Maldives Tours in Winter

This was hands down the best Explore trip we have been on. The route we took through the Atolls was so well planned. Two snorkels a day - awesome fish, sharks (of the reef variety), Turtles, Rays, Dolphins!! Our guide (Moosa) was excellent as were our onboard crew. The boat was also great - nice cabins and aircon. Lots of time to relax and take in the scenery. Cannot recommend highly enough!!

A fantastic trip which far exceeded my expectations. I was hoping for some good snorkelling but the close (sometimes VERY) close encounters with sting rays, green and hawksbill turtles, and sharks will remain in the memory for a long, long time. Fed like kings (how on earth the chef managed to dish up some sumptuous feasts from a small galley!) with an ever friendly and helpful crew, and one of the best (and enthusiastic) tour leaders.

Our Explore leader George, was without doubt, the best leader / guide we have ever had on any trip! His knowledge, kindness, professionalism would be hard to beat anywhere. Added to that, his sense of humour was awesome, he got us every time, and we all loved it! He went way and above any guide we have ever had. He is a real credit to your company.

An excellent 3 weeks with 2 excellent guides. Sri Lanka section was well organised by our guide Nala. he tweaked the itinerary so that we got the very best out of our time and imparted so much information about every aspect of Sri Lanka. He kept us on time fitting extra stops in if we were passing something to see like a banana market and fishermen hauling nets in on the beach. Accommodation was exactly as described and the usual Explore authentic assortment of comfortable and more rustic. There were lots of English style plug sockets in the hotels, but i would take an adaptor as well just in case. Highlights were climbing Adams Peak starting at 2am, and passing some very elderly people making the pilgrimage to the temple at the top. A unique experience. Also the train journey over 9 arch bridge. Great fun. Maldives- again we had a superb guide- Moosa. Extremely knowledgeable about the ocean and also gave us a lot of fascinating history and politics background of the Maldives. Island visits provided an insight into the real country. The boat was spacious clean and comfortable. Didn't expect the hotel like room services - bed making and towel changing! Food on the boat was amazing. Plentiful and a variety of dishes inc freshly caught fish. Had 2 snorkels a day building up the length and difficulty of them. So many colourful fish, it was like swimming in a tropical fish tank. Also saw turtles, moray eels, sharks and rays including a manta. The tender was always out with us keeping an eye on us whilst snorkelling. Overall a fabulous itinerary and guides on land and sea

We did so much in the two weeks we were on the trip. The week in Sri Lanka was a great mix of cultural sites and nature, and the week on the boat was fantastic - a nice mix of actiivity - snorkelling and swimming 2-3 times a day - and relaxing.

The trip was an absolutely fabulous way to explore southern Sri Lanka and the northern Maldives atolls. Brilliant CEOs, lovely accommodation and amazing sights. What an experience. I would heartily recommend this tour