Maldives Tour Guide
Maldives
The Maldives is an island nation in the Indian Ocean, organized into 20 administrative atolls plus the capital, Malé City.
The Maldives is a nation of coral atolls in the Indian Ocean, made up of the capital Malé, a scattering of resort islands, and 191 inhabited local islands spread across 21 administrative atolls. Most travellers stay in one of two very different ways: a private resort island — one island, one property, all-inclusive — or a local island, where guesthouses sit inside a real Maldivian community alongside its mosque, school and harbour. Both give access to the same reefs, lagoons and marine life; what differs is the kind of trip. Everything below — atolls, islands, stays, activities, transfers, packages and travel guides — links back to the same real MTG catalogue, so wherever you start, you can get to everything else.
Destinations
Browse by atoll
The Maldives is organized into administrative atolls, each made up of inhabited islands.
- Alif Alif Atoll8 islands
- Alif Dhaalu Atoll10 islands
- Baa Atoll13 islands
- Dhaalu Atoll6 islands
- Faafu Atoll5 islands
- Gaafu Alifu Atoll11 islands
- Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll9 islands
- Gnaviyani Atoll1 island
- Haa Alif Atoll14 islands
- Haa Dhaalu Atoll13 islands
- Kaafu Atoll9 islands
- Laamu Atoll10 islands
- Lhaviyani Atoll4 islands
- Malé City3 islands
- Meemu Atoll8 islands
- Noonu Atoll13 islands
- Raa Atoll16 islands
- Seenu Atoll6 islands
- Shaviyani Atoll14 islands
- Thaa Atoll13 islands
- Vaavu Atoll5 islands
Featured local islands
A starting point, not the whole list — every inhabited island has its own page.
- Thulusdhoo
Thulusdhoo is an inhabited island in Kaafu Atoll, Maldives.
- Maafushi
Maafushi is an inhabited island in Kaafu Atoll, Maldives.
- Dhigurah
Dhigurah is an inhabited island in Alif Dhaalu Atoll, Maldives.
- Ukulhas
Ukulhas is an inhabited island in Alif Alif Atoll, Maldives.
- Fuvahmulah
Fuvahmulah is an inhabited island in Gnaviyani Atoll, Maldives.
- Gan
Gan is an inhabited island in Laamu Atoll, Maldives.
Maldives Local Islands
A “local island” is simply an inhabited Maldivian island that welcomes overnight guests — usually in small, independently run guesthouses rather than a single resort operator. You’ll be staying inside a real community: shops, a mosque, a school, a working harbour, and neighbours going about daily life around you.
It’s generally the more affordable way to experience the Maldives, since you pay for a room and meals rather than an entire private island. Local dress and behaviour norms are more conservative than on a resort island — swimwear is for designated “bikini beaches” only, for example — and in exchange you get easier access to real Maldivian food, culture and everyday life.
Browse every local island → or see guesthouses for places to stay on them.