Maldives holiday alternatives?

[Letitbe24]

I hope this post isn’t tone deaf but I’m hitting a bit of a dead end. I’m pregnant with our first and we’re looking to book a holiday for when they’re approx 7 months old (October time). A bit early I know but I love holidays and I need something to look forward too as we’re not doing long haul whilst pregnant.

We’ve been looking at the Maldives as I don’t know how high maintenance baby is going to be and Maldives looks like it could be very chilled, just spending time playing with the baby and then taking it in turns to go diving whilst the other watches baby. We want somewhere with a private pool in case baby is fussy so it’s less hassle to have to get ready to go out.

However the costs are getting ridiculous - We’re looking at £8k AI without flights/activities and then at least another £1.5k on top of that for diving costs, this is for a week which seems crazy!!! Is there anywhere else anyone can recommend that would be similarly suitable?

Some key points:

• want to go in October/November time so would prefer long haul, we can afford business class on points so flight time not much of an issue, but direct from Heathrow a big plus
• preferably all inclusive but absolutely no to self catering!
• must have a private pool as I think this will be much easier with a baby
• good food is a must, absolutely don’t want to be buffet focused so needs to have at least 4 a la carte restaurants
• Maldives is looking at about £9.5k AI so would prefer something more around the £7k mark or cheaper if possible! Note this is not including flights which we’ll buy separately

Thanks for your help kind mumsnetters :)

Sorry that’s not true, our budget is £9.5k WITHOUT flights which we’ll purchase separately, I’ve already found places?

Er, I’m asking for potential alternatives and if there’s anywhere else we can consider. It’s not hard to comprehend 😂

My 12 month old has hated naps since she was around 3 months old. Doesn't nap in her car seat or pram (only her cot) so I don't think I'll be able to take her on holiday until she's at least a year or two older. If you want to go when she's 7 months old, then she'll probably be a wriggly baby and rolling over.

Because as I’ve said in my post, £9.5k seems a lot to spend so I was wondering if there’s anywhere a bit cheaper that would be suitable!

This is my fear, so thank you that’s helpful. This is sort of why the Maldives appeals as there’s not much to “do” so could just spend pool time with baby and admire the views.

Thanks, if there isn’t anywhere fair enough, I’ve done a lot of research and I couldn’t find anywhere but wondered if anyone had any hidden gems!

Would you say it’s worth it for the money?

We’re looking at Lux south ari atoll or heritance aarah, which seem to be on the cheaper side of 5*, are there any others worth looking at?

Medium importance, we usually go to places in shoulder season to get good deals and don’t mind some rain. Don’t want it to piss it down constantly but not set on having 100% perfect weather.

Have you looked at Mauritius as an alternative? There are some lovely private spots with own pool in Crete, not quite the Maldives vibe but beautiful nonetheless. Sri Lanka another alternative and perhaps the Seychelles?

Having travelled with a baby fairly regularly, I can't understand how a private pool would make any difference? Personally I'd go for a fairly luxury option, but where the pool is still shared. What you may want to think about is having a small apartment or suite rather than a room. This will make things easier if you end up needing to prepare milk/baby foods, you'll also appreciate the extra space with a baby and all the paraphanelia they need. We went to the Cayman Islands when dd was 6.5 months, which was gorgeous. You'd need to aim as late as possible in November though for the Carribbean to avoid any hurricanes.

We’ve been to Mauritius fairly recently and didn’t really like it, although the reason we didn’t like it was we felt there wasn’t much to do outside the resort, so that may not be a problem with a baby. I’ll have another look at the Seychelles :).

Thank you, we’ve stayed at places with a private pool before and I was thinking it would be easier to just take the baby out into the pool rather than having to gather up all the paraphernalia and trek down to main pool and also could quickly whip them out and inside the villa for a nap if get too cold.

I do love the Caribbean but was struggling to find somewhere with a private pool that wasn’t a self catering villa, but maybe I need to reconsider on that.

What about Cape Verde?

You're overthinking the baby thing. If you start expecting it to be so hard work that you need a private pool for a 7 month old then you're destined to be one of those dramatic PFB types.

Do yourself a favour now and plan for the baby to fit in with you. If you can go earlier it will be easier too. Early July in Greece will be lovely. Try Paros

I really wouldn't worry too much about that aspect, if you go luxury enough you won't have to walk far at all (steps from your accommodation) and wouldn't be sharing with many other apartments.