Emperor Virgo

BEST OF MALDIVES

This is the Best of the Maldives - and it delivers exactly that. This is where you dive the best and most famous dive sites of the Maldives in a week of wonderful liveaboard diving across Male and Ari atolls. For this itinerary, you should be comfortable with drift dives. Currents can be strong. All your diving is made from dhonis or zodiacs to give precise entry and exits points. Experienced divers can dive in a buddy pair unguided.

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• Rasdhoo Atoll:Hammerhead Dive, Beautiful Reef with Pelagics
• North Ari Atoll:Grey Reef Sharks, Maaya Thila Night Dive, Multiple Manta Cleaning Stations
• South Ari Atoll:Whale Sharks, Beautiful Pinnacles
• South Male Atoll:Grey Reef Sharks, Eagle Rays, Other Pelagics, Beautiful Macro Wreck.
• Vaavu Atoll:Action packed night dive with Nurse Sharks and others.
• North Male Atoll:Beautiful Pinnacles.

HANIFARU & NORTH (JULY - OCTOBER)

This itinerary runs around the New Moon phase when tidal ranges are greater resulting in a greater flow of plankton into the world famous Hanifaru Bay, where the massive majestic mantas venture in for a feeding frenzy between July and October each year.

We sail from Male to the northern atolls of Lhaviyani and Baa (Hanifaru Bay) and back taking in the renowned sites of Kuredu Express, Kuredu Caves.

As well as mantas, you can get close to turtles, grey reef sharks and whitetip reef sharks. One of the big attractions is the chance to encounter mantas feeding and cleaning.

Thanks to the currents that sweep plankton into the shallow lagoons, mantas follow in vast numbers to feed. Although diving is not permitted in the UNESCO World Heritage site of Hanifaru Bay, we are allowed to go in and snorkel with these gentle giants in the lagoon. After a manta has had its feed it needs to get cleaned, so we will take you to known manta cleaning stations in both North Male, Lhaviyani and Baa Atoll. So hopefully these will give you sightings all week long. Of course, sightings can't be guaranteed but diving at this time means your chances are high.

BEST OF MALDIVES

This is the Best of the Maldives - and it delivers exactly that. This is where you dive the best and most famous dive sites of the Maldives in a week of wonderful liveaboard diving across Male and Ari atolls. For this itinerary, you should be comfortable with drift dives. Currents can be strong. All your diving is made from dhonis or zodiacs to give precise entry and exits points. Experienced divers can dive in a buddy pair unguided.

• 
• Rasdhoo Atoll:Hammerhead Dive, Beautiful Reef with Pelagics
• North Ari Atoll:Grey Reef Sharks, Maaya Thila Night Dive, Multiple Manta Cleaning Stations
• South Ari Atoll:Whale Sharks, Beautiful Pinnacles
• South Male Atoll:Grey Reef Sharks, Eagle Rays, Other Pelagics, Beautiful Macro Wreck.
• Vaavu Atoll:Action packed night dive with Nurse Sharks and others.
• North Male Atoll:Beautiful Pinnacles.

PELAGIC MAGIC (APRIL - JULY)

On this route we take you on a manta and whale shark journey to the North & South Ari Atolls having crossed over from Male. Exact dive sites will vary depending on diver experience levels, local conditions and where the best sightings have been.

Pelagic Magic gets you face to face with the famous whale sharks of Ari Atoll. As this itinerary devotes more time here, you are certain to get your whaleshark fix at Maamagili. Iconic dive follows iconic dive as you sail from Male through North Ari and then onto South Ari; your log book will fill with shark and manta sightings as well as outstanding reef dives. Then grab your snorkel and splash in to float only feet away from graceful whale sharks. Pelagics of all shapes and sizes await.

With around 17 dives, as well as opportunities to snorkel with the whale sharks, this is an action packed week. The pelagic sightings start right from the beginning. Manta Point (otherwise known as Lankan Finolhu) is a cleaning station with reliable manta sightings. Just settle down and watch the manta swoop in. Hafsa Thila and Maya Thila are yet more iconic dive site where sharks are plentiful. Look out for baby white tips under the large table corals. But it is at night that Maya Thila really comes alive. Reef sharks and marble morays hunt dinner out as morays slink between the coral blocks.

As you reach South Ari keep a look out for the whale sharks. Maamagili is the place to find whale sharks at this time as they follow the seasonal currents. Manta chase plankton trails too into the nearby lagoons. Between your pelagic encounters, the reef dives will not disappoint. Discover the lush corals and schooling fish at the likes of Reethi Thila and Kuda Rah.

