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Maldives having an ideal water temperature of thiry one degrees of clear tranqulent water offers various dive sites spread through out 868km ( 539 miles) across the Indian Ocean. Maldives has thousands of reefs, some in shallow waters of enclosed lagoons to deep sea ridges and ocean shelves. There are many dive centers and dive clubs operating all across the Maldives offering various packages.
Some of the most interesting dives consists of diving to shark site and feeding them by your hand. If you prefer a less adrenaline feel try taking a submarine dive and still get the great upclose views of a professional diver.
Every resort in the Maldives caters for scuba divers and international certificates of all types are accepted. The dive schools are well equipped, and regulators, BCDs, computers, masks, snorkels and fins are available for hire. For those learning to dive resorts offer a variety of dive courses are conducted in several languages, with courses conducted in English, German, Italian, French and Japanese in most of the For those learning to dive all resorts conduct open water and advanced courses such as night diving, rescue diving, underwater photography. Courses such as naturalist and shark specialist courses have proved most popular due to the growing interest in the marine environment. At resorts, diving is conducted daily all year around and it is only rarely that diving has to be cancelled. Most resorts would have access to a protected reef on the leeward side of the island that enables them to dive even during times of rough seas and strong winds.
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How Maldives Became One of The Best Dive Sites In The World
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65 million years ago the islands of the Maldives were part of a huge volcanic mountain range. When the volcanoes ceased to be active they submerged sinking at a rate slow enough that coral formations could grow on their rims. This coral growth eventually became the fringing reefs of the atolls. Recent surveys have discovered that the depth of coral on the fringing reef is as much as 2100m (6400ft), a remarkable statistic when you consider a coral massif may grow just 2mm (0.08in) annually.
As the oceanic currents eroded the atolls' rims they created channels, and today these channels provide some extraordinary diving. The tides of the Indian Ocean flow in and out through the channels, and in so doing concentrate millions and millions of microscopic plant cells, tiny marine animals and larvae, collectively called plankton. This rich soup provides food for many of the reef’s inhabitants. In turn, creatures further up the food chain are attracted from the ocean by the prospect of a good meal, and a rich and diverse marine community builds.
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About Maldives Dive Sites
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Most dive sites in the Maldives can be grouped according to the geological formation of the reef and are either Channels, Farus, Thilas or Giris.
The Channel or “Kandu” as it is called in Dhivehi, is the deep cut in the atoll rim that connects the waters of the atoll with the open ocean. This is usually the first dive of the day as it tends to be the deepest with some channels being narrow enough to cross from one side to the other. The channel is home to the larger species such as grey shark that feed on the smaller reef life which, in turn, feeds on the plankton being carried into the atoll by the ocean currents.
A Faru is a circular reef rising up from the ocean floor usually lying in the ocean channels.
A Giri is a small area of coral, smaller than a thila that is found inside the atoll.
A Thila is an underwater reef that has formed inside the atoll. Thilas are oblong or circular in shape with the reef top at 6-10m. Sometimes you can swim around the whole thila in one dive but, as with all diving in the Maldives, the most action will be taking place on the point of the current.
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Maldives Diving Seasons
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The southwest season - The diving on the west side of the atoll in the southwest season is spectacular. You will regularly encounter large schools of pelagic fish like sharks, eagle rays and tuna.
Another noticeable feature of the southwest season is that the water temperature is usually one or two degrees lower that the usual 28º C (82ºF). This has an effect on both the behaviour and sightings of marine life, particularly the grey reef sharks and hammerheads , which seem to congregate in larger numbers and in shallower water at this time of year.
On the eastern side of the atolls, the southwest season is the best time to see manta rays and whale sharks. Here your visibility is not so good, but this is compensated for by the wonderful experience of diving with these huge plankton feeders.
The northeast season
This is the Maldivian summer. The effect of the season change on diving is dramatic. From November onwards the currents begin to flow from the northeast, visibility is superb and there is lots of action in the channels and thilas on the eastern side of the atolls from the sharks and other pelagic species.
Currents tend to be stronger in January and then ease as we move into February. From February the waters calm down and the surface of the sea is undisturbed by any major wind or wave action. The doldrums continue through March and April with easy diving and slack currents. The end of May generally sees the change of monsoon season back to the southwest.
Throughout the northeast season, pelagic species such as shark and jacks are to be found on the current points on the eastern side of the atoll. In addition, there is usually a cornucopia of reef life. Manta rays and whale sharks, however, will only really be found on the west side during the northeast season.
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Learning to Dive in the Maldives Islands
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For both beginners and the more advanced -
From the fringing reef to the ocean slopes, the waters of the Maldives teem with underwater life of all sizes, shapes and colour. Don't miss the opportunity to experience some of the best scuba diving in the world. The Maldives are recognised as a great place to learn to scuba dive. The turquoise lagoons are incredibly beautiful and form a natural swimming pool, perfect for your diver training.
There is a Dive School on every resort island in the Maldives, each of an international standard teaching the main diver training courses. PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) is the most widely recognised of the training agencies and their courses are available on all our islands.
Scuba diving is not as difficult as most people expect but, if you are hesitant, you do not have to commit yourself to a full course. Why not try one of our short resort courses that will allow you to see whether you like your underwater experience?
Once hooked, (and we’re sure you will be !) you can embark on a PADI Open Water Diver course which will give you a certificate that will allow you to dive around the world without further training. This course takes 4 to 5 days and usually includes 9 dives and a number of theory lessons. From hereon, there’s a huge number and variety of speciality courses, from Wreck Diver to Night Diver, and you may even choose to progress to Instructor level.
An alternative route to learning to dive is to take your theory in your home country and complete the open water dives, required for certification, in the Maldives. This is called a Referral Course and it has the advantage that it maximises the time you have to spend on your resort enjoying the diving.
Kid's bubbles
There are even options for budding junior divers. Many of our resorts offer the PADI Bubblemaker course which has been designed for children aged from 8-10 years old. The course lasts two hours and includes a theory lesson and a shallow dive. The PADI Junior Open Water Course is then available for children of 10 years old and over. This gives children proper certification and allows them to dive to a depth of 12m until they are 12 years old and then to 18m thereafter.
Please ask us to recommend resorts that are particularly suitable for children.
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The care of our oceans
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As a responsible tour operator, we respect the environment and actively ensure our representatives in Maldives participate in programmes concerned with the preservation of the marine environment.
Please consider the following points:
- Please take home as many of your used batteries and plastic containers as possible.
- Please dive thoughtfully and carefully controlling your buoyancy at all times in order to protect the coral.
- Turtle shell jewellery is sold in many shops - turtles are a world-wide protected species, please do not buy any of these goods and hopefully we will be able to eradicate this trade.
- Please do not pick up live shells or coral from the seabed and please do not buy them from the tourist shops.
Your individual actions and attitudes can make a big difference - please act thoughtfully.
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