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Best Time of Year to Visit the MaldivesExplore > Travel Planning Articles > Best Time of Year to Visit the MaldivesDate published: 2023-05-07
Photo courtesy Jon Haase.
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Where are the Maldives?The Maldives are a coveted vacation spot as the smallest country in Asia (regarding both size and population). This beautiful destination has historically been known under different names in the Sanskrit language, translated as "Necklace Islands," "Garland of Islands," and "Hundred Thousand Islands." COMO Cocoa Island 5 nights from 5,721 per person  Cocoa Island is the Indian Ocean outpost from COMO Hotels and Resorts. With bristling reef life and long stretches of white sand beach, Cocoa Island is an indulgence not to be missed.Kick back and relax on your sundeck, toes dipped into the island's peaceful lagoon. For those who want to do more, Cocoa Island offers an active island life. From first-time divers to Yoga devotees, from keen sailors to idle snorkellers – we've got the equipment, knowledge and expertise for a memorable stay. The diving is exceptional, with our own team ready to instruct and guide. Explore our online Travel Planner to discover the full range of activities we have on offer, including deep-sea fishing, watersports, beach drop-offs and private full-day fishing charters. The Maldives are made up of tiny dots strung out like turquoise ink spots. Many summits sit just below the surface of the water. The coral reefs are exceptional, creating a world-class diving destination. Like Cocoa Island, most resorts occupy their own private island. The government has sensibly controlled tourism development. Outside the capital, Malé, where the international airport is located, there's no traffic. The only thing you might hear is the sound of fishermen calling to each other on the sea. Cocoa Island, known locally as Makunufushi, is located among South Malé's coral atolls. Our island is long and thin with sand snaking out into a perfect spit that disappears with the evening tide. The first thing to strike you on arrival is the welcome of palms, hibiscus and Kadjan/Coconut Thatching while the house reef, which encircles Cocoa, delineates a gin-clear lagoon. 
Wedding pavilion at Angsana Resort & Spa Ihuru. Photo courtesy the resort. As a cluster of small islands in the Indian ocean, the Maldives are made up mostly of the water in between its 1,190 islands, about 90 of which are developed as tourist resorts. Their unique layout into a double chain of 26 atolls spread out over roughly 35,000 square miles. Each atoll adds to a variety of vibrant coral reefs teeming with lush underwater life including fish, sea turtles, whales, and dolphins. 
Maldivian beach villas. Photo courtesy Jon Haase. Typical airfares from New York (JFK) to Male, Republic of the MaldivesJW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa 5 nights from 5,088 per person  Discover the warm and inviting hospitality that awaits you at the luxury JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa, situated on a private island in Shaviyani Atoll. Stylish overwater villas and beach villas offer guests their own private pools and decks with stunning views across the Indian Ocean, plush bedding and free Wi-Fi. Guests wishing to leave their own private haven will discover a wide variety of activities available including snorkeling, scuba diving, jet-skiing and sailing, while children can enjoy their own adventures in the Maldives at our Little Griffins kid's club. Further relaxation can be found at our resort's rejuvenating spa where a variety of treatments are on offer, while those wishing to stay fit on vacation can take advantage of our state-of-the-art gym and fitness classes. Sample the flavors of the world at our international restaurants, including treetop dining, buffet breakfasts and authentic Italian and Japanese restaurants. Enrich your Maldives experience with a stay at our luxury resort.See & compare all resorts in the Maldives atollsIf you're trying to decide where to stay on Ari Atoll, Lhaviyani Atoll, Male, North Male Atoll, North Baa Atoll, or South Male Atolls, we can help! For the 28 resorts there, we've got nearly 500 high-resolution photos, 7 videos, and 13 virtual tours to help you find your Maldivian dream resort. Click here to use our Visual Explorer to check out all of them. 
