .
Room on stilts was lovely , really clean and spotless and the room boy was really attentive .
Food was fantastic , plenty of variety and choice , excellent ! On my wife's birthday the staff made a real effort decorating our table , presenting her with a cake and singing to her.
Bars were great and the staff very attentive and courteous at all times as well as being friendly .
Pool was spotlessly clean and the water sparkled. The two pool attendants were really friendly , funny and courteous at all times . They made a real effort on my wife's birthday with flowers and decorations.
All the hotel staff were great , very helpful and friendly , nothing was too much trouble for them.
No point talking about the actual location, you've all seen the pictures its like heaven on earth !
The Chinese guests seem rude and brash with some bizarre habits , but I guess that's just a culture thing, hey we are all different !
Fxxk the caribbean from now on , I want to go back here !

me and my partner travelled here for i week on 6th dec 2011, the flight was long but well worth what was coming. the holiday starts as soon as you land and you wait for your boat to take you to your island, the sea is amazing, bright clear blue with amazing bright coloured fish. the boat trip itself was very bouncy, you bounce up in the air from the waves but we found this very funny! it took about 20 mins to get to chayaa island and after the long flight you will be wide awake. the island is absolutely stunning, we were greeted with juice and a cold wet towel to freshen up. we got our keys to our beach hut ( £10 per night upgrade) and we had the most beautiful bungalow, room 502. it had 2 floors, the pool was directly outside the front door and we had the most beautiful walkway to the beach ( about 15 paces) out the back patio doors, there was only 4 of these bungalows on the island and i think these bungalows are definatly the best place to stay. we spent one night in a water suite and compared to the bungalow this was no where near as good or nice, we will be returning but will not stay in a water bungalow ( we were lucky enough to try both). the view from the water suite was great if you wanted to see the sharks etc but you cant really go in the water as its too rocky. you can still see the sharks etc from other parts of the island. the pool is fab, ther pool boys are brilliant, funny and very friendly, they covered my partner in petals and leaves all over his face and body (very very funny, brill sense of humour) sattay is lovely. the food is gorgeous, you get your own table for the entire holiday and your own waiter, there is plenty of delicious food to choose from, usualy on holiday i dont eat much after a couple of days as the food becomes repetitive but there is no chance of that here. we snorkelled everyday, it was the first time i had ever done this as i was scared of breathing underwater but once i got the hang of it you couldnt get me out!!! the fish are amazing, just a few steps into the sea and its amazing. there is a shop that sells hats, gifts, chocolate ( which is cheaper than the mini fridge) but we did forget to take aftersun cream and it cost us 25 dollars for a bottle so DONT forget your aftersun. we went on the pedal boats and had a good look around the island and around the water suites and water bungalows, well worth the money. there is not much in the way of entertainment but this holiday is designed for relaxation, we still had a few drinks, a dance and a laugh. the holiday rep was fantastic (zita) always on hand for any questions, she gave us a tour around the island and went out her way for us, she made us feel very secure, lovely girl. there wasnt many children here it was more of a couples holiday, and i dont think there is a more beautiful, romantic place on this planet. me and my partner will be returning this year. to sum up in one word PARADISE.

