Maldives

* A holiday in Paradise, some of the best scuba diving in the world, surfing, cruising, fishing or honeymooning, there is no place like the Maldives.


* One of the least spoilt areas found in the world today, the Maldives contains some of the best kept secrets of the Indian Ocean within the depths of its vast blue sea. Psychedelic reef formations surround the islands where lush tropical vegetation provide soothing shade from the sun. The beaches are inviting in their white, sandy softness, and the lagoons stretch for seemingly endless crystal-clear miles.
202 of the islands are inhabited, 75 have been developed as exclusive island resorts, and the rest lie in sublime beauty, waiting to be discovered. Whether exploring the islands, snorkelling the reefs, diving the waters or cruising the sea, time spent in the Maldives is invariably committed to memory as unforgettable and incomparable moments of pure pleasure - both to the senses and the soul.


* The islands are very small and low-lying with many being no more than two meters above sea level. Common features are tall coconut palms, white sandy beaches and crystal clear lagoons. There are no hills, mountains or rivers in the Maldives. The protective coral reef surrounding every island is a submerged underwater garden which is home to hundreds of species of multi-coloured tropical fish and countless shapes and sizes of coral and shells.


* Seenu (Addu Atoll)
This is the `second city' of the Maldives, and the resort here is the best base from which to visit traditional Maldivian island communities. The Addu people are fiercely independent, speak differently from folk in the capital and at one time even tried to secede from the republic.


* Fuamulaku
This is a solitary island in the middle of the Equatorial Channel, it is something of an anomaly in the Maldives. It is exceptionally fertile, producing fruits and vegetables not grown elsewhere in the country, like mangoes, oranges and pineapples. The people are said to be bigger and healthier and to live longer than other islanders.


* Kudahuvadhoo
In South Nilandhoo Atoll, the island of Kudahuvadhoo has one of the mysterious mounds known as hawittas. They are probably the ruins of Buddhist temples, but have not been thoroughly investigated by archaeologists. Thor Heyerdahl explored the island, and commented that its old mosque had some of the finest masonry he had ever seen, surpassing even the famous Inca wall in Cuzco, Peru. He was amazed to find such a masterpiece of stone-shaping art on such an isolated island, though it had a reputation in the Islamic world for finely carved tombstones.


* Baa Atoll
Baa Atoll is famous for its handcrafts, which include lacquer work and finely woven cotton felis (traditional sarongs). The small, isolated atoll of Goidhoo has been a place for castaways and exiles. The French explorer Francois Pyrard, found himself here in 1602 after his ship, the Corbin, was wrecked.

* The Maldives is warm all year round with strong monsoon winds and rain from May to October and milder monsoon rains from November to April.
Maximum temperature 30.4 Celsius/86.7 Fahrenheit
Minimum temperature 25.4 Celsius/77.6 Fahrenheit
f you're looking for a few extra hours of sunshine then you should visit the Maldives between December and April, which is the dry season. This is the high season, however, and resorts can be fully booked and prices are higher than the rest of the year. The Christmas-New Year period is the busiest and most expensive part of the high season. Between May and November it's still warm, but the skies can be
cloudy, humidity is higher and rain is more likely. This is the low season, and there are fewer tourists and prices are lower. The transition months of November and April are said to be associated with increased water clarity and better visibility for divers.