Luxury Diving Holidays in the North Male Atoll

In Depth 

Swim-throughs, gentle thilas, walls, drop-offs, over-hangs, caves and current in the channels...the North Male Atoll has it all when it comes to the ideal diving holiday for all levels of scuba diver and snorkeller. A plethora of marine life can be seen all year round, with manta rays being one of the highlights. During the southwest monsoon (May to November), mantas move to the eastern atolls following the plankton-rich water, so this is the best time for spotting them in the North Male Atoll. A newly discovered dive site, BLU Manta, in the northern part of the atoll is a manta cleaning station at around 10m depth where mantas come to rid themselves of unwanted parasites between feeding in the lagoon. 

Whilst the coral health in the North Male Atoll may not compare to the atolls in the deep south, some of the best dive sites in the Maldives are still found within the atoll. Banana Reef, named for the shape of the reef, is one of the most iconic dive sites in the area, with caves and over-hangs waiting to be explored whilst blue-lined snapper cover the reef in their thousands and moral eels poke their heads out of cervices, snapping at passing divers. Bodu Thila is another must-dive, with the chance for grey reef sharks, eagle rays and whitetip reef sharks. Napolean wrasse and turtles can usually be found on a small plateau as 20m depth whilst fusiliers dart backwards and forwards on the top of the thila.