My Fiancee and I stayed here for 2 weeks in January 2012 and had a great time.
The speedboat ride from Male was quick and comfortable, so quick in fact that we never quite got that feeling of being on a remote island in the middle of nowhere. On arrival at the resort we were warmly welcomed with cold towels and drinks, however we then had a plastic wristband put on us which we discovered had to remain there for the duration of our stay. Very annoying. There must be an alternative way of determining who is all inclusive and who is not.
We were told that our room was not ready and wouldn't be for another couple of hours so we were allocated an interim room to shower and rest. This was not ideal as we had been travelling for a long time and had to wait another few hours before we could relax properly.
When our room was ready we were shown to our Beach Bungalow, room 402, wonderfully located facing the lagoon. We initially had the intention of upgrading to an over water suite but our room was so nice we decided not to. Our room was very spacious with a huge bed and large bathroom with the bonus of an outside shower and bath. It was cleaned twice a day but unfortunately our bed linen was only changed twice during our stay despite gecko droppings falling on the sheets. There are not many creepy crawlies here but you may find the odd cockroach and gecko wandering around inside and out but we were both surprised at the absence of mosquitoes.
At the welcome meeting we were well informed of what was going on by or First Choice rep, Zita.
The all inclusive aspect really was all inclusive (excluding branded spirits) and there was never any problem getting food or drink at any time of day or night. The only other extras on the island were the excursions and spa treatments. The food was plentiful, fresh, very varied and well prepared. We were allocated a table in the restaurant which is where you stay for the 2 weeks. Ours was not in a great position and we asked to be moved to a better one with a sea view. This was done with no fuss at all and our new table was in a fantastic location right next to the lagoon.
We took our own snorkelling gear which we highly recommend as there is plenty of snorkelling to be had here. If you don't have your own stuff you can hire it from the dive centre but that isn't cheap and with the water being as warm and clear as it is you will want to be in looking at the vast variety of fish every day. The lagoon on one side of the island offers shallow calm waters and this is ideal for the novice. There was a small black tipped reef shark that swam along the shore on almost a daily basis. On the other side of the island, on the seaward side of the harbour is the house reef. This is much better for keener snorkellers as there is deeper water and a bigger variety of the larger fish, moray eels, sting rays, eagle rays and in the very late afternoon a few white tipped reef sharks appeared. There is also an elusive turtle to be found near the harbour wall! Flippers are recommended here as there can be currents, albeit not very strong ones. We had no problems.
The shore of the lagoon is suffering from erosion and there are sandbags dotted along a fair stretch of it and a dredger permanently lodged in the middle. It is not intrusive and it is still a nice beach to be sat on. There is a permanent easterly breeze which blows in on the lagoon and varies in strength from day to day. If you head over to the other side of the island next to the harbour you will find a much nicer, more secluded beach which is completely sheltered from the breeze. There were no more than a dozen people on this beach every day and it was great.
Having read many reviews on this resort prior to travelling, a recurring theme is the behaviour of the Chinese guests. We initially thought that this may be a little xenophobic but to our dismay the comments are all pretty accurate. They were very loud and several times during our visits to the restaurant we had to get quite forceful with the Chinese who thought it acceptable to push in front in any form of queue. There were never more than 3 or 4 people waiting for any of the freshly cooked dishes but that didn't stop the Chinese contingent waltzing straight up to the counter and trying to grab whatever they fancied. Also, as previously mentioned, our room had an outside shower. This backed onto a neighbouring room and one late afternoon we were both stark naked in the bathroom when a Chinese head appeared over the wall!
The entertainment in the evenings was certainly entertaining! Crab racing, a band, bingo, acrobats, and a singing duo. We loved them! They also had a pool party/cocktail party once a week which we made the most of and it was good for getting to know other guests.
On our second day we had a 'travellers' massage in the spa which was $48 each for 40 mins. In the treatment room there were 2 beds beside each other so that we could have our massages simultaneously. Unfortunately the masseuses were whispering to each other and giggling during our massage. We brought this up with the manager who gave us a voucher for complimentary massages which were very good and redeemed the situation.
There were only a few minor problems during our stay which included a locked safe, a flickering light and a blocked toilet. On each occasion we phoned reception and had barely put the phone down when somebody would turn up and fix our issue immediately.
This kind of service was typical of our stay. It was not without its minor hiccups but every time, without fail, it was rectified. The staff were incredibly welcoming, friendly, and chatty yet unintrusive. The customer service was faultless.
Of the trips and excursions we took, we would recommend the dolphin safari, the trip to Kuda Bandos and we would highly recommend the Manta Snorkelling. We may have just got lucky but it was a beautiful day, swam with 5 or 6 huge manta rays and then went to a picture postcard sand bar in the middle of nowhere.

Other tips for your stay:
You really only need to take a few dollars for tips. Everything else is charged to your room and can be settled on a weekly basis by card. The going rate for tips is $15 - $20 per week for both your waiter and your room boy.
Sounds obvious but take plenty of suncream. If you don't have enough it is very expensive to buy in the resort.
You do not need to take beach towels as they are provided in addition to your bath towels and are changed daily.
Take plenty of medication including imodium!
You will only need a pair of flip flops. It is a very informal and relaxed resort and you will not feel awkward if you don't dress up for dinner. Heels are not needed!!
Take books or do what I did and download some audio books on your ipod. You will have plenty of time on your hands. There are a couple of bookshelves there where you can borrow or donate books during your stay.

We had a great time and hope you do too!!

Myself and my partner Andy visited this beautiful Island over the Christmas and new year period......we got back home on the 4th January and 3 weeks later i'm still pining for the place. I must add i'm a 37 year old woman not a teenager lol. Not only were we impressed with the beauty of the island we were also taken aback to how warm and friendly all of the staff were. Nothing was too much trouble for any of them...... we fell in love big time. Azzam our waiter greeted us morning , noon and night with a smile. Shaffaz and amma made us laugh hard on nights out, the pool boys , who i must add are crazy made our days sunbathing a pleasure. We have made life long friends with these people.... We stayed in a water bungalow for the whole duration which we were pleased with, it was cleaned twice daily which we were impressed with. Also we did'nt see much insect life apart from 1 cockroach, which compared to other people we spoke to was pretty good ha ha. The christmas eve and new years eve gala dinner dance was free and it was one of the most enjoyable evenings we have ever spent. The buffet diner and disco was very impressive. ...... Lets move on to the FOOD!!! honestly the food we ate was so tasty. we were very impressed. There were different curry dishes on offer every night along with a wide range of other nationality foods. we never got bored. Also ladies i did'nt put any weight on as the food was all fresh and healthy !! cheeky bonus.
I am so glad we booked to go here and we are saving like mad now to go back. chaaya island dhonveli you are in my heart and that is where you will stay. Do not over look this island. it's amazing and your memories will stay with you forever