Brief Description
Author travels to see the real, unexplored Maldives, one of the most beautiful places on earth, recently opened to tourists..
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Away from the five-star hotels and beyond luxury hideaways, Tom Chesshyre travels to see the real, unexplored Maldives, skirting around the archipelagos periphery, staying at simple guesthouses, and using cargo ships and ferries. He discovers that beyond the glossy brochures lies an almost undiscovered country that is brimming with life, yet also a paradise teetering on the brink of trouble.
In the Maldives outsiders used to be banned from islands not officially endorsed as "tourist resorts," but now a thousand sandy shores can be visited in this remote nation deep in the Indian Ocean the flattest on Earth.
This is island-hopping for the twenty-first century, sailing around 600 miles of the most beautiful islands and atolls on Earth, often to communities that have not seen an outsider for decades, ...and gatecrashing the odd posh hotel.
"On my journey this nation had proved to be by turns blissful, troubled, joyous, delicious, fraught, and always very, very watery. With the blazing sunsets, gyrating currents in deserted lagoons, kaleidoscopes of coral, cascades of fish, crescents of perfect white sand, peaceful coral stone villages, emerald jungle...the Maldives has to be one of the most beautiful, colourful and sometimes complicated places on the planet.
A whole new country had effectively opened up, hundreds of islands seldom seen by outsiders. It is not all that often something like this happens in the twenty-first century. I was looking forward to making the most of paradise, and I was intending to take a voyage around the edges of perfection. "
Review Quotes
1. "This witty, perceptive book provides a fascinating read for lovers of thoughtful, imaginative and well-written travel literature."--"Mail on Sunday"
"A charming travel companion, entertaining and engaging"--"Times Literary Supplement"
"Highly readable Bill-Bryson-esque travel writing."--"Telegraph"
"Never lacking in humor."--"Mirror"
"Tom Chesshyre bravely and entertainingly exposes the dimensions of the Maldives that the tourist board is strangely shy of illuminating."--Simon Calder, travel writer
"Revealing aspects of a surprising little tropical nation wholly unknown to holidaymakers, "Gatecrashing Paradise" compares honorably with Arthur Grimble's "A Pattern of Islands.""-Alexander Frater, chief travel correspondent, "The Observer," author of "The Balloon Factory" and "Beyond the Blue Horizon"
2. "In "Gatecrashing Paradise" Tom sets out to explore the other Maldives, not the one where all the tourists go.
Until quite recently tourists were very restricted when it came to Maldives travel. That's changed and as a result small guest houses and hotels have sprung up and you can make your way - like Tom - around the island by local ferry services and domestic flights. You don't need an economics degree to know most of the money from the five star resorts would have gone straight back to their overseas owners.
Tom [travels] all around the scattered atolls of the low lying nation where he encounters climate change concerns (nothing is naturally much more than two or three metres above sea level), worker exploitation, tsunami fears and some decidedly murky politics, often as opaque as the lagoon waters are transparent." -Tony Wheeler, founder of Lonely Planet
"Tom Chesshyre bravely and entertainingly exposes the dimensions of the Maldives that the tourist board is strangely shy of illuminating." --Simon Calder, travel writer
"Revealing aspects of a surprising little tropical nation wholly unknown to holidaymakers, "Gatecrashing Paradise" compares honorably with Arthur Grimble's "A Pattern of Islands."" -Alexander Frater, chief travel correspondent, "The Observer," author of "The Balloon Factory" and "Beyond the Blue Horizon"
Praise for Tom Chesshyre
"This witty, perceptive book provides a fascinating read for lovers of thoughtful, imaginative and well-written travel literature."--"Mail on Sunday"
"A charming travel companion, entertaining and engaging"--"Times Literary Supplement"
"Highly readable Bill-Bryson-esque travel writing."--"Telegraph"
"Never lacking in humor."--"Mirror"
3. "As the first Maldivian DIY traveller tale, Chesshyre's cheerful book will motivate many freewheeling followers."
-"The Times"
"A travel book that is a rare privilege these days... a new perspective on a little traveled side of a country we think we are familiar with, but which turns out to be richer and far more interesting than we might even have imagined. A great read."
-Ed Gillespie, "Guardian" journalist
"Chesshyre, one of the most dependably interesting modern travel writers, explores the offbeat atolls of this sinking archipelago, wandering beyond the five-star resorts to uncover an authentic idyll just as nourishing." -"Wanderlust"
"In "Gatecrashing Paradise" Tom sets out to explore the other Maldives, not the one where all the tourists go.
