Full Day Male' Walking Tour

I chose to spend a day on Male before boarding a boat to see more of the islands, and this tour was a great way to see so much in a small amount of time. It was well organized, and I learned so much about the history of the Maldives, current events, and the ecological issues that are faced. The guides, Archie and Sharkir, could not have been better. Highly recommended.

Secret Paradise provided two great days on a recent round the world cruise, with 29 ports where I and friends (up to 46 of us) did tours with local operators. In each port I read scores of reviews, to find the best tour operator, and Secret Paradise was easily the one in Malé, Maldives. But BOOK EARLY as they are so good, they fill up. I was happy to be the beneficiary of a cancellation, which allowed us to do their 3 Point Snorkeling Tour, as well as their Full Day Walking Tour. We were three on the walking tour, and two on the snorkeling tour, with Ub, our excellent guide, leading both tours. He's been with Secret Paradise eight years, and we were happy to have him, learning heaps about Muslim culture and life in Male. Especially impressive was his handling of calls to prayer, and our being there during Ramadan. The fish market was super, great to be there with a guide, it felt we were less of an intrusive force with a local showing us around, and thankfully able to explain things, identify fish, answer our questions. Kudos to Ruth and her team, a quality operation. She was a pleasure to work with in planning and communication. And a special thanks for keeping their group sizes small, with a focus on the environment. I much look forward to returning in the future, when I and my group will do their Full Day North Malé Island Hopping with Ruth & Mash.

Tour was very good. Saw and learnt a lot about Male and even got to visit another island and learn about the conservation efforts there. My tour guides were great! Tasted some yummy local treats at the market. Very well done!

I had a great full day Male' walking tour with Secret Paradise Maldives. I hadn't come to the Maldives for a resort holiday but was mainly interested in the local history and culture of the people. My three tour guides Shaffaf, Hamty and Nafsha didn't disappoint, on the contrary. We spent the morning on Malé, visited many places like the fish market and the Old Friday Mosque, and then took the ferry to Villemale. I heard so many interesting stories that completely changed my idea of the Maledives, for the better. Greatly admire the efforts of the Save The Beach-initiative on Villemale, too. I'm happy that Secret Paradise Maldives supports this type of local groups so that they benefit from the visits of foreign tourists, too. Highly recommended. 

This is a great tour for anyone who wants to understand the history and culture of the Maldives. Yes, you can visit most of the sites on your own, but Archie really added a lot of value with the information and insight. Also really enjoyed the visit to Vimalé island. Felt very, very different from Malé. Great to hear about all the restoration work the island’s NGO is doing to preserve the reefs. Do note, this tour is a lot of walking and also a lot of time in the sun. Be prepared with lots of sunscreen, water and comfortable shoes. Overall, would recommend.

Very busy but the guides looked after us. A great lunch and very informative. A lovely day with another couple. Tour guides excellent.

So very small Male island. Ask your guide for the bus ride..its slow, takes an hour but main street travel is eye popping..moped city!! Ask your guide if you can eat LOCAL CAFE..Full plates small price! Fish Market to see beautiful reef fish caught that evening FRESH FISH is a dream. Fruit Market, expensive! So be careful what you pick! Souvenirs and Supermarket weren't too high priced. Oldest Mosque was special they dress your head for $20 then take the scarf after visit! You can see nearly all of Male in an hour and a half but we walked slow and took it all in, just being with Maldivians and smiling and talking (when you can) was just a lovely experience. We were there from 9.15 until 4pm..but the last 2 hours we just people watched while we waited for our return boat. Weather was horrendous at times, tropical rain is heavy! Had a wonderful day off the Island though, don't miss this trip if you can go. $65 per person.

Great tour. Started on time and very informative, open and friendly from the beginning till the end. Itineary included everything significant and possible to cover in a day. 'Mash' My guide (and now friend) this one is for you brother. P.S. Special shoutout to Bebe the environmentalist and Ruth the founder of Secret Paradise. Keep up the good work. Best of Luck!

We spent the day with Archie exploring Male before heading on a short boat ride to meet up with Beybe, and this might be the most incredible insightful and educational tour I’ve taken in the 30 countries I’ve been to. It was such an incredible day, and I would encourage everybody visiting Male to do it!

Our tour was the most memorable part of the trip. I couldn't wait to learn more about Maldivian culture from locals, and Secret Paradise did not disappoint. My husband and I were met at the airport where our guide helped us store luggage and catch a ferry to the island of Male'. We spent the afternoon learning about everything from the history of the island to the food trends of current residents. We even got a chance to learn how to spell our names in Divehi (native language) while we stopped for tea. From the beautiful mosques to the city gardens, we got so much out of one day. Despite the packed agenda, we were never rushed and it felt like the tour was fluid, tailored slightly to our personalities and preferences.