This is a great itinerary for everyone. No matter what your experience level this is a Maldives itinerary you can enjoy. There can be some drift diving so some experience of diving in currents in advisable. Don't forget to take your reef hook to make shark watching all the easier. As so many of the best whaleshark encounters are snorkelling, everyone can feel the thrill of seeing these graceful creatures in their natural environment. Pelagic Magic runs when the pelagics sightings are at their optimum in North and South Ari. Don't delay - discover the biggest inhabitants of the Maldives for yourself.

BEST OF MALDIVES

This is the Best of the Maldives - and it delivers exactly that. This is where you dive the best and most famous dive sites of the Maldives in a week of wonderful liveaboard diving across Male and Ari atolls. For this itinerary, you should be comfortable with drift dives. Currents can be strong. All your diving is made from dhonis or zodiacs to give precise entry and exits points. Experienced divers can dive in a buddy pair unguided.

• 
• Rasdhoo Atoll:Hammerhead Dive, Beautiful Reef with Pelagics
• North Ari Atoll:Grey Reef Sharks, Maaya Thila Night Dive, Multiple Manta Cleaning Stations
• South Ari Atoll:Whale Sharks, Beautiful Pinnacles
• South Male Atoll:Grey Reef Sharks, Eagle Rays, Other Pelagics, Beautiful Macro Wreck.
• Vaavu Atoll:Action packed night dive with Nurse Sharks and others.
• North Male Atoll:Beautiful Pinnacles.

SHARKTASTIC (JANUARY - APRIL)

In this period the clean ocean water flows in from the eastern side of the Maldives. That means currents running from Sumatra, Indonesia to the Maldives bring with them not just fantastic visibility up to 40m but also a variety of pelagic surprises coming to the reef for a quick feed.

The Channel dives of the eastern coast of the Maldives are the main order of the day. These Kandus, as they are known in the local language (Dhivehi), attract grey reef sharks, dog tooth tuna and eagle rays as standard but look out into the blue and you never know what surprises await. The outer walls and corners of the channels in Vaavu and Meemu have the added bonus of beautiful overhangs draping in the blues, yellows and pinks of the majestic soft coral.

After the adrenaline pumping channel dives of eastern Maldives we cross over to South Ari Atoll to look for the whale sharks and mantas at Maamagili and Rangali Madivaru (Dhivehi for Manta Place) among other great sites such as Kudarah Thila and Kudimaa Wreck known for its potential leaf fish and frog fish.

This itinerary is not for beginners. Most dives will involve going to depth and currents can be strong. We recommend you have 30 logged dives to join this trip and require that you are Deep Diver/Advanced Open Water or equivalent.

BEST OF MALDIVES

This is the Best of the Maldives - and it delivers exactly that. This is where you dive the best and most famous dive sites of the Maldives in a week of wonderful liveaboard diving across Male and Ari atolls. For this itinerary, you should be comfortable with drift dives. Currents can be strong. All your diving is made from dhonis or zodiacs to give precise entry and exits points. Experienced divers can dive in a buddy pair unguided.

• 
• Rasdhoo Atoll:Hammerhead Dive, Beautiful Reef with Pelagics
• North Ari Atoll:Grey Reef Sharks, Maaya Thila Night Dive, Multiple Manta Cleaning Stations
• South Ari Atoll:Whale Sharks, Beautiful Pinnacles
• South Male Atoll:Grey Reef Sharks, Eagle Rays, Other Pelagics, Beautiful Macro Wreck.
• Vaavu Atoll:Action packed night dive with Nurse Sharks and others.
• North Male Atoll:Beautiful Pinnacles.

SOUTH CENTRAL ATOLLS (JANUARY - MARCH)

January to March is the time to join us as this is when the current in the Kandus is largely incoming from the east. There's a good variety of diving from thrilling channel dives to more relaxed diving inside the atolls on Thilas or Giris.

The best thing? There are few other boats as we visit atolls that have very few resorts and lots of uninhabited islands so liveaboard competition is low.

Hammerheads are often found in Thaa as well as whale sharks who visit our boat at night attracted by the krill, which, in turn, are attracted by the lights. When the currents are running well, the channel dives here are outstanding. Abundant with schooling snappers, jacks, barracuda, white tips and greys, grouper, Napoleon wrasse, turtles, eagle rays and more.

You will either join your liveaboard in Male or Laamu (Kadhdhoo), and then it's off on our adventure.

This itinerary has a lot of drift diving so it's best suited to more advanced divers. With visibility being really good in the southern atolls, this is ideal for photographers and videographers looking for larger Pelagic action.