How Much Would It Cost For You To Holiday In The Maldives?

Tourism in general is relatively new to the Maldives. The first resort opened in 1973 and for thirty years, the only way to visit as a tourist was via these expensive island resorts.

Five years ago, however, the government changed its regulations to allow guesthouses to open on the local islands.

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I’ve never visited a country where independent travel is so new, and it certainly made planning a little tricky.

Searching for detailed information was just as tricky. Most of the islands had a paragraph on Wikipedia mentioning their size and population, and that was mostly it. I couldn’t find any travel blog posts, I couldn’t find any online travel guides. The best I could find were a few TripAdvisor reviews of guesthouses that briefly mentioned what the islands were like.

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The Maldives is an Islamic state operating under sharia law, and requires all of its citizens to be Muslim. Upon entering the country, you have to sign a declaration stating that you are not bringing into the country “materials deemed contrary to Islam including ‘idols for worship’ and bibles, pork and pork products, and alcohol.”

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Staying on a local island vs. a resort is not without its differences. For one, the Maldives is a Muslim country, therefore bikinis are a no-no on the local islands. This is not a huge deal as most of the excursions take place in the middle of the ocean or on bikini beaches where it’s perfectly fine to don a bikini.

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Go in the off season. Even though the weather stays good in the Maldives all year, it’s the increased traffic from more northern countries with cold winters that makes November to April the pricier season. Try booking at the beginning or end of that period or outside it all together.

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The only way to get to the Maldives is by flying to Malé, the capital. Now, this is usually quite expensive, especially if you fly from Europe or the Americas. On the other hand, if you’re in Asia, jumping to the Maldives will prove to be much cheaper, and in some cases, very very cheap.

There is also the option of using Airbnb, where you can find even cheaper options to stay not only in Hulhumale and Male, but also in several islands in the Maldives. Expect the typical budget price to not be under $25 [RM95] a night; but if you’re two, you can split that! If you’re going to islands that are far from Male Atoll, there is the possibility to find even cheaper accommodation.

In the Maldives, you can reach any inhabited island with a ferry, or a few ferries. They have a really good and reliable ferry system, and it is cheap. The ferry between Male and Hulhumale costs MVR 5.50 (about $0.36) [RM1.37] and takes only 20 minutes. The ferries to farther islands range from $3 to $20 [RM11 - RM76] each way and can take up to several hours. With the exception of prayer times, which happens five times a day, ferries are always running and mostly on schedule.

If you go for local food, which is mostly made out of seafood, you will have no trouble finding a local restaurant in the city. This is the cheapest option and a meal will cost you around MVR 50 (about $3.50) [RM13.30]. Other than grilled fish, typical Maldivian cuisine includes tuna with onion and lime juice, sweet and thick milk tea, and flat bread called roshi – similar to Indian roti.

If you’re not into seafood, like me, you can still find decent meals with curry, chicken, or other meats that will be just a few more dollars more expensive (ranging between $5 to $10) [RM19 - RM38].

If you want to experience the five-star luxury the Maldives is known for, you can take a day trip to the Anantara resort just 15 minutes away from Maafushi. Swimming in the turquoise lagoon around the overwater bungalows in Anantara Veli – one of the three islands that make up the resort – feels like being in giant but oh-so-pretty aquarium.

It may be a bit expensive at US$75 [RM285] for the boat ride and entrance fee plus a mandatory consumption of US$118 [RM449], but it seems worthwhile considering it costs around US$500 [RM1,901] a night to stay here.

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One advantage of doing it this way is that you get to see several picture-perfect island resorts for a fraction of the cost. These resort day trips typically last until 6pm, but during the low season resorts usually allow day-trippers to stay for dinner. And while these trips and excursions are likely to be offered by your guesthouse (see this list for example), you can shop around to compare rates or look for independent travel and tour shops that are more open to negotiations.

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