Maldivian dream

Not a secret that I especially like travelling to some exotic destination at the end of the year. The truth is that I really didn’t know where to go last year. Everything was looking like a dream – for less than a week of “planning a trip”, I chose Maldives for destination. Modesty. 

Above all, I want to share with you general and useful information about Maldives which may help your dreams come true.

General information

The Maldives island is made up of, about, 1190 islands covered by palms and mangroves. No more than 200 islands are inhabited and only 90 host tourist resorts. Each resort is located on a single Island. That is a specific beauty of the Maldives.  

-The capital island is Male. There is an International airport.

-Visa is not required.  

-Local currency is the Rufiyaa. The exchange rate for the US Dollar is 12,85 Rf. for 1 Dollar. My advice is to pay in the USD, because it is the most used foreign currency. Resorts and hotels can be paid in dollars, travelers checks or by a credit cards. Many resorts accept also the Euro.

The weather 

The Maldivian climate can be divided into two periods, characterized by two monsoons. The first, from May to November, is humid and with seldom and persistent rainfalls. In this period the sea is heavy and winds are strong.
The second, from December to April, has very little rainfalls and lower humidity. 

*Important: Cheaper prices usually move from May to November. Also the weather is variable and it is not for sure that in June will be rainy, and in November sunny.

Arriving to Male 

The trip can be pretty exhausted. So, I recommend to choose flights with less layovers. In my case I changed two flights to get to Male.  

**Tip: Turkish airlines usually have the less layovers. Duration of flights is about 12h.

Arriving and leaving your Resort island 

When you arrive to Male, you need transportation to your resort. Also, you need to pay more attention on your flight. 

-If your international flight arrives after 04.00 pm and according to your resort location and policy, you will need to spend the first night in Male or at the Hotel located on the Airport Island.
-You will be then transferred to your resort the following day.
-Either by boat or by plane, if your departure flight is late in the night, you might have to leave your resort much before and consequently stay several hours at the airport.
-Depending on the time you will have, you will be able to go for an excursion to Male.
-According to your resort location, for safety measures, some boat transfers will leave at 17:00/17:30 maximum.
-This applies to plane transfers too. Planes cannot fly before and after dawn. They start operating at Sunrise and stop before Sunset.

Accomodation 

I was very satisfied with resort. Here is the link for more information. Briefly, this place is a beautiful, stuff is very polite and friendly. You can have parts of the beach on your own. Everything was like a dream.

Other tips 

– For the Maldives all resorts and hotels have their own policy, for secure bookings and cancellation terms.

– Extras can be very expensive in Maldives and not only in Luxury resorts.

– Food and Drinks have to be shipped from abroad to Male and then from Male to the resorts.

– Be aware that 3 and 4 stars resort prices are often the same and sometimes higher than 5*****.

On the top of their prices, each resort has to apply 2 taxes :
– A 10% service charge.
– A 8 % Goods and Services Tax. ( note : This tax is constantly rising and at a very fast pace. )