When you start planning a trip to the Maldives it can be almost impossible to choose just which of those incredibly beautiful islands is the right one for you. So if you feel thoroughly confused about where to go, make life easy for yourself. Hop on what is endearingly called a 'safari boat' out in the Maldives.

After being met at the airport, a 10 minute transfer will drop you onto a comfy floating hotel. Depending on the prevailing weather, you then sail around two or even three atolls.

Evenings are spent moored near uninhabited islands with almost no neighbours, while days are filled in by hopping onto a dive dhoni. This second vessel shadows your floating home then takes you off to find the best dives around.

We recently travelled on Maldives Scuba Tours’ Sea Queen. She and her sister boat, Sea Spirit, are British owned and run with British or Australian cruise directors on board. And quite a line-up of chefs that do fabulous curries. And cakes.

We travelled from Male to South Ari Atoll and did a circuit of some of the best dives in that area. next we headed across to South Male Atoll to see a fanatstic wreck and then we travelled up to the top of North Male Atoll, workig our way slowly back to the airport.

The weather patterns did influence our dive choices but we got in a much larger variety of dive sites than we would have on an island, and all with the convenience of your room going with you.