Diving in Maldives
The Maldives are a very popular diving location. The Maldives are a chain of coral islands in the Indian Ocean. It is an exotic diving destination and one that is popular year round due to the tropical weather. The Maldives experiences year round temperatures of thirty degrees Celsius on average.
There are 1200 islands in total, with 80 of those containing resorts and tourist facilities. The best diving attractions in the Maldives are the colorful schools of fish such as Black and White Snappers, Humpback Snappers, Barracuda, Unicornfish, Yellowback Fusiliers, Trevally Jacks and more. The sheer number and range of fish here is astounding and divers will never experience a boring dive, nor will they ever see the same dive twice! There are just too many species to see on one dive; you really need to go several times to get an idea of the astonishing life in these waters.
Visitors and divers have noted that water visibility is best from January to March and that it may be a little murky other times of the year.
Diving in the Maldives can be done in Male as well as some smaller and more remote locations. Some places have never been dived before so these are for experienced divers only.
Your Maldives hotel or resort will be able to advise you on nearby diving locations. If you are staying in a resort you will only have access to a small amount of dive locations. To experience more you should consider a liveabord which allows you to explore a lot more than jsut your local resort area.
Some liveaboards will travel to locations that few tourists get to see. For example Baa Atoll which is an amazing dive spot. Around here are deserted islands and literally not a sole around as nobody lives on these islands. This is true paradise and beautiful diving!
Some other secluded and remote dive sports include Felidhu Atoll and Ari Atoll where there are sharks and Manta Rays - for the thrill seeking diver only!
Ari Atoll is a large atoll - over 80 kilometers in length making it one of the largest in the Maldives. Ari itself is a well developed tourist area but it has some fantastic dive sites which should not be missed. Northern Ari Atoll is home to whale sharks which can be seen while you are diving.
I have mentioned a mere few of the places available to dive in the Maldives. Diving in the Maldives is an unforgettable experience - you will just want to keep coming back over and over again!