The Maldives are located in the Indian Ocean, one hour’s flight southwest of Sri Lanka and Southern India. The island realm extends 820 kilometres from north to south. Around 200 of the 1,190 islands are inhabited and all are located just above sea level. The Maldives have around 280,000 inhabitants, whereby approx. 80,000 live in the capital city of Male. The airport is located on the island called Hulule, which is just a few kilometres from the main island of Male.

The primarily Muslim population speaks Dhivehi, whereby the southern islands a have their own dialect. Temperatures are a constant 26 to 30 degrees. The year is divided into clearly recognisable seasons. The northeast monsoon lasts from December to April. This is peak season for tourism with little precipitation, shimmering blue skies and endless hours of sunshine. The southwest monsoon lasts from May to November, when it is almost always dry and sunny, although there are the occasional heavy clouds and showers (seldom long enough to ruin a holiday). When the monsoon winds turn the weather is rough and rainy for a couple weeks.

Male is the capital city of the Maldives and a population of approx. 80,000 live here. It is possible to visit all of the attractions on foot and marvel at the modern style of construction and the “mini skyscrapers and mini shopping centres” will surprise you. Male is reached via the jetty, where all small and larger ships dock. Larger ships anchor off of Male and cannot come directly into the harbour. Visitors are pleased at the opportunity to shop, as above all electronic equipment and clocks (primarily dive watches) are popular purchases.

There are nice cafés from which to view the goings on. The best address is the “Seagull Cafe” in the centre of Male where it is possible to enjoy delicious ice cream or simply have a coffee or nice snack.

Male is generally the last stop on a Maldivian trip and its shopping and sightseeing make it an ideal conclusion.