M/V Emperor Leo roars around the best dive sites of the central atolls of the Maldives, mainly North Male, South Male and Ari atoll. This 35m long motor yacht comfortably accommodates 24 divers in a range of cabins departing from Male for liveaboard trips of 7 nights' duration.
For Central Atolls of the Maldives need little introduction. North Male, South Male, and Ari form a legendary circuit of channels, kandus, and thilas, where reef hooks allow you to hover in the current and witness the ocean’s grace. Cruising this region for 7 nights, the Emperor Leo liveaboard offers a blend of solid comfort and practical diving know-how that suits groups of up to 24 guests looking to maximise their time underwater.
Emperor Leo itself, a 35-metre motor yacht, balances sociable spaces with quiet corners. Accommodation is practical and ensuite, with a choice of twin or double cabins spread across the lower and upper decks. All have air-conditioning, a minibar, and a TV, ensuring a comfortable base. After a day in the current, you might find yourself in the air-conditioned saloon with a book from the library, or outside on the main deck in the shade. Higher up, the sundeck with its loungers and bean bags is the place to be as the light softens, perhaps with a drink from the bar. A genuinely useful feature is the small Jacuzzi on the main deck - simple, but welcome for easing muscles between dive days.
Emperor Leo has a dedicated 20-metre dhoni. This accompanying vessel is your mobile dive base, carrying all the compressors and tanks. You set up your gear on day one and leave it there; the dhoni takes you to each site, meaning the main boat remains a peaceful, quiet haven, free from the clatter of filling cylinders.
The Emperor Leo liveaboard is equipped with several features that inspire confidence for self-sufficient divers. Nitrox is included free of charge, a significant bonus for those wanting to maximise bottom time over a week of diving. The provision of Nautilus Lifeline personal EPIRBs and the use of carbon monoxide analysers for the filling system speak to a genuine, no-compromise approach to safety. With 4 dive guides on the team, groups are kept manageable, and the focus stays on the experience rather than just the logistics.
A bonus of choosing the Emperor Leo is the straightforward pricing model from Emperor Fleet. The published price genuinely includes nearly everything: the government green tax, marine park fees, airport transfers, and even a glass of wine with dinner. There are no surprises at the end of the trip. This transparency allows you to focus entirely on the diving, knowing that the essential extras have already been handled.
The Emperor Leo liveaboard represents a dependable choice for exploring the Maldives' central atolls. It combines a relaxed, social atmosphere with the practical tools and safety measures that experienced divers appreciate. From the moment you step on board in Male, the structure is in place for a week of straightforward, enjoyable diving in the Indian Ocean.
The Emperor Leo liveaboard has 8 Standard twin/double bed cabins on the lower deck: 2 with double/twin beds, 4 twin beds (side-by-side) and 2 with double beds. There are 3 Upper deck twin/double bed cabins and 1 Executive double bed suite also on the upper deck. The Executive suite features its own Jacuzzi.
All the cabins have:
- Air-conditioning
- Windows (upper deck only) or portholes (lower deck)
- Private bathroom with toilet, hot water shower, towels, toiletries and hand basin
- Hair dryer
- TV and DVD player
- Minibar
- Wardrobe and mirror
- Reading lights
- Safe box
- Bedding
- 220V electricity supply with 3-pin UK style sockets (adaptors available)
- Fire detectors and life jackets
- Space for luggage
No. of bathrooms / showers - 12 / 12
Maldives Central Atolls
Trip highlights: whale sharks, hammerhead sharks, shark action, manta rays, schooling fish & big pelagics
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, drift diving, very popular, wreck diving
Dive sites and activities: North Male, Felidhoo, Rasdhoo, Ari and South Male atolls
Day 1
When you board the MV Emperor Leo in Male, your liveaboard tour leader will greet you and show you around the liveaboard. You'll be assigned to your cabin and given a full briefing on the week's diving plan. You'll be served dinner on your first day, and if you arrive early, lunch as well. The boat will depart the harbour the following morning.
Core Days
The expert dive guides know exactly where and how to dive, to ensure you get the most out of your safari. You'll explore the Maldives' most famous Central Atolls, a vibrant underwater world filled with big fish like reef sharks and mantas, as well as colourful reef fish, morays, and a wealth of macro life.
