This year, unlike the past years, I decided that my first trip would be to the Maldives. I had never been to the Maldives before but heard many good things about this island, fairly close to my home country, Mauritius. I was impatient to go and discover the island, which is ranked one of the best destinations worldwide. Therefore, I was on an island getaway for 10 days. And it happened during my trip that I found some of the best spots to kitesurf in the Maldives.
The dates were set; I was going there from the 1st to the 6th of February for the Red Bull Wind Riders, a kite event for the local community in Goidhoo, Maldives, where local and international kitesurfers meet and compete.
Unfortunately, a couple of days before taking the flight, I learnt that the event was postponed because of the increasing number of Covid cases – and that the island where we were meant to be staying in was on lockdown. That being said, the guys from Red Bull Maldives didn’t see this as a drawback, but instead, they invited me to come so I could shoot the video project I have underway with them, which I’ll be able to share with you soon guys. So keep an eye out!
Moreover, I embarked on this adventure to meet the local community and go island hopping to look for amazing spots and explore real life in the Maldives.
It was an awesome trip and unlike most people who go to the Maldives and stay on a resort island, we were island hopping – literally every day.
I arrived in the Maldives on the 1st of February – and I had NO clue where I was headed. What island I was going to? Who was I going with? What am I exactly coming for? These were basically the questions I had in mind, but also which everyone around me kept questioning me about.
I landed on Malé, capital of Maldives, on the 1st of February, the Red Bull manager there Maffaz, and the photographer Shampoo picked me up and dropped me at a hotel in Hulhumale.
We visited the capital of the Maldives, the diverse local market and went around the streets to discover the culture and try the local food, it was an incredible experience.
During my trip to the Maldives, I met with Hantey, the best local kitesurfer on the island. Hantey is such a cool guy; we rode together and he made me discover the islands and the best kept local spots.
Follow him on Instagram: @hantey_18
I didn’t go over all the island but I’ve realised that it is manly sandbank spots everywhere, and I think one can easily kite all around the islands. Here are the 6 kitesurf spots which I discovered:
Spot 1 – Ukulhas
On the 3rd day in the morning, we took a boat ferry to the island of Ukulhas, an island about 1 and a half hour away from Malé.
There, we set up our gear, visited the island, had dinner, slept, and talked about the first day of riding.
Spot 2 – Mathiveri
We headed to a sandbank, about 15 minutes away from Ukhulas, called Mathiveri. There, we had our first and only freestyle session of the trip. It was insane, the colours were amazing, the wind was perfect for my 12m Torch, and it was freestyle PARADISE.
Moreover, it was really cool because there were about 10 local shredders from the island of Ukulhas that came to Mathiveri to kite with us. It was a lot of fun meeting the local community and sharing an awesome day on the water with them. We had an amazing lunch thereafter the session, walked around the island to visit – and then headed back to Ukhulas for the night.
Spot 3 – Rasdhoo
We left for Rasdhoo on the 5th February (about 30mins in a speed boat or ferry). In Rasdhoo, we checked in, had amazing local lunch, and then went for an awesome kite foil session on the sandbank next to the island.
True story, I forgot my 4 line bar in my suitcase on the other island. Therefore, I went out on my kite foil with my torch, but ended up having the best time ever doing some freestyle with my foil, and had good fun with Hantey, the local shredder that was moving with us everywhere.
Spot 4 – Malé
After Rasdhoo, we headed back to the capital of Maldives, Malé. There, we were lucky enough to have waves, so we went surfing on the local surf spots of Malé – which was mind-blowing. Unfortunately, no pictures of me shredding there because I do not shred with a surfboard, but it was good fun ahaha.
Spot 5 – Dhiffushi
On the 7th of February in the morning, We headed to Dhiffushi, an island in the northern atoll. Here, we also had no wind, so shot some lifestyle (tried the local herbs, tea and enjoyed the sunset etc..).
Spot 6 – Maafushi
On the 8th of February, we headed back down south to Maafushi for 2 nights: In Maafushi we had:
- A kite event organized by the locals (not the Red Bull one we had planned). Youri Zoon, the professional kiteboarder was present and was the host. It was awesome catching up with him and was good fun watching the locals shred!
- We swam with sharks
- Kite foiled a little bit
- Went fishing, and caught a 55-pound tuna.
On the 10th in the afternoon, we headed back to Malé. My holidays were brought to an end, I hoped in a plane to fly back to Mauritius.
It was an incredible trip; I had such a great time, met with wonderful people, discovered the local culture and simply had fun!
Stay tuned for my next kitesurfing adventure!
Meanwhile, check out my Maldivian Vlog:
