You’ve booked your flights and now it’s time to decide which island you’re going to visit. The first thing you do is open Google Maps and think to yourself: “OK, this is not so bad. They seem close together, let’s do some island hopping.” 

And you start searching for transfers and the reality of Maldivian transportation hits. I don’t want to explain every transport option available. There are already plenty of guides that do exactly that. What I will tell you in this article is how to understand it and plan your trip in a way, that you don’t lose 3 out of 10 days of holidays just to move from island to island. This goes for local islands, as resort organise their own transfers and mostly don’t allow other means of arrival. 

The reality behind the map

One of the biggest mistakes first-time visitors make is looking at distance instead of connections. Maldives are divided into administrative units called atolls. There are 26 of them and, for the most part, they are not connected by public transport. This means that travelling from an island in atoll A to an island in atoll B will require returning to Male and transferring to another ferry route. This can take a full day, or it may even require a night in Male. Not all ferries run on each day of the week. 

Choosing two islands inside the same atoll is hence a far less headachey solution. So when you search the map, make sure your selected islands are in the same atoll. Just the proximity itself doesn’t mean anything. If one island is in atoll A and its neighbour in atoll B, despite the small distance between, you will have to go to Male and then return by another ferry to second island. Or, alternatively, you can ask a local to drop you with a speedboat, but those options tend to be quite expensive, especially for tourists. 

Two islands may look close on the map, but if they’re not connected by the same transport network, you may need to travel back through Malé first.

Explore beyond the ferry reach

The 26 atolls I was talking about earlier stretch over more than 800 km and some of them are simply too far away for practical ferry connections. Those islands are usually the best choices for travellers searching for authenticity, avoiding crowds and enjoying unspoiled nature. They do however require a domestic flight. Don’t worry, the Maldives have multiple airlines and there is a domestic airport on almost every island. You can read more about this unique (crazy?) situation in my article The Maldives logic of airports. 

Taking a domestic flight is an experience by itself. The planes fly low and offer an amazing view to the islands scattered over the vast blue ocean. Is there a better way to start your holidays? There is another benefit of domestic flight – you don’t care about the waves. Travelling by speedboat on rough sea can prolong a one hour trip into two or three hours long torture for your stomach. On the flight you just land elegantly and after half an hour you are already in your room drinking fresh coconut water. 

Pro tip: don’t bother with booking domestic flights by yourself. Just let the guesthouse organise them for you, it’s going to be much cheaper and hassle-free. 

For adventurers and budget travellers

There is one more type of transport that doesn’t get mentioned a lot in the tourist guidebooks, but it has existed way before the local islands opened for tourism. The cargo boats. Each island or a group of islands has a cargo boat that brings supplies for local shops and islanders. Those boats run weekly and they all have a passenger area. It won’t be the most comfortable one, that’s for sure, but it will be about five times cheaper compared to domestic flight and it’s definitely an unforgettable adventure. Expect to spend anything from a few hours to a full day on board, depending on the distance.. 

I’ve taken a few of these trips and they were always a great opportunity to meet locals, exchange travel stories and enjoy a night sky full of stars. One final warning: don’t choose this option if you get seasick. Not easily seasick. Just seasick in any form. No adventure or money-saving opportunity is worth it. Trust me on this one. Listening to half the passengers vomiting-sounds for hours while trying desperately not to join them is an experience you don’t need in your life.