South Malé Atoll is recognized as one of the best places in the Maldives for budget travelers. This atoll is not as noisy and crowded as North Malé, yet it offers the same stunning diving and comfortable beaches. If you want to learn more about South Malé, read on.
General Information about South Malé Atoll
South Malé is an atoll in the Maldives, conveniently located near the international airport. It is separated from North Malé Atoll by the Vaadhoo Kandu channel, which is 4.5 km wide.
The dimensions of South Malé Atoll are 19 x 36 km, and it comprises 30 islands. Only 3 of them are used for permanent residence, 10 are completely uninhabited. The remaining 17 are resort islands with hotels for tourists.
The administrative center of the atoll is located on the island of Maafushi.
Popular Resorts and Hotels in South Malé
All the resorts of South Malé are located on the islands around the edge of the atoll, on its northern, southeastern, and southwestern sides. South Malé Atoll offers a wide range of hotels to suit different budgets.
Maafushi Island
Maafushi has over 20 hotels, and their number is steadily growing. Most are budget options, but there are also 4-star hotels with high levels of service. The most popular hotel is Kaani Beach Hotel.
Kaani and White Shell are beaches for foreigners where women can wear bikinis. On other public beaches, such swimwear is prohibited.
Anantara Dhigu Maldives Resort
By Maldivian standards, this 5-star beach hotel can be considered unique as it occupies several small islands. There is a shallow lagoon between them, which is almost always calm. Luxury is omnipresent, which, although pleasant, does not allow for full enjoyment of the natural atmosphere of the Maldives. The complex includes 3 hotels owned by the same company.
Anantara Maldives Resort offers rooms in luxurious villas of two types – those standing on the sand and those over water. The cost of a double room in the high season ranges from $1800 to $4600 per night. The best beaches in the Maldives are there, with opportunities for snorkeling, deep-sea fishing, and surfing. The hotel has 3 restaurants with good cuisine but unreasonably high prices.
Anantara Veli Maldives Hotel features 67 luxurious overwater bungalows with the same prices as the previous hotel. The beach is slightly worse, but there are excellent conditions for diving and free diving, and tennis courts are open. As for the restaurants, as in the previous case, the cuisine is excellent but overpriced.
Naladhu Maldives Hotel is the most luxurious, with double rooms in peak season starting from $3000 per night. The quality of the beach and restaurant prices are similar to the previous two.
Taj Exotica Island Resort
Taj Exotica Resort is the Maldives from the advertisement brochure. Even though it is very close to the Maldives International Airport and planes regularly fly overhead.
The eastern shore of Taj Exotica has been reinforced with stones in recent years to prevent erosion. But the beaches on the western coast remain sandy. There is no house reef, so snorkeling is weak.
The exclusive 5-star Taj Exotica Resort & Spa guarantees the highest level of service. The minimum cost of a double room in the high season is $1280 per night, and for the most demanding tourists, there are rooms for $6400. Guests are welcomed with luxurious villas with terraces and balconies, large landscape pools with lagoon views, tropical showers, a fitness center, and the Jiva Grande Spa. In the two restaurants – 24 Degrees and Deep End – exquisite international cuisine is served. Fans of active recreation can go diving, fishing, and windsurfing.
Holiday Inn Kandooma Island Resort
The beach is very beautiful, but due to its proximity to the inhabited island of Guraidhoo, the view is not very impressive. On the opposite side of Holiday Inn Kandooma, the shore is rocky and not suitable for swimming. Snorkeling is not impressive either.
There is a fairly comfortable 4-star Holiday Inn Resort Kandooma with optimal prices for the Maldives.
Velassaru Island Resort
Overall, the 5-star Velassaru Maldives Opens resort can be considered a tropical paradise. Comfortable bungalows, a fitness center, a tennis court, an infinity pool with ocean views – and all this not far from the international airport.
However, it is worth mentioning the minor drawbacks of Velassaru. The shores have relatively little vegetation, and therefore, little natural shade. Moreover, from Velassaru you can see the Male landfill, and occasionally there is a smell of burning from there.
All the overwater bungalows are inexplicably located on the reef side, not the lagoon side. Therefore, it is better to choose land houses on the northeast side of Velassaru – each of them has access to a personal beautiful beach.
