A beginner’s guide to the Maldives

Composed of 99 per cent water and just 1 per cent land, with most of that terra firma lying less than 3ft above sea level, the Maldives is one of the world’s most ­extraordinary – and ecologically fragile – countries in the world. Its chain of 26 atolls is made up of 1,192 coral islands, which stretch across nearly 500 miles of bright blue Indian Ocean, from the tippy-toe of Sri Lanka to south of the Equator. Flying over the Maldives, it appears more like a work of abstract art than a country, with delicate rings of coral reefs and pearly sandbanks swirling in a luminous backdrop of blue.
Beneath that shimmering surface is one of the world’s largest coral reef systems, spread over 3,400 square miles – an area almost as big as Cyprus. Among the most biodiverse seascapes found anywhere, its watery depths are home to more than 700 species of fish (including sharks and manta rays), 400 species of molluscs, 200 species of coral, 198 different crustaceans, at least 20 varieties of marine mammals – dolphins, porpoises and whales – and five out of the seven species of sea turtles. 
It was these natural attributes that first drew Western tourists to the region just over 50 years ago, with ­fledgling adventurers hitching lifts on cargo ships, shacking up in simple thatched-roofed bungalows and catching fish for barbecues. But the history of the Maldives reaches much further back, with local folklore dating the arrival of the first inhabitants some 2,500 years ago.
Today, it’s one of the world’s most aspirational ­holiday destinations – all overwater villas and ­underwater restaurants – attracting more than three million visitors in 2019. Although the island nation has long been synonymous with luxury and romance, the market has evolved rapidly and there’s now a choice of accommodation to suit all needs, from relatively affordable all-inclusive holidays to family getaways with action-packed kids’ clubs, tranquil wellness retreats, surf breaks and even business events. 
We reveal how to book the perfect trip of a lifetime to the Maldives, whether you’re new to the islands or you’re making a return trip.

