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Diving Bonaire: Maldives ??
Bonaire Talk: Diving Bonaire: Archives: Archives 1999-2005: Archives - 2002-11-26 to 2003-04-30: Maldives ??
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Jack Brewer on Sunday, January 26, 2003 - 8:54 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Has anybody here been diving in the Maldives?? It is currently one of my dream destinations but it might be just cuz it is so far away and darn hard to get to. Is it worth it?? Not just the diving but the whole deal as Bonaire is??

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Sarah (Extraordinary BonaireTalker - Post #1845) on Sunday, January 26, 2003 - 4:05 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Jack, I have only snorkelled Bi Ya Doo Island, Maldives back in the late 80's... it was beautiful, though the marine life is not as diverse as Bonaire. I understand that the islands have recovered well from the coral bleaching events of the late 80’s and 90’s. I’d be very interested to know what the surface water temps are now. Certainly, it would be worth seeing the Maldives now, as the country is particularly vulnerable to climate change, with sea levels rising fast! When I went, the only way to get to the islands was by boat (raft), took about 3 hrs!! Tourists can now get to the islands by speedboat or helicopter from Male Airport! I'm hoping that Brian will pop in, I'm almost certain that he has been diving in the Maldives.

Brian?

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Julia Graves (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #112) on Sunday, January 26, 2003 - 6:53 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Bob and I have been diving in the Maldives and it is very good. I would say that you must be aware there is not a lot to do on some islands, it is great to chill out. Look carefully at the options on each island and try to do some of the island hopping and visit the capital. Not all islands have a 'house reef' but those that do sometimes have freely available diving. Read the brochures carefully.
We had a great time on three occasions, including a package with a week in Sri lanka. Some of the boat packages are great but not all dhonis have facilities for divers!

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Peter Cabus (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #129) on Monday, January 27, 2003 - 3:24 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Jack,

We visited Kuda Hura (I believe in the North Male Atol) in 1999. That was after El Nino struck in 96. 80 % of the hard coral was dead at the time. But the fish life was awsome. Lots of fish. Sharks on almost every dive. We even saw manta's, altough it wasn't manta season.

The trip is long, especially if you have are coming from the US.

But it is really worth it. I would go back in an instant. If you want to stay at an island go for an island with deep channels. The current in those channels kept the water temp lower and the hard coral survived.

If you don't want to be limited to one island, you can either go for island hopping or a liveaboard. A liveaboard is probably the best and cheapest way. Both travel and dives are really expensive. You are looking at 50$ for a one tank dive.

If you have the time I would recommend to combine a 8 day liveaboard with one week on one of the resorts.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Brian (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #259) on Monday, January 27, 2003 - 4:15 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

I echo Peter's comments; we went last year in March for a week on the Atoll Explorer followed by a week on an island - Full Moon. We enjoyed the diving and they arranged up to five dives a day. Most dives had a lot of current and sharks were common, coral was in bad shape and frequently resembled bare rock where the parrot fish had scraped off the surface. Fish life however was abundant and small patches of new coral were noted.

We enjoyed the first week so much that we stayed on board for a further week. Our decision not to stay at Full Moon was prompted by the fact that it was room only and drinks and food looked expensive. $4 to $5 for a small beer $2 to $3 dollars for soft drinks etc.

Bonaire versus the Maldives well I like both in different ways so this year we will be back in the Maldives in March and in Bonaire for the Coral Spawning and again at Christmas.

I hope that helps

Brian

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Will Chetwood (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #15) on Monday, February 3, 2003 - 11:04 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Jack
Hugely different experiences. Basically I agree with the previous posts. I love them both. Potentially big currents in Maldives which are rare in Bonaire. The vis in Bonaire and the coral are both normally better. But in the Maldives you get the large pelagic life. If you go to the Maldives try to prebook as much as possible as Brian says its very expensive

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Snorkelguy {Scott} (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #864) on Friday, February 7, 2003 - 12:18 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

I was just in India and didn’t have enough time to stop in the Maldives, and I really wish I had time too. Hope you share your experience with us if you go.

My dream drip is the Seychelles, perhaps I’ll make it in the next few years.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Igor van Riel (Extraordinary BonaireTalker - Post #1220) on Friday, February 7, 2003 - 4:04 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Hi Scott,
that has been a while :-)
Martine (check the cam threads of the past week) is going to the Seychelles this sunday!
I just know she will share her experiences with us, maybe she will even put pics on her website! :-)
See ya later...

 


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