The Maldives – Ultramarine Bliss – Out of Office Explorers

This is one blog that won’t need very many words, you will easily see the stunning beauty of the Maldives in the pictures that come…

and when your paradise is just 800m long and 300m wide then there’s not much more to describe than the alluring water and the abundant life in the seas surrounding our atoll.

Getting there

From Europe, the most relaxing is to take Emirates, via Dubai and then a few short hours over the Indian Ocean where the onboard cameras will give you a preview of what awaits.

Where to stay

With 22 atolls, comprising 1200 islands there is a bewildering choice of places to stay. There are multiple choices to take in the selection of your piece of heaven…

do you want to take a sea plane to get to your destination, a house reef for snorkeling at your doorstep, a chance to see whale shark and manta ray, all inclusive, all inclusive ++ (i.e with alcohol)…naturally we wanted all of this and Vilamendhoo ticked all the boxes.

Arriving at the island airport of Male, transfer to the sea plane terminal and its just a 25 min short flight, try to get a seat just behind the barefooted pilots for some great views of the seascape below.

If you are a couple then save up some money to stay in one of the stunning water villas, set on stilts, adults only

with each having a direct access to the sea

with your own aquarium right underneath

a private view of the stunning sunset

and even great for a night swim with the resident rays.

What to do

Play with the baby sharks

Swim with baby rays

Float with turtles

Snorkel the reef

Dive into the deep blue

and snorkel a little more

Our days were spent mainly in the water enjoying all there was to see

If you do need to dry off then you have plenty of pure white sand

A short kayak around the island

Some great food…which you can even have in your villa

and cocktail hour

There are also day trips to see Manta Ray and Whale Shark…the former we missed but were rewarded with a majestic Shark gliding beneath us.

And if you want to get deeper into the sea then there are dive trips…if you are lucky you’ll see mantas, but Matt is not normally so it was just a chance to relax on the ocean floor!