Fantastic Local knowledge and local history of Male. Friendly guide and local knowledge. Would use Secret Paradise Maldives again.

We booked this activity for our visit on a cruise ship. There were 4 retired couples on board a modern speed boat. We were picked up at the pier by Archie, put into 2 taxis and driven to the boat. A ten minute boat ride got us to the first snorkel spot and provided with mask, fins and floatation vest. We were well prepped as to our dive along a reef edge. There were two guides in the water with us; one leading and the other following. We spotted small sharks, clown, zebra fish and others. After about a half hour we got back into the boat to go to the second site. There we saw rays, eels and other different fish. The third spot was a leisurely drift snorkel along another reef where we just floated in a slow current along the reef to the boat. The boat driver and two divers were very attentive to our various swimming abilities. We all felt very safe, supported and enjoyed the experience and highly recommend it.

We were driven in a taxis from Male tender port to Hulhumale to board a speedboat to Huraa, This island is where the Four Seasons Resort is located. The claim to fame is that there’s a natural pond with mangrove trees. Saw lots of holes in the sandy area and was told that they were dug by small crabs. Also visited a small home production of tuna sauce. Basically tuna fish bones with some flesh still attached were boiled down in huge pots. Had lunch at a restaurant near where the speedboat was parked.

One has to take a ferry boat to Villinmale in Male. The journey is around twenty minutes, Villinmale on map is just east of Male and on Google map is shown as Villinggili. But because a bridge linking Male is being built, it will be called Villinmale just like the island with the airport is called Hulhumale. Only electric motorbikes and buses are allowed on this island. Due to the effort of the NGO organization to educate the students, this island is more ecologically conscious and there’s much less strewn plastic bottles and garbage. The NGO taught students can learn scuba diving to restore the coral beds and to care for the environment and have now in turn able to educate others as well as going into marine related careers. This island is not big as it took about five thousand steps to walk around. This is the first time I’ve seen and tasted Sea Almonds. Coral restoration seems to be making progress. One method is using hexagonal shaped and coated rebars to anchor bits of corals. The students know that their islands are there because of the corals and the beaches are also related to corals. I hope the success of this NGO’s work can be populated to other islands.

The walking tour have us a good understanding of the history and culture of Maldives. Our guide is a learned young lady who has good knowledge of her country and her command of English is also very good. As we toured the city, she brought us to several spots that are significant in Maldivian history including the Mosque that was designated a UNESCO site. We also visited the dry market as well as the fish market. My husband and I learnt a lot about Maldives and that tour made it more than a touristy island. Definitely recommend this tour.

I can understand now why this activity gets so many 5-star reviews. The operator is highly responsive to needs and best interests of customers to ensure best-in-class service and experience. We seek advice of how to store luggage before our transport to our resort island. They responded promptly and gave really good advice. On the day of bad weather, for the safety and best interest of customers, they cancelled the trip. We have received refund in less than 24-hour. We really appreciate all the great service and ease of mind booking this activtity on viator often with the highest rated operators like this. Thank You!!!

Really a very special experience! We are so grateful to have had the opportunity to explore local islands, and to learn about the rich history and culture of the Maldives and also to have learned about the unique economic opportunities, as well as the ecological challenges related to expanding development and tourism. We were so grateful for the exceptional qualities our guide, UB, brought to our experience. He was extremely knowledgeable, skilled, flexible, attentive to needs and also fun loving. How fortunate we were! We had wonderful experiences fishing, snorkelling, meeting local people and experiencing local food and culture. Our experience of the Maldives was so rich as a result of this trip and the wonderful qualities our guide contributed.

Shark was an amazing instructor! He taught us so much about ethical practices and showed us nurse sharks, turtles and different kinds of fish. We enjoyed the adventure and learnt a lot about Maldivian sea life. We recommend Secret Paradise to everyone!

Our host Kasey was a local with a knowledgeable background of the history, architecture, politics, culture, and the religion of the Maldives. We visited many historical places and our host was rich in commentary of the places we saw. We were able to engage in sobering discussions about the islands past, present and the possibilities in the future of the island. We were privileged to be taken to see many lovely sights including a beautiful historic mosque many hundreds of years old (we were touched by the spiritual energy in this mosque), a beautiful park and so much more. I highly recommend this tour for anyone interested in an intelligent, sensitive and interactive tour .

The resort was friendly as well as beautiful and had the best reef we saw for our whole trip. All pick ups and transfers were on time and helpful. Nothing was too much trouble for the Secret Paradise team. I recommend Ruth and the team very highly.

Despite being a rainy day, Rumaey as a great guide and we had a good time. We saw and learned a lot about local life. The markets were really interesting and we got to taste some local specialities. We had a break at a local cafe and had an awesome passion fruit drink. So refreshing. Rumi had another guide with ( so sorry I can’t get the name correct) who gave us a lot of history. We even went to their Monetary authority and saw the collections of local currency. Well worth doing this trip if you are having a stop in Male before going to / returning from a resort.

North Male Island hopping Tour with Ub was absolutely amazing! Ub is a superb guide and is full of information and knowledge about the islands. From start to finish was fabulous, lunch, snorkeling etc etc. I would 100% recommend Secret Paradise Maldives for an adventure.

Rumey was a great tour guide! I did not really know much about Male and the Maldives before coming here but she helped me understand some of the history and significance of the islands!

We have just returned from an island hopping holiday organised by Secret Paradise and I cannot recommend them highly enough! Ruth and the team offered a faultless service from literally the moment we arrived at the airport to the moment we left the airport. The guides are knowledgeable, efficient and friendly and having their help to get boats and taxis made it a stress free experience. We also did a tour of Vilimale island next to Male, our guide Kamey was absolutely brilliant and a massive hit with our kids as well. the tour was in conjunction with the local conservation NGO and we really learned alot about conservation issues in the Maldives. All in all a fantastic experience and service from Secret Paradise!

From the first contacts with Ruth Franklin at Secret Paradise Maldives to the conclusion of the trip everything was well organized and managed. The precise pre-departure information, as well as the accommodation in Guest House Island Luxury Dive Hotel on Fulhadhoo were perfect for my trip. All the people involved at the airport, Rumey immediately welcoming, as well as the other people on the Island, Mathyn, Ishara, Shameem, and all those whose names I cannot remember were kind and helpful. The room clean, neat, breakfast excellent as was the restaurant proposal. Defitely to recommend for unforgettable days at Maldives!