Chuyến đi tới Maldives

Hôm nay đọc bài viết về chuyến đi Maldives của hai khách hàng của Doctor Spa, mình có một chút ghen tị với 2 bạn này. Tuy nhiên nó lại là động lực cho mình đặt ra mục tiêu chinh phục Maldives. Mình quyết định đánh dấu bài này để sẽ thực hiện chuyến đi này trong tương lại và cũng chia sẻ thông tin để bạn nào đi Maldives có thể tham khảo

19 Sep 2014 - dự định đi Sep 2015 :) 

Budget Trip to Maldives

Source: http://www.twomonkeystravel.com/2014/05/budget-trip-to-maldives.html

The Maldives has always had the reputation of a luxury, island paradise reserved for the rich and couples on honeymoon, spending about $1000 per/night.  Not anymore! With changes to the law allowing locals to open guesthouses on residential islands, there are now plenty of options for the budget backpacker. It's possible to spend $100 to $200 a day per couple including; deluxe room; full board meals; snorkeling and other excursions.  Obviously that's a lot compared to SE Asia, but the term 'budget' is relative depending on where you're travelling!

Jon and I stayed in the Maldives for 6 days with a budget of $1500 including our flights, a luxurious day in a 5-star resort, private boat and water sports such as catamaran sailing, kayaking, snorkeling. You can have at least $500 budget per couple if you plan to do a 3 days/ 2 nights trip, but read the article to guide you.

Sunset Dinner

Pristine beach

Here's how we did it:

Check the map

Male, Capital of Maldives

The Maldives is made up of 1,192 islands, of which 192 are inhabited by a population of just 328,536.  Many of these islands have been developed by the 4 and 5 star resorts for which the country is most famous.

Residential Houses in Thulusdoo Island

However, local residential islands like Hulhumale and Thulusdoo are seeing an increase in guesthouses offering deals for between $100 to $200 a night.  We chose Thulusdoo island - it’s only 1 hour and 30 mins from the Capital (Male) by ferry and is home to two of the most famous surfing spots in the whole Maldives – Cokes Surf Point and Chicken Surf Point. The island is a perfect base camp for snorkeling, fishing, diving and of course surfing

Sunset view in Thulusdoo Island

.  

 Book a cheap ticket.

Request a window seat!

Jon and I are already in India  so we looked for the cheapest airport to fly to and from the Maldives.  We found a $220 roundtrip ticket from Trivandrum International Airport-which is the Southern-most city in India. Clearly it depends on where you're flying from, but there are always deals to be found if you're flexible with your travel dates. 

If you're coming from South East Asia then wait for the deals from Air Asia as they started flying directly to Maldives. However, from Europe there are increasing direct flights from Germany and UK. 

If you can't find a cheap direct flight then maybe you can book a flight to Colombo, Sri Lanka which is the nearest to Maldives and the cheapest to fly from.

Emergency seat

Aerial view before landing

Book your guesthouse, inn or lodge in advance

Askani Thulusdoo

Our private open-air jet bath spa!

There are lots of new guesthouses popping up all over the Maldives which cater to budget travelers.  Since Jon was planning on surfing, we chose Thulusdoo Island, which has two famous surf spots - Cokes and Chickens. We found this guesthouse, Askani Thulusdoo, which was newly built a month (February 2014) prior to our arrival. 

We got a great deal with $600 for two people for 5 nights, including a Deluxe Air-conditioned room; full-board meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner); free Wifi (yes, some guesthouse will ask you to pay!).

There was only one other couple staying there for our first two days, so we actually had the place to ourselves for much of the trip! They didn't have their own chef so meals were prepared at another guesthouse or we could go eat outside instead.

AC Deluxe Room with Cable TV

Open-air Bathroom

Our lovely guides!

Only 4-bedroom guesthouse

Traveling to the Island

Public Ferry from the Airport

If you're staying in one of the expensive resorts then you need to travel from the airport by private speed boat or a seaplane and you don't want to know how much that costs!

When choosing a guesthouse, check that they have a public ferry used by the local residents. We paid just $2 each way from Male to Thulusdoo.  Also, check the timings of the ferry's as some only go once a day; 3 PM from Male and at 8 AM from Thulusdoo to Male.  If you're not careful with your flight times you could accidentally lose a day of your trip!

Ferry from Male to Thulusdoo Island

Enjoying the 1 hour/ 30 mins Ferry ride

Excursions

Whilst the Maldives is famous for diving, snorkeling, sailing and other water sports, Thulusdoo Island is famous for its' surfing. You can rent a surfboard there or you can bring your own.  (Be aware though, these are reef breaks and may not be suitable for beginners!)

For snorkeling, as long as you have your own mask and snorkel, then you can just walk 5 minutes to the beach where you can see plenty of fish and corals.  You can also rent a boat to take you to a snorkeling spot which is really worth it for $30- $40 per trip with maximum of for 4 pax (so if you're a group of 4 then you only pay $10 per person).

You can also scuba dive, go on a day trip to a virgin island or go sunset fishing.  Although it's highly suggested that you arrange these trips beforehand with the guesthouse so you don't have to bargain the price of separate activities when you arrive. 

Half-day Private Boat

Go on a daytrip to any resort - Experience the luxury of a 4/5* resort, without paying $700-$2000 a night!

Jon and I decided to do a day trip to one of the resorts near to our island, ClubMed. Instead of paying at least $700/night to stay in the resort, we chose to pay the day trip fee of $120 per person to enjoy the all inclusive facilities and services, including a snorkeling trip, kayaking, catamaran sailing and as much food and drink as we could manage!

Enjoying the Open Bar and the sun

Use of Catamaran Boat is FREE

Preparing for the Club Med Snorkeling Trip

Only Resorts have Alcoholic Drinks!

Use of Kayak is FREE!

Infinity Pool

Buffet.. Breakfast and Lunch are included!

Private Boat to and from Club Med Kani

Below is our summary of expenses which you can use as a reference: 

Summary of Expenses	Cost	TOTAL
Flight Tickets	Roundtrip ticket Male- Trivandrum, India = $ 220/person	$440
Airport and Ferry Transport	Airport Ferry to Male (roundtrip)- $1.5/person = $ 3 Taxi to Thulusdoo Ferry (roundtrip)- $2/trip = $4 Ferry to Thulusdoo = $2/person = $4 Ferry back to Male = $2/person = $4	$15
Accommodation	Deluxe AC Room with Full-board meals and drinks - $120/ night x 5 night	$600
Food	Included at Thulusdoo Package but paid $15 for our lunch while going around in Male before the Ferry to the island	$15
Resort Day Trip- Club Med Kani	Day Trip Entrance fee (8AM to 5PM) to be paid directly at the resort - $120 Including: Buffet Breakfast and lunch, open bar, water sports – snorkeling, catamaran sailing, kayaking and gym etc	$240
Private Ferry Boat transfer (from Thulusdoo to Club Med)	Roundtrip - $120 *If you have other friends then you can divide the cost	$120
Excursion Activity	Snorkeling Trip and visit to Chicken Island - $10/person for the boat $5/person entrance fee to Chicken Island	$30
Shopping	Bought swimsuit from the Club Med	$20
TOTAL: $1480 for 6 Days/5 nights for 2 people Would you like to be here? Yes, you can!