Malé, the only city in the Maldives

The island where Malé is located is tiny: it measures 1.7 by 1.1 km, covering an area of 1.952 km². You can walk around it in just one hour! Most of the interesting sites are on the north shore. It's one of the smallest capital cities in the world, so you shouldn't get lost here!

Its narrow, sandy streets are frequented mainly by motorcyclists and cyclists. Majeedee Magu, Bodu Thakurufaanu Magu and Chandani Magu are the town's main thoroughfares. For easy orientation, walk up Marine Drive to the junction with Chandani Magu, where the market and Singapore Bazaar are located. Continue along Chandani Magu for 200 metres, then turn left onto Medu Ziraye Magu. This is where the main monuments are located.

The former presidential palace now houses the Supreme Court of the Maldives. Located on Orchid Magu, a stone's throw from the port, in the Machangholi shopping district, it is a superb white and blue building, erected by President Abdul Gayoom in 1994, who found the old Muleeage Palace too small for his taste. He lived here between 1998 and 2008. The interior is worth a visit: marble floors, precious carpets, everything is luxurious!

An imposing colonial-style residence built between 1914 and 1919, the Muleeage (or Muliaage) Palace has been the residence of almost all the presidents of the Maldives, with the exception of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who had the Theemuge, now the seat of the Supreme Court of the Maldives, built in 1994.

The Muleeage Palace, an imposing colonial-style residence built in the early 20th century, served as the presidential residence until 1994. After that, the Theemuge Palace, located on Orchid Magu, fulfilled this function, before returning to the Muleeage Palace, in short, you have to keep up!

The tomb of Mohammed Thakurufaanu is located on Neelafaru Magu, next to a small mosque. A Maldivian national hero, he distinguished himself in the liberation of the archipelago from the Portuguese in the 16th century.

A stone's throw from the Muleeage, the Sultan's Park is all that remains of the royal palace, demolished in the 16th century. The gardens serve as a public park, an oasis of greenery embellished with lily-covered ponds. It's a pleasant place to stroll in the shade of tall leafy trees, listening to the birdsong. One of the few places in Malé that is somewhat sheltered from the hustle and bustle of the city.

The palace was not completely demolished, as a beautiful three-storey wing was spared. It is this building that now houses the national museum. Most of the collections are devoted to the Islamic period of the Maldives: you can see royal clothes and jewellery, ceremonial costumes, daggers, lacquer-painted drums and models of fishing boats, as well as coins, royal antiques, furniture, weapons from the period, etc...

One of the curiosities is the rifle used by Mohamed Thakurufaanu, the national hero, in his fight against the Portuguese in the 16th century. There are also sculptures, statues, thrones, helmets and other objects that once belonged to the sultans. Some of the collections also evoke the Buddhist era that preceded the country's conversion to Islam.

Don't miss the white coral Buddha head, a 6-metre-long whale skeleton, or the 11th-century sculptures and figurines found in temples on the various atolls of the Maldives. The gardens of Sultan's Park are also home to the National Museum of the Maldives, all that remains of the Sultan's former palace.

The Great Mosque of Malé is located along Chandani Magu. The interior can be visited outside prayer times. The courtyard is paved with Greek marble tiles, while Pakistani carpets and carved wooden panels decorate the prayer hall. The vast golden dome adjoining the Great Mosque is that of the Islamic Centre, inaugurated in 1984. It houses an auditorium, a library and the offices of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs.

Built in 1656 from blocks of coral, it is the oldest mosque in the Maldives, and quite simply the oldest building in the entire archipelago! In fact, it was built as early as 1153 by the first sultan of the Maldives, following his conversion to Islam by Abu-al Barakaat, but was rebuilt in 1656.

A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is decorated with superb motifs and verses from the Koran, and features a cemetery with pretty mausoleums and the graves of former sultans. The interior is richly decorated with teak and sandalwood panels, one of which, carved in the 13th century, commemorates the arrival of Islam in the Maldives at that time.

Situated between the Hukuru Miskiiy Mosque and the Muleeage Palace, this mausoleum is the most sacred building in the Maldives. Behind the blue door is the tomb of Abu al Barakat Yusuk al Barbari, the Moroccan traveller who converted the Maldivian people to Islam in 1153. According to legend, the sea demon Rannamaari demanded the sacrifice of a virgin every month. Abu al Barakat read the verses of the Koran all night long. The demon never returned and the king converted to Islam.

One of the highlights of a stay in Malé is shopping in its bazaars and traditional markets, an opportunity to pick up some excellent bargains, whereas the shops on the island hotels are overpriced! Perfumes, cosmetics, jewellery, watches, electronics, canned fish, souvenirs - you name it!

Our favourites? The 'thudu kuna', the traditional Maldivian carpet woven from local natural fibres, or miniature 'dhonis', the typical Maldivian wooden boat, not forgetting lacquered wooden objects, woven mats and coral necklaces. The northern end of Chaandhanee Magu is known as the Singapore Bazaar, because it was here that many goods from the Lion City, one of Asia's pearls, were sold.

The colourful markets sell Indian spices and fresh coconuts. Our favourite is the fish market, an unforgettable experience to see all the fish just brought in by the fishermen in their traditional dhoni!

Jen Malé Maldives by Shangri-La is ideally located next to the ferry jetty, within walking distance of the Presidential Muleeage Palace and Sultan's Park. The infinity pool on the roof terrace offers superb panoramic views of Malé and the turquoise waters of the atoll.