Where to go

Your international flight will land in Malé, the capital of the Maldives. Resorts in the surrounding North and South Malé Atolls are reached by speedboat, sometimes in as little as 15-minutes – ideal following a long-haul flight. The downside is that the area has been robustly developed over the past decade making it difficult to escape the air and sea traffic and feel as if you are genuinely off-grid. Huge infrastructure projects around the airport and the construction of Hulhumalé – a gigantic reclaimed island built to solve overpopulation in the capital – as well as numerous artificial island resorts, have also had a detrimental impact on marine life. That said, the North and South Malé Atolls are great if you’re looking to fly and flop on a sensational beach, and it is still possible to find peaceful corners and healthy reefs if you do your research. There’s also a fantastic surf scene that is well suited to learners. 
Gili Lankanfushi (00960 664-0304; gili-lankanfushi.com; double rooms from £1,121) may see a lot more passing traffic than it did when it was built 20 years ago but its lagoon setting is still one of the most beautiful in the country. Como Cocoa Island (00960 664-1818; comohotels.com; doubles from £1,253) has some wonderful reefs nearby, while Jumeirah Olhahali Island (00960 668-2600; jumeirah.com; doubles from £989) is surrounded by huge pods of dolphins.
The Baa Atoll is the busiest atoll outside of Malé, best known for Hanifaru Bay, its Unesco Biosphere Reserve, which is home to the world’s largest known aggregation of manta rays, a phenomenon that featured in Sir David Attenborough’s Blue Planet II series. From May until late November, visitors can snorkel and dive with the magnificent earth-aliens – sometimes with up to 100 mantas at a time – as they pirouette through the water feasting on nutrient-rich plankton. It’s still possible to spot the odd manta ray during the high season as the creatures visit cleaning stations but there’s plenty more to keep marine lovers enthralled throughout the year.  
Luxury eco-escape Soneva Fushi (00960 660-0304; soneva.com; double rooms from £2,472) has been pioneering sustainable travel in the Maldives for nearly 30 years. Meanwhile, thoroughly modern Amilla Fushi (00960 660-6444; amilla.com; double rooms from £1,024) is the only resort in the Maldives to have been certified by Inclucare as being fully accessible to all guests regardless of their ability. 
Located about 45-minutes by seaplane from the capital, the Raa Atoll neighbours Baa Atoll and shares many of its natural wonders, from healthy coral cover to dramatic shark-filled channels and underwater caverns. Manta rays can be found here across most of the year, though not as many as you’ll find at Hanifaru Bay, with numbers peaking between October and November. Raa is also one of the few places in the Maldives where you can encounter bioluminescence, with the mesmerising “Sea of Stars” making an appearance on moonless nights between June and October. 
Bioluminescence washes straight onto the shores of Alila Kothaifaru Maldives (00960 659-1234; alilahotels.com; double rooms from £585). An area around the Intercontinental Maldives Maamunagau Resort (00960 658-0500; intercontinental.com; double rooms from £968) is currently pending protected status as the Maldives’ first manta nursery, because of its abundance of pregnant females and baby mantas.
Located north-east of Malé, Lhaviyani and Shaviyani are two emerging atolls. Resorts tend to be smaller scale and more spread out so the area never feels busy. For now, the islands are all natural and often have rich house reefs just off-shore. A diverse underwater landscape peppered with coral walls, fast-moving channels, pinnacles and shipwrecks make this a paradise for divers, whether they’re learners or old hands. Snorkellers can also enjoy paddling around the colourful reefs, swimming in sea grass prairies filled with huge green turtles and having seasonal encounters with manta rays (September to March). 
Hurawalhi Island Resort (00960 662-2000; hurawalhi.com; double rooms from £970) and swish all-inclusive sister resort Kudadoo (00960 662-2000; kudadoo.com; doubles from £3,985) has incredible house reefs, which you can also enjoy from their shared underwater restaurant 5.8. Sirru Fen Fushi Private Lagoon Resort (00960 654-8888; sirrufenfushi.com; doubles from £965) is another hotel that has a beautiful house reef as well as an ethereal underwater sculpture gallery. 
While it’s possible to bump into the occasional whale shark around Hanifaru Bay, there’s only one part of the Maldives where you’re (almost) always guaranteed to spot these elegant creatures – the serene South Ari Atoll. Around 100 whale sharks – which can grow to up to 12 metres long – spend their adolescence in the Maamigili protected zone, not far from the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island resort. Aside from dips with the world’s largest fish, visitors to this little-developed atoll will also find pristine reefs, pods of dolphins and manta rays visiting feeding stations. 
Venturing further south will take you to some of the Maldives’ least developed atolls: Thaa, Laamu, and, on the other side of the equator, Gaafu Alifu (also known as Huvadhu). Islands here are often larger and more jungly, edged with great ribbons of cotton-white sand and resplendent house reefs. Some also have old British colonial-era naval bases and ancient Buddhist ruins nearby to visit. While it takes a little bit more time to reach this part of the country it is absolutely worth it for the sense of splendid isolation and the wondrous marine life. 
Conrad Maldives Rangali Island (00960 668-0629; conrad.com; double rooms from £461) is home to underwater suite The Muraka and is one of the only spots in the Maldives where you can encounter manta rays and whale sharks in the same day at any time of year. The remote Six Senses Laamu (00960 680-0800; sixsenses.com; doubles from £824) takes a 60-minute transfer via domestic flight and speedboat to reach, but its beautiful isolation and superb surroundings make the trip worth it.

How to get there

British Airways (britishairways.com) operates daily non-stop flights from London Heathrow to Malé from October to March and flies three times a week (Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday) throughout the rest of the year. In October 2023, Virgin Atlantic (virginatlantic.com) launched a thrice-weekly direct service from Heathrow (Wednesday, Friday, Saturday) over the winter season, from late October until the end of March. Multiple airlines, including Qatar Airways (qatarairways.com), Emirates (emirates.com), Etihad (etihad.com) and Turkish Airlines (turkishairlines.com) offer one-stop flights from various British hubs. 
If you’re staying near the capital, you’ll be transferred to your resort via the hotel’s speedboat; journey times vary from 15 minutes to one hour. Resorts located further away – such as those in Baa, Raa or Ari – will require a 30-minute to 60-minute seaplane transfer, which will usually be arranged by your hotel or tour operator. Seaplanes can fly only relatively short distances and cannot fly after dark – they’re also not ideal for nervous fliers. A good network of domestic airports and scheduled flights cover most atolls and offer an (often significantly cheaper) alternative to travelling by seaplane. Maafaru Airport in Noonu Atoll also has a private jet terminal, which is popular with those going to Soneva Fushi, Velaa Private Island and Cheval Blanc Randheli.

When to book

Although last-minute deals to the Maldives do sometimes crop up in the low season, the Maldives are an increasingly popular holiday destination, so if you’re planning to visit for a special occasion or you want to travel during high season, it’s always best to book as far in advance as possible – flight schedules and package deals are usually released 12 months in advance.  

When to go

Temperatures in the Maldives sit between 24°C and 30°C throughout the year. The most popular time to visit the Maldives is between mid December and early March, when you can expect calm seas and 12 hours of unbroken sunshine a day. However, this is also the high season and hotel rates often double – or triple – over the Christmas and New Year period. Prices drop again as temperatures rise in March and April, which is a wonderful time to visit as the Indian Ocean settles into a crystal-clear lake-like calm. The monsoon season, peaking in June, July and August, is the time to see manta rays – but it can be rainy and windy at times.

