How To Holiday In Maldives With Only RM2,500 And Still Have An Awesome Time

Maldives is a magical place. Famous for its 'atolls' — a chain of islands formed of coral — pristine, crystal clear waters, it lives up to its reputation of being a place called 'paradise'.

"I wanna go to Maldives but it's too 'mahal' lah."
"Maldives looks like it's only for the rich. I can't afford to go there."
"Is it possible to experience Maldives with a small budget?"

If you've ever thought of Maldives that way, you're not alone. I was pretty doubtful too.

Har? Can meh?

It's not like you have to 'makan pasir' while having fun. The budget was inclusive of return flights from KL (thank you, AirAsia), accommodation for 4 days and 3 nights, transportation in Maldives, full-on 'makan sampai kenyang' meals (very important), sea excursions like snorkelling, dolphin watching and a sunset cruise, and some light shopping.

How? Let me give you the lowdown:

AirAsia flies DIRECTLY to Maldives from KL once a day. Our flight to Male cost us RM599 per pax for a return ticket. The price fluctuates according to seasons. Plan in advanced, or play around the dates during off-peak seasons from March to September.

Fancy resorts and floating water bungalows could cost you your spleen even for just one night. The cost varies according to hotels but some are around USD700 (RM2,999) per night during off-peak season! Yeah, USD700 isn't even considered 'expensive'. If you can afford these 'atas' places then this story is probably not for you, unless you want to save on everything else.

If you're like me, and you can't, you'd ask "What other options do I have?"

I would recommend going to Rasdhoo Island and checking-in at Holiday Garden Rasdhoo or Shallow Lagoon Rasdhoo. The staff here were amazingly friendly and their service is top-notch! They even entertained us with some traditional Maldivian performances on our last night - it was on the house, yaw!

The price for both guest houses is USD70 (RM299) per night during off-peak season, including breakfast.

But what about taking Insta pics in a super luxe bungalow? Well, maybe not when you're on a budget. Guest houses in Maldives are equipped with everything you need in a hotel. The one I stayed at was spacious, clean and comfortable, had a hot shower, speedy Wi-fi, free-flow of coffee and tea, privacy, packages for sea excursions, and more. It's really good enough lah.

Plus, you'll be closer to local Maldivian life. You'll get a glimpse of how the locals make a living by building boats, fishing, operating a small coffee shop, etc.

The public ferry costs only USD3 (RM13) per person, one-way, while the speedboat is USD40 (RM171) per person, one-way. If you really want to save, just take the public ferry instead of the speedboat because the RM158 margin is pretty huge.

What's the downside of taking the public ferry? It takes around 3 hours and 20 minutes to get to Rasdhoo Island. With speedboat, you can reach Rasdhoo Island from the airport jetty in only one hour.

So, choose wisely. Either you pay more to save time, or pay less to save money. But if you can "tahan" the bumpy sea ride for more than 3 hours, you'll be fine then.

There are two telcos to choose from namely Dhiraagu and Ooredoo.

So some of us bought the Dhiraagu plan and paid USD20 (RM86) because we believed the telco is more trusted and not ‘diragui’. Lol.

Although, if you don’t buy the SIM card, the free wifi provided by most guest houses is pretty dependable and fast.

As a country with 70% water and 30% land, you may be surprised to find out that the Internet connection in Maldives is very stable. At times, it even felt as if the coverage was better when compared to our Bolehland.

In terms of accommodation, there would not be a problem to go to Maldives as a couple as most guest houses use the twin-sharing format for their rooms. You can always split the bill into two.

However, expect to pay more, way more for excursions and activities as the figures could be double or triple for two persons. During our stay, we paid for the excursions based on the 8 pax package.

Therefore, instead of paying USD90 (RM385) per person to witness the lovely dolphins, we only paid USD45 (RM192) per person for the same thing. That's half the price!

Bear in mind that the peak season for Maldives is between October to February. During this period, travellers from all around the world will swoop into the islands, and all resorts and guest houses will be fully booked.

