The beaches of the Maldives are unmatched. Press image courtesy of Ozen Reserve Bolifushi

Where Are the Maldives?

The Maldives is an archipelago country in the Indian Ocean. It consisting of 26 atolls that include 1,192 coral islands, 200 of which are inhabited. The rest have been left to their natural state.

By law, only one resort is allowed per island, which means that every single one of the 160 resorts in the Maldives is on a private island that's only accessible to guests and staff by boat or seaplane. As a result, the beaches are uncrowded, secluded, and safe, not to mention beautifully pristine with relatively undisturbed vegetation and sea life.

What To Pack for a Maldives Vacation

You don’t need to pack a bucket or shovel, let alone much of anything else, because you'll be living in your bathing suit and the resorts have everything else you'll need. Bring sunscreen, but leave the hair products, makeup, and electronics at home—you and your kids won’t even touch them.

Food and Maldives All-Inclusive Options

Most, if not all, of the resorts in the Maldives have options to include all or some meals, so the only choice is which restaurant you are going to eat at. Unless food is really important to your family, it’s highly unlikely you’ll want to leave your island to explore restaurants on other islands. Some of the higher-end resorts will have famous chefs from around the world do residencies throughout the year, and all of the resorts will be upfront about what restaurants and types of food will be available to you.

All of the Maldives resorts I’ve stayed at have had a wide variety of options to please every palate, including local cuisine, food from neighboring countries like India and Sri Lanka, Mediterranean and Middle Eastern foods, and yes, even quite a few western food option. The seafood is always fresh, and so are the fruits!

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We found that taking a boat to the resort is the most convenient option with young kids.

How to Get to the Maldives

You will need to fly into Velana International Airport in Malé, the capital city, located on the largest and most populated island in the Maldives. From Malé, you will either catch a ride on a boat to your resort, or charter a seaplane.

If you have small kids, I recommend narrowing down your Maldives hotel choices to ones that can be accessed by boat, as I found the seaplane very trying for smaller children who had already been on a long flight. Also, the boats are usually provided by the hotel, whereas the seaplane is an additional cost. And it can be a bummer to wait around at the airport for your next flight when you could already be at the resort enjoying your vacation.

That being said, you know your kids best, and a seaplane can also be part of the adventure. In fact, one of my favorite Maldives resorts is only accessible via a 55-minute seaplane ride, and was well worth the trip—even if my toddler didn’t agree at the time!

Top Things To Do on a Maldives Vacation with Kids

1. The Beach

As I mentioned, the beaches in the Maldives are absolutely stunning. You can easily spend a day playing in the soft white sand and splashing in the warm turquoise waters.

2. Swimming with Sharks

The Maldives is one of only 17 shark sanctuaries in the world. While there might be the (slim) possibility of seeing a tiger shark, most likely you will find more docile species like leopard sharks, white-tipped and/or black-tipped reef sharks, and nurse sharks—none of which are dangerous to humans—swimming peacefully around the islands and lagoons. Book an excursion with a guide to get in the water with these harmless sharks—it will undoubtedly be the thing your kids brag about when they get home!

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Witnessing playful dolphins in the wild is truly magical.

3. Dolphin Excursions

Our dolphin excursion guide said that over the past 13 years, he had yet to go out with a tour and not see a pod of dolphins! The simple boats of dolphin excursions take guests about 45 minutes out from the shore, then turn off their engines while they wait for a pod of dolphins to swim by.

When we chanced the trip, we only waited around 10 minutes before we saw two different pods of dolphins paying around us. They leapt joyfully into the air and chased each other around like they knew they were putting on a show. We saw a mother and a baby dolphin in one of the pods, as well as two rivals that kept trying to out-jump each other. It was a magical experience for the whole family.

