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Scuba Diving Holidays In Maldives

If you're looking for an unspoilt divers paradise, you can't do better than these jewels of the Indian Ocean.

Country Description

A collection of 1,200 islands set in the middle of the Indian Ocean, 300 miles Southwest of the tip of India, The Maldives are fast becoming the chosen destination of Brits in search of unspoilt paradise.

The atolls are actually remains of a number of volcanoes that sank beneath the sea with the craters remaining only a few feet above sea level. As a result the islands are under constant threat of being submerged by the rising seas of global warming. The tourist industry is very organised, and tends to centre on a small choice of destinations. Most of which are either designated resorts or liveaboards, which means there is little chance to see the real Maldives. The local authorities are very conscious of the effects of tourism though. As a result no one is allowed to build above the height of the palms. However, this also used to be the case in Bali until the tourist money started to flood in, and demand resulted in a couple of multi-storey hotels being built. How long The Maldives sticks to these building rules remains to be seen.

Diving Description

Diving has long been legendary in these parts. It's one of the few places on the globe that mantas and whalesharks are regularly sighted. Grey reef, white-tip, hammerhead, bull and tiger sharks are also regular visitors to the region. Nighttime diving, like other tropical reef locations, promises a spectacular experience. Morays, lionfish, soldierfish and nudi-branches swim everywhere.

The Maldives has a very strict commercial fishing policy that only allows fishermen to fish with lines and hooks which provides the islands with an abundance of fish species. Furthermore, the lack of net fishing means that the corals aren't damaged through dragging. Furthermore the fisherman are actually given financial incentives to stop fishing and take divers out instead.

The corals have been damaged however by a bad bleaching incident in 1998. Shallow water corals were wiped out and other areas were left with washed out and lifeless limestone where once was a shock of colour. Thankfully, the corals are regenerating very quickly and will return to its former glories in the very near future.

Dive Sites

Maya Tilla

Tilla is the Moldavian name for a reef in a channel or off a main reef. The Maya Tilla dive is a shark dive where grey reef sharks abound during the day. At nighttime, however, the white-tip reef sharks take over the territory where they hunt for fusiliers alongside mantas. The nighttime dive here will also bring you close to large hawksbill turtles, rabbitfish and grouper.

The outer walls

The outer walls of the atolls tend to be the best places to experience the excellent marine life feeding on the nutrients that are washed in by the currents here. Be warned, these outer walls experience very strong currents. The best time to see mantas and whalesharks is when the current is strongest and subsequently filled with plankton. At these times they can be seen feeding on the surface and in the case of the whalesharks, rushing head on in to the force of the current. At times it is also possible to get close to manta rays. You'll need to stay calm and still on the bottom and the rays will slowly swim close to you. But if you swim, or make any quick movement, they will be gone.

The wrecks on The Maldives

There are a few natural wrecks and several artificial ones deliberately sunk for the tourist resorts. Although none have any notable history, they all make great dives due to the corals that cover them and the shoals of fish that swarm everywhere.

Other info

Most dive sites ask you to pay for your boat trips separately so you can keep an eye on where that money is going. No inoculations are needed if you are visiting the resorts.