How to Dive in the Maldives – Entrancing Underwater Adventures

The beautiful Maldives is an outstanding environment for scuba diving with many diving enthusiasts visiting this Indian Ocean nation to experience its underwater attractions. In the Maldives, you will have the opportunity to dive at many entrancing sites and observe large sea creatures like different kinds of sharks – including the huge whale shark – and manta rays just to name a few. Some useful information is provided below for those looking to experience such underwater discoveries.

Image via maxpixel

 Understand the options

There will be two basic choices for diving in Maldives; you may choose to base yourself either on a liveaboard or at a resort. A liveaboard is a large boat featuring onboard accommodation as well as a dive deck; it will take you to a selection of interesting dive locations in the Maldives for one or two weeks.

On the other hand, you may choose to base yourself at one of the private island resorts; many cater to the requirements of divers and feature dive centres with beginner and advanced PADI certification courses as well as underwater excursions. This will be an attractive option as such resorts will also provide you with the opportunity to relax amidst pristine sands and enjoy added facilities like spas, gyms, diverse dining venues and so on.

 Select your region

The various regions of the Maldives offer plenty of opportunities for divers. The central atolls which include the Ari Atoll and Male Atoll are reputed for thrilling drift diving where you may encounter many interesting kinds of sea creatures such as manta rays and reef sharks. Meanwhile, the southern atolls include the Laamu, Meemu and Thaa atolls; the dive sites here are known for rapid currents which enable divers to encounter dogtooth tuna, rays and grey reef sharks. On the other hand, at the secluded deep south atolls such as the Addu, Huvadhu and Fuvahmulah atolls you can observe different kinds of sharks, mantas, tuna, mola mola, sailfish and even perhaps pilot whales.

Not to be missed would be the northern atolls such as the Raa, Baa and Lhaviyani atolls where you can spot reef sharks, manta rays and other interesting marine creatures. An accommodation choice to consider from which you could go diving and experience the undersea attractions of Baa Atoll would be Anantara Kihavah Maldives Villas; at such resorts, you can stay at a pleasingly located Maldives water villa and explore this UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.

Choose when to dive

You will find that in the Maldives, diving will be possible throughout the year, with sharks, manta rays and other sizable marine creatures to be seen. However, there are some seasonal variations in the environment which influence the weather and the marine creatures that can be spotted. From December to May, when the northeast monsoon is in effect, water visibility will be at its greatest, but currents will also be strong. Since this is also the high season for tourism, you are also likely to encounter other divers. On the other hand, from June to November the southwest monsoon will be active and the winds will increase; therefore, the seas may be somewhat rougher. The skies will be cloudier and the rains arrive from May to August; by June, there will be a build-up of plankton in areas like the Baa Atoll which will attract whale sharks and manta rays.

 Take note of airport transfers

The Maldives is situated amidst the expanses of the Indian Ocean, about 723 km from India’s southern tip; the main international airport in the Maldives would be the Velana International Airport located at Hulhule Island which is the most common point of arrival. Keep in mind that resorts on private islands and liveaboards can be based at different atolls; they will have to be reached via seaplane or speedboat, though your chosen accommodation provider will assist you with or offer private transfer arrangements.