Maldives is among the favorite destinations to most travelers who love to explore a great feel of the Asian culture. This article is about the detailed and interesting information about where Maldives is located and the top things tourist can do on their visit.
What country owns Maldives? Where is Maldives located in which country?
The official Republic of Maldives is an archipelagic country situated in Southern Asia in the Indian Ocean. It is situated southwest of Sri Lanka and India around 750 kilometers from the Asian landmass’ central area. The country houses about 1,192 coral islands sheltered in the archipelago and can be categorized into natural atolls, most of which remain uninhabited.
The country which traverses around 90,000 Kilometers including the Indian Ocean, land region of the multitude of islands contains 298 square Kilometers and the world’s lowest lying country. Maldives is one of the world’s most geologically scattered sovereign states and the smallest Asian country. It is also one of the smallest countries with a large amount of Islam religion.
Malé is the capital and the most populated city in Maldives. It is an ancient city where the royal dynasties ruled in the central part, hence known as the ”Kings Island”.
The Maldivian ethnic group is the dominant population of the Maldive country due to they being the first settlers and rulers of the country. There are lots of languages spoken in the Maldives like Hindi, Arabic, just to mention few.
The official language used as the medium of instruction is Dhivehi or the Maldivian which is an Indo-European language. English is also spoken in the country due to some of the influence from the English.
With major cities like Male, Hulhumale, Bodufolhudhoo and others, majority of the population live in the rural areas in the small islands spread on the attols. Somewhere around 20 of the islands have in excess of 1,000 occupants, and the southern islands are more thickly populated than the northern ones. The rate of birth for the Maldives is fairly higher than the world normal, yet the passing rate is lower. More than one-fifth of the absolute populace is under 15 years old. Future is around 74 years for men and 79 for ladies.
The main means of transport in the Maldives is hopping on and off ferries and speedboats. Dhoni charters and speedboats are available for hire at Male and all nearby islands in the region. Taxi boats are used to take tourists to and from the islands in the North and South Atolls.
History of Maldives
In the twelfth century Islam arrived at the Maldivian Archipelago, which was united as a sultanate, creating solid business and social binds with Asia and Africa.
From the mid-sixteenth 100 years, the locale went under the rising impact of European pilgrim powers, with Maldives turning into a British protectorate in 1887. Freedom from the United Kingdom came in 1965, and an official republic was laid out in 1968 with a chosen People’s Majlis.
Maldives turned into an establishing member country of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). It is likewise a member country of the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the Non-Aligned Movement.
The World Bank characterizes the Maldives as having an upper-center pay economy. Before the year 2016, Maldives was a member of the Commonwealth of Nations until 2020 when in showed evident based processes of democracy and rejoined for support.
Fishing has generally been the predominant financial backbone and stays the biggest area by a wide margin, trailed by the quickly developing the travel industry. The Maldives rates “high” on the Human Development Index, with per capita pay essentially higher than other SAARC countries.
Why visit the Maldives for tourism
In terms of attractions or tourism, more than more than 1.5 million tourists visit the Maldives annually for vacation and pleasure for its exceptional beauty of beaches and resorts sited along the coasts. Though it was only discovered around 1972 but its impact on the economy has been massive, since it generates much revenue to their economy.
The country has more than 130 resort islands include high-end hotel brands, and its marine geography offers unique diving and water sports opportunities as well as undersea accommodations, restaurants, and spas.
The local fish market has large sizes of Tuna and freshly harvested fishes for your meal. The local market is also a colorful and filled with life as you can shop for all local commodities and also interactive with the local people. Some of the food commodities you should go is the fresh coconut, breadfruits, mangoes, and more.
The Atoll transfer system is one of the memorable experiences you could ever have moving between Islands to Islands for the fun and pleasure after pickup from the airport. Take adventure to the next level by spending the hours of 2 cruising on the Indian Ocean.
The Grand Friday Mosque, a religious site sited in the center of the Victory monument that serve as a must see or an attraction to tourists for its uniqueness architecture designed building serving the religious purpose. The Hukuru Miskiiy previously was the Friday Mosque, also serve as a tourist site where tourists can explore for the cultural and historical information of the people of the Maldives. Hulhumale Mosque is a mosque where tourists can go for their Friday prayers.
