Beneath the surface of the Maldives, channel dives put you face-to-face with eagle rays and whitetip sharks. Thilas rise like submerged mountains draped in soft corals. Hanifaru Bay turns into a seasonal feeding station for manta rays. This is big-animal diving at its most exhilarating, and the best way to experience it is from a liveaboard that places you right in the action. The Maldives Master liveaboard is a vessel that makes it happen, combining modern comfort with a brand-new approach to exploring these legendary waters. Built in 2024, the 42m long Maldives Master is purpose-designed for divers, offering an intimate atmosphere with space for 26 guests.
The Maldives Master operates with a custom-built 19m dhoni named Blue Shadow, a dedicated dive support vessel that keeps the main boat clean and quiet while you're underwater. Your gear stays rigged and waiting on spacious personal stations. The dhoni's fast engine and twin compressors with a nitrox membrane system mean shorter travel times to sites and more dives in prime conditions. Between dives, you can ride on the dhoni's upper deck, enjoying the sun and the view across the atolls. It's a setup that maximises your time beneath the surface.
Aboard the Maldives Master liveaboard, life between dives is designed around ease and relaxation. With just 26 guests across 14 cabins, you'll never feel crowded. Cabins range from fixed double-bed cabins to convertible twin/double configurations and even 2 single cabins for solo travellers, all with en-suite bathrooms and air-conditioning. Above deck, there's an outdoor Jacuzzi, multiple sun decks including a viewing deck at the front, an open-air deck on top, and an ocean deck at the stern. On many evenings, floodlights illuminate the water just off the ocean deck to attract plankton. This often draws in manta rays and whale sharks to feed close to the boat, with many close sightings reported. Have your camera ready.
The Maldives Master doesn't just chase marine life; it makes space for you to unwind properly. The indoor air-conditioned saloon offers a cool retreat after a hot day of scuba diving, complete with a bar and comfortable seating. There's a dedicated camera setup area with charging stations, so your equipment is always ready for the next shot. Meals are chef-prepared, served either in the dining area or al fresco on deck. When you factor in daily housekeeping and a crew that has earned repeated praise for being attentive and proactive, you begin to understand why guests describe their time on this boat as exceptional.
Master Liveaboards have been designing, building, and operating their own vessels since 2004, with a brand now encompassing 11 destinations worldwide. This isn't a new brand learning on the job. The company's growing fleet includes boats in the Galápagos, Truk Lagoon, the Solomons, and Indonesia, but the Maldives is one of their most sought-after locations. When you book the Maldives Master liveaboard with Dive The World, you're backed by an operator known for rigorous standards across safety, vessel design, and guest experience. That counts for a lot when you're far from shore.
Whether you're chasing hammerheads in the deep channels of South Ari Atoll, drifting over cleaning stations in Baa Atoll, or descending onto wrecks like the British Loyalty in Felidhoo, the Maldives Master puts world-class diving within reach without sacrificing comfort. It's a modern, purpose-built vessel supported by a dhoni setup that other liveaboards envy, run by a crew which includes 3 dive guides and that genuinely cares about your trip. For scuba divers who want the best of the Maldives without the compromises, this is the liveaboard to book.
Maldives Central & Northern Atolls
Trip highlights: whale sharks, hammerhead sharks, shark action, manta rays, schooling fish & big pelagics
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, very popular, wall diving, wreck diving
Dive sites and activities: from North Malé Atoll: Kurumba House Reef, Lankan Manta Point, Baa Atoll: Hanifaru Bay, North Ari Atoll: Rasdhoo-Madivaru, Kuramathi House Reef
Extended cruises may also visit Lhaviyani Atoll: Lhohi Kandu, Hani Kandu, Vavvaru Kandu, Naifaru Kandu, Shipyard
Day 1
Embarkation takes place at Malé, where the crew from the Maldives Master liveaboard will be waiting to welcome you aboard. Once all guests are on board, lunch is served, followed by a full boat orientation and the mandatory safety briefing. There is a check dive close to Kurumba House Reef, a gentle, shallow reef to shake off the travel and test your kit. After returning to the liveaboard, you'll have time to relax in the saloon, on the sun deck or at the bar before dinner. The vessel remains at anchor in Hulhumalé Harbour until the early hours, when she slips her moorings and sets course north.
Core Days
Over the next days, the Maldives Master weaves through North Malé, Baa and North Ari, including Rasdhoo Atoll. At Lankan Manta Point in North Malé, you'll drop onto a sloping reef scattered with coral bommies where manta rays queue in patient procession, wings outstretched, while cleaner wrasse tend to them. Nassimo Thila, with its dramatic coral-covered pinnacles, caves and swim-throughs, is a favourite among photographers. Boduhithi Thila, a protected marine area, rises from the atoll floor to around 10 metres, its steep sides draped in soft corals and sea fans, with white-tip reef sharks, eagle rays and turtles frequent visitors. Helengeli Thila offers high-energy diving with strong currents and pelagic action: grey reef sharks, eagle rays, tuna and barracuda patrolling the peripheries.
