ADVENTURE MADE EASY

We swam half the length of

as a Uganda Rolex, which turned out to be a type of pancake. In short, you will not go hungry, nor tire of the choices. The fish was especially good.

Equally impressive is the accommodation itself: our beach pool villa was just that: a spacious triple room with its own plunge pool, just a few feet from a gently shelving, fine white sandy beach. The bathroom – with stand-alone tub – was semi al fresco, the master shower shaded by palm trees.

There is none of the splendid isolation of those seven-star retreats, with submerged glass capsule bedrooms at sea (rates for Conrad Maldives’ new suite are yet to be confirmed, but the island’s current top suite is £3,915 per night).

At Robinson you can book a villa on a jetty over the water, but in any event, noise was never a problem, nor did we feel overlooked or hemmed in. How could you with the Indian Ocean on your doorstep?

After mornings spent mostly by the pool, it was here we retreated in the afternoons, with snorkels and masks, in search of occasional (and harmless) reef sharks, and, rarer still, manta rays – elusive but evident.

In between snorkelling, diving and messing about on boats, there is enough to do on terra firma to keep you busy for a week. Download the Robinson app for the daily guide to organised fun – all of the land activities are included in the holiday price. A typical day will include beach volleyball or a five-a-side football match, aquafit in the pool or the sea, yoga classes, gym sessions, slacklining between palm trees or simply board games or a pool tournament in the bar.

The kids’ club is split into age groups, and promises entertainment for the over-11s, but on our visit it appeared more focused on arts and crafts activities for little ones. Older kids are better catered for at sea or with team sports. Visiting in April, we did have to dodge a few showers, which in fact provided welcome relief from the sun and a chance to socialise a bit in the bar. Under cover, but still sandy underfoot, there was time for games of ping pong, pool and table football. Over the course of a week, our skills at the latter went from African Cup of Nations bravado – all attack, no defence and ludicrously unbalanced scorelines – to a Dutch- style Total Football, with tightly drilled passes between the front and back rows. If we had visited during the monsoon, I suspect we could have gone pro.

Rain or shine, the abundance of sea life should top any list of reasons for coming all this way – there is simply nothing in the Mediterranean or the Canary Islands to match the underwater experience you get in the Maldives. Although, curiously, it does highlight Robinson’s main shortfall: all of its watersports carry an extra charge and need to be booked in advance with the dive school.

There are kayaks and paddleboards, jet skis and sailing boats; also

dolphin-watching tours and snorkel trips out to local reefs, but the extra costs do rack up. An hour’s kayak rental is £13; a two-hour snorkelling excursion to the local reef £30 per person (children from £15).

Bringing your own gear helps offset the cost. With three of us squeezed on to a kayak, we improvised our own snorkelling tours, with the kids easily hopping on and off at the first sight of colour: retina-burning tropical life darts among the swaying coral, barely 10 minutes from the shore.

But even this couldn’t compare to the dive school’s guided excursion. The Felivaru reef is 30 minutes by boat from the resort but a world away from any underwater experience gleaned closer to home.

Short of the Caribbean or the Red Sea, where I have scuba dived with larger groups than we snorkelled with here, I have scarcely seen such plentiful sea life within easy reach of a hotel.

The children’s ebullient shrieks gave way to simple dumbstruck awe, not least when Araf, our guide, spotted a turtle and dived down with them to take a video.

Taking turns with a GoPro camera tethered to their wrists, Miles and Ava delighted in diving as deep as they could, bubbling up to the surface with huge grins on their snot-covered faces.

The baby blacktips back at our villa were one thing, but a 6ft-long grey reef shark may have been the highlight of the trip: harmless, and eager to get away, but its stealthy glide suggested what a formidable predator it could be.

Just as swiftly, it answers that original question on swimming with sharks: not just to be tolerated on holiday, but actively encouraged.

This is one of those few parenting decisions for which your children will thank you.

Ava and Miles Hampton give their assessment of the holiday