Maldives Family Escape — 5 Nights

A short speedboat hop across the atoll to a beach villa on a shallow, sheltered lagoon — the transfer is twenty to forty minutes rather than a wait at the seaplane terminal, which with children is the whole argument for this kind of island. An easy first afternoon: the water immediately in front of the villa is warm and stays waist-deep a considerable distance out, which is all most children need on day one.

The lagoon, and the kids' club when it suits rather than as a schedule. The water on this side of the island shelves so gradually that it stays shallow well beyond where an adult would ordinarily stop, which is what makes it work for small children — no drop-off, no current, and the reef edge far enough out to be a destination rather than a hazard. The middle of the day belongs to shade.

On the water properly. Paddleboards and kayaks in the morning from the watersports centre, which are included at most resorts, and then a first snorkel over the shallow end of the house reef — where the coral starts, the fish are dense and the water is still standing depth. Turtles and small reef sharks are common and neither is a danger. Reef shoes are worth wearing: stonefish are the real hazard and coral cuts are slow to heal.

Out by dhoni to the outer reef for anyone confident enough to snorkel in deeper water, where the drop-off begins and the fish are correspondingly larger — a guide goes in with the group and buoyancy aids are standard. Younger children stay aboard with the glass-bottom section or return with the second boat. In the right season and atoll the same trip may see manta rays, which is a different order of experience.

A sandbank picnic, which is the day everybody photographs. The bank is a spit of sand that is above water only at certain states of the tide, reached by dhoni, with lunch set out on it and nothing else in any direction — no trees, no buildings, and the resort a distance off across the lagoon. It is arranged around the tide rather than the clock. The afternoon is the beach again, without complaint.

The speedboat back to Malé, timed against your international flight. Most resorts hold a departure lounge with showers and somewhere for children to be while you wait, which is worth confirming at the time of booking rather than discovering on the day. Malé airport is on its own island and the crossing is short, so the transfer is straightforward compared with a seaplane departure.