Top 5 Activities in the Maldives.

I absolutely love warm ocean water and tropical breezes.

My blood is just too thin for the cold ocean waters found in most of the continental United States. I can count on one hand the amount of times I was able to brave the cold current waters of San Diego without a wetsuit. And I’m alright with that–I even learned to love the wetsuit like a second skin.

Then I went to Hawaii and discovered the joy of swimming in nothing but boardshorts. And like a child discovering sweets for the first time that’s all I wanted from that point on. So when we got invited to Gili Lankanfushi in the Maldives I was ecstatic. We’d be trading the crisp summer waters of New England for the warm Indian Ocean. Better yet, a lot of the activities offered at the eco-luxury resort our included with certain packages.

With only five days at Gili Lankanfushi, we did our best to partake in as many of the activities in the Maldives as we could but came up a little short; some days it was tough to rip ourselves away from our overwater villa and its private coral garden. There is no shortage of activities to do on the island and these are a few of our favorites.

Visit The Spa

Oh the spa…. I love a good spa visit and the fine folks at Gili Lankanfushi did not disappoint. The entire spa was absolutely gorgeous (like every building here) and tailor made for relaxation – the entire thing is built over the water! But the best part was that we had a couples massage and there was actually a plexiglass window in the floor to look into the ocean while getting your treatment. It was absolutely amazing to be pampered and watch the fish swimming below you at the same time.

Kayaking

At Gili Lankanfushi all of the non-motorized water sports were included and there was no shortage of things to choose from – kayaking, paddle boarding, wind surfing, boogie boarding along with all of your snorkel gear. We were pretty busy most days (believe it or not it took days to record the time lapse video we shot) but one day we did manage to take out a kayak. Of course we went directly to the overwater hammock! The scenery is so beautiful on the island, though, it would’ve been fantastic to kayak for a few hours to discover more hidden spots.

Night Snorkeling

Ever since I was a kid, I’ve found water at night–lakes, oceans, rivers–a bit scary. I think it has something to do with the Friday the 13th movies I watched as a kid. I’m all about being around it, just not in the water when the sun goes down. So when Beth told me we were going night snorkeling, I was a little apprehensive but figured it would be a great way to put my fear to rest, since we’d be with an expert, Gili Lankanfushi’s resident marine biologist.

So you are probably wondering why the heck anybody would go snorkeling at night? Well, it turns out that the coral and other marine life pop with florescent colors under the glow of a blacklight. It’s as if the coral are painted with day-glo; I’ve never seen anything like it nor did I even know this phenomena existed until our night snorkel. The colorful coral were only half the fun though. Snorkeling through the lagoon at night was otherworldly. Marine life that didn’t reveal itself to us by day were active under the inky black sky. We even came face to face with a white-tip reef shark that scurried off into the darkness after meeting us.

Surfing

I had high hopes for surfing in the Maldives. And in all honesty, the Maldives delivered. I, on the other hand, did not. I’ve dreamed of paddling out in a tropical locale like the Maldives ever since I caught my first wave in San Diego 15 years ago. Better yet, we were taking a boat out to the reef break. I couldn’t have asked for a better day, the sun popped out of a clear blue sky overhead, the waves were about 3 to 5 feet, the water was warm and I had an excellent guide, Rameez, whose generation was one of the first to surf in the Maldives. There was only one problem, I hadn’t surfed in about two years.

The resort offered a nice quiver of boards to choose from; I grabbed a longboard and 7-foot tri fin. When we got to the break, I decided to go with the shorter board, knowing that longboard’s heaviness would zap my strength if I got caught inside on a big set. I charged the first few waves and bailed on each until i finally got my sea legs on the fifth. I ended up getting worked by a decent set and that’s when I realized just how out of shape I had become. By the time I got back to Rameez I was wheezing and my arms felt like jelly and my cheeks hurt from smiling. The session continued on like that until I caught my second and final wave to close out the day. It was tough being out of form in such good surf. I felt like a fastball pitcher who lost his edge. I could see where I needed to be, but more often than not I was just a few seconds off. Regardless, the session with Rameez was epic and one I’ll never forget.

Snorkeling

Beth turned me on to the world underneath the surf. Ever since our snorkel sessions in Maui, I’ve been hooked. In the Maldives, I think we spent more time in the water snorkeling than we did on land. Every morning we’d wake up with the sunrise and walk out to our deck for a dip before breakfast. Then we’d cruise home on our bikes and go for a long snorkel around our villa and through the coral filled lagoon. The snorkel mask and fins are included with your stay and you don’t have to return them until you leave.

If you’d like to read more about our time in the Maldives be sure to check out our other stories and photos:

A Gili Lankanfushi Morning (two minute time lapse video of the island & snorkeling)

The Ultimate Maldives (huge photo essay)

Plated at Gili Lankanfushi (food & dining review)

The Best Over Water Villa You’ve Ever Seen (villa review)

Welcome To Maldives Week

We’re Going To The Maldives!

Do you want to visit Gili Lankanfushi and see it for yourself? Be sure to grab the Beers & Beans promo code for a free night!

We’ve worked out a fantastic promotion for Gili Lankanfushi that is exclusive to our readers! Please read about it below and be sure to visit the Beers & Beans page on the Gili Lankanfushi website to book your stay and learn about what is included in the promo. Spoiler alert: It’s a LOT!

The Promo Code:  You must write “Beers & Beans Special Promotion” in your subject when making reservation inquiries to get the special deal.

For reservation or more information, please contact us:

Tel: +960 664 0304
Fax: +960 664 0305
Email: info@gili-lankanfushi.com   reservations@gili-lankanfushi.com

Disclosure: While we were hosted by Gili Lankanfushi, our thoughts and opinions are entirely our own.