Advise needed on our itinerary below - Dubai, Maldives, where else?

[gapmatt]

Planning a honeymoon for my wife and I in March 2025.
We'll be travelling from Taipei after our wedding there and so far I have booked:

1. Taipei to Dubai with Emirates departing March 3rd, staying 5 nights
2. Dubai to Male with Emirates on 9th March also staying 5 nights
3. Male back to Melbourne via Singapore flying Singapore Air on 14th March.

I booked the above flights using points when I saw the availability in a bit of a rush, however am now thinking to reduce a night in the Maldives, and 1 or 2 nights in Dubai to squeeze in another location to visit in between. Not really thinking to extend Singapore as we've been plenty of times.

Would appreciate any suggestions on where would be good to visit for 3 nights from Dubai in mid March, and preferably has direct flights into Male to save time.

 

[kpc]

I personally wouldn't reduce the 5 nights in Maldives...we stayed 6 nights in 2014...and I wished I had stayed a night or 2 longer....and Im not a beach / "lie by the pool all day" type of person! If you don’t want to spend all the time in Dubai and don’t want to change your award flights, you can go to Abu Dhabi or to a nearby beach resort for a couple of days, the name of resort escapes me for now...

 

[RooFlyer]

How about Oman? Plenty of swish places to stay along the coast, or rugged inland landscapes. Muscat is worth a day or two. March wll be low 20s to low 30s weather-wise.

And Oman Air flies to both Dubai and Male from Muscat. A good airline. Map from flightconnections.com

 

[AIRwin]

Colombo?

 

[Cynicor]

I hope your fiancé likes that pace, I’d file for divorce if I was moving that much on my honeymoon. 5 nights in Maldives would be less than the shortest trip I’ve done there, even by myself. I’d do less time Dubai, extend the Maldives and just enjoy yourself and relax.

 

[gapmatt]

I hope your fiancé likes that pace, I’d file for divorce if I was moving that much on my honeymoon. 5 nights in Maldives would be less than the shortest trip I’ve done there, even by myself. I’d do less time Dubai, extend the Maldives and just enjoy yourself and relax.

haha! it was actually her who thought the 5 nights in the Maldives might get boring. 5 nights seemed to me like the sweet spot for value since hotel award bookings offer 5th night free, and I have plenty of points to use.

Perhaps i'll look for some day trips out of Dubai city.

 

[Cynicor]

I’ve never met anyone who was unhappy with that time in the Maldives, so far. I’m pretty active usually and I find plenty to do. Just choose a resort with good snorkelling.

 

[Seat0B]

Here are a few suggestions for day trips out of Dubai:

• Abu Dhabi - another big city. See the Louvre, the Corniche, the Grand Mosque
• Hatta - the Hatta Dam, Honey farm with honey tasting, Hatta Adventures Park
• Fujairah - beachy vibe, pretty mosque, boating trips, scuba diving, local style outdoor dining
• Al Ain - cool oasis town and nearby Jebel Hafeet - rugged beautiful mountain with spectacular sunset views

I agree Oman is spectacular and worth a short visit 2-3 days.

In Dubai, go to The Address for drinks with a great view. Go up the Burj Khalifa. Visit the Palm for a meal or coffee in a posh hotel. Visit the shopping malls. Go dune bashing. Ride an abra on the creek over to the old souk and explore. Play padel tennis. Try hover boarding or visit the beach club. Visit art galleries or museums. Go to the cool artist and street food precinct at Al Serkal.

 

[jase05]

Plenty of great places in the UAE if you want to knock a day or two off Dubai. Abu Dhabi is interesting enough and then you have some great beach resorts in Ajman and RAK and also some great desert resorts aswell as place like Al Ain with great mountain scenery. Other nearby countries such as Oman, Qatar and Bahrain have flights to the Maldives too.
We head to the ME fairly often these days and don’t spend much more than a day or two in Dubai and prefer to head to one of those other places mentioned
March can be relatively cool in the UAE at that time of year temperature wise but it will be Ramadan so that can affect some services at resorts