Maldives

·         Basics: After arriving in Male, you will be directed to another part of the airport that serves as the seaplane terminal. Once you check in, you will be escorted to your resort’s lounge or a general waiting area. You will be notified when it’s time to board the seaplane. Keep in mind that the planes often make multiple stops, allowing you to see other beautiful resorts in the area and their welcoming committees greeting guests. If you’re changing resorts during your stay, be aware that you may be flown back to Male before being sent on another plane to your next destination. The seaplane fare is typically included in the resort fees, and bookings are handled by the resort. Be sure to confirm this with your individual resort.

·         Kosher Food/Minyan: There is no kosher food readily available in the Maldives. Some hotels can arrange to bring in food from Europe, but the prices are exorbitant, and the quality is often subpar. We brought all our food with us, as the resorts are located on individual islands with no nearby stores. Both resorts we stayed at were extremely accommodating; they offered us space in their fridge, provided new utensils and pots, and gave us additional kitchen space.

The chefs prepared delicious fruit platters and salads for us daily, using our utensils, and they were flexible with our comings and goings from the kitchen. They also provided fresh eggs and fruit whenever we requested.

For Shabbos, we ordered a Shabbos package from Pomegranate’s takeout, as their food is triple-wrapped and flight-ready. We warmed it up on our griddle in our room to avoid using a non-kosher kitchen for our kosher meat.

Note that unless you’re traveling with a group, there are no minyanim available at the resorts.

·         Weather: The weather in the Maldives is absolutely beautiful, with hot sunshine and clear blue skies every day.

·         Hotels and Attractions: We stayed at two different resorts during our visit. The first was Cinnamon Hakuraa Huraa, where we were on the adults-only island, separate from the rest of the resort, though we had access to the entire property.

The second hotel was Fairmont Sirru Fen Fushi, a much larger island where we stayed in an overwater bungalow and spent hours exploring the island as well.

Both resorts offered water sports, and we planned our itinerary around the available activities. Snorkeling in the Maldives is a must, as the coral is unlike anything we’ve ever seen. We also swam with sharks and manta rays in the wild, enjoyed flyboarding, kayaking, tubing, and of course, swimming in the pool and at the beach.