Fehendhoo
Maldives on a Budget
Updated January, 2024
With pristine beaches Fehendhoo is a local island located between the islands of Goidhoo and Fulhadhoo in the Maldives. If you love snorkeling and diving, beach life, sea fishing and water sports away from crowds - Fehendhoo is the best choice.
A good transfer organization, comfortable and affordable accommodation, excellent food, exceptional service, beautiful ocean, magnificent beaches, interesting excursions and last but not least - many positive reviews make this island paradise ideal for a budget vacation with the whole family or a romantic trip.
Island Fehendhoo is a lost Paradise, where you can experience real local life with very nice small community of only 100 locals. In the vicinity of the island it is possible to see manta rays and snorkel with them. The island is surrounded by huge lagoon and numerous sand banks.
How to Get: Transfers
Fehendhoo is 100 km from Malé International Airport (VIA), and 35 km from the domestic airport on the island of Dharavandhoo (DRV). Get to Fehendhoo is best by public speedboat Male-Goidhoo. Upon arrival at Malé airport, you will be met by staff and escorted to the speedboat. The journey time is 1.45 - 2 hours, depending on the weather. After reaching Goidhoo, passengers are taken to Fehendhoo by a small boat, which takes about 5-10 minutes. The ticket price is 33 USD per passenger one-way plus 10 USD for Goidhoo to Fehendhoo transfer. There is no ATM on Fehendhoo, so please stock cash in Malé.
A public speedboat from Male is leaving Willingly ferry terminal at 9 am on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Back to Malé at 13:30, on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays. If you travel a large group, it's best way to book a private speed boat from Male airport. The rental price is $900-1000/boat
The second option (less budgetary) is by local airline from Malé airport to Dharavandoo airport. Flights are run daily, the journey time is 25 minutes, the ticket price is $ 95 one way. From Dharavandoo airport to Fehendhoo by speedboat, the journey time is 40 minutes, cost for renting a boat is USD 150-200. We recommend booking airplane tickets through your guest house, not on the airline's website - it will be much cheaper!
Start from 2023 Maldivian, the national airline of the Maldives, initiated scheduled seaplane flights to Fulhadhoo, Baa Atoll. The airline will operate these flights on Sundays and Thursdays each week.
There is one more option. There is a supply ferry going from Male to Goidhoo once a week on Sunday night (from Sunday to Monday). Usually it departs in the midnight, the journey takes about 5 hours. It goes back from Goidhoo on Saturdays at 5 AM.
Schedule and tariffs we recommend check with the host before your arrival in the Maldives.
The Island
The Fehendhoo island with Fulhadhoo and Goidhu lies in Horsburgh (Goidhoo) Atoll taht is separated from Baa (South Maalhosmadulhu) atoll by a six-mile-broad (9.7 km) channel. This atoll is oval in shape and small, its greatest length being 10 miles (16 km). The inner lagoon has a depth of 17 to 20 fathoms; it has a sandy bottom mixed with mud and clay. Unlike the lagoons of most small atolls of the Maldives, this lagoon is free from coral heads in its centre.
A beautiful and clean island with soft white sands, Fehendhoo is measured 2.5 km long and an average of 200 meters wide. The actual number of inhabitants on Fehendhoo Island is no more than 100 people, and local children go to the school of the neighboring island of Goidhoo using a school boat instead of a school bus. Local residents are very helpful, sociable, smiling people. They have a very good attitude to tourists. There are 2 cafes, two minimarts and a hospital on the island. The village is in the eastern part of Fehendhoo, the rest of the interior is a dense jungle with beautiful, sandy, shady paths leading to pretty pocket beaches. You can ride around the island by bicycles that are provided free of charge in the guest house. Slow Wi-Fi on the island, so buy a sim-card with a mobile Internet at Male airport. The only drawback is the mosquitoes. Bring with you mosquito repellents.