Until quite recently tourists were very restricted when it came to Maldives travel. That's changed and as a result small guest houses and hotels have sprung up and you can make your way - like Tom - around the island by local ferry services and domestic flights. You don't need an economics degree to know most of the money from the five star resorts would have gone straight back to their overseas owners.
Tom [travels] all around the scattered atolls of the low lying nation where he encounters climate change concerns (nothing is naturally much more than two or three metres above sea level), worker exploitation, tsunami fears and some decidedly murky politics, often as opaque as the lagoon waters are transparent." -Tony Wheeler, founder of Lonely Planet
"Tom Chesshyre bravely and entertainingly exposes the dimensions of the Maldives that the tourist board is strangely shy of illuminating." --Simon Calder, travel writer
"Revealing aspects of a surprising little tropical nation wholly unknown to holidaymakers, "Gatecrashing Paradise" compares honorably with Arthur Grimble's "A Pattern of Islands."" -Alexander Frater, chief travel correspondent, "The Observer," author of "The Balloon Factory" and "Beyond the Blue Horizon"
"I loved it. Tom Chesshyre discovers that beyond the glossy brochures lies an almost undiscovered country that is brimming with life." -"Mrs. O Around the World"
Praise for Tom Chesshyre
"This witty, perceptive book provides a fascinating read for lovers of thoughtful, imaginative and well-written travel literature."--"Mail on Sunday"
"A charming travel companion, entertaining and engaging"--"Times Literary Supplement"
"Highly readable Bill-Bryson-esque travel writing."--"Telegraph"
"Never lacking in humor."--"Mirror"
4. "Tom Chesshyre gives a behind the scenes look at the islands [which] are among the most sought-after holiday destinations." -"Mail on Sunday" BOOK OF THE WEEK
"As the first Maldivian DIY traveller tale, Chesshyre's cheerful book will motivate many freewheeling followers." -"The Times"
"A travel book that is a rare privilege these days... a new perspective on a little traveled side of a country we think we are familiar with, but which turns out to be richer and far more interesting than we might even have imagined. A great read." -Ed Gillespie, "Guardian" journalist
"Chesshyre, one of the most dependably interesting modern travel writers, explores the offbeat atolls of this sinking archipelago, wandering beyond the five-star resorts to uncover an authentic idyll just as nourishing." -"Wanderlust"
"In "Gatecrashing Paradise" Tom sets out to explore the other Maldives, not the one where all the tourists go.
Until quite recently tourists were very restricted when it came to Maldives travel. That s changed and as a result small guest houses and hotels have sprung up and you can make your way like Tom around the island by local ferry services and domestic flights. You don t need an economics degree to know most of the money from the five star resorts would have gone straight back to their overseas owners.
Tom [travels] all around the scattered atolls of the low lying nation where he encounters climate change concerns (nothing is naturally much more than two or three metres above sea level), worker exploitation, tsunami fears and some decidedly murky politics, often as opaque as the lagoon waters are transparent. -Tony Wheeler, founder of Lonely Planet
"Tom Chesshyre bravely and entertainingly exposes the dimensions of the Maldives that the tourist board is strangely shy of illuminating." Simon Calder, travel writer
"Revealing aspects of a surprising little tropical nation wholly unknown to holidaymakers, "Gatecrashing Paradise" compares honorably with Arthur Grimble's "A Pattern of Islands."" -Alexander Frater, chief travel correspondent, "The Observer," author of "The Balloon Factory" and "Beyond the Blue Horizon"
""Gatecrashing Paradise" is an entertaining travelogue that visits the corners most tourists never see." -"Marie Claire"
""Gatecrashing Paradise" clearly depicts a guesthouse scene largely undiscovered, which offers the chance to experience the warm communities and rich culture of island life." -"Minivan News: Independent News for the Maldives"
"I loved it. Tom Chesshyre discovers that beyond the glossy brochures lies an almost undiscovered country that is brimming with life." -"Mrs. O Around the World"
Praise for Tom Chesshyre
"This witty, perceptive book provides a fascinating read for lovers of thoughtful, imaginative and well-written travel literature.""Mail on Sunday"
"A charming travel companion, entertaining and engaging""Times Literary Supplement"
"Highly readable Bill-Bryson-esque travel writing.""Telegraph"
"Never lacking in humor.""Mirror"
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