I always thought that you had to be super rich to take a trip to the Maldives, that it was something I would do for my honeymoon and that I would be paying it off for a while. I had no idea that you could visit the Maldives on a budget! Staying on a local island in a guesthouse enabled me to see how the locals there live and learn a lot more about the Maldives as a country, and made me see that there are so many things I didn’t know before! I’ll be telling you how you can keep costs low on your trip to the Maldives.
How to keep costs down? Stay on a local island
The local island I stayed on was called Omadhoo. The island was an hour and a half speedboat ride from Male Airport, costing $25 each way. It was a bumpy ride the day we went! Once settled into the guesthouse, I ran outside to the beach, and saw lots of little crabs running away from me! From here was the most stunning sunset. We stayed at Kirulhiya Guesthouse. It costs around 50 Dollars a night for a double room with breakfast.
What to do while staying on Omadhoo?
Take a trip to an Uninhabited Island
The Maldives is made up of over 1,000 islands, and some of these remain uninhabited. Taking a boat to an uninhabited island is an amazing day trip. Imagine having a tiny little island to yourself. Here you can do some amazing snorkelling, eat fresh fruit and swim!
Chill on a Sand Bank
One day we visited a sand bank in the middle of the sea! Be prepared, as you need to go when the tide is at the right level, or there may be no sand bank at all! Also in the Philippines there are certain months when the tide is naturally higher, so do some research before you go. We were here in July and the sand bank was incredible. The sand bank was also surrounded by corals, everywhere seems to be amazing for snorkelling in the Maldives!
Read more: What to do in Ella, Sri Lanka
Go Snorkelling with fish and reef sharks
One day we had a trip for just snorkelling, and we went out to a reef that was not attached to a specific island. We swam with small sharks, an eagle ray, and the entire cast of Finding Nemo! Unfortunately no manta ray, guess I’ll have to go back!
A bit of luxury at the end of your trip?
On our last day we decided to go and experience a luxury resort, since we were in the Maldives! We headed to Bandos resort, a 10minute speedboat ride from the airport, which is handy the day of your flight! We arrived to our villa on the beach, fully equipped with a Jacuzzi and outdoor bathroom and we felt totally spoiled! The food was divine and we had a fabulous time exploring this little island!
We were very glad we had spent the trip on a local island but it was lovely to have a bit of luxury and a drink!
Tips before you go
As the Maldives is a Muslim country, here are a few things to remember before you go!
There are designated beaches for bikinis
If you are staying on a local island, there will be a designated bikini beach. Make sure you are appropriately dressed while not on the bikini beach!
Pork and alcohol are illegal
Alcohol is served at resorts, but never pork, so make sure you are aware of this! There will be chicken sausages and beef bacon instead.
Make sure to go in the right season – this differs all over the Maldives
Check when monsoon season is in the place you are going to as it differs throughout the Maldives, although we were lucky and only had two cloudy days anyway!
Which currency to use?
You can use dollars while in the Maldives, but change will be issued in Maldivian currency.
Take mosquito spray!
Be sure to buy lots of mosquito repellent! We found it hard to sunbathe in the afternoon after our trips as we were constantly attacked by mosquitos!
There are also plenty of palm trees to climb!
Read more: A guide to North Bali and the best Bali waterfalls
Thank you Kirulhiya Guesthouse for having us on Omadhoo Island!
I hope you enjoyed my post on how to take a trip to the Maldives on a budget, and also how to treat yourself at the end!
Pin this post on How to visit the Maldives on a budget for later?
Piekne zdjęcia, ciekawe komentarze, urocze miejsca. Duże gratulacje. Jaka szkoda, że nie można tam być.
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Wymarzone miejsce. A zdjecia przecudne. I taki spokoj 💛💛💗
Tak naprawdę pięknie tam jest!!
I know you are in Bali now but it is nice to read previous gems. It is a gem… The info and stunning photos 💕💕💕
I would love to go back here!
Beautiful place. Great blog. I need to go there onthe budget 😀
Yes definitely! And two nights of luxury if you want to spoil yourself at the end!
The uninhabited islands and the beach looks STUNNING! Palm trees and sea – just a dream.
Merci beautiful 🎋🎋💛☀️
It is so dreamy!
Beautiful place! Beautiful swimsuit!
Your tips are great. I wouldn’t have known it about the Maldives 👏👏👏
Thank you!! Yes a lot of people don’t know what the real Maldives is like! The non-tourist Maldives!
Lovely written travelogue and very useful too! Added to my bucket list!
Thank you! I hope to go back one day too!
Where was the hammock picture taken? What island?
Bandos Island 🙂 luxury but affordable for a few days for sure!
🙂 Thanks for the tip! 🙂
Our New Year’s Resolution is to go somewhere exciting like the Maldives ! So interesting about the sand banks and where to go to keep costs down. Fantastic photos 😀
Hope you get to go!
Missing holidays and sandy beach.
Your photos are unreal. Gorgeous!
Thank you!
And I really enjoyed your post!