Private jet from Alicante to the Maldives

The Costa Blanca has a large community of residents and second-home owners from Spain, the UK, Scandinavia, the Benelux countries and Germany, and many of them spend part of the winter somewhere warmer still. A private jet from Alicante takes them to the Maldives without going via Madrid or a Gulf hub, and lets a family travel with all its luggage on its own schedule.

All private flights from the coast leave Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández airport (ALC) at El Altet, whose 3,000 m runway suits every long-range jet. El Altet to Malé is 9 h 45 min nonstop in a Gulfstream G650 or Global 7500; a Challenger 350, landing once for fuel, keeps the bill lowest at €84,000 one way for the whole aircraft. Maldives Private Jet owns no aircraft: as a broker, we weigh up offers from several operators, each with an Air Operator Certificate.

Private jet prices from Alicante to Malé

Five aircraft are priced from Alicante-Elche to Velana International Airport. The long range Falcon 7X and the ultra long range G650 and Global 7500 need no stop; both Challengers land once for fuel.

Prices are one-way guides for the entire aircraft. Handling, which is mandatory at Alicante, airport fees and passenger taxes come as extra lines, and only the signed contract is binding.

A family of four in the Challenger 350 pays €21,000 per person. With 12 on board, the Challenger 650 costs €8,300 each; a full Falcon 7X comes to €8,900 per seat and a full G650 to €8,100.

For a holiday of a week or two, the operator quotes either a jet that stays on the islands until your return, with parking and crew rooms charged, or two separate positioning flights, home and back again. Alicante itself offers no hangars for visiting aircraft and limited multi-night parking, so the jet seldom waits there between trips. Compare other departure cities on our prices page.

All aircraft from Alicante with prices

Every row assumes a departure from Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport. The Challenger 350 opens the list at €84,000; at the other end the Global 7500 costs €135,000 for the same trip to Velana.

Nonstop prices from Alicante begin with the Falcon 7X, €125,000 for 10 h 5 min in the air. If an extra landing is acceptable, €84,000 buys the Challenger 350, at 12 h 25 min door to door in the air. Per traveller, nothing beats a full Praetor 600: €7,300 each with 12 on board.

Price per person by group size

What each passenger pays from Alicante in three jets, one way, depending on how many share the cabin.

Four travellers returning to the Costa Blanca pay US$3,840 in Malé on top: US$480 departure tax and US$480 development fee each.

Return flight and Empty Leg prices

In the return column the jet leaves Malé after landing you and comes back on your last day to fly you to Alicante.

An Alicante Empty Leg in a Challenger 350 would cost roughly €33,000 to €58,000 after the typical 30 to 60% discount. To hear if one matches your dates, sign up on the Empty Legs page. Keeping the aircraft with you in the Maldives means parking and crew rooms on the bill, often at Gan or Maafaru when Velana is full.

Departing from Alicante-Elche

The airport lies about 9 km south-west of Alicante and 10 km from Elche, three kilometres from the sea. It is one of the busiest in Spain, but private passengers never see the main terminal.

1. The slotEvery private flight needs an airport slot, and requests are accepted no earlier than 15 days before the date. We confirm the aircraft first and file the slot and the handler on the first possible day.
2. The terminalPrivate flights use the general aviation terminal on the north side of the airfield, with its own handlers and passport control. Formalities usually take 10-15 minutes.
3. HoursThe airport, customs, border police and handling all work 24 hours, so the departure time can be chosen to suit the arrival in the Maldives.
4. Getting thereFrom Alicante 15-20 minutes, from Torrevieja or Orihuela Costa 30-40 minutes, and from Calpe, Moraira, Jávea or Dénia up to an hour and a half. A helicopter can link a villa with an approved landing site to the airport.

Murcia-Corvera, 73 km south-west with a 3,000 m runway, is closer to La Manga and the Mar Menor and can be priced on request; Valencia, 134 km north, suits some addresses on the northern coast. A flight to Malé leaves Schengen, so every passenger shows a passport at departure. With a group of different nationalities, send each passport with the booking.

The route and the time difference

Without a stop, the G650 and Global 7500 need 9 h 45 min and the Falcon 7X 10 h 5 min. The Challenger 650 takes 11 h 48 min and the Challenger 350 12 h 25 min, each stopping once, for example in Cairo or Riyadh, at the operator's choice. The route crosses the Mediterranean and the Middle East, and the operator files around any airspace closed on the day.

