The best places to scuba dive in the Maldives - top dive sites in each atoll

With 26 atolls and hundreds of islands and reefs, it is no surprise that the Maldives is a genuine scuba diver’s paradise. But where are the best dive sites in the Maldives, and which atolls offer the best scuba diving?

In this article, Adam Broadbent and our experienced team of dive travel experts reveal the best places to dive in the Maldives, as well as the top rated dive sites in each atoll. So keep reading to discover which destinations you don't want to miss.

With only a handful of inhabited islands, Raa Atoll is a haven for marine life and serenity-seeking divers alike.

• Highlights: Interesting overhangs.
• Best season: Northeast monsoon - January to April.

This impressive underwater pinnacle is much-loved for its abundance of overhangs. Napoleon wrasse and stingrays can often be found sheltering underneath these ledges, while jacks, tuna, and even dolphins, hunt just metres beyond. And, aside from all this big stuff, petite fire gobies and fairy basslets provide bursts of tropical punch-like colour.

• Highlights: Cracks, crevices and overhangs, incredible diversity of fish.
  
• Best season: Northeast monsoon - January to April.

Reethi Thila is the ultimate example of a typical Maldivian dive site. This submerged pinnacle is peppered with cracks and overhangs that play host to an impressive variety of species. In fact, this site boasts such a huge density and diversity of marine life, even true fish geeks can struggle to complete their logbooks.

Justifiably famous for its immense manta ray congregations, Baa Atoll is home to plenty more world-class ocean-based experiences.

• Highlights: Huge yearly congregations of manta rays and whale sharks.
• Best season: Southwest monsoon – May to November.

Justifiably one of the Maldives’ most famous destinations, the now legendary Hanifaru Bay delivers jaw-dropping manta ray and whale shark encounters year after year. Visitors can snorkel amongst dozens – if not hundreds – of manta rays as they swoop and roll through plankton blooms like hungry synchronised swimmers.

• Highlights: Multiple grey reef sharks, schooling fish.
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to April.

The protected marine sanctuary of Dhigala Haa has become a firm favourite for shark spotting, with a handful of grey reef sharks often seen at the same time. Several small caves and overhangs also provide shelter for schools of fish, while snapper, jacks and barracuda can usually be seen cruising out in the blue.

Alongside its stunning scenery, Lhaviyani Atoll offers some of the most diverse and accessible scuba diving in the Maldives.

• Highlights: Fast-flowing currents, grey reef sharks.
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to April.

As the name suggests, this dive site can be fast-paced and utterly furious – a must for advanced divers. Looking across the sandy channel, divers can see all manner of pelagic species, including grey reef sharks, eagle rays, tuna, jacks, barracuda, and more. A couple of sheltered bays also provide a welcome rest with plenty of healthy coral growth.

• Highlights: Two wrecks for the price of one, dramatic scenery and pelagic sharks.
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to April.

Featuring a vessel’s bow thrusting from the surface like a breaching whale, this dive site is instantly recognisable. The protruding hulk entices divers and snorkellers alike, while an adjacent wreck lies 30-metres below – providing plenty of opportunity for deeper exploration. Currents have encouraged a healthy coral covering and this site plays host to beautiful schools of reef fish, as well as Napoleon wrasse and pelagics like nurse sharks and grey reef sharks.

North Male Atoll is a mainstay in Maldivian dive travel, making it perfect for reliable, world-class experiences.

• Highlights: Regular encounters with large numbers of manta rays.
  
• Best season: Southwest monsoon – May to November.

Offering several cleaning stations in one place, this site is famous for delivering consistent encounters with large numbers of manta rays. And, during the right season, divers can also witness rare cyclone feeding behaviour as the rays scoop up mouthfuls of plankton in perfect unison. Whitetip reef sharks, Napoleon wrasse and barracuda can also be seen.

• Highlights: Breathtaking soft corals, dramatic caves and pelagic species.
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to April.

Girifushi Thila is known by several names, including Rainbow Reef, due to its dazzling display of decorative corals. In fact, this site is also playfully referred to as the soft coral capital of the world. Lying in a protected channel between islands, this tower of boulders has created a jumble of caves, cracks and crevices, including a 25-metre vertical swim-through known as The Chimney. Grey reef sharks, eagle rays, tuna and barracuda all call this thila home. 

South Male Atoll combines accessibility with tranquillity – along with spectacular current-swept channels.

• Highlights: Hair-raising currents and a huge diversity of marine life.
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to April.

Located in the protected Guraidhoo Channel, Guraidhoo Corner is a fantastic dive site boasting immense diversity and washing machine-like currents. Schools of reef fish are common, as well as tuna, trevally, and plenty of groupers. An iconic friendly Napoleon wrasse is a favourite among many visitors and both grey and whitetip reef sharks can also be seen.

• Highlights: Hunting pelagic fish and fast-paced current.
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to April.

In perfect conditions, Cocoa Thila is arguably one of the finest dive sites in the Maldives. With the right current, divers can drift purposefully along this 400-metre pinnacle, gazing at tuna, trevallies, and eagle rays which hunt beyond the drop-off. Grey reef sharks can also be found patrolling the area. Divers will welcome several sheltered caverns which provide a much-needed break from the current.

Despite its size, the tiny atoll of Rasdhoo is renowned for breathtaking underwater scenery and big fish.

• Highlights: The chance of a close encounter with hammerhead sharks.
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to April.

With rapid drop-offs plummeting to depths of 200-metres, this world-famous dive site is one of the few remaining places offering close-up encounters with hammerhead sharks. Watch sparkling plankton illuminating your descent as you drop in at sunrise and lie in wait for schools of hammerheads to arrive from the depths. An experience you won’t soon forget.

