Maldives on a budget

Discovering the Maldives on a Budget: A Thrifty Guide to Tropical Paradise

Who would have thought, I’ve been to the Maldives not once, but twice – all on a budget! With my help, you’ll discover the possibility of an affordable Maldivian adventure, where turquoise waters and picturesque landscapes await without draining your wallet.

Is it possible to travel to and visit the Maldives without spending lots of money? Yes, it is. You can do Maldives on a budget. Well, it might not be the standard travellers budget, you have to spend a little bit more but, you don’t have to spend lots of money and live on a resort island. You can do the Maldives in a budget friendly way and still enjoy the beauty of the sea and land of the islands.

I never thought I’d be the kind of person who visits the Maldives but now, I’ve been there twice and spent a couple of weeks there. The Maldives, which is actually called The Republic of Maldives, consists of 1192 islands and 26 atolls. Many of the islands are inhabited, some of them have private resorts on them – you can even stay on your own island – but many of the islands are inhabited by locals who have started hotels, guest houses, restaurants and run diving/snorkling schools and other activities for the visitors.

Local Islands: A Budget-Friendly Haven

I’ve stayed at three different islands, and they are all very different from each other. They are in different stages of their development towards welcoming tourists. And honestly, being who I am, I enjoy staying at the local islands more since there are Maldivians there and you get a feel of the country, and you can still enjoy the sea and it’s inhabitants. Another thing is that most locals, and immigrant workers at restaurants and hotels, speak very good English so communication was not a problem. Most people speak great English.

Both times I’ve been to the islands have been in February and the weather has been amazing, traditional tourist season is between November and April. If you’re a surfer, surf season usually starts in March/April and picks up during the European spring and summer. On some of the islands, like Thulusdhoo, the Cokes surf break are reachable from the beach. If you want to surf Chikens, which is opposite Cokes, you can get a local boat to take you to the surf break. Other surf break are reachable by boat, and there are many companies organizing surf trips where you can live onboard a boat and travel between the different surf breaks.

The water is the most beautiful I’ve ever seen. I thought the photos I saw from the Maldives were heavily edited, but they’re not. The water is actually turquoise and the sand, on many places, are white. Sadly, due to the climate change almost all of the Maldivian islands are at risk of being submerged by the sea due to rising sea levels. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has warned that, at current rates, sea-level rise would be high enough to make the Maldives uninhabitable by 2100. This of course is horrible for a country that has a documented history going back at least 2500 years.

While I was there I did lots of snorkeling, I went on boat trips to snorkel at places where I met reef sharks and manta rays and saw beautiful corals.

On islands like Ukulhas, where I stayed for almost two weeks, you can just grab your snorkel, mask and fins and head out into the water. They have a “house reef” on the south west side of the island where you’ll meet reef sharks and other colorful fishes. I really enjoyed my time on Ukulhas. The island is already quite developed with good restaurants and hotels, but more restaurants and guest houses are being built.

On Ukulhas there’s a big bikini beach area, since The Maldives are muslim you can’t swim in your bikini everywhere, but on Ukulhas basically the southern part of the island is bikini beach. Ukulhas has a perfect mix of local culture and tourist places, I walked around the island quite a lot and enjoyed seeing children in their local school and boats at the boatyard. Although there’s no surfing on Ukulhas, it’s great for kite surfing thanks to the winds. And the experience of walking into the local supermarket and seeing the shopkeeper sit behind the counter with a colorful bird on her shoulder is something else.

Another reason why I enjoy the islands are that there are so many cats there and they are well taken care of. I’ve hardly seen any dogs there at all during my weeks on the islands, there are cats everywhere behaving, and being treated, like the regal creatures they’re supposed to be and the cats don’t have to worry about dogs.

Efficient Island Logistics: Budget-Friendly Travel Tips

My first visit to The Maldives was to the island of Thulusdhoo which is fairly close to Male, the boat took around an hour from the airport. On the island there are a few shops and restaurants. One big bonus is that drinking water is free of charge there thanks to the Coca-Cola factory that provides the island with drinking water. You’ll find a tap close to the part of the island where the hotels, and the factory, are where you can go and fill your bottles with drinking water. The Coca-Cola factory on Thulusdhoo is the only one in the world that uses desalinated water in their production.

Another special thing with the Maldives are the fact that the islands are fairly small, walking around Thulusdhoo is less than 6000 steps according to my phone.

While planning a trip to the Maldives it good to decide which atoll to visit and check out the schedule to the ferries and speed boats. Most times, if you’re going from one island to another it’s easier to transfer back to the airport in Male, and from there go to the next destination. If the next island you’re going to is within the same atoll there are ferries that can take you there. You can also charter a speed boat, but that’s expensive.

While on the subject of speed boats, I love them. It’s fun and fast. But sometimes it just gets too bumpy, too fast for my photo equipment, but the cameras and lenses survived since I moved further back in the boat. If you get easily seasick you should sit in the back of the boat and enjoy the beauty of the sea.

When you’re booking accommodation, your hotel can usually help you with booking your boat transfer too, they’ll give you timetables and such. Sometimes you can search the internet for ferry departures but it’s best to check with your hotel anyway. When you’ve made your booking for a ferry there are guides waiting at the airport to take you to the right pier and to your boat. The ferries run on a timetable, but they are flexible and wait for passengers arriving by air or from other islands.

When the boat arrives to your chosen island there’s always somebody from the hotel you’ve booked waiting at the harbor to pick you up and drive you to your hotel. You get to travel in a golf cart. That’s another nice thing about The Maldives, there are hardly any cars – so it’s very quiet.

Modern Maldivian Culture: Beyond The Traditional Tourist Path

The capital of The Maldives is the city of Male, I’ve spent a couple of nights in Hulumale which is between the airport and the city. Hulumale is a newly built artificial island that’s very nice with beaches, restaurants and shops. Visiting Male and Hulumale gives you a chance to experience modern Maldivian culture. I went into Male a couple of times, it’s just a short taxi drive away, for a bit of shopping and food. I’ve also photographed surfing on Male, the surf break is between the city and Hulumale. Another evening I took photos of skateboarding in a local skate park in Hulumale. All these activities might not be what you expect of the Maldives, but this is contemporary Maldivian culture.

I’ll write more about The Maldives but this is a start. And, The Maldives are as beautiful as they are pictured.