A team of experts from the United Nations Development Programme went to the Maldives in the late 1960s and wrote a report on the prospects for tourism in the country. There were none, they concluded. Don’t even bother trying: the obstacles are too big. If that seems like the least perspicacious report in tourism history, you could at least see their point. At the time, the Maldives didn’t have a bank. Or an airport. Or electricity on the islands. And the only way to get around was by sailing, very slowly, in a traditional dhoni . Read on.....
The Indian Ocean and Asia region is fast becoming one of the best cruising grounds in the world – a fact well known to those of us who have cruised here for many years, but one only now becoming common knowledge. “Recent expansions in marina facilities have provided the kind of support today’s demanding professional captains are used to and the pristine ecosystems found throughout these diverse regions are exactly what yacht owners have been missing all these years”, reports Captain Nick Coombes.....First Port of call is Malé, the Capital of the Republic of the Maldives. Arrival formalities are simple although you will need a pilot for your first entry (Port Regulations); clearance is done in an hour’s time and then you’re free to leave the Customs anchorage.....The Maldives are a nature lover’s paradise, with more than a thousand small islands, surrounded by pure white beaches, like ‘Bird Island’ and pristine reef systems, providing an unending opportunity to fish and dive/snorkel to your heart’s content. Read on.....
The Indian Ocean and Asia region is fast becoming one of the best cruising grounds in the world – a fact well known to those of us who have cruised here for many years, but one only now becoming common knowledge. “Recent expansions in marina facilities have provided the kind of support today’s demanding professional captains are used to and the pristine ecosystems found throughout these diverse regions are exactly what yacht owners have been missing all these years”, reports Captain Nick Coombes.....First Port of call is Malé, the Capital of the Republic of the Maldives. Arrival formalities are simple although you will need a pilot for your first entry (Port Regulations); clearance is done in an hour’s time and then you’re free to leave the Customs anchorage.....The Maldives are a nature lover’s paradise, with more than a thousand small islands, surrounded by pure white beaches, like ‘Bird Island’ and pristine reef systems, providing an unending opportunity to fish and dive/snorkel to your heart’s content. Read on.....