• Highlights: Breathtaking topography and high chances of unbeatable action.
• Best season: Southwest monsoon – May to November. But, divers looking for manta rays should visit during the northeast monsoon – January to April.

Rasdhoo Madivaru is a horseshoe-shaped reef featuring a complex tangle of overhangs, cracks and crevices – a stunning backdrop for some incredible action. A dive here can turn up anything including grey and whitetip reef sharks, manta rays, eagles rays and stingrays, and schools of barracuda, trevally and jacks. Silvertips, hammerheads and guitar sharks can also occasionally be seen as well as dolphins feasting on garden eels!

Home to hundreds of exceptional dive sites, North Ari Atoll guarantees some of the Maldives' very best scuba experiences.

• Highlights: Caves, overhangs and swim-throughs and a jaw-dropping diversity of life.
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to April.

One of the most popular dive sites in the Maldives, this bustling thila frequently ranks as one of the best dive sites on the planet. While there is plenty to see in the shallows, including nudibranchs, frogfish and octopuses, the real highlights here cruise at depth. Schools of hungry trevally, patrolling grey and whitetip reef sharks, squadrons of eagle rays, and solitary guitar sharks can all make appearances. 

• Highlights: A truly unique manta ray night dive.
• Best season: Southwest monsoon – May to November.

Fesdhoo lagoon is home to one of North Ari Atoll’s most unique underwater experiences. In these shallow, protected waters, a small population of manta rays congregates beneath the lights of liveaboards at night. Divers can hover above the sand as the mantas swoop and barrel-roll between them. And, if you’re really lucky, you might witness the mantas performing their rare cyclone feeding behaviour!

South Ari Atoll is synonymous with sun-soaked sand-bars and near-guaranteed whale shark and manta ray sightings.

• Highlights: Superb opportunities for macro-enthusiasts and photographers.
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to April.

Also known as the Kudhimaa shipwreck, and intentionally sunk in 1998, this site is a haven for underwater photographers thanks to its plentiful macro life. Frogfish, ghost pipefish, and nudibranchs are all common attractions. The wreck sits upright and intact with areas of exploration ranging from 12 to 30-metres in depth. Its propeller, wheelhouse, and coral crusted exterior also offer excellent opportunities for wide-angle photography.

• Highlights: Almost daily whale shark sightings.
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to March.

One thing’s for sure, in South Ari, you’re never far from a whale shark, and the atoll is undoubtedly best known for its epic encounters with this incredible creature. And, located within the South Ari Marine Protected Area, in the far south of the atoll, there’s no better place to find these huge sharks than Maamigili. In fact, Maamigili offers near-guaranteed whale shark sightings throughout the year and lucky visitors can swim alongside them as they meander gracefully above the reef.

One of the least-populated atolls in the Maldives, Vaavu promises pumping channel dives along with plenty of peace and quiet.

• Highlights: Stunning scenery and plenty of pelagic action.
  
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to March.

Easily one of the best sites in Vaavu, if not the entire Maldives, Fotteyo Kandu features plenty of the region’s iconic overhangs. Between 25 and 40-metres, divers can also find a series of caves that have been well colonised by colourful soft corals – a paradise for photographers. This narrowly-carved channel attracts large schools of trevally, jacks and tuna and the outer reef plays host to grey reef sharks and passing hammerheads.

• Highlights: Large numbers of nurse sharks and fantastic night photography.
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to March.

Famed for its regular feeding frenzies, Alimatha Jetty is a must for many divers. But, even as the sunlight dips behind the waves, this site still has plenty to offer. Night divers can find nurse sharks and whiptail rays resting on the sand, as well as blacktip sharks and giant trevally hunting in the inky-black darkness. Beautifully illuminated by the jetty lights, a night dive here can be a dream for underwater photographers.

Lying in the Maldives' deep south, Fuvahmulah Atoll offers some of the best shark encounters in the country, if not the world.

• Highlights: Tiger sharks, guaranteed!
• Best season: Year-round.

Likely the only site in Asia boasting guaranteed tiger shark sightings every day of the year. Although only discovered in 2017, it is believed the sharks have been feeding on waste from the fish market for many years. On some days, divers are greeted by dozens of these impressive creatures, often measuring up to five metres long! 

• Highlights: The most reliable sightings of oceanic manta rays in the Maldives.
• Best season: Oceanic manta mating season occurs during March, April and May.

Unlike other Maldivian atolls, there are no reef mantas in Fuvahmulah. Instead, this atoll boasts 80% of all oceanic manta rays sightings throughout the entire country. Farikede is a shelf plateau extending out from Fuvahmulah’s southernmost tip at a depth of around 40-metres. This site is, without a doubt, the best in the Maldives for encounters with these incredible creatures.

Addu Atoll is an eclectic destination with an enticing mix of experiences – both above and below the water.

• Highlights: Largest wreck in the Maldives.
  
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to April.

At 134-metres long, and weighing almost 6,000-tons, the British Loyalty is the largest wreck in the Maldives. The body of the vessel lies between 15 and 35-metres and is covered in a variety of table corals, soft corals and Gorgonians. Several large openings provide a glimpse into the vessel’s past life, and a couple even punch straight through, revealing the blue beyond. 

• Highlights: Exceptional shark encounters.
  
• Best season: Northeast monsoon – January to April.

On the northeast tip of Addu Atoll, the reef drops away to a plateau at around 30-metres deep. Handfuls of grey and whitetip reef sharks patrol this sandy bed, earning it the name Shark Hotel. Beyond the plateau, the reef drops-off yet again, reaching depths of over 60-metres. When the visibility allows, larger sharks can be seen circling in the deep.