Listly by Joanna James
The Maldives has established itself as the epitome of a luxurious tropical island getaway as much as it is known to be the best honeymoon destination in the world. While you may visit the Maldives for the single reason of getting some sun, here are some travel tips to help you plan to perfection.
The Maldives is made up of a series of archipelagos; formations called atolls and have over a total of 1200 islands. Some of them a very small and will not be noted down on maps.
Of the 26 atolls and 1200 islands, only an approximated 200 are inhabited. These could be resort islands, farm islands, or locally inhabited islands. Some islands don't have a permanent population such as those tourists travel to for a private picnic or boat ride.
The Maldivian people are Muslim and the country follows a strict Islamic Law. There are certain implications of this that are very important to tourists so you know how to behave when in the inhabited islands.
You are not served alcohol nor are you allowed to walk about in your bathing suit or revealing clothing in the locally inhabited islands.
Some of the best resorts in Maldives are located completely on a private island. This will mean that while the scope of your location will be quite small, you will be able to partake in all the advantages of a private island belonging to hotel chains such as what Park Hotel Group has to offer.
If you are island hopping you will have to rely on chartered boats because local ferry services are either infrequent, unavailable or just don't exist.
With 1200 islands and not a single mountain in sight, the Maldives is the flattest country on the globe. The maximum height on an island is about 2.4 m above sea level.
The Maldives has great weather all year round making it a great holiday destination whenever you want to visit. The two main seasons are the wet season and the dry season which fall from May to November and December to April respectively. Even then there is very little rain.
Make sure your take sunscreens with a high SPF when you are visiting the Maldives as the sun can come blaring down mercilessly. And it won't relent, even on cloudy days.
There's so much you can do in the Maldives from visiting the local inhabited islands to get a taste of traditional Maldivian culture, watersports, diving and scuba-diving, dolphin and whale-watching, even volunteering with turtle conservation if you'd like to. There's just so much to do you won't have time to sit around relaxing on the beach.