The Maledives: Tropical Paradise

Upon landing in Male, you can get to the resorts and inhabited islands by speedboat, seaplane or local air. It always depends on the distance of the atoll from the airport. You can stay in "water" villas or in a beach bungalow. As a Muslim country, they have relatively strict rules on what can be imported. Symbols of foreign religions (except Judaism and Christianity), alcohol, drugs, weapons, material with an erotic undertone are prohibited. No vaccinations or visas are required to visit. The Maldives is an independent state, 90% of whose territory is water and only 10% its mainland, with the largest island measuring about 8 km in length. The Maldives consists of over 1,190 coral islands, but only 200 of them are inhabited. The smallest inhabited island is only 80 meters long and 40 meters wide. The highest point of the Maldives is just 2.5 meters above sea level, making it the country with the lowest average altitude in the world.

Coral reefs with rich underwater life are the main reason why tourists come here. Whether you discover nooks in warm lagoons or on the edge of a reef, where a coral reef sinks into deep blue, you will encounter a plethora of colorful fish, small sharks, stingrays and turtles. You can see over 700 different species of fish in Maldivian waters. You can admire beautiful corals of various shapes, colors and sizes. A unique underwater restaurant was built in the Maldives in 2005. At Conrad Maldives Rangali Island you can dine while sea fish swim over you. There are more similar restaurants in the Maldives, but dinner will cost you twenty thousand crowns. The first underwater spa was built at the Huvafen Fushi resort in the Maldives. You can be pampered surrounded by a colorful sea world.

The Maldivian islands are washed by the beautiful turquoise sea, which you will not find anywhere else in the world. The sun's rays, fine white sand, coconut palms, colorfully flowering and beautifully scented shrubs and the underwater world brimming with life are the ingredients that are the reason for their long-term popularity.

GPS: 4°11'20.3"N 73°31'41.5"E

Text and photos: Veronika Kocmanová