Minutes after your arrival at the airport you will be ferried by a “dhoni”
to your vessel ready to take you on an island cruise. Most of these cruise
liners are moored in the Farukolhufushi Lagoon, about ten minutes from the
airport island. The cruises generally follow a set itinerary, however, if
you are on a chartered cruise you enjoy the freedom of selecting your own
route, pre-arrange the atolls you want to visit and set the detailed
itinerary with the Captain. But sea travel is often dependent on the weather
conditions. Persistence of rough weather will take the itinerary to the
discretion of the Captain.
As you cruise along the island form atoll to atoll you will be fascinated
by the sight of schools of dolphins playing around your vessel or hundreds
of flying fish taking flight as you pass by.
Popular Cruise Destinations
The most popular destination of the island cruisers are located in and
around North Male’ Atoll. With 27 resorts in the atoll, it is the hub
of the tourism industry. A majority of the resorts are clustered around Male’,
the capital, and Hulule, the airport island. The atoll has more than 50
islands out of which only seven are inhabited.
Cruise features
As a part of the cruise you may visit the local villages which would give
you a deep insight into the lifestyle of the Maldivian people. Beach
barbecues and dinners around bonfires under the starry sky of the night, in
the uninhabited islands will remain etched on your memory.
Divers have an exciting time during the cruise. On the southeastern side of
the atoll, close to Paradise Island Resort is the famous ‘Manta Point’.
An easy dive will give you fantastic sights of the school of young mantas,
that has made this site famous.
In the evening the cruise generally takes you to a nearby island resort
where you can enjoy a drink or dance to live music or else the cultural
programmes.