North Male atoll is renowned for its variety of dive sites and topography, including reefs, current-swept channels, drop-offs, underwater caves, and submerged pinnacles known as thilas. Some sites have dramatic overhangs and caverns just waiting to be explored. Encounters with big fish are a major highlight, and you can often spot grey reef sharks, whitetip reef sharks, eagle rays, and even nurse sharks resting in caves. The atoll is also home to famous manta ray cleaning stations, such as Lankan Manta Point. From May to November, these sites become a hotspot for manta rays to gather.
The biggest draw to Ari Atoll is the consistent opportunity to dive with magnificent creatures like whale sharks and manta rays. South Ari Atoll, in particular, is one of the few places in the world where whale sharks can be sighted year-round, as they cruise and feed along the outer atoll channels. Manta rays are also a major highlight, with several famous cleaning stations where these gentle giants gather to be groomed by smaller fish. Get up close at the cleaning stations without disturbing the manta rays! One of the best scuba diving sites is Maaya Thila, a pinnacle 30m in diameter, often visited by sharks and huge schools of hungry fish such as barracuda, tuna and trevallies.
Please note that there are only 2 dives on the last full day of the trip before heading to Male.
Final Day
Enjoy a final breakfast before saying goodbye. Your unforgettable time on the Emperor Leo has come to an end, and it's time to transfer back to Male airport for your ongoing travels.
Maldives Central Atolls (Adventure) (8 Days / 7 Nights - 17 Dives)
Trip highlights: whale sharks, shark action, manta rays, turtles, schooling fish & big pelagics, non diving activities
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, drift diving, very popular, wreck diving
Dive sites and activities: North Male, Felidhoo, Rasdhoo, Ari and South Male atolls
Day 1
The Emperor Leo liveaboard waits for you in Malé harbour. On arrival, a crew member shows you to your cabin, then the tour leader runs through the week ahead - where you'll be diving, how the boat operates, and what to expect. There's time to settle in before dinner. If you arrive early enough, lunch is also served. The boat spends the first night in port, and you wake tomorrow to the start of the diving.
Core Days
Over the following days, the Emperor Leo liveaboard moves through the Maldives' most visited atolls - North Malé, South Malé, Rasdhoo, Ari, and Felidhoo (Vaavu). The terrain here is varied: channels cut through the reefs, submerged pinnacles rise from the sand, and cleaning stations sit on sloping reefs where mantas and reef sharks come to be tended. This cruise is specially suited for those who want a more relaxed pace - fewer dives, more time for swimming, beaches, and snorkelling. It works well for beginners, families, and non-divers travelling together. The guides adjust the route and site selection to match the group, so everyone gets something from the week.
North Malé holds some of the archipelago's better-known sites. Lankan Manta Point is a sloping reef where mantas arrive to be cleaned, typically from the middle of the rainy season through to year's end. Blacktip and whitetip reef sharks move through, and octopus and turtles turn up along the way. Not far off, Kurumba serves as a reliable check dive - a long reef slope where tuna and trevally patrol and blacktips hunt in the shallows. For something less conventional, there's Fish Factory. The coral isn't the draw here; instead, marine life gathers to feed on waste from a tuna processing plant. Stingrays school, morays of nearly every local species grow large, and guitar sharks show themselves to the lucky.
South Malé is about channels. Kandooma Thila, on a good current, sees grey reef sharks holding at the split point while eagle rays and fusiliers move through. A school of bigeye jacks often holds nearby, and dogtooth tuna pass through. Cocoa Corner offers similar action, with the option to ride the current along the reef or hover at the channel mouth watching sharks in the blue.
Rasdhoo Atoll sits off Ari's northeastern corner. The dive at Rasdhoo Madivaru can be done several ways. An early start in the blue water gives a chance at hammerheads. On the reef itself, grey reef sharks and schooling eagle rays are regulars. For those with an eye for small things, leaf scorpionfish and juvenile razor wrasses show up among the coral. Kuramathi Channel, a wide channel mouth, requires crossing on an incoming current, moving from block to block in mid-water. Manta rays sometimes appear.
