juicy03

Hi everyone! We are trying to pick a location for our honeymoon in May. We are looking for somewhere to relax, swim, snorkel, maybe with a bit of surfing. We aren't divers so that is not an issue. We like nicer hotels (i think probably around 4/5 stars), but not overly stuffy, and good food!!

Any recommendations as to which location is better in May? I think this is the beginning of rainy season in Maldives but how much does it actually rain?? We are coming from California so I think French Polynesia is definitely easier to get to.

Any advice would be appreciated!

rhkkmk

no surfing really in maldives...

look at datai in langkawi malaysia
also amari vogue in krabi thailand
any of the lux bali hotels, like four seasons, legian, conrad and others... or a private villa for the same $$ or less with a private staff...

Hanuman

There's no snorkeling or surfing in Hua Hin so crossed that out of your list. No where else in Thailand offer surfing, only kiteboarding and windsurfing.

The Maldives apparently offer surfing at some of the islands or atolls notably the one of the Four Seasons resort. Plenty of snorkeling and diving and very romantic with great accomodation but at a price. IMO this would probably be the best for a honeymoon but I've not been to Bora Bora yet.

Cicerone

For specific information on the amount of rain in the Maldives, see websites like weatherbase.com. (Actually according to weatherbase, Bora Bora looks fairly rainy in May as well; it appears to receive only about an inch less rain than Male in the Maldives. I have been to Bora Bora but only once in September, which the dryer time of year. I have been to the Maldives many times, in both the wet and dry seasons.)

IMO, even the rainstorms in the Maldives are magnificent, as the huge coal-black thunderheads boil up along the horizon and change the colour of the water. They are lovely to watch. The down sides are: (i) it is cloudier overall, which really affects the colour of the coral, (ii) the winds can be quite strong, making the water choppier and currents stronger, which is more of an issue for divers but it can make boat trips either impossible or uncomfortable, and (iii) you might get entire afternoons of rain every day for your entire stay. As each resort is on its own island, there is really nothing to do in terms of museums, shopping, if it is raining. (There are spas and gyms in most every resort.) If you are the type of people who would not be happy reading under your villa awning and listening to the rain, but would prefer shopping and sightseeing activities, then the Maldives, and esp the Maldives in the rainy season, may not be the place for you. If you plan on taking a seaplane for any transfers, and don’t like flying in small aircraft at low elevations in thunderstorms, then again this may not be the season for you. (There are resorts which would not require seaplane transfers.)

There are places for surfing in the Maldives, which would actually be good in the rainy season as the wind increases the wave size. One area is quite near the Four Seasons Kuda Huraa, which is how I found out about it, see http://www.fourseasons.com/maldivesk...n/surfing.html. I am not a surfer and have not surfed there, but have been to see it, and it looks quite fun. I don’t think it is Hawaii or anything, but I believe people do come from various parts of the world to do it. There is also famous surf place near there at the Dhonveli Resort, http://www.dhonvelibeachresort.net/, called Pasta Point which is supposed to be very good. You have to be staying at the resort to surf that particular area, but there are others nearby where you can surf. Surfing in the Maldives is probably better than in Bora Bora, which I understand offers very limited surfing, and I don't recall seeing any. But I don't think either would be a place to go if surfing is the main activity that you want to undertake. In the first place, it would limit where you could stay in the Maldives, as distances are vast and surfing areas limited.

But if the rain potential is OK with you, then it’s kind of a tough choice between the two I would say. Bora Bora is quite different from the Maldives. First of all the geography is vastly different, as there are mountains on Bora Bora, while the islands in the Maldives are completely flat. (I have not been to Huahine, but I believe it’s geography is similar to Bora Bora.) The French influence in Bora Bora gives quite a different feel to its culture, and of course to its food. Bora Bora is Polynesian culture with a polytheistic religion, as well as a good number of Catholics from the French presence; the Maldives are a Muslim country and are quite conservative. However, there is more to do in Bora Bora as there is the one main town with shopping and restaurants, which you really can’t find in the Maldives. (Male, the capital of the Maldives is not worth a trip, and offers basically no shopping and one restaurant. No alcohol is available in Male, it is only available on resort islands. Gan, the only other city in the Maldives which is in the very far south, is tiny and quite charming, far more so than Male, although it offers no shopping either and only a few restaurants. But it will be in quite heavy rain in May so I would not recommend that you stay in the far southern atolls.)

Kathie

I've not been to the Maldives but have been to Bora Bora which is just wonderful. I've not been to Huahine, but met people who had gone there to surf.

Hanuman

OOPS the OP did not ask about Hua Hin - my apologies!