Almost every visitor to the Maldives lands in the same place: Velana International Airport, on an island beside Male. Getting from there to your island is a second journey, and which one you take depends on how far away it is.
Here is how the options compare, what they mean for your arrival time, and what you will pay in tax along the way.
Seaplane
Seaplanes serve resorts that are too far for a comfortable boat ride but have no airport nearby. They are operated by Trans Maldivian Airways and Manta Air from the seaplane terminal beside the international airport.
The one thing to know is that seaplanes fly in daylight only. There are no night operations. If your international flight lands in the late afternoon, you may not get a seaplane the same day, and you will spend a night near the airport before flying out the next morning.
Resorts normally arrange and sell these transfers as part of the booking rather than leaving you to buy a seat yourself, and baggage allowances are tighter than on the flight that brought you.
Domestic flight and speedboat
For far-flung atolls that do have an airport, the usual route is a domestic flight followed by a short boat ride. Maldivian, Manta Air and Flyme fly these routes.
Regional airports are spread the length of the country, among them Hanimaadhoo and Kulhudhuffushi in the north, Dharavandhoo in Baa, Maamigili, Dhaalu, Thimarafushi, Kooddoo and Kaadedhdhoo in the centre and south, and Gan and Fuvahmulah in the far south. Hanimaadhoo has been rebuilt as the largest airport in the north.
The advantage over a seaplane is that these flights operate after dark, so a late arrival is far less of a problem.
Speedboat
Resorts and guesthouse islands in North and South Male atolls are close enough to go straight by speedboat, typically anywhere from twenty minutes to about an hour and a half. Speedboats run at night, so they work with any arrival time.
Public ferry
The cheapest way to move between islands is the public ferry network run by the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company under the Raajje Transport Link brand, which has been expanding atoll by atoll in zones.
Two things to understand: the ferries serve inhabited local islands, not resorts, and they run to limited timetables. They suit guesthouse travellers with time to spare rather than anyone on a tight schedule. Check current routes and times before building a trip around them.
Helicopters are coming, but not yet
The government has said a domestic helicopter service will begin in line with an assessment by the United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority, with a target of launching no later than 1 November 2027.
Operators will be required to provide search and rescue and medical evacuation, including fifty hours a month of free medical evacuation for the first three years, and licences may run up to ten years. Helicopters operated in the Maldives about twenty-five years ago but were withdrawn after a series of incidents.
The taxes you will actually pay
Green tax is charged per person for each day of your stay. Since 1 January 2025 the rate has been USD 12 a day at tourist resorts, integrated resorts, resort hotels, tourist vessels, and at hotels and guesthouses that are either on an uninhabited island or have more than 50 registered rooms.
The rate is USD 6 a day at a hotel or guesthouse on an inhabited island with 50 or fewer registered rooms, which is where most local-island guesthouses sit. Children under the age of two are exempt.
Goods and services in the tourism sector carry tourism goods and services tax, which rose to 17 percent on 1 July 2025.
On the way home there are two separate charges, and foreign passengers in economy pay USD 50 for each: a departure tax and an airport development fee, so USD 100 in total. Business class is USD 120 for each charge and first class USD 240. Airlines normally collect both in the ticket price, so you are unlikely to pay them at the airport. Passengers in direct transit are exempt from the airport development fee, and transit passengers and children under two are exempt from the departure tax.
Entry formalities
Every nationality gets a 30-day visa on arrival, free of charge. There is no need to apply in advance.
You do need to submit a Traveller Declaration through the IMUGA portal within 96 hours before you travel, carry a machine-readable passport valid for at least a month, hold an onward ticket, and have either a confirmed booking or funds for your stay. Airlines often ask for six months of passport validity even though the Maldives does not. Stays can be extended to a total of 90 days for a fee, applied for before the visa expires.
The one rule worth remembering
Book the transfer with the room, and give the property your flight numbers and times. In the Maldives it is the transfer, not the flight, that decides whether you reach your island today or tomorrow.