OMG - what can I say!!! This was my 50th Birthday 2 week trip to the Maldives with my husband and 12 year old son - have only been dreaming of visiting for the past 20 years!! Ruth organised THE WHOLE TRIP to PERFECTION!!! I gave her a budget she came up with the goods - and some!! We flew to Male on 4th May - stayed 2 night at the H2O Hotel, right opposite the beach - it was important to me to stay here to try and absorb their culture and see a bit of the Capital - the highlight was a walking tour with Mash around the Capital - their first school, first Mosque, fish market - seeing the fruit bats for the first time and a whole lot more. Mash is such a nice guy, a true gentleman and we thoroughly enjoyed his company We then flew by sea plane to Ellaidhoo by Cinnamon - we stayed in a beach bungalow and again it was perfect. The Island is stunning and the staff are ALL super friendly and welcoming - we were here All Inclusive and did not want to leave - amazing food, amazing snorkelling experience and Ruth truly hit the jackpot for us here - surely she can't beat this with the next Island?? WRONG! Our third and final stay was Reethi Faru, we had to get a domestic flight and a speed boat here - and wow what an Island - if you can believe this island is more beautiful than the last and we were also staying in a sea bungalow - which was a truly incredible experience - the food here was also on another level, not to mention the Coconut Spa!!!! It is really difficult to explain in words how dreamy the Maldives truly is, we have travelled the World over the years and nowhere comes close to the heaven on earth feeling you get here We will DEFINITELY be visiting again, and Ruth and her team will be organising everything for us - they meet you at the airport, take your luggage, get you to the next stage of your trip - they are there 24/7 if needed and we felt content in the knowledge that we had 'friends' to hand if needed. I will NEVER forget my special Birthday and I can't thank Secret Paradise enough xxx

I have done many many tours with Viator, Trip Advisor, GetYourGuide, etc. literally around the world, but this tour, the Malé full day walking tour, was one of the best tours I’ve ever had, and here’s why: They truly care about the environment. My guide Archie was honest, on time, responsive, educated, and genuinely passionate about preserving the Maldives. He was perfect for the job. The best part of the tour, hands down, was the coral education from “Beybe” from “Save the Beach Maldives” in Villimale. He inspired me to take action on saving and preserving our reefs and coral. Even though I am from Hawai’i, I truly did not understand the value of this until I took this tour. Moreover, the food was excellent and the pit stop for tea and coffee and tea time we’re perfectly manufactured into everything. This tour was worth every penny. Lastly, I need to thank Ruth, the Director, who was also very responsive with my emails and with her leadership, this company is going in the right direction in “proper” tourism for the Maldives. - Me ke aloha, Dr. Lulu

I’m glad I signed up for this tour. Prior to coming to the Maldive for a wedding, I did not know too much about the country itself. If your someone who likes to really understand the country, the locals, and how the daily life of living in the capital city, then this tour will be great for you. I also found it a bonus to take a tour to villamale to learn about the coral reef restoration

Great tour of Malé with UB, so interesting and definitely the highlight of our trip. Highly recommended.

I was very happy with my Malé and Villimale tour with Secret Paradise. Both Ruth and our guide Mash were incredibly helpful and friendly. Mash was extremely knowledgeable and took us on quite the adventure of the city of Malé and then of the small eco-island of Villimale where we got introduced to the Save the Beach project. We got picked up and dropped off at the airport. It certainly beats sitting in the airport the whole day. I couldn’t have spent a better last lay in the Maldives!

What a great day and adventure I had during my walking tour of Male with Secret Paradise. My tour guide (Zaff) was engaging and provided all sorts of anecdotes as we traversed the busy city. So many sites and stories behind those places. I really loved the way the tour flowed, pausing when needed and taking time to take in the beautiful sights (such as the Sultan park) and moving quickly when traversing the busy roads. Secret Paradise were very accommodating - changing my meeting times at the last minute. Plus I liked the way they helped when I was in the market purchasing some of the products - very helpful in pointing out "local" wares. I highly recommend the tour with Secret Paradise, indeed, I recommend them for all your Maldives travels!

Zaff, my tour guide was excellent. He was very flexible to make best use of our time and the weather conditions and went out of his way to make the day as enjoyable and educational as possible

Mash is very knowledgeable and considerate. We met at the hotel and went on an eye-opening tour! He explained each place of interest and allowed time for me to ask questions.