Prices for rooms on popular dates are $1000 and above.
Crossroads Maldives Complex and Hard Rock Hotel Maldives
A few years ago, the Crossroads Maldives resort appeared in the Maldives. It was created on 3 artificial islands connected by pedestrian bridges.
Two of them house resort areas with Hard Rock Hotel Maldives and SAii Lagoon Maldives. Another island, The Marina, is a full-fledged entertainment center with a yacht marina, promenades, squares, a museum, a SPA complex, restaurants, and a variety of shops.
Hard Rock Hotel Maldives – the name of the hotel itself suggests that its guests can fully immerse themselves in the rock atmosphere. This specific focus is evident in everything – from the corresponding pattern on the bedding to the exhibits in the Sessions restaurant. In the evenings, vocalists perform popular hits of favorite rock idols live on the restaurant’s platform. For those who like to eat in the Hard Rock Maldives restaurant, there is access to a buffet throughout the day, and delicious dishes are also offered in Pan Latin American. The hotel is comfortable for everyone: active youth, hard rock fans, families with children. Themed music clubs are open for children and teenagers. Room prices start from $1000 per night.
Embudu Lagoon, where the Crossroads Maldives resort is located, is close to Malé International Airport – the boat ride takes just 15 minutes. This is a huge advantage for those who are tired of additional domestic flights. However, this location also has a drawback: the underwater world around Malé is not as rich as on the distant islands of the atoll. Although, to somehow improve this situation, healthy corals were planted in the lagoon, and colorful fish have already settled there. This is a great chance to teach children snorkeling.
Como Cocoa Island
The hotel on this small South Malé resort consists of overwater bungalows. On the eastern side, there is a beautiful sandy spit, and near the shore is a reef with good snorkeling.
Olhuveli Island
Rooms at the 4-star Olhuveli Beach and Spa Resort are not the newest, but the price-quality ratio is quite fair: even in the high season, the minimum prices are $380. Nearby there is an uninhabited island and a reef with good diving.
Bolifushi Island
The luxurious Ozen Reserve Bolifushi hotel is notable for each bungalow having its own beach area. The inconvenience is that Bolifushi is located on the edge of South Malé Atoll and has an elongated shape, resulting in strong currents during tides. Snorkeling is excellent, but you need to be very careful, otherwise, the currents can carry you into the open ocean.
Biyadhoo Island
This South Malé Atoll resort has a good beach, where tourists from Maafushi come for day trips. The only hotel, Biyadhoo Island Resort, has fairly high prices for the Maldives.
Fihalhohi Island
The only hotel, Fihalhohi Island Resort, is too expensive. For this reason, the resort is mainly popular as a place for a day tour from Maafushi.
Adaaran Prestige Vadoo Island
Adaaran Prestige Vadoo is one of the closest to the airport in South Malé Atoll. The beaches are sandy with a rocky seabed, but snorkeling is excellent. From the beaches, you can see the main Male landfill, but apart from the visual unattractiveness, it does not create any problems.
The 5-star Adaaran Prestige Vadoo hotel is more like a 4-star one. The rooms are a bit tired and need renovation, but the service is good. The overwater bungalows are on the coral reef, so you have to swim on the island beach.
Adaaran Club Rannalhi Island
The coast of this South Malé resort has many palm trees, white sand beaches, but the water entry is not very comfortable due to the large amount of coral debris. The strongest side of the resort is excellent snorkeling and diving, with a reef rich in marine life.
Room prices at the 4-star Adaaran Club Rannalhi hotel correspond to their quality level.
Fun Island
This is an economy-class resort with a good beach on the west coast and an excellent sandy spit on the north. There is also a house reef with exciting snorkeling. The 3-star Fun Island Resort has complaints about the service, but overall, it is worth the money.
Embudu Village Island
A typical Maldivian resort: lush beach vegetation, a sandy spit, a rich house reef. The overwater bungalows are not very successful in all respects, so it is better to choose a land house.
Ozen by Atmosphere Island
Previously, this was a picnic spot, completely immersed in greenery. Now it is a resort fully built up with luxury villas with minimal plantings. It has been turned into an “all-inclusive luxury” resort. It has everything from children’s playgrounds to restaurants with signature dishes and any kind of alcohol, from snorkeling equipment to excursions and fishing.