The Beach
Stretching from west to east, Fehendhoo is known for it's beautiful white sandy beaches. In addition to the fact that near each guest house there is own bikini beach (clean daily) with comfortable sunbeds, pillows and beach towels, you can relax and sunbathing on beaches in the western part of the island and for a while become their sole owners. The beaches of the south coast facing to a clean turquoise lagoon with rare coral patches, while the north side is open to the ocean and is backed by an extensive house reef with good snorkeling, even near the shore you can spot a vibrant marine life and healthy corals. The northern beaches are wider, in contrast to the pocket areas of white sand on the south side. On the beach there are many shady vegetation, ideal to hide from the sun on a hot day. In general, the beaches are stunning, you will have umbrellas, beds, towels, kayaks, as well as snorkelling gear.
The island's estern tip is adjacent to a sand bar with a view of the Goidhoo Island on the horizon.
Things to Do
AQUA BLUE Fehendhoo is the official PADI Dive Resort, operated by a German and Japanese couple with more than 20 years of experience teaching and diving in the Maldives and managing several dive centers.
The diving school is located on Fehendhoo Island and offers fun diving trips, snorkeling exursions and water sports (including motorized) all year round. During the southeast monsoon, the most popular activity is swimming with whale sharks and manta rays in Hanifaru Bay, the only UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in the Maldives, which is one of the most striking events in this area.
Fehendhoo - a suitable place for snorkeling fans. With 3 different spots, the island's house reef is home to turtles, rays, sharks and a colorful reef fish. A guest houses' staff also offer snorkeling excursions to other reefs around Fehendhoo. Near the jetty, takes place stingrays feeding in the evenings.
Specialized activities include: octopus hunting, a dolphin cruise, football with local people, snorkeling with Manta rays, half a day and a full day on a picnic island or a sandbank adventures, island hopping and much more. The average cost of excursion is about 50 USD. Also, you can explore the jungle: walking, running or cycling; Take a trip to the resort Coco Palm Dhuni Kolhu, Royal Island Resort & Spa & Kihaa Maldives, depending on availability and season; enjoy romantic cruise at sunset; try a lunch with a local family; Cooking class with locals and much more.
But the best activity is, of course, FISHING. You can enjoy: beach fishing, big game fishing, reef fishing, trolling, and several other exciting methods, day and night. Of all, night fishing in the Maldives is the most famous kind of fishing. You can catch snappers, emperors, barracudas, jacks and fish squirrels during night fishing.
Food
There are two cafes in the village, but this food is mainly for locals, including traditional snacks, so outside the hotel it is difficult to find a place to eat.
Talented chefs in guest houses prepare a balanced, delicious and varied dishes for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Expect huge portions of your favorites, fruits and freshly squeezed juices, as well as local, Maldivian food, including fresh seafood and fish. Clean tables and nice setting, and you can even order dinner right on the beach.
The restaurant at Tropical Village is open all day, with soft sandy floors, comfortable outdoor seating in the garden or perhaps on the beach at the luxurious lounge area for more romantic moments with loved ones. Beach barbecue, seafood dinners and special dinners are held regularly. We recommend you to try: Spring Fish Soup, Lemongrass Coconut Shrimp (Delicate shrimp and noodles inside a package with fragrant coconut, curry and lemon grass), Salad with octopus with herbs in Maldives style. Breakfast and dinner are served as a buffet, and offers an excellent à la carte menu for lunch.
In Fehendhoo Stay, the chef is an excellent culinary expert and portions are simply huge.
Where to Stay
Today (October 2018), the choice of accommodation on the island is small: Fehendhoo Stay and Tropical Village, but the fact that there is surpasses all your expectations. Everyone likes everything! Expect the fulfillment of every your desire! Pre-email correspondence, airport pick-up, transfer organization, Fehendhoo Stay cosiness, lovely smiling locals, island nature, clean beaches, "impassable jungle", crystal clear seas, and of course superb sunsets. The rooms are very comfortable, not much different from the rooms in 4-5-star resorts. All rooms at Tropical Village Guest House have air conditioning, a flat-screen TV and a DVD player. There is a shower with hot water. As for the service - the staff is just fine and try very hard. Inexpensive excursions. Varied and tasty breakfasts and dinners. Pure everywhere.
In late 2018, it is planned to open the third guest house - Atholhu Residence Maldives, where the diving center AQUA BLUE Fehendhoo will also be located. The guest house can accommodate up to 18 persons in a total of 6 double rooms with the possibility of one extra bed in each of them.
Photos
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