Photo courtesy Jon Haase. Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa 5 nights from 6,895 per person  Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa where an unforgettable Maldives adventure on a private coral island, fringed with white sand and crystal water awaits. Palm-thatched bungalows dip their feet into a turquoise sea. An island spa offers soothing Asian secrets. Sunrise, sunshine and sunset paint the endless sky. Sail, dive, surf, or just take in views of the endless sky and sea from your traditional beachfront bungalow. On this lush garden island, everything you need is close at hand. Choose from a wide variety of short, half-day and full-day guided activities, from island-hopping by seaplane to a traditional Baraabaru cooking class. Our infinity-edge freshwater swimming pool and half-metre children's pool ensure that the whole family can easily cool off. Learn to appreciate to majesty of the coral reefs and, if you like, participate in some of the Resort's many conservation projects. Choose from a wide variety of short, half-day and full-day guided activities, from island-hopping by seaplane to a traditional Baraabaru cooking class. Take advantage of our natural surroundings on parasail, jet ski and underwater scooter, or try one of our many snorkeling and fishing options. Malé is the capital of the Republic of Maldives, an island 2 kilometres (1.2 miles) long and 1 kilometre (0.6 mile) wide. Though built to the edge, Malé is clean and quaint, with markets, mosques and a maze of small streets that approximately 103,000 people call home. A pleasant 25-minute speedboat ride from Malé International Airport, visitors are welcomed to the enchanting island of Kuda Huraa, where Four Seasons awaits. Learn more about Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa Price includes hotel stay and all taxes and fees. Best time of year to go to the MaldivesAs a tropical monsoon climate, the Maldives have two dominating seasons: a dry season (associated with dry northeast winter monsoons) and a wet season (associated with moist southwest monsoons and strong winds and storms). The dry season has little rain and lower humidity; it lasts from December-April. The wet season is (you guessed it) wetter, characterized by stronger winds and rain; it lasts from May-November. For divers, both the dry and wet seasons have their advantages: during the dry season, visibility is superb, due to currents beginning to flow in November from the northeast; the currents start to weaken in February. During the wet season, the water temperatures are a couple of degrees lower, and this seems to inspire larger numbers of hammerhead sharks and reef sharks to congregate, and to do so in shallower waters than in the dry season. Visibility isn't as good, however, as the currents are less. 
Aerial view of Sheraton Full Moon Maldives. Photo courtesy the resort. Average temperatures in the MaldivesThe temperature remains fairly consistent year-round, ranging only from the low- to mid-80's (Fahrenheit). September-January tend to hover around the 80 degree mark, and February-August tend to reach a little higher around the mid-80's. Chances are any time you decide to visit, the Maldives will be pleasantly warm. 4 nights from $2,149 per person  Set on an enchanting private island in the pristine Lhaviyani Atoll in the Maldives, Hurawalhi Island Resort is much like your relationship: it is a perfect match of serenity and excitement, comfort and adventure; it stirs up your every atom with an intricate blend of intimacy and thrill.It is at Hurawalhi that you can fill your days with an unsparing amount of extraordinaires, your mind with wonder, and your heart with romance. The 90-villa, adults-only luxury resort is as brilliant as the ocean that laps against its beaches and more magnificent than any island you have visited. You can swoon over photos of the Maldives, but nothing will prepare you for the beautiful blend of barefoot bliss and contemporary design found at Hurawalhi. Learn more about Hurawalhi Island Resort - Daily Buffet style breakfast with live cooking stations - Roundtrip sea plane transfer Storms in the MaldivesDuring the winter rainy season, afternoon showers occur with frequency. In the case of a tropical storm or cyclone, residents and travelers are relocated to safe areas. Fortunately, the Maldives are not as prone to cyclones as other islands; only 11 cyclones have affected the Maldives in over 128 years. 
Overwater villas in the Maldives. Photo courtesy Jon Haase. JOALI Maldives 5 nights from 23,543 per person  Do you feel it? This awareness, a shimmering sense of awakening. Imagine the soft breeze making you feel more alive than you have ever felt. Here, seemingly ordinary moments transform you for good. Amid the abundant life between the palm trees, sand covered feet and sparkling water, all will make sense to you. The joy of this island comes from within, it is in its nature and spreads its wings each day. Here,your joy will take flight too.Where is Joali? Joali is located at Muravandhoo island in northern Maldives, in the Raa Atoll, one of the largest and deepest atolls in the world. The word atoll in dhivehi means ‘ring-shaped coral reef’ enclosing a lagoon. Our beautiful island resort lies in the middle of the Indian Ocean, fringed by pristine white-sand beaches and surrounded by brilliant blue waters that boast spectacular marine life. There are three ways you can join us on the island. You can be sure that spectacular views await you whichever way you decide to travel. Option I - Shared Seaplane A 40-minute seaplane flight takes you from Male directly to the Muravandhoo Island. You will be