Want to be the envy of all your friends? Just casually drop “I’m holiday-making in the Maldives” into conversation, preferably in the dead of winter. Nothing screams “paradise” quite like the Maldives, a 26-atoll chain of islands with powdery beaches, turquoise waters, and dreamy overwater bungalow resorts. Nothing screams “paradise” quite like the Maldives, a 26-atoll chain of islands with powdery beaches, turquoise waters, and dreamy overwater bungalow resorts.