One of the most coveted luxury destinations in the world, the Maldives conjures up images of luxurious resorts and lavish villas surrounded by sapphire waters.
Besides white sand beaches and turquoise lagoons, the territory has a calm atmosphere amid tropical bliss that attracts tourists from around the world. Located in the Indian Ocean, Maldives consists of 1,192 islands and 26 coral atolls. A trip to this remote place is an opportunity to experience island life at its most relaxing and beautiful.
Have plans to spend your vacations here? Discover everything you need to know before planning a trip to this exotic destination!
Best Months to Visit The Maldives
November to April is the best period for visiting the Maldives. There are two seasons in the island nation, one dry season and one wet, rainy season. Visiting in each season has its pros and cons.
In November and April, travelers will experience the best weather in the Maldives because of the little precipitation and warm temperatures. However, this is also the busiest time of year, so resorts charge high rates during this period.
There is frequent rainfall and strong winds on the islands from May to October, which is considered the rainy season. This time of year is likely to offer better deals. It’s also a popular time for surfers because of the larger waves and better swells around this time of year.
Getting Around Maldives
Getting around the Maldives is best done on foot. There are 2.2 square miles in the capital city of Malé, and every resort is walkable. There isn’t a very large ferry network available, so island-hopping may not be the best option. In spite of that, if you are traveling by boat, you will be able to navigate the Maldives waters.
Most likely, you will be escorted by a representative from your resort to the island where you are staying after arriving at Velana International Airport (MLE). If a representative isn’t here, and you want to reach your destination, you will have to take a ferry, a seaplane, a speedboat, or a combination of all three. In some cases, the final excursion is included in the hotel bill.
What to Do in the Maldives
The Maldives is the ideal destination for relaxing holidays. If you are on a trip, the best thing you can do is sit beside an infinity pool sipping a negroni while watching the marine life pass by, but diving and snorkeling will eventually tempt you from your lounger.
Another best thing you can do is to surf during your Maldives trip at the resorts. In the southern Indian Ocean, the swells are consistent, making Maldives one of the best surf spots on earth. The North Male Atoll is the main surfing area, while the outer atolls are 450 km away.
There are also a variety of activities available at Maldives resorts, including water sports, swimming pools, spas, and lounge areas. You can snorkel, scuba dive, sail a catamaran, windsurf, canoe, night dive, night fish, and kiteboard, which includes surfing through beautiful lagoons up to your waist. The Maldives offer aerial excursions such as paragliding and island hopping for guests to enjoy nature at its best.
A lot of Maldives resorts have additional facilities, such as diving schools, which offer diving lessons. Among the other amenities available in Maldives resorts are swimming pools, discotheques, karate lounges, saunas, tennis courts, table tennis, billiards, game fishing, cultural and live music shows, restaurants and bars, barbecues, and moonlight parties.
Most visitors during their trip spend most of their time diving, visiting islands, and enjoying the scenery aboard their cruises.
Where to Stay in the Maldives
In addition to ultra-glamorous overwater villas at private islands like Cheval Blanc Randheli, where the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge stayed, there are other options in the Maldives. For those seeking a more authentic experience, there are simple guesthouses on local islands, such as Kiha Beach on Dharavandhoo, which costs less than £65 per night.
It is also important to consider the facilities. Do you prefer a quiet, one-restaurant resort like Naladhu, with just 20 villas for a small group, or a busy, multi-restaurant resort like Kuramathi, which has 360 rooms, ten restaurants, and a range of activities for all ages?
It all depends on your budget and style.
Shopping and Visiting in the Maldives
Shops in the Maldives are open Saturday-Thursday from 8 am-11 pm, so make sure you have time for shopping during your Maldives trip. During Muslim prayer times, shops close for 15 minutes five times a day.
Bringing alcohol into the country requires an official license. During your Maldives vacation, you can purchase alcohol in all resorts but not in Male, the capital, or any of the other inhabited islands.
As part of the government’s efforts to preserve coral reefs and marine life, the export of turtle shells, coral, and pearl oyster shells has been prohibited. A number of goods are prohibited from being imported to the Maldives, including pork products, dogs, alcohol, pornographic material, weapons, idols of worship, narcotics, and objects of religious significance.
Maldives Food and drink
In the Maldives, you’ll find local and international cuisines as varied as you’d find in London or New York, covering every culinary corner of the globe. Due to the fact that many resorts, including Soneva Fushi, use Michelin-starred chefs, standards are enviably high.
Aside from experiential dining, guests can experience fishing trips with catch-and-cook, desert island picnic lunches, or dining on a sandbar where you’re the only one on a ribbon of white sand disappearing into the blue, and a discreet butler serving each course from an anchored boat.
There is also Instagrammable food as theatre at several underwater restaurants, including 5.8 at Hurawalhi, the world’s largest all-glass dining room sunk at; and Nest on Niyama, with tables hidden among tree branches and accessible through wooden walkways.
Restaurants usually have sand floors, open-air settings, and live cooking stations to give buffet meals a kick of drama. Chefs prepare eggs and seafood to order and charbroil seafood dishes to perfection.
What to Wear in the Maldives
Dress codes in the Maldives are relaxed during the day and smart-casual at night. Since the Maldives is a Muslim island, you should wear something to cover your shoulders if you plan to explore Male city or local villages.
Don’t miss
There are few places where the ocean glows at night, like the Maldives. Bioluminescent plankton appears offshore from June to October, emitting defensive sparkles of light when splashed. There’s something magical about it. It is best to experience this phenomenon in the Raa and Baa atolls.
Know Before You Go to the Maldives
For tips, you will only need small denominations of US dollars since credit cards are widely accepted. Most islands use UK plugs so you may need adapters there. The baggage limit for seaplane transfers is 20kg per person, and you should bring water and earplugs since it can be noisy and hot aboard. There is a huge problem with waste disposal in the Maldives, so don’t bring unnecessary packaging or leave any behind.
