Malé is the capital of Maldives. Malé International Airport / Velana International (MLE), is the gateway to Maldives. The airport located on Huhule Island in the North Male Atoll.

Airlines like Silkair, Singapore Airlines and Airasia fly direct to Malé International Airport. Scoot no longer flies to Malé as of Oct 2019. 

To get to Malé from Huhule Island, you can take a 16-minute car ride. There is a new bridge that connects the airport to Malé, making it very convenient. Alternatively, you can take a 10-min ferry ride. 

From Malé, you can transfer to your resort island, either by ferry, speedboat or sea plane. 

Please note that seaplane transfers to resorts are expensive and are usually not included in the resort room rate. Hence, do check the rates before you book your stay. While there are a few seaplane operators, Trans-Maldivian Airways is the largest. 

If you’re staying at one resort, 5 days is sufficient. But I’d say one week is perfect for a relaxing vacation. 

Cater more time if you are into specific activities like fishing, deep sea diving or resort-hopping (I will share more about resort-hopping later!).

If you plan to stay at more than one resort, do cater an extra few days. That being said, if you plan to visit more than one resort, make sure they are located decently near to each other, otherwise transfer will be tedious and expensive. 

There are two ways to enjoy Maldives, depending on your budget and activities. You can splurge to stay at a private resort island and indulge in their offerings, or stay on a local island and explore the areas around it. Both ways are equally fun in their own way. We have been to Maldives 3 times, and experienced both types. 

If it is your honeymoon, I would suggest splurging a bit more to stay at a private resort island. After all, that is what Maldives is well-known for – luxury accommodation, full-board packages and personalised service. Most resorts will offer various types of accommodation, such as beach villas and overwater bungalows iconic to Maldives. On our latest visit, we stayed at Sun Siyam Iru Fushi in one of their Sunset Horizon Water Villas. The atmosphere was private, making it very ideal for an intimate vacation. This is a more relaxing and indulgent type of vacation, though you can also sign up for excursions via the resort. 

The alternative way of experiencing Maldives can be done on a budget. You can opt to stay on one of their local islands (I suggest Maafushi at Kaafu Atoll) and book a room at one of the hotels. The experience will be vastly different from that of a private resort island (no butler service for sure), but you can find decent rooms at decent prices. Maafushi is increasingly catering to tourism, so you will find many tour vendors offering excursions such as fishing trips, dolphin cruises and island hopping. Water-sports are also aplenty here. At Maafushi, you can also do resort-hopping – a day excursion to visit a resort and spend the day there. It costs about ~$150 – $200 depending on the resort and how many sign up and usually includes a meal. It’s a cheaper way to experience 5-star resorts. 

Many put off visiting the Maldives thinking that it is insanely expensive to get to. While this might be true, there are increasingly more ways of visiting Maldives on a budget. It’s possible to budget $300/day or $1,000 a day in Maldives. 

1. Flights: You can find flights from ~$300 – $500 per person during low season. This will double during high season. 

2. Accommodation: This depends on the type of place you book. 

• – Budget hotels average ~$150 – $200 per night. Guesthouses are cheaper at~$70 – $100.
• – Midrange resorts start from $300 – $500 per night.
• – At the top-end, 5 or 6 star luxury resorts will start from $700 onwards.

3. Transport: This depends on the type of transfer you need and where you are going.

For speedboats within the Male atoll, a return journey is ~$90 per person. For transfer to other atolls will cost about $150+ return per person.

Seaplane transfers usually range ~$300 – $500 return per person. 

A cheaper alternative to local islands would be to take the public ferry. It is only US$2 one-way but you are restricted to the ferry schedule and the duration will be much longer as compared to speedboat. It takes about 90 minutes from Male (Villingili Ferry Terminal) to Maafushi. You can see ferry routes and timings here. I took this route my first time, and would highly encourage you to take the speedboat instead to save time. 

Taxis in Male are ~US$5 per trip. 

4. Food & Drink: If you are staying at a private resort, it is likely you will take up their half-board, full-board or all-inclusive package. 

Menu prices at mid-range resorts range from $30 onwards for a ala-carte dish and drinks about $10. A beer will cost about $8 and cocktails can be between $12 – $20. Considering that you are stuck on the island, I would suggest going full or all inclusive (includes alcohol).

If you are staying on a local island, you can budget ~$50/day for food & drink. 

5. Activities: Activities on local islands are cheaper, and you can get them under $100. Budget to pay double or triple at resorts. 

The flght duration for Singapore to Maldives is 4 hours 35 minutes. 

You land at Malé International Airport on Huhule Island. It takes about 15 minutes to drive to the capital Malé, where then you need to accommodate your transfer duration to your resort or local island. 

The main mode of transport around In Malé is via taxi. Trips are standard at US$5. 

It’s not easy to travel around Maldives, meaning island to island. You will have to take speed boat or sea plane. The public ferry is another option, though you are subjected to the schedule timing and there are limited ferries each day. 

Apart from beautiful beaches and panoramic sea views, here are some things to expect. 

Language: Maldives’s official language is Maldivian/Dhivehi. The country has several dilects (Mulaku, Huvadhu, Maliku and Addu). As Maldives is booming in tourism, most people in the tourist industry are able to speak English. 

Currency: Maldivian rufiyaa (MVR) is the local currency, though USD is widely accepted. As of time of writing, SGD 1 = MVR 11

Payment: Visa or Mastercard credit or debit cards are widely accepted in resorts. However on local islands, please use either USD or local currency. 

Plugs: Some plugs in Maldives are different from Singapore. They are type D and G. Singapore is type G.

But the voltage and frequency are same as Singapore at 230 V and 50Hz. 

Safety: Maldives is generally safe. On private resort islands, you can expect it to be even safer. That being said, always practice common sense when traveling. 

Local culture: Maldives is an Islamic country, so be respectful of their customs. On local islands, you are not allowed to drink, and make sure to dress conservatively Bikinis are fine in resort areas, but nude or topless sunbathing is not allowed even on resorts.