Ari Atoll, north and south, delivers some of the itinerary's most consistent highlights. Fish Head is a medium-sized pinnacle and marine protected area. Grey reef sharks patrol up-current, surrounded by fusiliers that draw hunting tuna and trevally. Resident hawksbill turtles rest on top, and blue-lined snappers school in numbers. Maaya Thila is another pinnacle, known for white tips that show reliably day and night. In South Ari, whale sharks appear year-round along the outer channels. Kudarah Thila, a small site with strong currents when running, holds anthias, red-tooth triggerfish, and bannerfish, with eagle rays circling.
Felidhoo Atoll is the smallest and least commercialised of the central atolls. Miyaru Kandu, north of Alimatha, is a classic channel dive. On an incoming current, divers hook in at the mouth and watch grey reef sharks, eagle rays, and jacks move through. A night dive here brings out the resident nurse sharks - 3m animals that gather in the sand, allowing close, calm encounters. Fotteyo Kandu, to the northeast, varies with the current; on some days it's about sharks and rays at the channel entrance, on others it's hammerheads or leaf fish among the overhangs.
The last diving morning offers a single dive before the surface interval clock starts. By early afternoon, the boat is back in Malé harbour. There's time for an optional land visit if you want to stretch your legs.
Day 8
Disembarkation is after breakfast, with a transfer to the airport. The week finishes where it began, but the diving and island visits in between tends to linger.
[Information is best estimate in ideal circumstances and subject to changes beyond our control. The itinerary is a guide only and may be adapted to best suit the weather, tides, currents, availability and other prevailing events. Price is for the cruise, not for an exact number of dives].
Dining on Emperor Leo takes place in the liveaboard's air-conditioned dining area, with adjoining bar on the main deck. First meal served is lunch or dinner on the first day of the trip, depending on your arrival.
The boat has adjusted meal times, to fit each day's dive schedule and the travel distance between sites. Only 1 dive in the afternoon, then you can relax in the Jacuzzi on the sun deck, or sip a cocktail at the outdoor bar service, except for a couple of days when a 4th and night dive will also be conducted. Dinner is usually served around 7 pm. On 4-dive days, you'll have dinner after the final dive, which is about 8 pm.
- The menu features International, Italian, and local South Asian dishes.
- 3 meals a day, plus a pre-breakfast before dive 1, all served buffet style.
- Snacks, bread/toast, fresh fruit, drinking water, and tea & coffee are available free of charge.
- Soft drinks, beer, wine and spirits are available for purchase.
- All special diets can be catered for with prior notice.
- There will also be a delicious barbeque on a deserted beach during the trip.
Sample dishes:
Mixed Maldivian/Sri Lankan buffet, home made pizzas, vegetable spring rolls, fish fillet with cream sauce, beef stroganoff ....
"
Very nice, competent and helpful staff, clean and comfortable boat, clean cabins, good food, very good dive guides. All in all a wonderful dive trip." -
Paulina Mydlowska, Germany, 16 March 2021 ...
"
Staff very very good, Food amazing!!! We enjoy our dive liveaboard. But Maldives is not for everybody, lots of hard current underwater. Manta ray amazing! " -
Anne Tremblay, Canada, 6 January 2018 ...
"
The Liveaboard was exceptional; professional staff, great facilities on the boat and good DM's. Can't comment on equipment as we brought our own gear." -
Laura Yates, South Africa, 7 April 2015 ...
"
Dive Guide Services were provided by 3 European divemasters or instructors, not local guides. They were very professional and had good knowledge and experiences in local sites. They also gave very detailed briefings before every dive. They even jumped into the water just before diving from dhoni to check the actual currents and visibility. All facilities were well maintained and cleaned. The cabin was very clean and comfort with good quality mattress and comforter. My cabin was cleaned twice a day while I and my fellow roommate were in diving." -
Seung An Park, South Korea, 6 October 2014 ...
"
We felt the service and experience on the liveaboard was exceptional. Cannot fault the staff members on the boat. Equipment was satisfactory." -
Robert Nel, South Africa, 15 April 2014 ...
"
This was my first liveaboard and I really enjoyed it. Room is big and clean, crew is very friendly and helpful, food is nice." -
Li Hui, China, 8 April 2014 ...