greeted by a private JOALI lounge at the Male Airport where you can relax before your flight – and even enjoy a special greeting, offered for pre-arranged transfers. Option II - Shared Domestic Flight A 35-minute flight takes you from Male to Ifuru Airport. Then, you hop on the speedboat for a 15-minute speedboat ride to Muravandhoo. Option III - Private Charter by Seaplane. Please contact our reservation team for more information. Please keep in mind that : - Seaplane transfers are available only during daylight hours. - Domestic flights are available for night arrivals, after 3pm local time. The Way to Joali: The Maldives is the collective name of 1190 tiny islands scattered across the Indian Ocean. Some are inhabited, while others are used largely for tourism and agriculture. Muravandhoo is home to white beaches, a lush land with plenty of tasty coconut palms and exquisite marine life that offer a whole new world to discover. The Nature: The Maldives is a unique place and as such has a very fragile ecosystem. From the tiniest creature to a single tree, each plays a role in the magical replenishing experience the islands create. The construction was designed to build around the trees to save as many as possible. 1000 trees were preserved, and they continue their lives with us. After the devastating coral bleaching event of 2016 that saw up to 85% of the corals in the Maldives die, we have a responsibility to help the coral reefs rehabilitate and recover. At JOALI we are doing this through the JOALI Reef Restoration Programme. By using the two-step gardening concept, we are growing corals of opportunity in a mid-water nursery for 9-12 months before out planting them back on the reef. We are focusing our efforts on corals that show some resilience to heat, the driver of coral bleaching, and ensuring that we maintain good genetic diversity. What's special about the Maldives?Tourism is relatively recent here--really, it all started for the Maldives in 1972 with just 2 resorts. It's grown to over 80 resorts today. It's the lowest country in the world (yes, it's in the record books) with an average altitude of only about 5 feet above sea level. You're going to get fabulous lagoons protected by coral reefs and other atolls, and gorgeous beaches. But you won't get the knife-edge mountain backdrops you'd see somewhere like Bora Bora, or jungle hikes to waterfalls like you'd get in Hawaii, Fiji, or the Seychelles. 
Infinity pool at the Four Seasons Resort at Kuda Huraa. Photo courtesy the resort. Certainly it's famous for fantastic snorkeling, scuba diving, and above-water sports too. Like the Seychelles, you're going to be a long ways from a major land mass, which means dense schools of fish, less pollution, and more privacy. The roughly 1200 islands are all quite small, with none of them larger than 5 miles across. Each atoll has on average about a half dozen inhabited islands, plus 20 to 60 that are uninhabited. COMO Cocoa Island 5 nights from 5,721 per person Cocoa Island is the Indian Ocean outpost from COMO Hotels and Resorts. With bristling reef life and long stretches of white sand beach, Cocoa Island is an indulgence not to be missed.Kick back and relax on your sundeck, toes dipped into the island's peaceful lagoon. For those who want to do more, Cocoa Island offers an active island life. From first-time divers to Yoga devotees, from keen sailors to idle snorkellers – we've got the equipment, knowledge and expertise for a memorable stay. The diving is exceptional, with our own team ready to instruct and guide. Explore our online Travel Planner to discover the full range of activities we have on offer, including deep-sea fishing, watersports, beach drop-offs and private full-day fishing charters. The Maldives are made up of tiny dots strung out like turquoise ink spots. Many summits sit just below the surface of the water. The coral reefs are exceptional, creating a world-class diving destination. Like Cocoa Island, most resorts occupy their own private island. The government has sensibly controlled tourism development. Outside the capital, Malé, where the international airport is located, there's no traffic. The only thing you might hear is the sound of fishermen calling to each other on the sea. Cocoa Island, known locally as Makunufushi, is located among South Malé's coral atolls. Our island is long and thin with sand snaking out into a perfect spit that disappears with the evening tide. The first thing to strike you on arrival is the welcome of palms, hibiscus and Kadjan/Coconut Thatching while the house reef, which encircles Cocoa, delineates a gin-clear lagoon. 
Underground wine cellar and chocolate cave at Gili Lankanfushi, North Male Atoll, Maldives. Photo courtesy the resort. Traditional Maldivian cuisine is based on coconuts, fish, and starches. Skipjack tuna, yellowfin tuna, frigate tuna and wahoo are common in Maldivian cuisine. As well, a thick brown paste made from tuna, called Rihaakuru, is an essential part of many dishes. Maldivians don't eat raw fish, however (but that doesn't mean you won't ever find sushi in resort restaurants). Their starches are typically rice, taro (the root ingredient of Hawaii's poi), sweet potato, and cassava. You'll find a strong Indian influence--not surprising, given the proximity--and a plethora of different curries. As a tourist in the resorts, expect to find Indian and Maldivian options, but also food styles from around the world. The resorts are well aware that many guests will want to what what's familiar to them. Check this video overview of the Maldives, courtesy Maldives Tourist Promotion Board (MTPB): 
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