The Maldives bucket list
Twelve things worth doing while you are here. Tick off the ones you want — your list is saved on this device, so it is still here when you come back.
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Watch a Maldives sunset from the water
The light here goes from white to gold to pink in about twenty minutes, and it looks different from a boat than it does from a beach.
Try traditional reef fishing
No rods. A handline, bait and patience, the way it has been done here for generations.
Eat a fresh-catch BBQ on the water
Fish you caught yourself, grilled on the boat, eaten before the light goes.
Swim with nurse sharks
Nurse sharks circling in clear shallow water, close enough to see every marking. Watch, never touch.
Snorkel a tropical coral reef
Reef fish in numbers, with turtles and reef sharks possible. Wild animals, so nothing is promised.
Stand on a white-sand sandbank
A strip of sand in open ocean that the tide will cover again by evening.
See wild dolphins
Pods move through these waters in the late afternoon. They are wild, so a sighting is luck, not a schedule.
Spend a day on a private resort island
Beach, pool and lunch on a resort island, home the same evening.
Explore Malé’s culture and markets
Coral-stone mosques, the fish market at landing time, and streets that run the whole country.
Find local-island life in Vilimalé
A ferry ride from the capital and almost no cars. Sandy lanes and a public beach.
Walk Maafushi Bikini Beach
The island that opened the Maldives to independent travellers, with the beach to match.
See modern Hulhumalé and its reclaimed expansion
A city raised out of the lagoon — Phase 1 settled and green, Phase 2 still going up.