Vihamanaafushi
| Vihamanaafushi (Kurumba) | ||
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| Waters |
Lakkadive Sea ( Indian Ocean ) |
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| Archipelago |
North Malé Atoll , Maldives |
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| Geographical location | 4 ° 14 ' N , 73 ° 31' E | |
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Vihamanaafushi (also Vihamana Fushi ; German " island without poisonous plants "), better known under the tourist name Kurumba (" coconut "), is a hotel island in the Maldives in the North Malé Atoll (administrative atoll Kaafu ).
The approximately 500 × 250 meter large island is located in the immediate vicinity of the airport island of Hulhulé and is about 5 kilometers from the capital island of Malé ; the speedboat ride to both the airport and Male takes around 10 to 15 minutes. Other neighboring islands are the artificial island of Hulhumalé in the east, which belongs to the city of Malé , Farukolhufushi (Faru) and Furana (Full Moon Beach) in the northeast and the presidential island of Aarah in the west.
The first president of the Maldives, Mohamed Amin Didi , was exiled to Vihamanaafushi after his fall in 1953, died as a prisoner the following year and was buried there.
In 1972 an Italian entrepreneur opened the Maldives' first resort on Vihamanaafushi, which was renamed Kurumba . In 1977 the German artist Blinky Palermo died unexpectedly on the island while on vacation. In 2003 and 2004 extensive renovation work took place. The hotel complex offers 180 bungalows and villas, eight restaurants, three bars, a spa and various sports activities. Kurumba is one of the larger resorts in the country.
Since the resort on Villingili was converted into a residential area, Kurumba is the closest tourist island to the capital and the international airport.
The island is densely overgrown with coconut palms and has been heavily developed since the tourist development.
Web links
literature
- Heiner Gstaltmayr: Maledives, p. 40
- Adrian Neville: Resorts of Maldives, p. 97