Experiencing the underwater world of the Maldives is truly spectacular and incredibly memorable. I can still close my eyes and picture the colorful fish popping in and out of the labyrinth of intricate coral reefs, wishing I was still in paradise. There is no doubt as to why the Maldives has been a popular destination at the top of many traveler’s bucket lists. And we are no exception.
For the duration of our first trip to the Maldives we split our time between The Amazing Noovilu Guesthouse (now Noovilu Suites) and Lily Beach Resort and Spa. I’ve since returned to the Maldives a number of times and have stayed at K Villas Guesthouse, which I highly recommend.
All are located in the South Ari Atoll, which is one of the largest Atolls in the Maldives, and consist of 105 islands divided up into Northern and Southern sections.
From the moment I lowered my mask and snorkel covered face into the Indian Ocean it was clear that I were about to become face to face with some of the most colorful and curious marine life that live in the South Ari Atoll.
With such a large array of reef inhabitants, including tropical fish, stingrays, sea turtles, sharks and coral, its no wonder the Maldives is known for some of the best snorkelling and diving in the world. A real highlight for me was the incredible experience swimming side-by-side with the oceans largest fish species, the Whale Shark!
We did our whale shark excursion through The Amazing Noovilu and were so happy we did. Unlike most of the large groups coming from the resorts, we were a small group of seven on a speedboat. After getting the opportunity to swim with our new whale shark friend, we all hopped back on the boat for breakfast long after most of the resort Dhoni’s had already left.
Exploring the Maldives by speed boat meant that we would stumble upon sandbars, such as this one, where we could relax on and snorkel off of. Thus making each day a new and exciting adventure.
While at The Amazing Noovilu we spent most of our days off the island of Mahibadhoo, exploring the surrounding reefs and snorkeling around in search of sea life.
One of our evenings we walked down to the beach on Mahibadhoo to witness the bioluminescent plankton sparkle as it washed ashore. The plankton reacts to tension or stress by emitting light from their cells, which to us, appears blue. We not only saw the blue sparks lights up as the waves crashed but during night snorkeling we all shut off our flashlights, waved our hands arounds and watched as the ocean around us flickered blue.
After a couple of adventurous days with The Amazing Noovilu, we checked in to Lily Beach Resort and Spa to experience a little bit of luxury in one of the over-the-water bungalows. I had dreamed about staying in one of these for a very long time and was glad that we decided it was worth the splurge.
Yes, that’s me swimming around by our “home.” I was more than pleasantly surprised by how many sea creatures live right underneath where we were sleeping!
These small black tip reef sharks could be seen swimming all around the over-the-water bungalows. From our room we could even them passing by underneath our glass floor.
Every morning I would wake up and excitedly check to see what sea life was swimming right below our bungalow!
While on our way to swim with the whale shark, a large pod of dolphins swam and jumped all around our boat!
Seriously guys, this place is magical and often had me wondering, is this real life?
Of course you are going to want to be in the sun and ocean as much as possible so, as always, protect yourself from those harsh rays. Which are inevitably stronger in the Maldives due to its location just north of the Equator.
Make sure to apply lots of sunscreen (I highly recommend Sun Bum because it is reef safe) and wear a rash guard when snorkeling. And don’t forget about the backs of your legs as those areas are the most vulnerable to the sun!
All these photos were shot with the Leica XU camera and the GoPro Hero 6. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
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