Maldives is home to perhaps the best beaches in the world; they're on almost every one of the country's nearly 1200 islands and are so consistently perfect that it's hard not to become blasé about the Unrivalled luxury stunning white-sand beaches and an amazing underwater world make Maldives an obvious choice for a true holiday of a lifetime.

The Maldives aren’t just for honeymooners and the rich anymore. In 2009, the island nation opened up for independent travel, and you can now visit the Maldives on a budget by staying in affordable guesthouses on local islands. They have available guesthouse up to luxurious hotels.

If you love beaches, diving, or snorkeling, then the Maldives is well worth visiting. There are hundreds of islands to choose from and most have the white sandy beaches and turquoise lagoons of an idyllic tropical paradise.

Below are some local islands in Maldives to visit:

Male

The capital island is one of the most densely populated places on earth. There are no paradise beaches here, but it is an interesting insight into local life. Most people skip it or only spend the night if their flight arrives too late to take a ferry to one of the other islands.

Fulidhoo

Is the most northern of the inhabited islands of Vaavu Atoll in the Maldives. It is famous for Maldivian cultural events like Langiri, a traditional dance with drums and Thaara. Its 3.5 hours on the ferry from Male and 2 hours from Maafushi (the Male ferry stops at Maafushi on the way). The beaches are gorgeous and there’s a bikini beach with a few sunbeds.

Maafushi

The beach is quite nice, it still has a relaxed feel (it’s less developed than many Thai islands), and it’s the cheapest island to visit as you have more choice of guesthouses, restaurants, and excursions. It’s also the easiest island to reach as you can take a shared speedboat ($20) direct from the airport in 30 minutes or the local ferry ($3.50) from Male in 1.5 hours.

Reethi Beach

Is an island in the Baa Atoll in the Maldives. on the island is the famous Reethi Beach resort. The staff and their family all live in several buildings, which are collectively known as Fonimagoodhoo village.

Hulhumale

Hulhumale is a reclaimed island located in the south of North Male Atoll, Maldives. The artificial island was reclaimed to establish a new land mass required to meet the existing and future housing, industrial and commercial development demands of the Malé region.

Getting to Maldives

For such a tiny country, Maldives is easily reached from almost anywhere in the world and enjoys multiple daily flights from most major air hubs in Asia, Europe and the Middle East.

Getting around Maldives

Transport in Maldives is either fast and rather expensive, or reasonably priced and very slow.

Air Internal flights connect Male to 12 regional airstrips at least daily. Chartered seaplanes collect arrivals at Velana International Airport and fly them direct to their resorts.

Boat Most transport in Maldives is by boat, for obvious reasons. Resorts collect guests from Male or regional airstrips by speedboat, a fast and comfortable way to travel. Independent travelers will need to use the slow but cheap public ferry system or newly introduced (and pricier!) private speedboat transfers to inhabited islands

Car Most islands are totally car-free, with the exception of Male and a few other larger inhabited islands.

Visa is free for all nationalities

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