EduFiend
Registered
Hello fellow divers, I’m planning my first trip to the Maldives in March/April 2022 on the Blue Spirit’s Ultimate Expedition. It’s a long way from now, a big investment and also quite a mission for me to get there so I was hoping maybe you could give me some pointers.
This particular expedition begins in Hanimaadhoo on a Saturday morning and disembarks in Gan. I’ve somewhat decided that the best/cheapest/shortest route for me would be Santiago-Frankfurt, Frankfurt-Malé. However, the latter are only offered, currently, on Saturdays and Mondays, arriving a day later. These can’t be sorted out this far in advance, but I imagine they’d keep the same schedule for the following season.
So, I’m thinking I will most likely have to spend those four nights (Tue-Sat) on one of the atolls north of Malé. I would have preferred to stay a couple of days after the LOB to chill out after three weeks of diving, but it seems it won’t be possible.
So, one alternative would be to fly to Hanimaadhoo with Maldivian Air that same Tuesday and stay there until the LOB embarks. I saw a not-that-crazy-expensive hotel there that can take you to a boat to have a drink. Not bad, but not ideal, alcohol is a dealbreaker.
I am also aware that Maldivian Air has some hefty restrictions in terms of luggage. I always travel with two 23kg suitcases (camera housing, gear and clothing) and a 10kg roller bag with cameras and lenses, so extra baggage fees are always a concern. I’ve already come to terms with them on the flight back from Gan to Malé, but I was wondering if there might be a cheaper alternative, such as:
Is there maybe a way to go via seaplane or speedboat up to Hanimaadhoo, stopping somewhere in the middle? How far do these things really go? How much are they? Do they have weight restrictions? Is there maybe a hotel somewhere in between with some good photo ops, has a good dive operator, serves alcohol, and won’t cost me the other arm and leg? Is it even possible to do something like this?
Any tips would be much appreciated.
This particular expedition begins in Hanimaadhoo on a Saturday morning and disembarks in Gan. I’ve somewhat decided that the best/cheapest/shortest route for me would be Santiago-Frankfurt, Frankfurt-Malé. However, the latter are only offered, currently, on Saturdays and Mondays, arriving a day later. These can’t be sorted out this far in advance, but I imagine they’d keep the same schedule for the following season.
So, I’m thinking I will most likely have to spend those four nights (Tue-Sat) on one of the atolls north of Malé. I would have preferred to stay a couple of days after the LOB to chill out after three weeks of diving, but it seems it won’t be possible.
So, one alternative would be to fly to Hanimaadhoo with Maldivian Air that same Tuesday and stay there until the LOB embarks. I saw a not-that-crazy-expensive hotel there that can take you to a boat to have a drink. Not bad, but not ideal, alcohol is a dealbreaker.
I am also aware that Maldivian Air has some hefty restrictions in terms of luggage. I always travel with two 23kg suitcases (camera housing, gear and clothing) and a 10kg roller bag with cameras and lenses, so extra baggage fees are always a concern. I’ve already come to terms with them on the flight back from Gan to Malé, but I was wondering if there might be a cheaper alternative, such as:
Is there maybe a way to go via seaplane or speedboat up to Hanimaadhoo, stopping somewhere in the middle? How far do these things really go? How much are they? Do they have weight restrictions? Is there maybe a hotel somewhere in between with some good photo ops, has a good dive operator, serves alcohol, and won’t cost me the other arm and leg? Is it even possible to do something like this?
Any tips would be much appreciated.
