Our Maldives budget calculator builds a trip cost from seven lines per person, converts USD items at RM4.09 per USD, and applies the room tax stack in the order the Maldives charges it. This page sets out every formula so you can check the result by hand.
It sits under the budget and real cost hub. For finished examples, see what a Maldives trip costs from Malaysia.
What are the seven lines in the budget?
Every estimate is the sum of flights, room, Green Tax, transfer, food, excursions and a buffer. Each line has its own basis, and mixing bases is the most common budgeting error.
| Line | Formula | Basis | Default source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Flights | Return fare + bags | Per person | Your search, or RM1,155 floor (Traveloka, 11 Oct 2026) |
| 2. Room | Nightly rate × 1.287 × nights ÷ people in room | Per room, shared | Your quote or market band |
| 3. Green Tax | USD 12 or 6 × nights | Per guest aged 2+ | MIRA circular, Jan 2025 |
| 4. Transfer | Return price per person | Per person | Resort or operator |
| 5. Food | Daily allowance × days, or meal plan supplement | Per person | Your choice |
| 6. Excursions | Sum of planned trips | Per person | Operator prices |
| 7. Buffer | 5% to 10% of lines 1 to 6 | Per person | Your choice |
The total in USD lines is multiplied by the exchange rate, then the ringgit lines are added.
Why is room tax 1.287 and not 1.27?
Maldives tourism GST is charged on the rate after the service charge. So the multiplier is 1.10 × 1.17, which equals 1.287.
On a USD 300 room, that is USD 330 after service and USD 386.10 after TGST. Adding 10% and 17% side by side would give USD 381, about USD 5 too low per night.
TGST rose from 16% to 17% on 1 July 2025, per the MIRA circular. Older blog posts and quotes using 1.276 understate the bill.
Some suppliers already include taxes in the rate. The calculator has a switch for this, and you should use it whenever a quote says "inclusive of service charge and GST".
How is Green Tax counted?
Green Tax is a fee charged per guest per night, set by MIRA. It is USD 12 at resorts and larger properties, and USD 6 at hotels and guesthouses on inhabited islands with 50 rooms or fewer.
Children under two at check-in pay nothing. Everyone else pays the full nightly amount, so a family of four over 5 resort nights pays 4 × 5 × USD 12, which is USD 240.
The calculator counts nights, not days, and does not add service charge or TGST to Green Tax.
Worked example: one couple, line by line
Here is a full run for two adults, 4 nights, a mid-range resort beach villa at USD 450 per night before tax, reached by shared speedboat.
| Line | Working | Per person (RM) |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | Allowance with bags | 1,800 |
| Room | 450 × 1.287 × 4 ÷ 2 = USD 1,158.30 × 4.09 | 4,737 |
| Green Tax | 12 × 4 = USD 48 × 4.09 | 196 |
| Transfer | USD 180 return × 4.09 | 736 |
| Food | Meal allowance | 800 |
| Excursions | One snorkel trip and one sunset cruise | 400 |
| Buffer | Rounded | 300 |
| Total | RM8,969 |
The room is shared, so its cost is halved per person. Green Tax and the transfer are not, because each guest pays them.
Which exchange rate and buffer should you use?
The default is RM4.09 per USD, the rate published by Business Today Malaysia on 7 October 2026. It is a mid-market reference, not the rate your card or bank will give you.
Add 3% to 5% to the USD lines if you pay a deposit now and the balance months later, or if you pay by card in USD. Our page on paying in MYR or USD explains when locking a ringgit price helps.
The general buffer in line 7 is separate. It covers drinks, tips, a late-night meal in Hulhumale or a bag fee you forgot.
What the calculator cannot know
It cannot see live room availability, festive supplements or package bundles. It also cannot know whether a quote already includes Green Tax or the transfer.
Use it to compare options on one basis, then check each supplier quote against this list:
- Are service charge and TGST included in the rate?
- Is Green Tax included, and for how many guests?
- Is the transfer included, and is it shared or private?
- Which meals are included, and are drinks part of it?
- Is the price per person or per room, and for how many nights?
Our guide on checking whether a quote includes all taxes goes deeper on that last step.
Who should use per-person versus per-room mode?
Couples and friends sharing should use per-person mode, since that matches how most Malaysian packages are priced. Families and solo travellers should start in per-room mode, because the room cost does not split evenly.
A solo traveller carries the full room line alone, and children often have separate supplements. See cost for one person versus a couple for that difference in numbers.
Ready to run your own figures? Open the trip cost calculator.
Questions travellers ask
Why multiply by 1.287 and not by 1.27?
Is Green Tax taxed as well?
What if my quote is already in ringgit?
Should I use a different exchange rate?
Sources and checks
Last reviewed: · Prices researched:
- MIRA, circular on change to TGST rate (17% from 1 July 2025) · mira.gov.mv · Checked 11 October 2026
- MIRA, circular on Green Tax rates from 1 January 2025 · mira.gov.mv · Checked 11 October 2026
- Holiday.com.mv, Maldives vacation cost (service charge and tax stack) · holiday.com.mv · Checked 12 October 2026
- Business Today Malaysia, foreign exchange rates 7 Oct 2026 · businesstoday.com.my · Checked 11 October 2026
If you already have a quote, run it through these formulas to see what it leaves out. Send us your trip brief with the quote basis, and we reply with options laid out on the same lines.
Want options that fit your dates and budget?
Share a short trip brief: when you want to go, who is travelling and the budget you have in mind. We reply with suitable island and resort options and an itemised view of costs.