1 week itinerary to the Maldives
1 week itinerary to the Maldives
Hi! My name is Lara and I’m a travel passionate. I have been traveling since I can remember. There is so much to see, so much to discover… I have traveled up to more than 25 countries and keep adding new ones to my bucket list! I have created a travel tips and guide website to help and inspire people to travel around the globe.
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Choose between budgeted or luxury trip
The one thing we can all agree with is that Maldives really does have that breathtaking paradise dream. During my trip to this gorgeous country I had the chance to visit some of the most amazing islands I have ever been to.
Just in case you didn’t know: Maldives itself consists of a chain of about 1,200 small coral islands and sandbanks (200 of which are inhabited), grouped in clusters, or atolls. What does this mean? Well, it’s endless to explore! Also, the distances between islands are quite far away from each other, so it’s very important to choose which islands to visit as you may find difficulties to travel around specially if your trip isn’t too long.
OUR TOTAL BUDGET FOR 1 WEEK ITINERARY: includes meals, hotels, transfers and activities visiting 4 islands
Option 1 without a resort experience: 420 US Dollars
Option 2 with a resort experience for 2 nights: 1810 US Dollars
As you can see, you can enjoy Maldives without having to cry to your bank, however, bear in mind that choosing to stay in a resort will highly increase your budget expense.
Here is my 1-week itinerary to Maldives
Choose between budgeted or luxury trip
The one thing we can all agree with is that Maldives really does have that breathtaking paradise dream. During my trip to this gorgeous country I had the chance to visit some of the most amazing islands I have ever been to.
Just in case you didn’t know: Maldives itself consists of a chain of about 1,200 small coral islands and sandbanks (200 of which are inhabited), grouped in clusters, or atolls. What does this mean? Well, it’s endless to explore! Also, the distances between islands are quite far away from each other, so it’s very important to choose which islands to visit as you may find difficulties to travel around specially if your trip isn’t too long.
OUR TOTAL BUDGET FOR 1 WEEK ITINERARY: includes meals, hotels, transfers and activities visiting 4 islands
Option 1 without a resort experience: 420 US Dollars
Option 2 with a resort experience for 2 nights: 1810 US Dollars
As you can see, you can enjoy Maldives without having to cry to your bank, however, bear in mind that choosing to stay in a resort will highly increase your budget expense.
Here is my 1-week itinerary to Maldives
Day 1. Arriving to Malé - Maafushi
As we only had a week to explore Maldives, we decided to go straight to Maafushi as soon as landing to Malé. We took a speed boat from the airport for 20 US Dollars per person that took 30min to Maafushi.
Maafushi is a great island to do all the activities you’d like as the prices are quite cheap. If you are planning on going to a resort, don’t hesitate on visiting a local island beforehand, as the same tour will cost ridiculously much more in the resort.
The bikini beach isn’t the greatest in Maafushi compared to other islands but there are nice restaurants. I really recommend Moonlight – amazing food, comfort and vibes.
The first day we had a walk around, searched for activities for the next day and we pretty much chilled all day in the beach. We stayed at the Maafushi View Homestay for 30 US Dollars for two in a double room with breakfast included.
My summary: Maafushi is a great start point for activities and it’s very close to Malé.
Day 11. Activities
& Drop off in Fulidhoo
We decided to book the 3-activity tour which included dolphin and shark watching & swimming, manta feeding and lunch in a sandbank somewhere in the middle of the indian ocean. Total price: 50 US Dollars per person.
I have to say it was a dream come true! Not only we had the opportunity to watch gorgeous creatures, but also to swim with them! It was definitely one of the best experiences of my life and I completely recommend this tour on your bucket list. You won’t regret it.
The trip starts around 9am and finishes around 1pm in Fulidhoo, the last stop, where the mantas swim around and you feed them before returning back to Maafushi. GREAT TIP HERE: Definitely ask the tour guides to drop you off in Fulidhoo and pick you up the next day when they come back with new guests from the same activity so you return back to Maafushi after they feed the mantas and for free. Believe me, you will save 100 US Dollards per person for a speed boat transfer if you do that and you will have the chance to visit another island and stay for the night.
Day 111. Fulidhoo
Fulidhoo is such a dream!!!
We stayed in the Fulidhoo White Inn for the night for 35 US Dollars for two in a double from with breakfast included (there are barely any other hotels around).
We kind of whispered while in the island, not kidding. Fulidhoo itself is super small and the restful vibe is all around. You can’t hear a sound apart from the birds and leafs from trees. It’s magical. I think I’ve never been to a place were I felt such a disconnection from everything.
The bikini beach is amazing, very quiet and prepared with some hammocks for tourists. Thus, I have to say that the best thing of the island is the close contact to marine fauna. You walk around the island (10 min walk from side to side) and you can see sharks and mantas swimming around right in the beach, few meters away from you. At night, they all come together and sleep right in front of you. It’s such a show.
111V. Gulhi
Back to Maafushi to get to Gulhi
The next day around 3pm we returned to Maafushi and stayed for the night to go to Gulhi the next day.
Here is when we went crazy and decided to spend our last two nights in a resort. Being honest, we were backpacking and weren’t looking for a resort experience as we appreciated our pockets. However, we kind of felt it was a once in a life experience and… why not? WE WERE IN MALDIVES BABY.
Keep reading to discover where we stayed!
V. Gulhi
Gulhi has something very special. There aren’t many palm trees as there are in other islands but it was amazing in many other ways. All houses had different colors and made this island very colorful. The bikini beach was incredible and we highly recommend the Fulhoi restaurant (just where the photo was taken). The food was so tasty and the waiter was the cutest thing ever.
We stayed at Ilaa Beach hotel for 30 US Dollars for two in a double room with breakfast included.
V1& V11. Resort experience
Grand Park Kodhipparu
After searching around for different resort options, we decided to stay at Grand Park Kodhhipparu as it was beautiful and also had a kind of reasonable price. I say kind of because it’s crazy how much the resorts cost.
You can find options for 300-500 US Dollars per night but in my opinion it’s not worth it. You get a beach front room and I wouldn’t spend the money on that as the local islands have amazing rooms in front of the beach for 30 US Dollars a night. We decided to go for the cabins on the water with a nest in the terrace… THAT FELT LIKE REAL MALDIVES, even if it was a bit more expensive. 500 US Dollars for the only breakfast included and 900 US Dollars for the all inclusive package.
TIP HERE: It doesn’t really matter whether you book the only breakfast included or the all inclusive package (food & drinks) as it is all organized so you end up spending the same. For drinking is good, as you drink as much as you want. However, if you are planning to book for the only breakfast or the half board, bear in mind the food & drinks menu is very expensive. You have no other option but eat and drink in the resort as all of them are private islands with their own facilities. So bring some snacks with you on your first day. What we did was to book the first night the only breakfast included (bringing our own snacks) and for the next day the all inclusive package. Try to arrive early to the resort before the check in time so you can enjoy the facilities before going to your room. On the last day our flight was at 9pm so we did the check out and continued in the swimming pool until we left.
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