Drift Diving In The Maldives

When most people think of the Maldives they picture luxury resorts overlooking powdery white sand and crystal-clear water. However, below this turquoise surface, the Maldives is also a fantastic diving destination, known for its year-round warm waters and abundance of pelagics. The currents around the archipelago are renowned for their strength, making drift diving in the Maldives a welcome challenge for thrill-seeking divers. With over a thousand coral islands and 26 stunning ring-like atolls, there are plenty of great diving spots scattered across the country. We’ve rounded up our favourites for where to go drift diving in the Maldives:

Miyaru Kandu

Miyaru Kandu on the Vaavu Atoll is one of our top choices for advanced divers drift diving in the Maldives. Also known as 'Shark Channel', Miyaru Kandu is subject to strong currents and has numerous caves and overhangs bordering the channel. The visibility is fantastic when the current is inbound, although even with an outgoing current it's still a wonderful drift dive.

As its nickname would suggest, divers often encounter sharks in Miyaru Kandu, with whitetip and black-tip reef sharks often seen inside the channel, and hammerhead, grey reef and even rare sightings of tiger sharks on the other side of the reef.

Maamigili Beru

Maamigili Beru is a great choice for drift diving in the Maldives, suitable for all levels of diving. The site, which is on the southern tip of the Ari Atoll, starts at a top reef between five and seven metres, continuing down past 30 metres.

Divers usually drift with the current alongside the long reef, passing by colourful reef fish darting in and out of the hard corals, vibrant nudibranchs and curious moray eels. Lucky divers might even cross paths with a whale shark or two swimming against the current in the opposite direction.

Kuredu Express

Kuredu Express is a hugely popular dive site and not to be missed when drift diving in the Maldives. The currents here are unpredictable, ranging from mild and mellow drifts to exhilarating rides. The ever-changing currents mean that no two dives on Kurudu Express are the same, with divers likely to encounter a huge number of species.

The site, which is on the Lhaviyani Atoll, is renowned for huge grey reef shark populations, as well as eagle rays, stingrays and large schools of barracudas and jacks. It has varied topography, with a sandy channel that leads to a terraced corner reef and two large bays decorated with vibrant soft corals. Kuredu Express is suited for intermediate to advanced divers only.

There are numerous sites for drift diving in the Maldives scattered throughout the country's idyllic atolls. With so many choices, it can be hard to plan where to go. Luckily, our expert team has the know-how and personal experience to help you put together a once-in-a-lifetime Maldives diving holiday, with a custom itinerary to suit all your needs.