Central Atolls, The Best of Maldives – DUNE Theia

Dune Representative will pick you up at Malé International Airport and bring you to the main boat. Enjoy a drink while listening to our Cruise Manager welcome briefing. Dinner will be served in the evening and you will spend the first night at Hulhumalé marina. Check-in at 3 PM. *Free airport pick up at 3 pm and meeting point at Male airport (Burger King) only, no hotel pick-up. *We can arrange early check in with an extra fee 48 USD/person and pick-up time at 10 am at Male airport.

The trip will start by discovering the dazzling long reefs or a manta point (May to Nov only) in North Malé Atoll and South Malé Atoll. Corals are abundant here, giving home to plenty of reef fish and macro species. After the dive, we will cruise to Vaavu Atoll for an unmissable night dive. There’s nothing as exciting as diving with nurse sharks, sting rays, and jacks in their feeding frenzy.

Small caves, large overhangs, drop-off walls, and sloping reefs covered with corals can be found in Vaavu Atoll. Titan triggerfish are common. Larger marine life such as grey reef sharks, white tip reef sharks, tunas, and barracudas are also found here. Moving west to the South Ari Atoll, you will dive on beautiful pinnacles and be able to spot bigger marine life. Dive into this aquarium offered by mother nature and get a chance to meet the the stars of the trip.

In the marine protected area, our first stars, the mighty whale sharks, regularly show up. Our crew will search for their presence and give you a chance to snorkel or even scuba dive with them. Lucky or not, there are also many thilas and some wrecks in South Ari Atoll. Grey reef sharks, napoleon wrasse, moray eels, scorpionfish are definitely part of the fauna here. Exploring Maldives is also setting foot in paradise. Our crew will lead a visit to a nearby local island just before dinner if possible.

Cruising never stops, moving up to North Ari Atoll while taking a last chance to get a close look at whale sharks. In the north, channels are wider and the ocean is deeper. We will meet some more stars here. The currents attract many grey reef sharks, white tip reef sharks and even other large pelagic fish. When night falls, you will be invited to go ashore again if possible and indulge yourself in a barbecue dinner prepared by our crew on a nearby desert island, or enjoy with a Maldivian night on board.

Multiple manta cleaning stations, extraordinary thilas and wreck with rich marine life are the highlights of this area of Ari Atoll. You will also find here eagle rays, hawksbill turtles, napoleon wrasse, school of blue-stripe snapper, batfish, and fusiliers. The day will end with a manta night dive. Admire the enormous manta rays feeding right in front your torch.

After one last dive in North Ari Atoll the cruise will head back to North Malé Atoll. Here you will find stunning long reefs, small caves, colourful corals with prolific pelagic and reef life. Take a closer look at the squirrelfish, bannerfish, oriental sweetlips, frogfish, and nudibranchs. In the afternoon you will come back to Hulhumalé marina to spend your last night on board.

The trip is arriving at the end. Our crew will arrange the transfer to the airport once you have had your breakfast on board. We are also glad to help you plan for the day and booking for accommodations. Time to come back home with fantastic memories! Check-out at 8 AM. *Route is given as an example and is submitted to weather conditions and can be modified