Maldives: What is a Full Board Meal Plan ?

Food is an essential part of a vacation. It is important that you take into consideration the type and amount of food that is available in a specific destination. It might be rice and curry or just bread with some meat. There are no bad or good food choices, there are only wants and expectations. If you ask me, I am not much of a bread and butter person. I cannot eat that twice a day for four or five days, however, someone else might be in love with the idea of getting such food and dishes. What is all the more important is that you have the full knowledge about what is available and what is not. Planning beforehand for food alternatives is much better right ? Let us understand the Full board meal plan and the other kinds of meal plans in Maldives.

What are meal plans ?

The phrase “Bed and breakfast” is popular throughout the world because that is the default basic offer for hotel bookings in major cities. But since Maldives is an archipelagic state, the private resorts offer more meals along with room bookings. Depending on how many meals you select, the cost changes accordingly. Meal plans are hence the names given to the number of meals a person opts for; for example – one/two/three meals a day.

Types of meal plans:

Before diving into the Full Board meal plan, let us have a look at all the options available in private resorts

Bed and breakfast
Half Board meal plan
Full Board meal plan
All-inclusive meal plan

Bed & breakfast

Most of us will be used to hearing “Bed and breakfast” in almost every hotel we stay in. It is pretty much the same thing in Maldives as well – book the accommodation along with breakfast alone.

Half board meal plan

Here is where the technical terms start…. The next type of meal plan is called “Half-Board”. This is a type of meal plan wherein customers will be offered breakfast and dinner as part of the room booking. In Maldives, half board is preferred mostly by Europeans who have a good breakfast and a heavy dinner. This is a smart way to save up on costs and many solo travelers make use of this plan.

Full board meal plan

The star of the show is here and it is the Full Board meal plan, which is pretty easy to understand. As the name already suggests, this is where resorts offer all three meals to guests. People can derive the highest amount of value from full board meal plans as they are not as pricey as the all-inclusive plans nor do they have less inclusions as the half board plans.

All inclusive meal plan

All-inclusive meal plans cover everything that can be consumed – breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and beverages (alcoholic and non-alcoholic). Often, this plan is 400 USD to 550 USD costlier than the full board meal plan mainly because of the liquor. Basic economics taught us the when demand is higher than supply, prices skyrocket. That is one of the reasons behind the All-inclusive plan being much costlier. Another reason is that some resorts add on some more things to this list. Activities like sunset cruises, romantic dinner by the beach, group fishing activities, free non motorised watersports equipment,etc. would be extra. More the actvities, higher the price.

Also read: Full Board vs All-inclusive – Maldives

The Full Board meal plan in detail

We have already discussed about how a full board plan maximises the value you get for the money you pay. Now let us discuss a few things to look for before you finalize on booking a resort stay in Maldives.

The Dark side

First thing is to check the number of restaurants the resort has. It is a repeated occurence where a resort will be hosting multiple restaurants. One would be the buffet restaurant and others being specialty restaurants to facilitate Thai, Indian, Italian and Chinese cuisines. Next, always check what you are paying for. Since you will be paying a huge sum upfront, it is only wise to go through what type of dishes would be available in the resort.

One common mistake travel agencies commit is not mentioning the restaurant in which the guests will be allowed to eat. More often than not, as part of the full board package, people will be allowed to eat ONLY in the buffet restaurant. If your agent does not mention this to you in the beginning, you will be deeply disappointed once you arrive at the resort. In order to avoid any such confusion and disappointments, please be careful and ensure you know what you are paying for and ensure that there are absolutely no hidden costs.

The Light side

Once you check all of these things scrupulously and finalise, you will have peace of mind. Peace of mind comes when everything is taken care of. If you are traveling with a family, full board makes a lot of sense as it includes all meals. Kids are unpredictable and can get hungry at the oddest of times. Taking care of this uncertainty is an added benefit. You can start planning for other activities as the food and stay has already been taken care of. This gives you the head-space to think clearly.

Even if it is a long vacation, this meal plan is beneficial. The A-la-carte restaurants will surely shoot up your expenses. The reason for the high cost of food and liquor in such resorts is the difficulty in the logistics part. However, if you do feel the need to take a break from the buffet menu, you can always head up to the other restaurants, if any.

One way to easily decide which meal plan you want to go with is to speak with your partner or family. Then you guys can come to a consensus as to what you NEED. Maldives is literally heaven on Earth. Are you uncertain about visiting the island nation again ? Go all-in if that is the case and take the all-inclusive meal plan at a premium 4 star or 5 star resorts in Maldives. Trust me, you will not regret it ! We at Pickyoutrail can lend you a hand at moulding your travel ideas into wonderful vacations. You can “Do-it-yourself” or you can check out our Maldives packages for your maldives honeymoon. Whatever the case may be, we are hyped for your next vacation!