For sectors approaching ten hours, operators add crew if their duty rules require it. Malé's clock (UTC+5) runs four hours ahead of the Costa Blanca in winter and three in summer.

Landing in the Maldives

From Alicante a Gulfstream G650 flies nonstop to Malé and to Gan, Hanimaadhoo and Maafaru. Hanimaadhoo, at 9 h 32 min, is the shortest flight:

On arrival at Velana International Airport, a car drives the group from the jet to the VIP lounge for immigration. Speedboat transfers to North and South Malé atolls run day and night; the seaplanes to Raa, Baa, Ari or Lhaviyani stop at sunset. Resorts in Noonu are nearer Maafaru, those in the far north Hanimaadhoo, and Addu Atoll lies next to Gan. Read how the transfers work on our page about seaplanes and domestic flights.

Documents, taxes and pets

Whatever passports the group holds, the Maldivian tourist visa is issued at the border, for up to 30 days. For each traveller, prepare:

• a machine-readable passport valid for a month or more (a Spanish DNI or another identity card is not accepted);
• the IMUGA form, sent online in the four days (96 hours) before landing;
• a prepaid stay at a registered resort, a confirmed flight home and money for the visit.

Spanish airport charges and any departure taxes for Alicante are listed in the quote. Going home, each foreign passenger pays the Maldives' private-jet rates: US$480 departure tax and US$480 airport development fee, with under-twos exempt from the first. The resort invoice includes Green Tax at US$12 per guest and day.

Maldivian customs also restricts alcohol and pork products; see know the rules before packing.

When to go

The Maldivian year has a drier half from December to April (north-east monsoon) and a wetter one from May to November (south-west monsoon), with 25-31 °C in either. On the Costa Blanca, winter is a quiet time at the airport, apart from Christmas week, and Easter is one of the busiest weeks for flights to and from the coast. At the Maldivian end, private-jet traffic at Velana is heaviest over Christmas, New Year and in February. Because the slot at Alicante can be filed only 15 days ahead, we confirm the aircraft first, and the operator applies for the Maldivian permits well before the slot request.

Saving on the flight

For a quote, we need your dates, the group, the amount of luggage and the resort:

Calendar for a private flight from Alicante

Velana is busiest in the dry season, December to April, while Alicante travellers book most for April, July and December.

Spanish summer time shifts the Alicante deadline from 01:45 in January to 02:45 in July. Add the extra time aloft for a slower jet or a fuel stop and leave that much earlier. Because 01:45 falls in the night, check the opening hours in Alicante first; otherwise plan a speedboat transfer or one night near Velana.

Other departure points near Alicante

Valencia along the coast, Ibiza and Mallorca across the water and Madrid inland are the nearest other departure cities; compare their cheapest guide fares to Malé:

Alicante to the Maldives: questions

• • What is the cost of a private jet from Alicante to the Maldives?

  • The Challenger 350 with a fuel stop starts at €84,000 one way for the entire aircraft. Nonstop, a Falcon 7X costs €125,000 and a G650 €130,000; taxes, handling and airport fees come on top.

• • How long is the flight to Malé?

  • The G650 and Global 7500 are fastest at 9 h 45 min nonstop, the Falcon 7X takes 10 h 5 min. Including a fuel stop, count 11 h 48 min in the Challenger 650 and 12 h 25 min in the Challenger 350.

• • How far ahead can the flight be booked?

  • The aircraft can be booked as early as you like, but the slot at Alicante is requested no earlier than 15 days before the date. For Christmas and New Year, book the aircraft early.

• • Can we bring our dog?

  • Not to the Maldives, which prohibits dogs. A cat is possible with the import permit and the veterinary certificate described above.

• • Should we fly to Malé or to another airport?

  • It depends on the resort. Velana is right for the Malé atolls and the main seaplane base; Noonu is better served by Maafaru, the far north by Hanimaadhoo and Addu by Gan. A G650 flies to any of them without stopping.

• • Are there luggage limits on the transfer?

  • On Trans Maldivian seaplanes each guest has 20 kg in the hold and 5 kg in the cabin; anything heavier is charged at US$5 a kilo plus taxes.

• • Do we need a visa?

  • Nobody applies in advance: every nationality is given a tourist visa for up to 30 days at the airport. Prepare a passport and the IMUGA declaration.