Maldives Itineraries:

Best of the Northern Atolls

This itinerary takes in one of the most spectacular diving areas in the Maldives and offers the chance of manta ray and whale shark sightings all year round.

QUALIFICATION NEEDED: PADI Open water or equivalent - no minimum number of logged dives required.

Sample itinerary:

**PLEASE NOTE** the itinerary below is just an example of the route taken and the order and dive sites are not guaranteed. All dives sites are subject to weather conditions and local seasonal knowledge and the final route taken is at the absolute discretion of the captain and dive guides.

Day 1 - North Male atoll, Back Faru or Banana Reef

Day 2 - Bodu Hithi Thila (North Male), Rasfari Corner (North Male), Rasdhoo Madivaru (Rasdhoo)

Day 3 - Rasdhoo Kandu (Rasdhoo), Kan Thila or Fish Head (North Ari), Maaya Thila night dive (North Ari)

Day 4 - Hafsa Thila (Ari), Himendhoo Thila or Dhonkalo (Ari), Radhigaa or Rehi Thila (Ari)

Day 5 - Miyaru Thila or Rangali Madivaru (South Ari), Rangali Madivaru or Maamingili Beyru (South Ari), Holiday Beyru

Day 6 - Kuda Rah Thila or Marcha Fushi wreck (South Ari), Coco Corner or Kandooma Thila (South Male), Villivaru Giri sunset or night dive (South Male)

Day 7 - Guraidhoo Corner or Kandooma Caves

Itinerary highlights:

Banana Reef: "Banana Reef" is a very well known dive site in the Maldives and one of the first, best and more treacherous due to strong currents. On the eastern side, some rocks have broken away and created a perfect habitat for a surprising variety of schooling reef fish and large pelagic.

Rasdhoo Madivaru: Rasdhoo-Madivaru is located in the corner of the channel into the atoll. It has one of the most spectacular and confusing reef formations found in Ari Atoll. Divers get an opportunity to encounter hammerhead sharks, dolphins, white tip reef sharks, pelagics, trevallys, little tunas, jacks, ribbon eels, fish leaves tunas, napoleon wrasse and barracudas. Experience the thrilling scuba diving adventure amongst fine coral formations with highest underwater visibility.

Fish Head: Fish Head also known as Shark Point or Mushimasmingili Thila, fits the classic definition of a Thila - a large isolated flat top reef rising sharply from the inner atoll floor at 40 to 50m to around 10m from the surface. It is one of the best sites for seeing sharks. Featuring a series of caves and overhangs in between where you can see thousands of blueline snappers against a backdrop of black coral bushes and large gorgonians.

Rangali Madivaru: Madi means "ray" in Dhivehi. In the northeast season this is a superb manta ray cleaning station. As with many good manta points, the reef slopes down gently from its top at 8m (25ft) to the atoll floor at 30m (100ft). Although there are many cleaning stations along this 1km reef, the area where the mantas are most active is midway along the northern side. A deep basin, almost 100m (110yd) across has formed in the coral and as the currents flow out of the atoll, the waters eddy in the basin. This attracts the mantas, which hover gracefully in the current.

Maamigili Beyru: The sloping outside reef of Maamigili this is an excellent site to observe pelagics and schooling fish. Divers often find large schools of eagle rays or mantas along with white tip reef sharks, tuna and barracuda. This dive site is also one of the best in Maldives to encounter the biggest fish in the world: the whale shark!

Kandooma Caves: The Kandooma Caves on the reef corner near Kandooma Island are some of the best and biggest caves in the Maldives and great to dive. Just 50m from the corner are two huge caves close to one another, one is at 20m; the other is 16m. There are many groupers and squirrel fish to be found in the caves and along the reef such as clown triggerfish, napoleon, sweetlips, angelfish and most impressive - the big green turtles. Kandooma Caves has to be in every diver's logbook.

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