Maldives Travel Guide

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The Maldives is a by-word for luxury, romance and tropical bliss; a beautiful string of low-lying coral islands in the Indian Ocean, and a paradise for watersports enthusiasts and sun seekers alike. The past two decades have seen the islands develop into a popular long-haul destination.

The country's 26 natural atolls offer nautical delights from night-fishing trips, windsurfing and scuba-diving. Many islands embrace enormous lagoons, where bright blue-green water laps gently on brilliant white sand beaches.

Global warming
Yet even in paradise trouble can bubble beneath the surface. It is precisely because the Maldives is so low-lying (80% of the territory is less than 1m/3.3ft above sea level), so transparent and perfect for snorkeling, that their very existence is threatened by global warming. They are also particularly vulnerable to natural catastrophes, as shown in the devastating tsunami on 26 December 2004: of the Maldives' 199 inhabited islands, 20 were completely destroyed.

Political change
Politically the country is today one of Asia's most progressive. After a 30-year period of autocratic rule from former President Gayoom, President Mohamed Nasheed was elected to the office in a democratic 2008 election, which made the Maldives one of the few Muslim democracies in the world. Since then the country has pursued a liberal-progressive agenda focused on improving the country's healthcare and education infrastructure, tourism development and environmental protection.

Geography

The Republic of Maldives consists of about 1,190 low-lying coral islands, of which only 200 are inhabited. Most of the inhabited islands are covered by lush tropical vegetation and palm trees, while the numerous uninhabited islands, some of which are mere sand spits or coral tips, are covered in shrubs.

Each island is surrounded by a reef enclosing a shallow lagoon. Hundreds of these islands together with other coral growth form an atoll, surrounding a lagoon. All the islands are low-lying, none more than 2m (7ft) above sea level.