The Maldives is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful places in the world making it a honeymooners’ paradise.

With approximately 1,200 small coral islands, the uniqueness of this country means travel arrangements differ a little compared to larger land mass countries, so following a recent visit, our friends over at Brisbane City Celebrants have given us their top 10 tips for honeymooning in the Maldives.

  • Pack a UK power plug adapter or 2 if you both want to charge your mobiles at the same time.
  • Being a Muslim Country, you are not permitted to bring duty free alcohol into the country, however alcoholic beverages are readily available to purchase at most resorts.
  • At the time of publishing there is no arrival or departure tax payable at the Maldives, and if travelling from Australia your visa simply gets stamped with a tourist visa on arrival.

  • To reach most islands in the Maldives, you will be transported by seaplane (which btw is amazing!), this usually arranged by your resort. Seaplanes have a strict luggage weight limit of 20kg for checked luggage and 5kg for hand luggage, so you need to travel light, or pay excess baggage charges.
  • Seaplane transfers only operate during the day time, although some resorts offer speed boat transfers during the evening/ night. With this in mind it is worth choosing a flight that arrives in the morning/early afternoon so you can transfer to your resort by seaplane and enjoy the amazing scenery.

  • Typically, all pathways around islands are made of sand and wooden walkways to over water villas. Heeled shoes are not well suited to either, so there really is no need to pack heels.
    Overwater villas typically offer ‘direct sea access’ which is a ladder attached to your deck, leading in to the sea.
  • The depth of the sea from your villa can vary greatly from resort to resort and also depending how far down the wooden walkway your villa is. One resort we stayed at we were located over 1km out to sea. The pristine clear water can be deceivingly deep and can experience strong currents so make your own safety assessment.
  • We recommend leaving the pool inflatables at home – many resorts ban these (along with drones which tend to be banned for fellow guests privacy purposes). Not only do pool inflatables take up valuable weight in your luggage, but they can easily drift over the top of the pool and be washed out to sea, the plastic is extremely hazardous for local sea life, including turtles who we were told can mistake them for jellyfish and consume the plastic which can be fatal for them.
  • Interestingly plastic drinking straws are banned on most islands for the same reason. If you would like to do your little bit to protect turtles and other sea life, avoid leaving plastic bottles or waste items in outdoor areas of your villa where they can easily be blown out to sea, or you could be a real superstar and collect pieces of plastic that you find washed up to sea to be properly disposed of.
  • Resorts charge in $US and charges are quoted exclusive of taxes. All services incur 10% service charge and 12% T-GST (Tourism Goods and Service Tax). The 10% service charge is applied to the total value and 12% T-GST applied to the total value + service charge.An environmental ‘Green’ tax of US$6 per person per night is applied to all stays in accommodation registered as a hotel, resort or liveaboard. This is paid directly to your resort and is not subject to T-GST/GST.
  • Time Zones – We arrived Male was GMT +5 hours, we then transferred via 40-minute seaplane to our first resort which was GMT +6 hours, we then transferred to our second resort via 40-minute speed boat transfer to find we were GMT +7 hours. So, a small distance can result in a different time zone which is worth being aware of.

We hope you feel a little more equipped for your Maldives honeymoon, it truly is such a beautiful country. Happy Honeymooning!

Images: Brisbane City Celebrants. Resorts pictured: Four Seasons Landaa Giraavaru and Finolhu

Ms Zigzag says: If two people deserve a relaxing holiday like this, it is definitely the lovely Cara and Jamie of Brisbane City Celebrants! Thanks for the hot tips! 

About Brisbane City Celebrants: Brisbane’s most highly recommended Marriage Celebrant duo specialising in modern, simple, meaningful, sweet, happy weddings. With a choice of an experienced and passionate female or male celebrant, our couples describe us as warm, friendly and calming. You can find Brisbane City Celebrants on the Polka Dot Bride directory here.