Jetty / pier
down to 25 m
Alimatha Jetty (night)
A night dive off a resort pier in Vaavu where dozens of tawny nurse sharks and Jenkin's whiprays gather.
- Open Water
- Nurse sharks
Maldives
18 documented dive sites, 2 of them for Open Water divers. Known for whale sharks, manta rays and grey reef sharks.
- Best months
- Dec–May
- Water
- 27–30 °C
- Levels
- Open Water, Advanced, Experienced
- Diving from
- Dive resorts, Liveaboards
- Nearest airport
- MLE
When to go
Pick a month: the diving season, from published sources, and the typical weather.
Pick a month
- Best
- Good
- Possible
- Closed
- Not documented yet
Maldives in October
Good season- Sea
- 30 °C
- at the surface
- Air
- 29 °C
- 27 °C at night
- Rain
- 230 mm
- one of the wettest months
- Wind
- 22 km/h
- on average
Typical weather, not a forecast: averages for 2021–2025 (air, rain, wind) and 2023–2025 (sea), data from Open-Meteo (ERA5 / Copernicus, Météo-France). Covers an area of roughly 10 to 25 km around the destination.
Dry season Dec–May: calm, visibility 30 m+. Wet season Jun–Nov: plankton, lower visibility, peak mantas and whale sharks.
Dive sites in Maldives
From the easiest to the most demanding. Levels with a dashed outline are estimates we are still verifying.
Open Water friendly
usual dive down to 18 m2 sitesFor Advanced divers
usual dive down to 30 m11 sitesReef
down to 35 m
Banana Reef
Curved North Malé reef with caves, overhangs and caverns between 10 and 25 m, and a section known as the 'Washing Machine'.
- Advanced
- Manta rays
Pinnacle
down to 30 m
Maaya Thila
North Ari pinnacle from 6 m to beyond 30 m; at slack-current night dives, vast numbers of fusiliers arrive on the crown to feed.
- Advanced
- Whitetip reef sharks
Reef
down to 20 m
Fish Tank (Stingray City)
A gentle sandy slope from 5 m to 20 m in North Malé where stingrays gather in large numbers.
- Advanced
- Stingrays
For experienced divers
usual dive down to 40 m5 sitesPinnacle
down to 42 m
Fish Head (Mushimasmingili Thila)
A protected North Ari pinnacle where grey reef sharks are the main players, alongside schools of batfish and vast schools of fusiliers.
- Experienced
- Grey reef sharks
Drift
down to 30 m
Cocoa Thila
A 400 m South Malé pinnacle sloping to a 30 m drop-off, with grey reef sharks, eagle rays and large schools of fusiliers.
- Experienced
- Grey reef sharks
Drift
down to 40 m
Hammerhead Point (Madivaru Corner, Rasdhoo)
A dawn blue-water dive off Rasdhoo's outer wall, hanging below 30 m for schooling scalloped hammerheads.
- Experienced
- Grey reef sharks
Level not documented yet
1 siteHanifaru Bay
Snorkel-only Baa Atoll bay, part of a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, where mantas and whale sharks gather to feed in the southwest monsoon.
- Whale sharks
Access restricted, see details
Marine life
When the big encounters happen, month by month.
| Species | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whale sharksSource: liveaboard.com | ||||||||||||
| Manta raysSource: liveaboard.com | ||||||||||||
| Grey reef sharksSource: liveaboard.com | ||||||||||||
| Thresher sharksSource: divessi.com | ||||||||||||
| Tiger sharksSource: pelagicdiversfuvahmulah.com | ||||||||||||
| TurtlesSource: liveaboard.com | ||||||||||||
| Eagle raysSource: liveaboard.com | ||||||||||||
| BarracudaSource: liveaboard.com | ||||||||||||
| Hammerhead sharksSource: dive-the-world.com |
- Peak season
- Seen
Whale sharks: All year. Manta rays: Jun–Nov. Grey reef sharks: Dec–May. Thresher sharks: All year. Tiger sharks: All year. Turtles: All year. Eagle rays: Dec–May. Barracuda: All year. Hammerhead sharks: All year
Also reported here, season not documented yet:
- Nurse sharks
- Whitetip reef sharks
- Stingrays
- Tuna
- Napoleon wrasse
- Dolphins
- Guitarfish
- Mobula rays
- Frogfish
Where is the Maldives?
- Nearest airport
- MLE
- How people dive here
- Dive resorts, Liveaboards
Somewhere quieter?
Maldives is one of the busiest dive hubs in the world. These destinations dive in a similar way and see far fewer divers: Aliwal Shoal & Protea Banks, Tofo and Trincomalee & East Sri Lanka.
See all alternatives to Maldives →Maldives: frequently asked questions
- When is the best time to dive Maldives?
- The best months to dive Maldives are Dec–May. Dry season Dec–May: calm, visibility 30 m+. Wet season Jun–Nov: plankton, lower visibility, peak mantas and whale sharks.
- Is Maldives good for beginner divers?
- Yes, partly: 2 of the 18 dive sites we document are suited to Open Water divers, including Alimatha Jetty (night) and Tiger Harbour (Fuvahmulah). The others need more experience or a higher certification.
- What is the water temperature in Maldives?
- The water is usually between 27 °C and 30 °C over the year.
- What marine life can you see in Maldives?
- Divers regularly see whale sharks (all year), manta rays (Jun–Nov), grey reef sharks (Dec–May), nurse sharks, thresher sharks (all year) and tiger sharks (all year).
- How do you dive Maldives?
- The nearest airport is MLE. Ways to dive here: dive resorts and liveaboards.
About this page
Seasons and marine life come from the sources below. Site levels and depths marked as estimated come from our original catalogue and are being checked one by one. Conditions change: always confirm with a local dive centre.
Your next dive is somewhere out there.
Find my next dive tripPhoto credits
- Aerial view of Guraidhoo island and reef, Maldives, Luka Peternel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Sunlight and bubbles in deep blue water, Sarah Lee, Unsplash License, on Unsplash
