Just got back from the Maldives and thought I'd confirm that the advice above was accurate, and add a few tips.

Male itself was, just barely, interesting enough for an afternoon of wandering about. There's nothing much wrong with it -- it's much cleaner and less chaotic than, say, India -- there just isn't all that much to see or do. For a bite to eat, I can warmly recommend Maarukeytu Hota, which got a mention (but no name) in Silverkris's Aug 2007 edition as the cafe above the fish market. You'll need to wade up the stairs through a pool of tuna blood to find a noisy, very local joint with no English menu and lots of gruff fishermen, but the staff are friendly and dished up two fish curries, grilled fish, fish cakes, rice, papads, tea and two bottles of water for the grand total of Rf.60 (~US$5). Gourmet fare, no, but tasty after 4 days of bland resort buffets aimed at German tourists who find bean sprouts dangerously exotic, yes.

Luggage storage at the airport costs US$3 a piece for every 24 hours or less and it's open pretty much all the time (the guards will go get the guy with the key if he's not there). MLE's facilities were IMHO surprisingly good, even before checkin: for one thing, there are completely free (!) showers that you can use to freshen up, although you'll need to bring your own towel and soap. Sure, there's no air-con, but if the fans and night breezes aren't enough, there's a cafe-restaurant and Movenpick outlet right next to the terminal.

SQ check-in opened 3 hours before the flight. We got a "x2" invitation to the Finifenmaa lounge without asking and it was also a positive surprise, with more little eats and drinks than just the aforementioned cup noodles, even if the beer was non-alcoholic. Tarmac views, newspapers and magazines, a bunch of free PCs, and surprisingly uncrowded before the SQ flight.

All in all a positive experience ^