The National museum is close to the royal palace. Downstairs is the galleries devoted to the ancient and medieval periods and upstairs is a display representing modern period of Maldives. Items display weaponry and religious relics engraved in Arabic and Thaana.
The Artificial Beach is a great place to see the locals enjoy the beauty of the beach while having fun with friends and families. It’s a cultural experience site where tourists can swim, too, but tourist has to follow the dress code no speedos and skimpy swim suit. Calm, turquoise sea and a small white sanded beach make the place perfect for a swim on hot days. The view of the bridge is magnificent.
The Sultan Park is a nice break from the hustle and bustle of Male. This is a public park in the capital city of Maldives and looks to be very green inside with lot of trees. Good to have a walk inside and spend some time with your loved ones. It is free access to locals and a ticket need to be purchased for tourists.
Hulhumale Central Park is an amazing place, very well maintained and huge park. I wish every country should have such park. This park has various sections: Open Gym, Skating section, Running track. etc. This is an interesting place or spot in the Maldives to spend peaceful evening.
Worth it to have a look at the island over the bridge .It is a new bridge which is connecting Male city to male airport and Hulumale and makes very good communication for every people of Maldives and also for the tourist .The bridge looks also very nice and an attracting landmark.This new bridge built by Chinese connects Male, to Hulhue and Hulhumale. It makes the commute of the local residence so much easier.
Mulee Aage in Male is the president’s official residence. It is not very big and fancy but well-kept and freshly painted. It is an old house with lots of beautiful details. I am very impressed that people can pass the president’s residence at such a close distance.
Tsunami Monument is a must-see if you fancy history and culture. This commemorates the people who passed away due to a natural disaster Tsunami. In the year 2004, a great Tsunami had hit many countries in the region causing lost of lives and properties in the Maldives. This monument is raised in the country as a remembrance for the sad incident.
It is a national monument of the Maldives. When Sri Lankan rebels attacked Maldives, Indian army helped under operation cactus and helped restore the Maldivian government. On 3rd of November 1988 the Sri Lankan tamil tigers attacked Malé and they wanted to conquer the Maldives.
The locals fought back and won. This monument has symbolic meaning: the circle means that the attackers surrounded the island of Malé, the green color of the monument means the Maldivian victory and the red color means the blood of this fight, and also sacrifice.
Rasfannu, this is one place to visit while you are in Male’ especially with your family to enjoy a great sunset view or to have a good time with the loved ones. The beach looks nice and it is a pleasant place to swim, but it is built on the end of Male closest to a sewage drain pipe. The water here often has high bacteria counts. Locals advise against swimming here.
The plushest beach resort in Male’ city with the large “Pavilion” building housing International Franchisee Shops and eateries akin to a large mall. The tallest building in Maldives, the Dharumavantha hospital towers in the background. The beach area is enclosed by small tetrapods that act as breakwaters against large waves with a small gap to allow ingress of natural seawater and hence is akin to a swimming pool.
Bandaara Kilhi which literally means “State Lake” is one of the two fresh water lakes in Fuvahmulah, Maldives. Located mainly in Maalegan ward of the island with a small part extending to Miskiymagu ward as well, the lake has an area of approximately 0.058 square kilometers and an average depth of 12 feet making it the largest lake by volume in the Fuvahmulah.
Aside the Maldives being popular for its abundant underwater sceneries of exceptional beach life like snorkeling, sailing adventure, cruise and what have you, there are also other special ancient museums, mosques (architectural buildings), malls and other attractive amusement parks to enjoy nature and feel the environment of the Maldives as well as experiencing the great Asian culture.
See also the best places to stay in the Maldives
As the saying goes ‘’the life history of the individual is first and foremost an accommodation to the patterns and standards traditionally handed down in his community’’, that is why Maldives offers a chivalrous and a great accommodation to visitors to feel at home. There are various forms of accommodations to suit individual preferences from budget to luxury, all coupled with safety and comfort.
Thank you for reading this article.
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