I took their 4-hour walking tour around Male Island, instead of staying at the airport waiting. It was a very informative walking tour, taking the time to share about local history, daily life in Maldives and local traditions. The guide was very open to questions and he spoke perfectly English. The highlight of the tour was the market place, tasting local foods and seeing the people interacting. It was a wonderful time learn about culture and local customs.

Well done guys! It was a great day, good way of getting a real idea of life on Male - outside of all the Resorts. I had two guides - Sheik and Mash (Apologises - I'm sure I've spelt the names wrong) but I felt very VIP. Learnt about the culture, some history, the schools, major events that have happened and are happening to the islands. Enjoyed visiting the markets, found my favourite new snack (foni-roshi), had lunch and roof top view of island from Salt. Took a local ferry, appreciated meeting 'Big Brother on Villingili, having a little wonder around the island and hearing about all the amazing work he has done & is doing on battling climate change and its effects. It was highlight of my short trip. Bravo guys keep up the good work. Peace!

This was a wonderful experience. We had two guides (one was on his first day and the other was training/support) for just my wife and I. The walking tour provided a great in-depth experienced of local history and culture. The guides were very personable and shared their own views on everything from Islam, local politics, education, food, and just about anything you could want to ask them. We saw schools, mosques, a beautiful park, a nice coffee pit-stop, sampling local snacks, and finished the day on top of one of the taller buildings for a sunset view. If you have time in Malé, do this! Walking in the sunny daytime helped with the jetlag too.

This tour was an excellent way to explore Male in company and be able to ask questions and learn about the city. My guide paced the tour well, allowing for plenty of rest and refreshment throughout the day. We were able to discuss more general aspects of living in Male, as well as taking in the more historical and touristy points. I saw a lot, learnt a lot, and had a few new food and drink experiences typical of the region. I really enjoyed my day. Based on my experience, I expect the Secret Paradise guides would tailor the experience to each group or individual, giving you the pace and level of information you would like.

UB (Ubaidullah Waseem) made for a wonderful and charismatic guide in Mālé. What I really appreciated about him was his desire and willingness to learn as much as share through conversation, coupled with a wonderful sense of humour! Beybe was a revelation and inspiration for the work he has done and continues to do with 'Save the Beach' in Villingili/Vilimālé, both with local help and with international collaboration (meeting one of his co-workers in this regard was wonderful), with the seeding of coral beds in a quest to rewild. The snacks at the end were fantastic. In terms of other feedback, I recommend including lunch in the price of the day (already considerable at $95) for a full day trip, in addition to the offered beverage. The beverage for just a four hour trip, however, is fine. The place where UB took me (The Olive Garden) is a great choice! Altogeher, I am very pleased with what 'Secret Paradise' had to provide and I wish Ruth and her team the very best!

Unfortunately, due to circumstances outwith our control and the company's, we were not able to take this tour. We were very happy with the after sale service and a refund was sent back to my bank account. They did not need to do this for us but there professionalism shone through by doing this. We will use you again if we return. Many thanks.

I want to thank Ruth, Maahi, Archie and Bebe for an excellent experience in Male & Villimale. From having to reschedule the tour to a later date to including my requests during the tour, I had very enjoyable tour with Secret Paradise in Maldives. I met with Maahi at Male Airport and the tour kickstarted thereafter. Archie joined us in Male proper, had a coffee and time flew by till the Friday prayer time. Foregoing lunch, I took a solo walk down the harbour till the tour continued after prayer. We soon ended up visiting Save the Beach NGO in Villimale. Bebe is very passionate about the initiative and very knowledgeable about the corals & other fauna of the Maldivian ecosystem. We had a traditional Maldivian tea break in the evening before heading back to Male. The entire experience was very nice and I highly recommend touring Male with Secret Paradise team. Keep up the good work, guys! This tour ranks very high among my long and varied world travels.

We did a full-day tour through Malé and Villingili. As it was a Friday we had a long lunch back on our cruise-ship as everything was closed from 11:30 to 14:00. We still managed to see all the 'sights' in Malé and took a nice stroll through Villimalé. Actually the best part was to talk about the daily life, history, culture and language and trying delicious snacks on a local beach. Totally recommend.

