Can you experience the Maldives without staying in a luxury hotel? Absolutely! Opt for a liveaboard boat and stay on local islands, as I did. Join me in exploring the abundant underwater world, teeming with vibrant marine life. Dive and surf through this tropical paradise.
The Maldives, located in the Indian Ocean, is renowned for its crystal-clear blue waters, fascinating marine life, and swaying palm trees—making it a diver’s paradise. After a tiring day of flying, I arrived at this world-famous tropical paradise and checked into a hotel near the airport to rest and adjust to the jet lag.
When booking liveaboard diving trips, I prefer to arrive at the destination a day in advance. This ensures that even if there are flight delays or cancellations, I won’t miss the boat. Today, I spent some time wandering the nearby beach, picking up local fruits, and, though I don’t typically smoke, I even tried the local shisha for a bit of cultural immersion.
The Maldives is a diver’s dream destination, thanks to its incredible biodiversity. Spread over 90,000 square kilometers are 26 atolls filled with pristine coral reefs. The ocean floor is a kaleidoscope of colorful sponges, soft corals, and anemones. Swarms of blue-faced angelfish, puffers, batfish, tuna, turtles, and moray eels populate this vibrant ecosystem.
But perhaps most uniquely, you can dive alongside sharks anytime here! Gentle nurse sharks, massive stingrays, and manta rays with their colossal wings glide past, brushing against my skin—it’s truly a highlight moment of my life.
If you’re enthralled by large marine creatures, the seas of the Maldives will dazzle you. Diving here, you’re likely to see more large marine life in one trip than you might in a lifetime of diving elsewhere.
Moreover, the Maldives is very beginner-friendly when it comes to diving. There are no strong currents to worry about, so even if you only have a PADI Open Water level certification or equivalent, it’s entirely sufficient to dive here.
After diving, it’s necessary to wait at least 24 hours before flying to minimize the risk of decompression sickness. During this waiting period, it’s the perfect opportunity to enjoy some surfing on one of the Maldives’ local islands. Local islands, inhabited by natives and not designated as resort islands, offer a more authentic glimpse of the country at a fraction of the cost—sometimes just a third or even a tenth of what you’d spend on resort islands.
This time, I chose Himmafushi Island, known for its surfing. I hired a local surf instructor and really got to experience what surfing is all about. The local cuisine on the island is also incredible. I was there during Christmas and enjoyed a lavish seafood feast complete with festive performances, making for a perfect end to my journey.
