Male
This is the oldest mosque in the country, dating from 1656. It’s a beautiful structure made from coral stone into which intricate decoration and Quranic…
Must-see attractions in Maldives
Ari Atoll & Around
Dhigurah is a charming, clean and friendly local island with about 600 inhabitants and around ten guesthouses. It's a very long island, with an absolutely…
Male
Maldives' National Museum may be a ferociously ugly building gifted by China, but it nevertheless contains a well-labelled collection of historic…
Northern Atolls
This small palace – now a museum – was the childhood home of Maldivian national hero Mohammed Thakurufaanu, who, alongside his brothers, overthrew…
North Male Atoll
Thulusdhoo has traditionally been an industrious island, known for manufacturing of bodu beru (big drums), for its salted-fish warehouse and for its Coca…
China-Maldives Friendship Bridge
Male
This incredibly impressive piece of engineering connects Male to the airport island of Hulhule, but unlike most of the causeways connecting islands…
North Male Atoll
Himmafushi is famous for its main street selling some of the least expensive souvenirs in the country, such as carved rosewood manta rays, sharks and…
Male
Although the squeamish may well object to the buckets of entrails or the very public gutting of fish going on all around, the Fish Market should not be…
Southern Atolls
At the northwestern end of Fuvahmulah, the absolutely stunning Thoondu Beach is a wide band of dazzling white overlooked by swaying palms. It's famous in…
Eedhigali Kilhi & Kottey Protected Area
Addu Atoll
The lake at the far end of Hithadhoo is the biggest in the country and attracts varied birdlife to its shores. It has been incorporated into the Eedhigali…
Northern Atolls
The date of construction for this stone-and-wood mosque is unknown, although national hero Mohammed Thakurufaanu is known to have prayed here in his youth…
Ari Atoll & Around
This gorgeous island has become a backpacker favourite in recent years, with over a dozen hotels and guesthouses opening, direct speedboat connections to…
Male
A sweet little crescent sand beach has been crafted from the breakwater tetrapods here where locals can swim and enjoy a day on the beach. There’s a whole…
Northern Atolls
Hanimaadhoo has the atoll airport on it, and also has the best-developed guesthouse scene. It's an attractive and friendly island with some excellent…
Male
The golden dome of this impressive modern mosque dominates the skyline of Male and has become something of a symbol for the city. Opened in 1984 and built…
North Male Atoll
The island of Huraa is well used to tourists visiting from nearby resorts, but it retains its small-island feel. It is now home to several guesthouses,…
North & South Male Atolls
Guraidhoo enjoys good anchorage and is a busy port used by both fishing dhonis and passing safari boats. Sultans from Male sought refuge here during…
Southern Atolls
At the northeastern tip of the atoll, the interesting island of Isdhoo is home to a hawitta (ancient artificial mound). Buddha images have been found on…
North Male Atoll
Dhiffushi is an appealing inhabited island, with around 1000 inhabitants, three mosques and two schools. Mainly a fishing island, it has lots of greenery,…
Southern Atolls
This traditional, largely agricultural island is notable for its four ancient hawittas (Buddhist prayer mounds). Norwegian ethnographer Thor Heyerdahl…
Male
Muleeaage was built as a palace for the sultan in the early 20th century, though he was deposed before he could move in and the building was used for…
North & South Male Atolls
The island of Gulhi, north of Maafushi, is not large but is inhabited by around 900 people. Fishing is the main activity, and there’s also a small…
Male
The busy produce market gives you an enjoyable taste of Maldives – people from all over the country gather here to sell home-grown and imported vegetables…
Ari Atoll & Around
Maamigili is a large island that's home to around 2300 people. As well as boasting Ari Atoll's only airport, it's a busy fishing island with two harbours…
Male
Thilafushi is undoubtedly the controversial flip side of Maldives' paradisiacal image – a horror show of rubbish piled upon rubbish taking up almost all…
Southern Atolls
At 8km long, Gan – not to be confused with the other two Gans in the south – is the longest island in the country and one of the most interesting too,…
Southern Atolls
On the southern edge of the atoll, the capital island of Nilandhoo is home to the second-oldest mosque in the country, Aasaari Miskiiy, built during the…
Ari Atoll & Around
Mathiveri is a small island with a handful of guesthouses and a population of around 600 people. It has three beaches – one of which is now a bikini beach…
Male
Under one roof you'll find the National Library, various cultural centres from countries around the world and this exhibition space, which has temporary…
Southern Atolls
On Gadhdhoo (population 1500), women make superb examples of the mats known as thundu kunaa, which are woven from special reeds found on an adjacent…
Ari Atoll & Around
The capital of South Ari Atoll, Mahibadhoo has a population of just over 2000 people, and is a busy, workaday place with plenty of commerce, a fishing…
Addu Atoll
This simple memorial commemorates the British servicemen who served at the various incarnations of RAF Gan between 1941 and 1976. The site also includes…
Northern Atolls
This island houses the remnants of a hawitta (an ancient man-made mound) supposedly left by the fabled Redin, a people who figure in Maldivian folklore…
Male
This small island was used as the president’s holiday retreat during the Gayoom era and as such was a heavily fortified installation complete with bunkers…
Male
In the backstreets in the middle of town, in the grounds of a small mosque, is the tomb of Mohammed Thakurufaanu, Maldives’ national hero who liberated…
Male
Previously known as Sultan's Park and once part of the grounds of the now-demolished sultan’s palace, this former green lung of Male was redeveloped and…
Southern Atolls
In the south of Huvadhoo Atoll, only about 20km from the equator, the island of Vaadhoo has two hawittas (stone prayer mounds) and a mosque that dates…
Male
This small island may not look like much, but it's the vital fuel repository for Male and indeed much of the country.
