What is your idea of Maldives?
What do you think of when you hear the word Maldives? I think of small islands lost in the Indian Ocean, made only of white sand and a few palm trees, often completely deserted, without buildings, people, cars; still and beautiful like an eternal photograph.
In part it is true, the Maldives are a vertical strip of 1200 islands in the middle of the Indian Ocean. They are partly inhabited by Maldivians and partly used as tourist resorts or uninhabited.
Feridhoo is part of those islands called “local Islands”, where you can breathe the real Maldivian life in close contact with the real inhabitants of the Maldives.
The local island
Feridhoo is a small island two hours by speedboat from the capital Male, located in the Ari Atoll, one of the largest and central atolls of the Maldives. Its particular position makes it a heritage of marine biodiversity among the most beautiful that the Maldives can offer.
Living between two passes
Feridhoo is located at the extreme west of the Ari Atoll and exactly on the border between the atoll and the open ocean. We must imagine the atolls as perimeters that delimit an internal lagoon from the external ocean, these are not closed but are interrupted by channels that allow communication between the inside and the outside. These channels are also called passes and are essential to support Maldivian marine life.
Feridhoo is located right between two channels, one to the North and one to the South, always subject to water and nourishment recycling thanks to the currents, allows you to meet the most varied animals around its extraordinary coral reef.
The tourist on a local island
However, tourists do not choose Feridhoo only for its marine beauty, this island has a lot to offer for those seeking the real Maldivian life.
To get to this island, you leave behind the chaotic Male, sailing at full speed aboard modern fast boats.
Arriving at the island you immediately notice a reality completely different from that of the capital. The small rectangular port mostly hosts the traditional Maldivian wooden boats called dhoni, used for fishing..
Setting foot on land you are immediately attracted by an enormous sacred tree bursting out over the large square of the island; below it, some men play chess or take a cool breath while watching the sea; it is immediately a very relaxed and serene atmosphere.
On this island of 1.5 km long by 500 m wide, there are only small roads of beaten sand, easily passable on foot, by bicycle, by scooter or with small motor carts called buggies.
Where do you sleep?
In Feridhoo you will not find any resort, swimming pools, over water (rooms on the water), the street of shops or nightlife. None of this.
In Feridhoo we find small houses mostly with only one floor, immersed in the immense vegetation of the island, tourists are hosted in the typical guest houses, very small hotels with few rooms, perfectly aligned with the local atmosphere.
This is exactly how the stay on a local island begins.
Those who decide to come to Feridhoo are looking for tranquility, silence, rest and contact with Nature and this is exactly what they will find.
What do you eat?
The island does not offer much in terms of fruit and vegetable cultivation, in fact the vast majority of food is imported from other islands or abroad. The most abundant fruit on the island is the coconut (obviously), followed by the breadfruit. However, Maldivian cuisine has made do with the few means at its disposal to make very particular dishes based on rice, spices, fish, chicken and of course coconut.
Sull’isola, al momento, ci sono due bar/ristoranti locali per poter assaggiare la cucina tipica e due negozietti per poter comprare bevande, frutta, dolci e generi di prima necessità.
What to do on a small Maldivian island
After we have sorted out food and sleeping, let’s focus on what to do in Feridhoo.
Walking around the island
First of all, a walk around the island is a must as it offers the most particular views:
we start from the two forests on the East and West sides of the island, there is absolutely nothing dangerous and there are paths that are easy to walk on foot... Leaving the forest, we can enter the small streets of the village where it is easy to meet the inhabitants outside their houses intent on their chores and children playing in the gardens.
The walk continues towards the port and boat storage up to the white beaches that throw themselves into the splendid Maldivian sea.
Activities and excursions
In Feridhoo it is impossible to get bored with its enormous coral reef, in fact the main activity is undoubtedly snorkeling!
We are talking about one of the most beautiful snorkeling that Ari Atoll can offer (we will tell you about it shortly).
The guest houses also organize boat trips to get to know the surroundings better: snorkeling with manta rays, snorkeling with turtles and in the nearby coral reefs, trips to the deserted sandbar and uninhabited islands...
In short, there is something for everyone but…
The most beautiful experience you can have in the Maldives is undoubtedly scuba diving and the baptism of the sea. Feridhoo also offers this service to anyone who wants to fully experience this paradise.
End the day in style
Once the heat of the day has passed and after a refreshing shower, why not go for a drink at the bar? Smoothies and fresh fruit juices, virgin mojito with passion fruit, orange, pineapple, with some small snacks; sipped in local bars, they will allow you to get in touch even more with the daily reality of the Maldivian.
European tourism and the Islamic religion
The religion of the Maldives is Islam, so visiting the local islands goes hand in hand with respecting their traditions and rules:
Dress appropriately: have shoulders and knees covered by clothing for women, not be bare-chested for men. Although local women wear headscarves, female tourists are not required to do so.
“Putting on a swimsuit” is only allowed on the beach designated for tourists, namely the “bikini beach” located in the northwest of the island. This beach is equipped with umbrellas and sunbeds but without services such as bathrooms and bars.
No alcohol on the island. You can have a detox holiday!
Life on a local island like Feridhoo
It's one thing to imagine the little island lost in the ocean and another to live it, to know its rhythms, its beauty, its time that passes slowly dictated by daily prayers.
The day starts very early in Feridhoo: around 5 with the morning prayer, people wake up: mothers take their children to school at 8 and pick them up at 12:30. During the hottest hours, people stay holed up at home until 4:30 pm when the town starts to come alive and the streets, the port, the playground, start to fill up. The life of these people is simple, always with a smile, allowing us to enter for a moment into their daily life.
Their life is extremely different from ours, it certainly needs to be known and this island gives the possibility like few others in the Maldives.
Nowadays many islands aim to build everywhere, to get rich, to have many tourists and feel "industrialized", because that's what the world wants now, right?
In reality, the real wealth is precisely trying to preserve this paradise as much as possible to make known the real Maldives, increasingly rare, which are also those of the postcards, but not only that...