4. Snorkeling

Whether you take a snorkeling excursion further out in the ocean or just use the snorkels provided by your resort, you'll be in for a treat. The Maldives has the world’s seventh-largest coral reef system, and the water is so clear that everywhere you look you'll see something interesting. Keep your eyes peeled for sea turtles (the green and hawksbill is the most common), reef sharks, rays, a moray eel or two, and so many different types of brightly-colored fish and corals. If you are around the South Ari Atoll, there is a good chance you'll spot a whale shark—they live there year-round!

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Many Maldives resorts offer a chance to plant your own coral. Photo by Lydia De Souza

5. Planting Coral

Since most of the Maldives resorts offer overwater bungalows that require drilling into the natural reefs to build them, many have created initiatives and sustainable programs to preserve the natural coral ecosystem. Quite a few resorts will even offer guests the opportunity to participate in these programs!

If your resort offers the chance to plant your own coral, we definitely encourage you to take them up on it. It’s easy, it’s fun, and it teaches kids the importance of caring for our oceans in a practical and fun way. I got to name the coral we planted, and we receive regular updates on how Jeffrey is growing and making friends with the other coral planted near him. (Jeffrey is getting along swimmingly, by the way.)

6. Water Sports

Every Maldives hotel will offer various water sports. From non-motorized sports like stand-up paddleboarding, kayaking, surfing, and scuba diving to motorized sports such as Jet skiing, waterskiing, parasailing, and even fly-boarding, you will be hard-pressed to not find something your kids will want to try.

The more southern islands are known for having the best surfing, but we were able to catch a few waves close to Malé as well. Our smaller kids enjoyed the glass-bottom kayaks because they were as fun as snorkeling but less work (for them), while the older kids were little banana-boat fiends. They couldn’t get enough of them! I enjoyed the stand-up paddleboarding and yes, you can fit a child or two on your board with you as long as they’re not afraid of tipping over.

7. Cooking Classes

The food of the Maldives is flavorful and robust, relying heavily on what grows abundantly on and around the islands. It has a similar palate to the curries one might find in India or Sri Lanka. We spent an afternoon in a cooking class with one of the local chefs using coconuts, spices, and freshly caught fish to whip up a Maldivian stew that was so delicious, we drank every last drop. It was a highlight for our family.

8. Palm Weaving

This traditional Maldivian craft involves weaving palm fronds into baskets, brooms, mats, crowns, toys, and more. We watched as a Maldivian staff member climbed an enormously tall palm tree at an amazingly rapid pace, retrieved a few palm fronds, then climbed down and weaved crowns for the girls and hats for the boys. Then we all had the opportunity to try and weave our own special object from the fronds, resulting in varying levels of competence—and lots of hilarity.

9. Bioluminescent Plankton

Seeing the bioluminescence in the Maldives is not a guarantee, but it is possible year-round. If you do catch it, it is as breathtakingly beautiful as the Northern Lights! It looks like the sea has been lit up with starlight, because tiny microorganisms called bioluminescent plankton (or phytoplankton) that live in the Maldives' warm waters emit an effervescent blue light as a defense mechanism, which in turn lights up a sea of stars once the sun has set.

Between June and December it is believed there are more phytoplankton in and around the Maldives, and from July to December is when the night gets the darkest. If you can time your trip to coincide with the full moon, you may have a greater chance to see the bioluminescence, as the tides are what cause the phytoplankton to be trapped in the lagoons.

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Ozen Reserve Bolifushi is a paradise for families. Press Image courtesy of Ozen Reserve Bolifushi

Best Maldives Resorts for Families

Since every Maldives resort sits on its own island, it goes without saying that each one has a beautiful, private beach with crystalline waters and white sand. I’ve picked my favorite resorts that I know work well for families, but each one has a unique set-up—a different vibe, so to speak—depending on what type of vacation you are looking for.

10. Ozen Reserve Bolifushi

I’ll be honest, the Ozen Reserve Bolifushi had me at the overwater villa with a slide into the ocean. I could easily spend my whole vacation just swimming in the private pool and then sliding into the ocean when I wanted to be in the salt water!

