Hi dear Steemians! 🙋
How have you been? I just came back from a perfect vacation in the..
Living in the Philippines with lots of gorgeous beaches, I'm pretty happy traveling locally to get my periodic sea-fix. The islands here are beautiful and marine life is diverse. I've seen other countries' beaches and I can't really say that they're better than ours.
But I've always wanted to go to the Maldives. Not because of their beaches but primarily because I've read articles saying the islands will eventually be fully-submerged in water due to climate change. There may no longer be the Maldives in the future and I want to go there before this country completely disappears on the map (Actually, some world maps now do not show Maldives since the islands are so tiny).
Plus Filipinos can go there, visa-free so yay!
In this issue of my WanderList series, I will share with you some tips and the details of my tropical island vacation. This post is quite long so consider yourself warned 😂. Happy reading!
How to get there
There are no direct flights 🛩 to Male from Manila. For Filipinos, you can transit visa-free via Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, or Singapore.
We flew via Scoot Airline so we had a layover in Singapore (It was a very long layover so we had time to see some sights in Singapore. It's basically two countries in one vacation!).
I got our promo roundtrip ticket to Male for approximately 250USD each. That's a steal as the normal airfare to Maldives costs double, maybe even triple that amount.
How to go around
Maldives consists of around 1,200 islands. There is a public ferry from the airport going to the inhabited islands. The fare is around 2USD. To access the other islands though, you would have to hire a private boat 🚤 or take the seaplane.
You can choose to use the inhabited islands as your base and then go on day trips to the island resorts. This is a cheaper option but I would recommend staying at the island resort, like we did, to maximize your stay in the Maldives.
If you want to cut the cost, choose a resort which can be reached via speed boat instead of a seaplane.
Where to stay in the Maldives
I highly recommend staying in Meeru. Based on the online reviews and after comparing prices of the island resorts in the Maldives, me and my friends agreed that Meeru gives the best value for our money.
There are plenty of other resorts but please continue reading to know why we think Meeru is the best option.
Must do in Meeru
Should you decide to book a flight to Maldives and stay in Meeru, make sure that you:
1. Stay at the overwater villa
Yes it is a little more expensive than the beach room and the garden room but staying in the overwater villas is the quintessential Maldivian experience.
We believe it was worth every penny we spent. The room is spacious, it has its own jacuzzi, and there's direct access to the ocean. It is beautiful and very convenient.
2. Get the all-inclusive package
Since you are on an island, everything is expected to be expensive. You would not want to spend your vacation feeling very anxious about your bill.
Meeru's all inclusive package (AIP) is the best we've found and was one of the primary reasons why we chose to stay there. Other resorts may seem cheaper at first but make sure to read the fine prints. The amount quoted may not yet include the 12-13.2% tax and the 10% service charge. Other resorts may even add an additional 5% if you use a credit card to pay.
So what's included in their AIP? You can have buffet breakfast, lunch, and dinner with unlimited drinks while you're on the island.
They offer international cuisines and there's food for all types of eaters. They have gluten-free, vegetarian, etc. You can tell them if you have allergies and they would make the necessary arrangement.
If you still get hungry during the day despite eating your buffet meals, you can have snacks served all day and night at the bars near the pools. The package includes alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks too!
Not included in the AIP are food and beverage from room service, gift shops and souvenirs, some minibar items, ala carte food from other restaurants, other beverage such as fresh fruit juice and selections from their wine list and premium brand spirits.
3. Snorkel
This is a must do in Meeru. Just below the villas, you can see different kinds of fish, manta rays, and sting rays!
There are black-tip baby sharks too!
There's free snorkeling tour included in the AIP. You will be brought to the resort's house reef where you'll see more fish 🐠 and if you're lucky, turtles! 🐢
4. Go on a sunset cruise
Would you believe that this comes free when you're on an All-inclusive package? You will be on a cruise, enjoying the sea breeze, watching the sunset while sipping your cocktail/fruit punch.
But wait, there's more! You'd see dolphins too! 🐬
5. Watch the sunrise and the moonrise!
Maldives is three hours behind Manila so waking up at 6AM to catch the sunrise is like waking up at 9AM so it's not so bad.
Besides, you can just go at your deck or outside your door to see the sun or the moon.
6. Take a dip in the jacuzzi at night and stargaze
You can swim near your villa even at night, if you don't mind swimming with sting rays and sharks (the locals say they will not attack you but this still requires some courage 😁). If you're not the adventurous type, there's always the jacuzzi.
The open space allows you to stargaze while relaxing on the tub and if you like, finish the bottle of champagne that also comes free when you're on AIP (Are you already convinced that the all-inclusive package is the more practical option?).
7. Swim in their pool
The resort has two infinity pools, both are very nice and are located near a bar. You can order your snacks, drinks, even cocktails or beer for free, if you're on AIP.
The pool near the main reception area is a good area to lounge during sunset as it is facing West. In the morning, you can take a dip at the other pool on the east side of the island, near the overwater villas.
8. Relax
When you're too tired of swimming or are not really in the mood for some activities, you can simply relax at your villa or beach bum.
You can read a book, sunbathe, or maybe get a massage at the resort's spa if you have some extra dollars 💵 to spend. Just look at how awesome the location of their spa is. 😍
9. Photoshoot
The island is picturesque! But more than the photos of the view, you would probably want to have some amazing pictures of yourself to share with your family and friends. So strike a pose and take lots of shots!
Take creative shots of yourself as souvenir of your island getaway.
10. Eat and drink your heart out
The good thing about Meeru is that they are very generous to their guests. Check in starts at 2PM. We arrived at 10AM and was already offered the buffet lunch and unlimited drinks even when we have not officially checked in yet. They have good food selection and since almost everything is free, you can really get good value for what you paid for.
Even when we checked out at 12NN on our third day, we were able to use the pool and dine at the restaurants and bars until we left the island at 6:45PM. That saved us a lot of money.
We hardly spent anything during our entire stay, just the tip for our server and some items from the gift shop.
Overall, we had a great time and our answer to everyone who asked us if it's worth it, a very big Y E S! 👍
That's all for now, my dears! I hope Maldives is now included in your WanderList!