Other than that period, Maldives is a little more peaceful and less crowded. One of the perks that you may get when travelling during off-peak season is privacy and exclusivity. Believe it or not, we had the Sandbank Island exclusively to ourselves! It allowed us to indulge in some silly fun on the island.

In Maldives, you can choose to have lunch or dinner in any of the restaurants. But my recommendation to you is that you take up the full-board package from the guest house that includes lunch and dinner as well.

Although the price is a little higher compared to eating in a local 'kedai makan', you will experience Maldivian dishes at their finest, buffet-style.

The food is pretty simple, just some plain rice, sometimes noodle or Maggi, lots of tuna, some veggies and fruits, but they taste really good! Brace yourself because one plate is never enough. Burp.

As the world's largest producer and exporter of tuna, you can expect to be served with tuna all day, every day. They serve all kinds of tuna dishes there; fried tuna, grilled tuna, roasted tuna, this tuna, that tuna, everything tuna, you name it. They serve it.

Besides, you won't get bored with the dishes. They are well prepared by the resident chefs.

With the budget of RM2,500, a four-day trip to Maldives is more than enough.

It will allow you to not just experience the sea-life, but you can also get a taste of the way of life there. And if you use your time wisely, you can even interact around with locals.

While a four-day trip may sound too short, do keep in mind the budget you're going with.

While it's not that frequent, it does rain in Maldives during May to August.

In fact, it was raining during our Sandbank Excursion. And while it didn't last for long, it was enough for our Dolphin Excursion to be called-off which was quite the mood killer as we were forced to just stay at the guest house.

As a kind gesture from the staffs, we tried again the next morning but there were no sights of dolphins at all. You can only see them swimming and jumping happily in the evening.

1. Not many people know this, but Maldives is actually a 100% Muslim country. So, everything they serve is Halal guaranteed! Alcoholic drinks are available in private resorts only.

2. According to the locals, the sayings about Maldives will be completely submerged in 30 years time is NOT true. It's merely just a myth!

3. Everything is in USD. EVERYTHING! The official currency of the country is Maldivian Rufiyaa but the currency is not available in Malaysia's money changers. So, just use USD-lah.

4. While you can wear bikini in most of the beaches, do make sure to cover up when you're in public.

5. Maldivians speak good English, just like us.

Day 1:

1. AirAsia return flight: RM599 = USD140 (4.3 conversion rate)

2. Check-in at UI Hotel/Dream Relax Hotel: USD60 per night (including pick-up service from the airport)
PS: This is based on twin-sharing basis. Cost for one person would be USD30.

3. Light supper: USD5 per person

Total: 140 + 30 + 5 = USD175 (RM749)

Day 2:

1. Speedboat transfer to Rasdhoo Island: USD40 per person

2. Check-in at Holiday Garden Rasdhoo: USD70 per night (breakfast included)
PS: This is based on twin-sharing basis. Cost for one person would be USD35.

3. Lunch at Picnic Island: USD10 per person

4. Sandbank Island excursion: USD15 per person
PS: All excursions were based on the 8-pax package.

5. Dinner at guest house: USD15 per person

Total: 40 + 35 + 10 + 15 + 15 = USD115 (RM492)

Day 3:

1. Check-in at Shallow Lagoon Rasdhoo: USD70 per night (breakfast included)
PS: This is based on twin-sharing basis. Cost for one person would be USD35.

2. Snorkeling safari: USD42 per person

3. Lunch at guest house: USD10 per person

4. Dolphin watching and sunset cruise: USD55 per person

5. Dinner at guest house: USD15 per person

Total: 35 + 42 + 10 + 55 + 15 = USD157 (RM672)

Day 4:

1. Lunch at guest house: USD10 per person

2. Speedboat transfer to Male City: USD40 per person

3. Dinner at Citron Restaurant: USD20 per person

4. Public ferry to Velana International Airport: USD2 per person

Total: 10 + 40 + 20 + 2 = USD72 (RM308)

GRAND TOTAL:
= 749 + 492 + 672 + 308
= RM2,221 ONLY

That is all. Special thanks to all the sponsors; AirAsia, All H Maldives, and Maldives Getaways for this awesome experience. We had so much fun soaking in the Maldivian sun!