ISLAND HOPPING IN THE MALDIVES- 11 DAYS DIY ITINERARY

Fly into Malé International Airport. Depending on your flight timing, you might have to spend a night in Malé to catch the connecting ferry/speedboat to Fulhidhoo the next day. From the airport take a ferry to Malé city, which takes not more than 10 minutes and costs only MVR 10 or $1. There are regular ferries every 15 min and the last one is at 2 am. From the ferry terminal in Malé take a cab $2-3 to your hotel/guest house or anywhere on the island for the same fare. I spent the first night at Local Escape Boutique that cost me $90, including breakfast and a tiny plunge pool on the rooftop. With the current political unrest, I chose safety over saving money, but there are many low-cost accommodations as well. Although there isn't much to explore in Malé you could spend the evening visiting the national museum and get a feel of one of the busiest and tiniest island capitals in the world.

Take the 10 am public-ferry from Villingili ferry terminal in Malé to Fulhidhoo (Vaavu Atoll). It takes 3.5 hours and cost $3.5. The ferry operates three times a week - on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays and is quite comfortable. Alternatively, you could take the public speedboat to Fulhidhoo, which operates every day at 11 am except Fridays, from Villingili ferry terminal. It cost $40 for a one-way ticket, takes 1.5 hours to reach and should be booked in advance. I chose to take the public ferry as it made a difference of only an hour and it was a lot cheaper. I definitely recommend this option.

Once you reach Fulidhoo at around 1.30 pm, respective guesthouse staff members will welcome you at the jetty and take you their property. I stayed at Thundi Guesthouse , which was very clean and had great service. I booked this property as part of an accommodation and dive package with Fulidhoo Dive. I chose the 'half board' package where breakfast and dinner are included as this gave me some flexibility to explore other options on the island. You could opt for the full board package too, where all meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) are included.

You can walk all around the island in less than half an hour, it's that small! Head to the designated bikini beach and soak in all the blues your eyes can take. Since I was there primarily to dive, I headed straight to the dive shop to prepare for my dives that were to begin the next morning. Don't forget to watch the sunset on the beach with the locals!

Today I went out for 3 dives. To 'Thola Bardi' in the morning, 'Mujaru Khandu' in the evening and back to 'Alimataa' for the night dive! I highly recommend this one to everyone going to dive in the Vaavu Atoll. It was simply magical. It was my last day of diving making it a total of 8 dives in 3 days but I definitely was craving for more.

DAY 6

This day will be spent in transit from Fulidhoo (Vaavu Atoll) to Thulusdhoo (Kaafu Atoll) via Malé. The public ferry departs from Fulidhoo on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays at 11 am reaching Malé (Villingili ferry terminal) around 2.30 pm and cost only $3.5. The public speedboat departs at 2.10 pm, reaches Malé (Villingili ferry terminal) at 3.30 pm and costs $40 one-way.

From Malé (Villingili ferry terminal) to Thulusdhoo the public ferry is at 2.30 pm on all days except Fridays and Mondays. It takes 2 hrs 15 min to reach and costs only $1.5. Taking the public ferries worked out beautifully in my case. I got off one ferry and jumped onto the next. At around 4.30 I was in Thulusdhoo and checked into my hotel. I stayed at Seasons Paradise but do not recommend it at all. I highly recommend staying at either Samura Maldives Guest House or Canopus Retreats. I visited both for a meal and they both had more character and greater value for money.

Thulusdhoo is known to be a surfer's paradise with all those amazing swells in the area. Spend the day surfing or learning how to surf. There are plenty of beach activities available like snorkelling, SUP, Kayaking, Jetskiing, banana boat ride, or scuba diving as well. These activities cost anywhere between $10-$100. Since alcohol isn't permitted on the local island, there is a 'floating bar' just off the island and a 10 min boat ride can get you there for $10 per person for a return journey. I watched the sunset from the floating bar.

Visit a 'sandbank' (a piece of land surrounded by the ocean on all sides and submerges or appears depending on the tide). This trip costs $100 a boat but can be shared with other tourists willing to go the same time as you. I had 3 people on my boat and we paid $25 each. We left at 9.30 am and came back by lunch at 1.00 pm. If you're lucky you can have the whole sandbank to yourself. Ours was the first boat there but soon there were at least 10 other boats that came from all the neighbouring islands. Carry your snorkel masks and fins. The reef around was really rich and healthy with lots of colourful fish. On our way back we also saw a big pod of dolphins swimming alongside our boat. My day was made! Spend the evening sun tanning on the bikini beach or take on an activity. I really enjoyed SUP on the beach. The board and paddle rental cost $10 for 2 hours, same for kayaks. I suggest not to go to your hotel for water sports and excursions as they will be a lot more expensive. Shop around at the beach front and you will find the best deals. Grab dinner at 'Contagious Pizzas'. I loved the freshly baked veggie pizza and the bruschetta made by the American couple running this place.They are open only for dinner and remain closed on Sunday and Monday.

Take the 7.30 am ferry and transfer to Hurra (Kaafu Atoll), a neighbouring island. The journey takes about 20 min and costs $1. I checked into The Sunrise Huraa, which was a cozy 4 room guest house that had the best service I've ever experienced for $60 a night (breakfast included). Spend the morning exploring this big but not so commercial island. The vibe was very relaxed and had a lot fewer tourists as compared to Thulusdhoo. I decided to do two more dives that afternoon to get a taste of what the Kaafu Atoll had to offer and I was amazed. I dove with Albatros Top Diving, who have their dive shop in Pearl Sand of Maldives. I highly recommend you to stay here, unfortunately, they were sold out on my dates.

Spend the whole day from 10 am to 5 pm at the Club Med Kani, a resort island just across Hurra island. The day pass cost $110 plus a $10 transfer fee from Hurra and back. I booked it through the Sunrise Huraa guest house, who gave me the best rate as compared to $140 if I had booked it from Pearl Sand. Shop around, you might get it cheaper too depending on the season. This is a great way to experience a Resort island in the Maldives, especially if spending $1000 a night is not practical for you.