Must-see attractions in Maldives

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…

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…

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…

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…

Thilafushi is undoubtedly the controversial flip side of Maldives' paradisiacal image – a horror show of rubbish piled upon rubbish taking up almost all…

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,…

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…

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…

Under one roof you'll find the National Library, various cultural centres from countries around the world and this exhibition space, which has temporary…

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…

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…

This simple memorial commemorates the British servicemen who served at the various incarnations of RAF Gan between 1941 and 1976. The site also includes…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

This small island may not look like much, but it's the vital fuel repository for Male and indeed much of the country.