I had an excellent day in Male. The morning was spent walking the town center and my guide explained modern life in the Maldives. The sights are limited, but they helped create some context about the country beyond the resorts and snorkeling. Lunch was at a restaurant set in a lovely old Maldivian home. We then went to Villimale and met Bébé from Save the Beach, a Maldivian eco group that works to effect change - both legislatively and at the local level - to promote sustainable tourism and keep the Maldives clean. An impressive man who really was inspiring. It was good to see local people taking the initiative for change - and to be so optimistic while at the same time very much aware of the barriers to change. I highly recommend this tour. If you have a day in Male, I really believe that there is no better way to spend your time.

My self and my wife had a grate time with your team, during our stay we had two tours, full day male walk and sandbank snockeling. We say a big thank you.

We had an amazing and great tour with the tour guide, Coco and the newbie, Yusan. Coco gave us the history of Maldives. He is very accommodating. Indeed, it was an unforgettable tour to remember.

Ruth was very responsive to all my questions and very helpful in choosing the right tours to match our schedule. She sent me the guide name and phone number the day before and even let me know that he would be a bit late due to island traffic. Archie hailed a cab to take us to Male and showed us all the different sites. We saw so much, I don’t feel the need to visit Male again if we go back to the Maldives. We got to see so many parts of the city including the mosque, fish market, open market, president’s house, and a lovely restaurant looking down at the marina and waterfront. We then took a ferry ride to Villimale to see a local island and get to know the man who started the local Save The Beach trash program. It was nice to see both the busy city of Male and the quiet village of Villimale.

I booked a day with Secret Paradise tour operators based on recommendations from others. We had no clue about the activities that we want to do or if the amount spent is worth. Ruth Franklin, director Sales Paradise was very patient in answering multiple questions over the email (some of which were actually very basic and kind of stupid). As it turns out, every penny spent was worth. Amazing crew who would treat the entire family as their own family, taking care of kids, engaging in meaningful conversation with adults and providing each and every information that one needs to know. Their patience levels were the best in planets, where they ensured multiple trials for each of us in Snorkelling. As we were all non swimmers, we were scared to the hell, but the crew was trained enough not just to take care of safety, but also to take away the fear. Hats off again to the professional management and staff (Kamey and Umm Shaa)

The process of booking this tour is seamless. Ruth is very quick to reply to emails and enquiries. We started our day by meeting our guide, Maahee in the hotel lobby. Do note to bring enough cash as he does not have enough change. He is friendly and very welcoming to answer questions regarding the culture of Maldives and the Maldivians. This is a walking tour, so do expect some walking. We went to a few government buildings and local markets. The weather is generally hot, so hydrate yourself often and apply sun block lotion as well. Maahee did his best to find a restaurant for us for lunch in Male, unfortunately, given that it is a public holiday, many restaurants were closed. Fortunately, we found a restaurant in Villimale. He was also aware of my wife's fatigue from all the walking, and offered to bring us to the next location by hiring a taxi (which is an experience by itself). Mahee also personally walked us to our hotel which was a kind gesture. Perhaps an improvement to this trip can be informing us a day before to apply/bring sunscreen and insect repellent (we got lots of bites in Villimale); eat a heavy breakfast on that day (as we had a late lunch); advise guests to wear light clothes (because of the extremely hot weather); provide tongs (rather than using hands) to pick up rubbish in Villimale. Overall, this is a great tour if you want to see the 'other' side of Maldives rather than the beautiful beaches in the resorts. Of course, all the best to Bebe (our guide in Villimale) to his commitment to the environment. I believe he will succeed someday.

This day-tour is a great way to get to know Male and Maldives. Kokko, the guide, was at the hotel lobby precisely at 10 am. He was joined by a colleague, Parrish. So I had two guides accompanying me. Had a great morning walking Male and getting to know the landmarks and their part in the history of Maldives. it comes with snack at the Royal Garden Cafe. Visited the local markets also. Kokko and Parrish answered all my questions on Male and Maldives. They also gave practical tips on enjoying Male. I had lunch with great view in a restaurant at the top floor of a building. The afternoon trip to Villimale was very interesting. Got to know Bebe of Save the Beach Maldives and their wonderful work on coastal clean-up and waste management, as well as reef monitoring and coral transplantation. Then Kokko and Parrish brought me back to my hotel What a wonderful day. I recommend this tour for first-time visitors to Male and Maldives.

<p>My guide was excellent. He explained about Maldives, its history and culture to me. Had a very fulfilling experience!</p>

i had a day in Male and this was the perfect way to get an introduction to the country and the city. i booked the tour through my hotel and the guide was great. the sights (especially the vegetable and fish markets) were very interesting but perhaps the best part was talking to the guides (there's another guide who joins in during the Save the Beach portion of the tour) who were able to share their own life experiences about growing up and living in the Maldives.