Manta Rays and Stingrays in Maldives

Manta rays and stingrays are rather popular sea creatures in Maldives. Thousands of tourists travel long miles from their hometowns just to experience these marine wonders themselves. These two exotic species of rays not only occur in this tropical paradise, but are also surprisingly common.

Maldivian Manta Ray

Maldives Manta Rays are fascinating sea creatures, attracting scuba diving and marine enthusiasts worldwide in this tropical paradise. There are numerous dive sites in Maldives  that feature sightings of these spectacular creatures. This largest species of rays can grow up to 20 feet and weigh 4,000 pounds heavy but is very friendly and harmless to scuba divers despite their frightening  size.

Maldives Diving with Manta Rays

Manta Rays in Maldives are very popular attractions to scuba divers because of their majestic appearance and unique habitat. These creatures migrate across the 26 atolls of Maldives with the changing monsoons, following seasonal shifts in their planktonic food source.

Maldives Manta Ray Project

The Maldives Manta Ray Project (MMRP) is an organization dedicated to data collection and marine research of mantas in Maldives with the purpose of caring and preserving for the population of these precious creatures. With only 3 years of existence, the project has already gathered data that identifies over 1,500 manta rays in Maldives and counting.

Sharks and Rays

This non-profit research organization also aims to promote greater awareness and understanding of manta rays in Maldives. MMRP conducts education initiatives and other marine conservation activities as part of their responsibility towards a better and safer marine life in Maldives.

Stingray Feeding

Stingrays often dwell on shallow waters in search of their prey. This is the perfect opportunity for you to feed these tooth-less and velvet-like creatures with pilchards and other small fish.

Maldives Stingray Feeding

There are numerous resorts in Maldives that holds nightly stingray feeding events. Before allowing their guests to feed these graceful and gentle sea creatures themselves, a resort professional will give a short orientation about stingrays and their habitat.

Want to know more about Scuba Diving in Maldives? Visit www.maldivesdivetravel.com for special deals, liveaboard information, and other tourist concerns.

Maldivian Dhoni

A Maldivian Dhoni is a traditional boat used by fishermen and tourists in Maldives as a means of transport or livelihood. It is also a strong symbol of nationalism in a country which is mostly dominated by vast bodies of water.

Maldivian Dhoni

Some Maldivian Dhonis may vary in design and construction, although most are typically built in the same way. There are many similar properties shared even by different boats varying in size and appearance.

Building a Maldivian Dhoni

Constructing a Maldivian Dhoni takes a lot of hard work and patience, especially if you’re on a tight budget. Many fishermen in Maldives use these boats as their main source of livelihood.

Maldivian Fisherman Dhoni

In the past, boats in Maldives were built using coconut wood. Nowadays this material has been replaced with imported hardwoods, which serves as the main ingredient in making the dhoni’s hull. Copper rivets hold together the planks of a Maldivian Dhoni, replacing the use of coir during the older days.

Maldivian Dhoni Cruise

A sail is essential to any Maldivian Dhoni as it will prove to be useful during emergency situations. It can also be used to save precious and expensive gasoline resources. The lateen triangular sail has replaced the traditional square sail made of coconut fronds.

Did you know that the basic hull design of a Maldives liveaboard cruise is entirely based on that of the smaller dhoni? These first class vessels are usually a hundred feet long or even bigger. To know more about luxury liveaboards in Maldives, click here.

Maldives Underwater Photography Tips

The Maldives is undoubtedly famous as one of the best places in the world for underwater photography. Its rich and exotic marine life has transformed the local tourism industry of Maldives into a global market for scuba divers and beach goers. Holiday photographers will instantly fall in love taking photos in Maldives especially in its underwater setting.

Maldives Schooling Fish

There are numerous dive sites in Maldives where you can photograph pelagic fish such as sharks, mantas, and jacks. It takes a lot of patience to take great underwater images even for seasoned divers and photography enthusiasts. Although, a couple of wise tips and tricks will always help you improve in taking underwater photos in Maldives. Try to suck in some of these techniques, so that the next time you go diving and taking photos in the spectacular waters of this tropical paradise, you’ll be surprised to see better results.

General Tips For Underwater Photography in Maldives

• Hold the camera still while shooting
• Squeeze the shutter in the proper manner by not putting excess force on it
• Exhale before you shoot
• Stabilize your elbows against your body while keeping your arms in
• Maintain a neutral buoyancy
• If possible, shoot from the reef bottom

Maldives Napoleon Wrasse

Optimizing Camera Settings for Underwater Photography in Maldives

A good camera might not be the solution for taking better underwater photos in Maldives, but a camera with a manual mode feature is always an advantage for scuba diving photography. There is an ideal aperture setting for every depth range that you’ll encounter.

• An ISO setting of 100 is best for any underwater depth. Higher ISO settings may result to grainy pictures despite giving more flexibility for motion.
• Use the TTL flash metering mode.
• Use an aperture setting of f/11 up to 10m deep.
• Use an aperture setting of f/8 for depths of 10m to 20m.
• Use an aperture setting of f/5.6 or f/4 for depths deeper than 20m.
• It would be wise to pre-focus and keep your position steady because most autofocusing features in underwater cameras is totally ineffective underwater.

