You never think a destination can possibly be more beautiful and spectacular than the professional photos of it. Ok, well the Maldives absolutely surpasses all expectations. Soft white sand beaches, miles of unobstructed views of turquoise water, brightly colored fish and eagle rays swimming right under your bathtub; those are just a few of the moments burned into my memory. It is one of the most incredible places that I’ve ever been, and I wanted to share everything you need to know about traveling to the Maldives because it can feel a little overwhelming at first. Here’s your Maldives 101!
We spent the first week of our honeymoon in the Maldives, before heading on to Italy. We chose to stay at Six Senses Laamu; I’ll have more on that experience next week, but it was INCREDIBLE! Well worth every penny we spent, and it is on the more expensive side of resorts there.
We spent six days and five nights on the island. I thought for sure by the end of six days of lounging on the beach that I would be bored, but I could’ve easily spent another week there.
I also cannot stress how wonderful the people are there. We met some of the nicest people we’ve ever experienced in the Maldives and that completely made our experience.
The Maldives are made up of 1,192 (mostly tiny) coral islands, grouped into 26 atolls, which means “a ring shaped reef.” Of the 200 inhabited islands, about 80 of those are resorts. Each resort is its own island, so it’s not very easy to island hop.
If you live in the US, it is Far
Far with a capital F! It took us almost 45 hours to get to the Maldives from our wedding in Bozeman, Montana.
If you happen to live in a major city with a nonstop flight to the Middle East, it will be much easier for you to get there, but here’s what our travel schedule looked like: Bozeman to Seattle, Seattle to San Francisco, San Francisco to Dubai, Dubai to Malé (capital of the Maldives), a domestic flight from Malé to a local island near our resort and then a 25 minute boat ride to the resort. You can check out the whole process in real time on my Instagram highlight!
Getting to Your Resort
Depending on where your resort is located, you will need to take either a domestic flight, seaplane or boat ride once you arrive in Malé. Since Six Senses is one of the resorts furthest from the airport, we had to take a flight on Maldivian Air and then a speedboat ride.
But the resort makes it really simple for you. We were met at baggage claim by resort staff who escorted us all the way through to the hotel including buying the domestic flight for you and making sure your bags get to where they need to go. If you’re resort is closer, you will most likely take a seaplane, and that will be arranged for you when you book your hotel.
Also, the transfers can be very expensive, sometimes as much as $600-$700, so that’s something to keep in mind when choosing where to stay.
It’s the world’s flattest country
The country is 99% water
The Maldives is a Muslim country
Which means there’s important rules to follow. No alcohol, pork products, bibles, public displays of affection or drugs are allowed. Revealing clothing (including bathing suits, clothes above the knees or showing shoulders) and nudity are also no-no’s for women.
Resorts are a different story. There’s no problem with alcohol or bikinis, but even skinny-dipping or topless sunbathing are forbidden. The airports are also pretty lenient, but I think it’s always important to be respectful of other people’s cultures. I wore a maxi dress with a long sleeve button up to cover my shoulders up easily.
Also, we learned from our Six Senses friends, because alcohol is illegal in the Maldives, no Maldivians are able to be bartenders at the resorts.
There are resorts for all budgets
While luxury is over the top in this country, you can really find resorts to work with any budget. I saw tons of overwater resorts within the $200-$300 range, which all looked really nice.
Reef Safe Sunscreens
You’ll need reef-safe sunscreen. Regular sunscreen contains oxybenzone, which research shows is toxic to coral reefs and marine life. This issue has come to light in the past few months because Hawaii recently banned sunscreens containing these dangerous chemicals. Here’s what we bought:
Just a warning… it will give you a ghost-like hue, so I also bought this tinted sunscreen for the face.
Also, when it comes to sunscreen, don’t skimp! The Maldives is essentially ON the equator, which means the sun is very hot.
Take your plastics with you
Bring it in, pack it out. As you can imagine, there not many places for trash and plastics to go in the Maldives. Six Senses asks that you take any plastic you bring on the island back off with you.
How cool is this? Real Madrid unveiled a kit for this season made up entirely from ocean plastic waste, much of it from the Maldives.
Money in the Maldives
The Maldives currency is the Maldivian Rufiyaa. However, US dollars are widely accepted. We used our credit cards at the resort and tipped only in dollars.
Also, banks in the country are very particular about the condition of the bills accepted. Our resorts couldn’t take bills that were ripped, creased or heavily worn, so make sure to have crisp money on hand.
Half board is plenty
Resorts offer all sorts of different food and beverage packages. We opted to do a half board option, which included breakfast and dinner, and it was plenty!
We woke up and went to the breakfast buffet at around 10am, and that kept us full until dinner time around 6pm or 7pm. Also, Six Senses had a free ice cream room, so that was a frequent afternoon snack!
Island Time…for real!
Six Senses, along with many other resorts, operate on “island time,” which is an hour ahead of Malé to maximize daylight hours.
Soak up the marine activities
The Maldives are in danger of disappearing due to climate change, so take advantage of the many learning opportunities that you’ll find on the resort.
We snorkeled with marine biologists who showed us first hand the coral bleaching taking place across the Maldives and how they’re trying to fight back. At our resort, you could also sign up to watch baby turtles hatch in the middle of the night.
I can’t say enough positive things about this amazing country!
Next up in Maldives 101: my review of our resort Six Senses Laamu.
Comment below if you have any questions about planning a trip to the Maldives!