What comes to your mind when you think of the Maldives? Local Markets, shops, roads, motorbikes and cars, or people who rush to work? Or simply ocean, sand, sun?
Although the country is known as a holiday destination, there is of course local people and daily life going on.
For most people, Maldives is a honeymoon destination that where people go directly to the resort hotels from the airport and then return.
It's actually very normal to think this way. However, if you can save 1-2 days, or at least a few hours at the beginning or end of your holiday, you can also get some insight into the daily life of the country.
Islamic Rules
First of all, it's of great importance to start by saying that the Maldives is an Islamic country and the rules here are very strict. Actually, the country should be considered in two parts: Islands with hotels used for tourism purposes and islands where Maldivian citizens reside. There are no restrictions on the first. However, Islamic rules prevail on the islands where there's local life. For example, drinking alcohol is strictly prohibited. As you cannot buy or consume from anywhere, it is also forbidden to import alcohol into the country. Your luggage will be x-rayed at the airport. If there are alcohol, pork, any pornographic product, or symbols belonging to a religion other than Islam, they are confiscated in the entrance but you can retrieve them on your return.
As you can imagine, there is no such thing as night life on the local islands. You can only eat in restaurants, chill in a cafe, have a drink and chat. In addition, women are not allowed to swim in the ocean in a bikini on the local islands. However, they can swim fully clothed. Friday is a public holiday in the country. It is also partly a holiday for some places on Saturday. Everywhere is closed on Fridays and you won't see too many people on the street. On other days, some shops close for a few hours at noon due to high temperatures. Similarly, most of the small tradesmen go to mosques during prayer times.
Maldives Capital, Male
Male is the center of everything for Maldives. The airport located here connects the country to the world and is also a transit point for many islands in the Maldives to reach the hotel. The capital city Male is also the political and economic center of the country. All the tourism agency centers are located here.
The country is largely foreign-dependent as it cannot produce much. It trades the most with Sri Lanka and India. All the products enter the country from Male. Transactions take place here and the goods are distributed to other islands.
If you open your eyes on the street somewhere in the center of Male, you wouldn't even think that you are on a small island in the middle of the Indian Ocean.Relatively high concrete structures, congested roads, heavy traffic, noise, crowded...
The only reason for this is the lack of space. It is not easy to find a taxi in busy places in Male because the supply does not meet the demand. One of the best things about traveling by taxi is that the price, as it's fixed wherever you go. You are in an island, after all, it's obvious where you could potentially go. The fixed price is 15 rufiya (about 2 Turkish Liras, 0.13 USD). If you have luggage, they can charge 10-15 rubles extra.
Maldives Islands
The capital island of Male is not enough for the Maldives. For this reason, in recent years, the Hulhumale region, which is the continuation of the airport that is in the form of a separate island right next to the island, has been developed as an artificial island. Thus, people were provided with a more comfortable living space. Transportation between the two islands is very easy thanks to the boats that take about 10-15 minutes. In addition, Vilingili Island, right next to Male, is a cute, small and extremely calm local island.
If you are thinking of experiencing the local life for a few days and a trip to resort hotels after, it would be reasonable to choose the islands that aren't far from Male. Adaaran Prestige Vadoo and Adaaran Club Ranalhi are places you can reach with a 20-30 minute speedboat ride from Male. If you are already staying at the hotel, the hotel will pick you up by boat and drop you back again.
Past-Future
What comes to your mind when you think of the Maldives? Bazaar markets, shops, roads, motors, cars, people who go to work? Or is it simply ocean, sand, sun?Although the country is known as a holiday destination, there is of course local people and daily life going on
For most people, Maldives is a honeymoon destination that where people go directly to the resort hotels from the airport and then return. This is actually very natural and normal. However, if you can save 1-2 days, or at least a few hours at the beginning or end of your holiday, you can also get some insight into the daily life of the country.
Events such as the separation of continents, the unification, and the shaping of the earth always sound like tales that take place over millions of years. In the Maldives, some serious islands are disappearing due to global warming and the country could disappear in the near future. We talked more about this in the Maldives Travel Guide.
Cost-effective Maldives - Backpacking Travel. Let's get into the topic directly. Backpacking in the Maldives is not easy. There is no established infrastructure for it and the country does not lean towards to it in terms of tourism strategy. Country's target audience is mostly top-class luxury tourism.
But nothing is impossible for a backpacker traveler. If you want to plan your trip yourself, you must first reach the Maldives. Turkish Airlines' direct flights to the Maldives is the most practical choice. When you step into the airport, you are now on your own, standing out from the crowd that is greeted by hotel staff.
You can stay in guesthouses in the capital Male and several other local islands. These are usually a kind of hostel where people open their own houses to the guests. You can also find double rooms in mid-range hotels starting from $ 50. For inter-island transportation, you can travel with scheduled boats called 'vedi' used by local people. You can shop at the local markets and dine at local restaurants. Also, if you are interested in diving, you can arrange your own diving tour from local agencies.
To do all this, you will need to put more effort and planning than any other destination. Lastly, the prices for two-person accommodation in resort hotels in the 'Economical' category start at roughly $ 100-200 in low season.
For more detailed information about the Maldives Travel Guide, you can go through our content.
06 January, 00:01
