Maldives Capital

Maldives Capital – Male

Written by Caitlyn Howells on December 28th, 2008

Male is the Maldives capital, but interestingly many visitors to the islands never spend time exploring the capital, instead they simply pass through on the way to their resort.

If you would like to spend some time visiting the capital check whether your resort offers a day trip excursion.

Male is an island itself, though not particularly large, you can walk around the whole island in just more than an hour — it’s approximately 2km long by 1km wide.

A view of Male from the Seaplane

Despite its small size Male is home to 70,000 residents. Male runs many land reclamation projects to try and increase the amount of space available on the island. You’ll see many of the services you would expect in a capital; book shops, internet access and a myriad of places to eat.

If you do plan a trip to Male here are a few places of interest you should look out for.

Hukuru Miskiiy is the oldest mosque in Male and dates back to the 1650s. It is one of the grander structures in the city.
The National Museum hosts displays of various artefacts once owned by the Sultans. You’ll see anything from clothing to weapons.
The Muleeaage was initially built as a palace but has also been used as the presidential residence.
Chandanee Magu and Orchid Magu will be of interest to shoppers for their clusters of souvenir shops and cafes.
Sports enthusiasts should head to the National Stadium where soccer and cricket games are played.
If you get hungry Male has several tea shops offering non-alcoholic drinks and hedhikaa (small snacks). These tea shops are often cheap and cheerful, serving simple foods for low prices. For a larger meal there are several higher priced restaurants to choose from offering a wide range of cuisines, including American, Chinese, Thai, Indian and Italian.
If you’d prefer to stay in Male for longer than a day trip you will find several hotels and guest houses to suit a varity of budgets.