What better time to relive our stay in Al Yamm Villas a few months ago, just in time for those planning on where to go for Valentines 🙂
We checked out of Al Sahel Villas ( read about it here ) , and was driven to Al Yamm on the other end of the island. We were thinking to ourselves then, the jungle retreat was an absolute gem of its own, how good can the other be. Boy were we blown away.
It felt like we just went from Africa, to the Maldives. And yeah I know for those of you who have actually been to both places would say to me – that’s far from how it actually is. Well you see I haven’t been to either so I’ll just pretend it’s just like that 🙂
Here’s a rundown of what you get –
a) All villas are standalone and just a few steps to the sea
It was really quiet when we went in October so we felt like we had the place all to ourselves. When we were sitting outside in the terrace there was no one in sight. Might be a little different now but I think the villas are a proper distance from each other for you to have some privacy.
b) As Anantara does it, gorgeous interiors
Personally I liked Al Sahel’s rooms better, jungle-style. The ones in Al Yamm are large and clean, fairly modern.
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c) Peace and quiet
Postcard perfect photos like the one below. You can only imagine how many photos we took whilst we were there 🙂
d) A little bit of wildlife…..Sand gazelles roaming around
You’ll get a lot more animals at Al Sahel so if you’re not too keen about that I’ll recommend Al Yamm. We saw some sand gazelles by the beach but that was about it. Mind you that was October, I’m not too sure what the winter season brings 🙂
e) Pool by the beachside.
We were in here for the evenings, and then again the next day after we came back from the animal safari. There’s lots of birds that come by so you can chill out and watch them chirping around on the grass patch in front of you 🙂 Or the sand gazelles. Or the occasional hares.
f) Possibly one of the best italian restaurants we’ve been to
Olio is the only restaurant in Al Yamm, and if you can’t be bothered taking the shuttle to another spot, I really recommend you dine there. Whilst Savannah Grill in Al Sahel was personally to us just ‘alright’, Olio was at a level of its own. It’s been a great few months now so I can’t go into detail, so I’ll let you experience it for yourself through the photos 🙂
g) and waking up to sunrise right by the beach
Something you just gotta do 🙂 Even when you’re on a holiday.
Highly recommended for couples – special occasions, birthdays, anniversaries, engagements, babymoons 🙂 It’s quiet, so I wouldn’t recommend it for big groups of friends looking for a party atmosphere, you’ll be better off at the main hotel Anantara Desert Islands Resort (or so I’ve been told). So if the Mrs. has been hassling you to take her somewhere special and you don’t really wanna break your wallet taking her to Maldives, try this one for now 🙂
Disclaimer : Unlike Al Sahel where we paid for our stay, we were guests of Anantara for our stay in Al Yamm Villas.
Tip : I would recommend that you book early on their website as they offer discounts on various packages. They are unfortunately not in the Entertainer as yet but if they are, I’ll be sure to update this post. We stayed at the beach villas, the other ones are overlooking the mangroves and are cheaper. Quick peek at booking.com gives the prices around 1600AED for the one-bedroom beach villa on special 😉