The huge advantage of the 5-star Ozen By Atmosphere at Maadhoo Island hotel is that it is new. Room prices start from $2000 per night.
Gulhi Island
Gulhi is inhabited by the local population of the Maldives. There are inexpensive hotels with approximately the same level of service, but the best is considered to be Tree Hotel Maldives. In all hotels, you can rent a room for $100.
There are only 2 beaches, and they cannot boast of cleanliness, but it is allowed to swim in bikinis on them.
Guraidhoo Island
Guraidhoo is inhabited by native Maldivians. Nevertheless, there are inexpensive hotels with rooms starting from $100 per night. Many hotels have restaurants, and you can also buy groceries in local shops.
The beaches are unremarkable – without vegetation and with a somewhat rocky seabed, and it is forbidden to relax in bikinis.
South Malé: The Underwater World of the Indian Ocean
South Malé Atoll offers wide opportunities for diving for tourists with different skill levels and experience. Diving in South Malé includes dozens of professional dive schools and exploring a new environment with each dive.
The underwater environment of this atoll is known for its steep walls, small grottoes, and ledges, gentle drifts, and exciting channels. There are many soft corals with typical Maldivian reef fish, and large pelagic fish swim around.
Near South Malé Atoll are the marine reserves Embudhoo Kandu and Guraidhoo Kandu, recommended for all vacationers in the Maldives.
Additionally, there are several famous dive sites near South Malé:
- Kandooma Thila (Cocoa Thila) – a manta cleaning station located in a wide channel, recognized as the best diving spot in the country. Cocoa Thila resembles a drop in shape, with many interesting grottoes and ledges on the northern and western sides. Various marine creatures hide there, and there is always a chance to meet black snappers, gray reef sharks, surgeonfish, different types of Napoleon fish, eagle rays, and turtles. As for colorful reef fish, they are literally “at every step.”
- Emboohoo Canyon – famous for its long cave with a huge number of diverse fish. The canyon was formed when a huge coral block broke off from the reef.
- Guraidhoo Corner – a large and beautiful protected area with channels, reefs, walls, and cliffs. There is a huge concentration of reef life, stunning soft corals, tunas, barracudas, trevallies, manta rays, turtles, and a variety of reef fish.
Several interesting places are in the currents north of Himmafushi, such as Himmafushi Corner. Nearby, on the southern side of the Girifushi reserve, HP Reef is abundant in soft corals, with rays, barracudas, and tunas swimming around. Nearby is Paradise Manta Point, where manta rays love to visit.
North of Hulhule lies Banana Reef – it is formed by two reefs shaped like bananas. There are beautiful underwater cliffs and reef walls with grottoes, inhabited by reef sharks.
South Malé Atoll is good not only for exploring the underwater world of the Indian Ocean but also for various water sports. For example, Kandooma resort is ideal for surfing with good waves and many surf schools. The best weather conditions for surfing are from May to September.
Useful Tips for Tourists
- To get to know the culture of the Maldives better, visit Maafushi. In local cafes after the afternoon prayer Asr, it is customary to order Hedhikaa – traditional “short snacks.”
- The local Maldivian diet mainly consists of rice and tuna prepared in various ways. Finding familiar meat, vegetables, and baked goods in cafes is quite problematic. Therefore, when planning a vacation in the Maldives, it is better to book a hotel with several diverse restaurants.
- It is important to know that wearing bikinis in the Maldives is only allowed on hotel beaches. On public beaches visited by the local population, this is strictly prohibited. When walking around Malé and inhabited islands, you must dress according to Muslim notions of decency: a shirt or blouse with long sleeves, trousers, or a long skirt.
- While vacationing on the Maldives atolls, all tourists are recommended to sail to the shallow reefs inside the atoll on a traditional wooden dhoni boat.
- The Maldives has a subequatorial climate, making it suitable for vacationing year-round. However, the best period for a trip to South Malé Atoll is from December to April when rainfall is less frequent. Although in the rainy season, from May to November, the weather is not completely spoiled as the temperature does not drop below 25°C.