Luckily, there are other draws around this Maldives hotel, like the Kuda Koli kids club—which feels like it’s own private island resort—or the house reef that surrounds almost the entire island and provides unending views of marine life (such as giant manta rays) just below the surface. The Ozen Reserve also has a unique Chef’s Garden which provides the hotel with a true farm-to-table dining experience.

11. JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa

This is one of my favorite Maldives resorts for families because it caters to every age—kids, teens, and adults. It's a 55-minute seaplane ride to the island, so once you’re there, you’re there. But JW Marriott offers so much to explore—and is so beautiful—that you aren’t likely to get island fever, but rather feel a sense of truly being disconnected and away from it all.

There are larger villas that can be shared by multiple families and generations, as well as one of the biggest kids clubs in the country featuring a 13-meter-long pirate ship, a children’s swimming pool, child-sized amenities, and different rooms and huts full of games and toys. Plus, there is a private teen lounge for ages 12 and up with its own plunge pool, Playstation, foosball, pool table, and lounging areas.

Other resort amenities include Jet skiing, scuba diving, windsurfing, and other water sports, as well as a soccer pitch and tennis courts. JW Marriott also has an abundance of choice when it comes to food, so even picky eaters can find something they like, and it doesn’t hurt that the spa will get you in the holiday mindset from the first day.

12. Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa

The Sheraton Maldives is a quick 30-minute boat ride to paradise, which means your vacation starts sooner and lasts longer. It’s a large, laid-back resort with a Swiss Family Robinson-style kids club. We particularly enjoy it for families because the resort caters to every type of traveler.

There are daily classes such as dancing, weaving, and cooking, as well as numerous options for water sports like standup paddleboarding, kayaking, snorkeling, and scuba diving. You can lounge on the beach all day, or you can fill every hour of your day with activities and never get the chance to be bored.

I like the breakfast buffet because of all the different cuisines available, and even though it's buffet-style, the food is fresh and delicious. The resort also hosts a feast once a week where guests are treated to a show of traditional dance and music by the Maldivian staff and a banquet of local dishes. The private picnic on the sandbar and lunch in (yes, in, not on) the water was another unique highlight of our stay.

13. Grand Park Kodhipparu Maldives

This might be the smallest resort on my list, and while it's still a luxury experience, it has fewer bells and whistles than some of the larger resorts—which is why I love it. Everyone knows everyone after the first day at this family-owned resort, and there were definitely moments where I felt like we were the only people on the island.

The beach villas have private pools and open up right to the sand and water, which is perfect for families with small kids because everything you need is right there. But don’t miss the infinity pool, because it is breathtaking. I also stayed a few days in one of the overwater villas, which had a private pool, an outdoor shower, an over-water hammock, and unobstructed Indian Ocean views.

Grand Park Kodhipparu has an option to ride on a Dhoni (a traditional Maldivian fishing boat) to go out and see the dolphins, which was very fun and worth the time away from the white sand.

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SO/ Maldives is set in a quiet, calm lagoon. Photo courtesy of SO/ Maldives

14. SO/ Maldives

You'll find the best of both worlds at SO/ Maldives. Set in a calm, quiet lagoon a mere 15 minutes from Malé, guests can choose if they want panoramic Indian Ocean views or to see the city lights. If you cannot imagine yourself on a beach for the full vacation and want to spend a day or two exploring the local culture and life in Malé, then this is where you want to be because of its proximity to the city.

SO/ Maldives is for those who need a stylish setting, as everything is designed like a set for a fashion shoot. Even the kids capsules in the villas, which include bunk beds in an igloo or pod-like addition, are chic and Instagram-worthy! Kids can play in The Zone’s outdoor deck and game room or take part in the activities offered by The Nest (like cooking, crafting, games, and more), while parents get some self care in the Wellness Camp or try out some non-motorized water sports. 

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