Diving

The Maldives is famed for its rare underwater beauty. The profusion of psychedelic colors and the abundance and variety of life underwater have fascinated divers and snorkelers since Maldives was discovered as a diving destination. The highest level of visibility that one could expect- sometimes exceeding 50 meters – and warm temperatures throughout the year makes diving in the Maldives a delight you would want to experience over and over again. The Maldives has some of the best dive sites in the world and many visit the Maldives repeatedly for the sole purpose of diving. All resorts in the Maldives have professional dive schools with multi-lingual instructors and conduct courses for beginners as well as the advanced. Many of the resorts have excellent house reefs. Just a short swim from the beach and snorkelers too can experience the same pleasures from the surface.

If the islands of the Maldives are beautiful, what lies under the water is an absolute wonder of nature. The reefs that encircle the islands and the atolls are just as abundant in their variety of coral as the marine creatures that live in and around them. This, coupled with the amazingly clear water, make snorkeling and diving in the Maldives a unique experience that one should not give up. Diving in the Maldives is organized in the most exemplary of fashions. The diving centers are equipped to provide services for beginners and certified, experienced divers. The presence of clear waters all around the atoll means excellent visibility, especially with in going currents. Pelagic such as barracuda, trivially and tuna, and big schools of fusilier, snapper and sharks all congregate at the entrance to the channels, attracted by the movement of water and food sources carried with them. Depths inside the atoll are generally 40 to 50 meters and the bottom is mostly sand. There are many shallow water reefs inside the atoll and those just below the surface are clearly defined by sharp contrasts in the watercolor. Maldives is having more than One Hundred different dive-spots recorded with some world-renowned names. Underwater Photography “Given the manifold aspects of the underwater universe of the Maldives and the splendid colors of the fish and coral, it is almost a moral obligation to pause for a while with a camera before these wonders of nature” – says Kurt Amsler, world renowned photographic journalist who has dived the Maldivian waters extensively.

Dive Maldives…. It’s the underwater paradise….the home of 1350 different species of coral and fish.

Some Famous Dive spots In the Maldives

Maya Thila

This location offers one of the best known dives in the Maldives. A remarkable variety of marine life including grey reef sharks, white tip reef sharks, turtles, stonefish, frogfish, zebra morays and batfish. The top of the thila is at 8m due north you come to the edge of the thila, where there are a large overhang full of bright orange tubastrea corals. Often white tip reef sharks and sting rays are resting on the sand.
Location: 3km northwest of Maayafushi Resort Island.

Madivaru (Hammerhead point)

Home to a large school of hammerhead sharks. The best chance of seeing them is to dive in the sunrise and when the current is running into the channel. The jumping point is in the middle of the channel. Descend to 30m where the hammerheads are cruising – this is a really great dive. Many caves and overhangs with a huge variety of marine life. Garden eels, tuna, jackfish, white tip reef sharks and eagle rays.
Location: The channel between Madivaru (uninhabited Island) and Rashoo Island.

Mushimasmigili (Fish Head)

A very popular dive site – this is about 100m long and 60m wide with its reeftop at 10m. The southern side of the thila drops down steeply in two steps from 8m to 20m and from 20m to the atoll plate at 42m. On the southeastern corner there is a large overhang known as The Fish Head. Blue-lined snappers, greay reef sharks, napoleon wrasse and schoals of fusiliers and yellow grunts.
Location: 4km south of Mushimasmigili picnic island.

Furana Thila (Babaloos Thila)

This thila is on the edge of the submerged ocean reef between Full Moon Island and Chicken Island . It is about 150m long and stretches in to the channel. The dive is started on the outside reef of Full Moon Island when the current is going into the atoll. If the current is going out – the dive is started in the middle of the channel where the thila begins. The top of the thila is in an excellent condition, especially just before it reaches the outside reef. Hard coral in all shapes and colors and soft coral on the overhangs. The leopard moray eels are plenty and there are huge schoals of fusiliers, unicorn fish and snapper. Along the outside reef you will find white tip reef sharks, napoleon wrasse, big dogtooth tuna and a few very large specimen of green turtle are living here too. On the large coral blocks on the top of the thila the manta rays are coming in for cleaning during manta season (end of July to beginning of December).
Location: 300m north of the Furana Island (Full Moon) house reef.

Kudarah Thila

The thila is divided into four large coral heads of varying sizes, rising from 40m to 12m. Here there are caves full of soft corals, gorgonians and whip corals. Blue-lined snappers, trumpet fish, snappers, grey reef sharks and white tip reef sharks.
Location: 1km southeast of Kudarah Island Resort.

Guraidhoo Kandu

A complex structure of two channels with a large reef in the middle.
Plenty of sea fans and black coral bushes. Grey reef sharks, eagle rays and napoleon wrasse.
Location: Southern corner of Guraidhoo Kandu.

Hukuruelhi Faru

The reef slopes down gently from its top at 8m to the atoll floor at 30m, the reef is more than 1km long. To the east the reef forms a wall which drops steeply down to the sand floor at 30m. At 25m there are some large caves. This is a superb manta cleaning station during the season.
Location: South side of Rangali Channel.

Hurasdhoo Reef

The reef is centrally located in the atoll and protected from the waves from the ocean.
Foliaceous and encrusting hard corals and soft corals. Turtles and reef fish like giant trigger fish, oriental sweet lips, groupers and napoleon wrasse are found in abundance.
Location: The south section of the house reef of Hurasdhoo Island.

Broken Rock Thila

The site is about 100m in length and shaped like a typically Maldivan thila (round/oval shaped submerged reef) – with the top at 13m. A very deep gulley runs across the thila from east to west. This gulley, brimming with soft corals and reef fish, its sheer sides have loads of nooks and crannies. Fusiliers, blue-lined snappers and trevallies.
Location: 2.5km northeast of Dhigurah.