Fuvahmulah Overview

Overview of a Unique Island Destination

The Maldives is a chain of 26 atolls that spread across the Indian Ocean, consisting of over 1,000 individual islands. An atoll is a ring-shaped coral reef that encircles a lagoon, forming an almost enclosed body of water. The Maldives’ atolls were formed over millions of years through the natural process of coral growth on submerged volcanic islands. The process begins when a volcanic hotspot in the ocean creates a seamount, or underwater mountain. As coral reefs start to build around the seamount, they eventually form a barrier reef, and over time, the volcanic island erodes away, leaving a lagoon surrounded by the coral ring — an atoll. This geological process results in the Maldives’ distinctive atoll structure, with each atoll consisting of multiple islands and the surrounding lagoon.