How much does it cost?

Luxury resorts in the Maldives, such as the new Soneva Secrets, Cheval Blanc Randheli, Velaa Private Island, Ritz-Carlton Maldives and the Waldorf Astoria Ithaafushi attract a seemingly endless stream of celebrities, and their top residences can command rates of £20,000 a night. But you don’t have to be an A-lister to visit the Maldives, with shoulder-season breaks at a modest all-inclusive resort such as Cinnamon Ellaidhoo coming in at about £2,000 per week, including flights.  

What to book

Maldives expert Turquoise Holidays (01494 678400; turquoiseholidays.co.uk) works with Amilla Fushi, the only resort in the country certified by Inclucare as being fully accessible. This includes the sight- or hearing-impaired; those on the autism spectrum, with dementia or learning difficulties; and people with mobility issues. Seven nights from £3,999, B&B, staying in a sunset water pool villa, including international flights and seaplane transfers. 
Luxury tour operator Lightfoot Travel (0203 950 5105; lightfoottravel.com) has a seven-night family holiday staying at the Six Senses Laamu from £3,440 per person, half-board, based on two adults and two children under the age of 12 sharing an ocean beach villa. Price includes international flights from London and seaplane transfers. 
Scott Dunn (020 3813 7587; scottdunn.com) is one of the best luxury operators in the Maldives, covering resorts, such as Anantara Kihavah (Leonardo DiCaprio, Cristiano Ronaldo, Roger Federer have all stayed) and Conrad Rangali Island (Paul McCartney and Paris Hilton have been spotted here). Seven nights in a beach villa at Six Senses Kanuhura costs from £8,700 including breakfast, flights with British Airways and return seaplane transfers.
Elegant Resorts (01244 897514; elegantresorts.co.uk) works with a wide range of resorts in the Maldives. Seven nights staying in a beach pavilion at LUX* South Ari Atoll from £4,515, all-inclusive, including international flights, speedboat transfers and airport lounge passes. 
Kuoni (0800 092-4444; kuoni.co.uk) has been arranging honeymoons in the Maldives for the past half a decade, meaning they are expert at providing all those romantic little extras, from room upgrades to complimentary candle-lit dinners, to free massages and bottles of bubbly. Currently, Kuoni have seven-nights staying in a dreamy overwater pool villa at five-star Milaidhoo Maldives for £6,124, half-board, including flights and return seaplane transfers (applies to selected departures between April and August 2025). Find more of the best hotels in the Maldives in our guide.

On a budget

While the Maldives is known for its A-list resorts and the exorbitant cost of food and drink – a burger and soft drink can easily set you back £50 – it is possible to find packages with prices on a par with Mexico or the Caribbean. The most effective way to rein in costs is to go all-inclusive but be sure to check the small print as some are more generous than others. Amilla Maldives Resort and Spa (00960 660-6444; amilla.com; double rooms from £1,024), Lux* South Ari Atoll (00960 668-0901; luxresorts.com; double rooms from £800) and Emerald Faarufushi (00960 658-8000; emerald-faarufushi.com; double rooms from £748) throw in stacks of extras, including mini-bars, unlimited ice-cream, massages, free non-motorised watersports and sunset dolphin tours. 
More savings can be made by going independently. Book an airline ticket well in advance – looking a year ahead, we found a return fare from London with British Airways for £552 in September 2024 – and go local. Following a promotion by Visit Maldives, a number of new small hotels and guest houses have sprung up on local islands, with rooms from as little as £40 a night. Most are located around Malé. Maafushi is the best known but it’s maxed out with backpackers. Instead, head to Thundi Guest House (00960 779-6860; Sosun Magu, Fulidhoo, Maldives), a charming beachside lodge, owned and managed by Maldivian former five-star hotel staff, set on the ravishing island of Fulidhoo, which has an astonishing house reef, a population of resident grey reef sharks and its own shipwreck

What to pack

Know before you go

The Foreign Office deems the Maldives a safe destination. British travellers do not need a visa; however, everyone has to complete an online pre-arrival form (travel.immigration.gov.mv) within 72 hours of departure. It’s fairly straightforward but does require uploading passport scan and recent photo, so technophobes may need some help. The British High Commission is located in Malé and can be reached for urgent assistance on 0094 11 5390639. More information: visitmaldives.com.
This article was first published in October 2023, and has been revised and updated.