Maldives Scorpion Fish

Do remember that these tips are not necessarily rules or guidelines for underwater photography. Your own creativity and experimentation is also the key to taking better scuba diving photos in Maldives!

For more information about Scuba Diving Holidays in Maldives, you may visit www.maldivesdivetravel.com.

True Love in the Maldives

How does the Senior Platform Manager at Facebook Dave Morin propose to his Google girlfriend Brittany Bohnet? Simple, by spelling out “B. Will you marry me?” in coconuts on a a sandy beach in the Maldives and flying over it in a private charter plane while she gets to pilot it.

She obviously said yes, what girl in their right mind wouldn’t and the whole thing was later posted on a Flickr gallery with a bunch of photos.

Facebook Employee Proposes to Google girlfriend by spelling out “B. Will you marry me?” in the sand!

Manta Ray Photos

A selection of photos of amazing manta rays, taken on location in the Maldives.  To find out more about the incredible manta ray and to reserve a scuba diving trip in the Maldives, where you will be able to dive with the majestic manta rays, click  here.

Photos of the Maldives

The Maldives is a great place for taking photos.  There are so many amazing places and wildlife that a photographer can spend hours, days, even years snapping great photos in this island paradise.  The following are just a selection of photos from the Maldives, courtesy of Maldives Dive Travel.

Photos of Maldives Liveaboards

The following are a selection of photos taken of the scuba diving liveaboard ships in the Maldives, courtesy of Maldives Dive Travel.

Maldives Underwater Photos

Let’s Go Maldives!

Traditional Maldives Dhoni

General Maldives Information

The Maldives is an island country made up of a group of idyllic atolls in the Indian Ocean, 185 islets of the 1,192 islets are inhabited. The Maldives is the smallest Asian country in terms of both population and area and it is also the smallest predominantly Muslim nation in the world.

Maldives People

Originally inhabited by Buddhists, people came to the Maldives under the influence of the Portugese and the Dutch.  Ultimately, the island nation became a British protectorate. The variety of foreign influences in Maldives have helped to shape Maldives as the perfect exotic getaway, considering its exuberant surroundings.

Destination Maldives

Although considered terra incognita since the 1970’s, the Maldives has risen to become one of the world’s most popular vacation spots, boasting pristine turquoise waters that lap peacefully against the sand, as well as gorgeous coconut groves that provide an atmosphere of peace and tranquility.  The Madives’ population of 300,000 people live on just 185 of the 1,192 islands.  The others are used exclusively for tourism and agriculture. All land above the ocean surface in the Maldives is of coralline origin and the atolls of the Maldives form an impressive sight.

Maldives Scuba Diving

Maldives Liveaboard Blue Lagoon

The Maldives is established as a prime destination for scuba divers.  The many beautiful dive sites here feature spectacular coral reefs and exotic marine wildlife that will surely fascinate both veterans and first-time scuba divers. Many scuba divers choose to take a liveaboard holiday, which allows them to visit many dive sites all over the Maldives while cruising around these amazing islands in style.  The resorts around the islands also provide luxurious accommodations set in dazzling natural while still offering all the comforts and conveniences of home. Dining is definitely not a problem, as restaurants all over the islands and on the liveaboards cater to a host of different palates and dietary requirements.

More Maldives Activities

Action and adventure abound in the Maldives.  Hotels and liveaboards alike offer a variety of tours and excursions which allow you to visit other islands, native communities or go shopping in Male, the capital of the Maldives.   The rest of the time, you can spend your days enjoying countless water sports, from scuba diving and snorkeling to water skiing and banana boating. 

Snorkeling in the Maldives

R & R, Maldives Style!

Rest and relaxation are the biggest attractions of the Maldives for tourists, who flock here from around the world to bask in the sun and frolic in the clear blue waters of  the Maldives. For true relaxation, visitors should take advantage of one of the island nations’ many spas, which offer a whole menu of treatments and procedures.

Snorkeling in the Maldives

Oriental Sweetlip in the Maldives

For those of us that don’t quite feel ready to don the full scuba gear and start breathing through a regulator, but still want to get a taste of the underwater world, snorkeling is the perfect option.  In the Maldives, so many of the reefs are in shallow water, and located close to the shore, that you can actually get a very similar experience.  The benefits – you dont have to dedicate your whole holiday to scuba diving.  Instead, you can enjoy some casual snorkeling off the shore close to your resort, and maybe a couple of boat trips to prime snorkeling destinations, including Dhidhoofinolhu Eastern Reef on the South Ari Atoll where snorkelers often get to see Manta Rays and other amazing marine creatures.  Another benefit to snorkeling is that it is a lot cheaper than scuba diving.  With snorkeling, all you have to rent is the mask, snorkel and fins, whereas with scuba diving, there is a lot more equipment, including wet suit, dive tank, BCD, weight belt and dive computer.

In short, snorkeling is the perfect introduction to scuba diving.  If you like it, and want to explore deeper, then it’s time to take the next step and enroll in a scuba class.

Happy exploring!