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General Information ... continued

The Maldives or 'Malodheep' as they are known in Sanskrit which means a garland of islands, lie 600km Southwest of Sri Lanka and 670 Southwest of India, forming the central part of the Lacadives-Chagos Ridge, a submerged volcanic mountain range which stretches 7 degrees north, to just south of the equator. This underwater mountain range creates a chain of 26 atolls, 754km from north to south and 118km from east to west.

The archipelago is made up of about 1192 small coral islands, spread over a geographical area of 90,000sq kilometres (including sea) in the Indian Ocean.The islands that make up the Republic of Maldives are very small - the total area being around 298 square kilometres and Male' the capital island being only 450.6 acres. There are nearly 1000 uninhibited islands, none over 3m above sea level, surrounded by coral reefs. Formed above peaks from the depths of the ocean, upon layers of both dead and living coral and other remains of various marine life, the islands are densely covered with tropical vegetation such as coconut palms. The unique islands provide visitors with one of the most breathtaking views of underwater life in the world. The protective coral reefs surrounding each island contain over a 1000 species of tropical fish, innumerable varieties of shells and countless shapes and sizes of corals.

The monsoons determine the climate in the Maldives. It is generally warm and humid. The wet Southwest monsoon begins at the end of April and continues until the end of October, while the dry Northeast monsoon prevails from December to March. The average annual rainfall recorded in the Maldives average 155.7mm (1992). The average daily temperature varies throughout the year. The average daily minimum temperature in 1992 being 25.4° C and maximum being 30.4° C. The climate is thus ideal all year round for sea bathing and water sports.

The Islands - All the islands(approx. 1200 of which 200 are populated) are coral islands of not more than 1-2 meters above sea level All the islands are surrounded by a shallow lagoon which is encircled by a protective coral reef. These reefs are home to thousands of tropical fish and corals of different colours.