It was an early start on October 26. We took the 7:30am local ferry to Male, then a taxi to cross the city so we could be on time at the Vilingilli Ferry Terminal for the 9:30am departure to Rasdhoo. After 3 and a half hours we arrived in Rasdhoo, a beautiful island in the north part of Ari Atoll. The hotel staff was waiting for us at the ferry terminal to take our bags and direct us to the hotel. After checking in the owner took us to Rasdhoo Diving Club, the diving school they recommend. There we met Yaante, a diving instructor, who gave us all the prices. We also wanted to check the other two diving shops in the island so we did not commit with him.
Yaante recommended Coffee Olé for lunch… well, there are only three restaurants in the island. Coffee Olé is a nice place, very upscale for the laid back island style. The food was amazing and the prices very reasonable.
We then went for a stroll around the island. Rasdhoo is a very small island, standing in the middle looking north, south, east and west you can see the sea at the end of each street.
We talked to the other two diving shops but the prices were a lot higher than the ones at Rasdhoo Dive Club so we went back to Yaante and booked 6 dives for the next couple of days.
In the afternoon we went snorkelling and relaxing by the beach.
On October 27 we went diving to Rasdhoo Channel and Madivaru Corner. According to Yaante both sites are very good and there is a lot of action everywhere… let’s see if it is true. At 8:30am we were jumping in the water to dive the Rasdhoo channel. It was a gentle drift and amazing dive, we saw reef sharks, eagle rays, napoleon wrasse among others. After the surface interval we headed to Madivaru Corner. This dive site is probably one of the best, it really lived to the expectations Yaante had created on us. We came to a point that was hard to choose which way to look, there were sharks everywhere, school of eagle rays, several schools of fish, barracudas, big tuna, etc. What a great dive, it will be hard to match all the action we saw in this area.
In the afternoon we had a nap and took it easy for the rest of the day.
October 28 was another day of nice diving. We went to Hammerhead Point at 6:30am for our first dive looking for hammerhead sharks but unfortunately they did not make an appearance for us. The dive is interesting because at some point we were diving into the blue deep ocean without a reference of what is up, down, east or west, the only indication were the bubbles. We encountered a massive jellyfish peacefully drifting away. For the end of the dive we headed back to the reef to see a little bit of fish. We do not think it was a waste of time and money, but when looking for specific species there is always the chance that they do not show up and you are disappointed.
Our second dive was at Rasdhoo Corner. Also a beautiful dive.
We found out that our hotel offers a free tour to the sand bar if we stay 5 or more nights. With such an amazing diving and with this offer the decision was easy, we will be staying for a total of 6 nights. On October 29 we were taken to the sand bar, we got there by 10:30am and will be picked up by 4:00pm. We got packed lunch from Coffee Olé, water, drinks and snorkelling gear. We spent an amazing day snorkelling in the area, relaxing by the beach and enjoying the crystal clear waters of the Maldives. Sadly at 4:00pm we got picked up and returned to Rasdhoo. It was a fantastic day!
On October 30 we went diving again, this time we were taken to the caves and Mardigaa or commonly known as the Manta Block. At the caves it was a nice day with the formations and the reef sharks. On the second dive we were looking for manta rays so we went to the cleaning station and waited for around 10 minutes. Tired of waiting we started looking around and found an octopus so we centered our attention on it; however, all of a sudden, there were 5 manta rays surrounding us. They were eating and playing. It was a fantastic seeing these magnificent animals swimming and playing, the way they glide effortless through the water is impressive.
By the end of this dive Yaante had already delivered in all the promises he made to us about what we will see in the area… the hammerheads were still missing but he said it was very unlikely that we see them.
After such amazing diving the last few days we decided to repeat Rasdhoo Channel and Madivaru Corner.
On October 31 we went diving with Yaante again. The first dive was the Rasdhoo Channel, there we saw lots of sharks, a bowmouth guitarfish (It was the first time for Yaante to see it), big tuna, etc. When we came to the surface the weather had turned on us and it was raining, windy and the sea was too choppy. Yaante made the decision to call off the second dive for the day so we will have to do it tomorrow morning.
We spent the afternoon relaxing, fishing (did not catch anything) and working on a few things.
November 1 was our last day in Rasdhoo, we have had an amazing time in this island. But before we had one last time to the deep ocean of Maduvaru Corner. This time the dive was not as spectacular as the first time, but still impressive. The visibility was not that great so that took a little bit of the dive.
For those of you that like diving, this is a highly recommended spot to visit!
At 11:00am we took the local ferry back to Male. We arrived in Male at 2:30pm and catch the local ferry to Guiraidhoo at 3:00pm. Guraidhoo is almost the last island in the Male Atoll. This will be our third stop in the Maldives.