Baa Atoll is the jewel of this cruise. Hanifaru Bay is legendary for the seasonal gathering of manta rays that feed there between June and October. Scuba diving is not permitted inside the bay - snorkelling only, under the supervision of official guides - but the surface encounter with mantas feeding in the plankton-rich waters is unforgettable. Beyond Hanifaru, Baa Atoll delivers world-class diving across its channels and reefs. Nelivaru Thila offers gentle slopes and dramatic drop-offs, draped in soft corals and sea fans, where schools of fusiliers and jacks gather, and eagle rays and grey reef sharks cruise past. Kihadhuffaru Thila is a striking submerged pinnacle rising from 30 metres to just 10 metres below the surface, with vibrant corals and frequent pelagic visitors. Dhigala Haa, a protected marine sanctuary, is a favourite for eagle rays and grey reef shark sightings, with prolific fish life including bluefin jacks, fusiliers and batfish. Dharavandhoo Thila provides stunning topography, with coral blocks, crevices, overhangs and sea fan-filled caves, plus a cleaning station that attracts mantas during the southwest monsoon.
North Ari and Rasdhoo Atoll bring pelagic encounters to the fore. Rasdhoo-Madivaru sits at the southeast corner of Rasdhoo Atoll, where early morning dives can reveal scalloped hammerhead sharks. The reef forms a dramatic hook-shaped corner, funnelling nutrient-rich currents through the channel. From the reef edge you watch grey reef sharks patrol in steady loops, trevallies dart in to hunt fusiliers, and eagle rays glide across the blue. Maaya Thila is dominated by white-tip reef sharks, with turtles, dog-toothed tuna, great barracuda and a rainbow of reef fish adding to the spectacle.
The Maldives Master liveaboard may extend the northern reach of the tour to include Lhaviyani Atoll. Lhohi Kandu is one of Lhaviyani's most reliable shark dives, where the current funnels life into the channel mouth and grey reef sharks often cruise in formation. Hani Kandu is a wide, relatively shallow channel with a reputation for variety: grey reef sharks, eagle rays and barracuda patrol the mouth, while turtles and napoleon wrasse are frequent visitors on the reef slopes. Vavvaru Kandu captures the drama of Maldivian channel diving with sweeping sandy floors, coral ridges and dozens of grey reef sharks holding station at the mouth. The Shipyard features 2 wrecks lying side by side, a large steel cargo vessel and a deeper, slightly broken companion, both colonised by sponges and hard corals, attracting schools of fusiliers, snappers and batfish.
Final Day
An early breakfast is served onboard before final disembarkation.
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: from North Malé Atoll: Lankan Manta Point, Lankan Caves; South Malé Atoll: Guraidhoo Kandu; North Ari Atoll: Rasdhoo-Madivaru, Fish Head; South Ari Atoll.
Extended cruises may also visit Felidhoo Atoll: Miyaru Kandu, Devana Kandu, Dhiggiri Kandu.
Day 1
You are met at Malé Airport and transferred to the Maldives Master in time for lunch. Following a full boat orientation and safety briefing, we conduct a check dive on the house reef off Kurumba Island, a short dhoni ride from the harbour. The gentle wall and shallow lagoon offer a reassuring reintroduction to the water, with healthy coral gardens, overhangs, and a steady parade of reef fish: fusiliers, snappers, parrotfish, with the occasional turtle or eagle ray passing in the blue. Dinner is served, and the liveaboard remains at anchor in Hulhumalé Harbour until the early hours.
Core Days
This diving voyage with the Maldives Master liveaboard takes you through the very heart of the archipelago: North and South Malé, the tiny Rasdhoo Atoll, and the expansive North and South Ari Atolls. Each region offers its own character, and the cruise weaves them together with a rhythm that balances adrenaline-charged drifts with quieter reef explorations.
In North Malé, you begin with two of the atoll’s most celebrated sites. At Boduhithi Thila, a protected thila rising from the channel floor, steep walls are draped in soft corals and sea fans, while white-tip reef sharks and eagle rays patrol the ledges. Just a short distance away, Rasfari North Corner catches the full force of the current; here you hook in and watch grey reef sharks circle in numbers, schools of barracuda and trevally hunt, and eagle rays sweep past in formation. The experience is raw and immediate, a reminder that these waters are alive with purpose. Further south, Lankan Manta Point and Lankan Caves deliver contrasting pleasures: the former a cleaning station where mantas queue gracefully above coral bommies, the latter a cavern-studded wall where light filters through overhangs and glassfish crowd the shadows.
Cross into South Malé and the diving sharpens into classic channel action. Cocoa Corner offers a natural amphitheatre; hook in at the bend and watch grey reef sharks, eagle rays, and tunas ride the incoming current. A short drift away, Kandooma Thila rises as a submerged pinnacle, its saddle at 20 metres becoming a crossroads of sharks, giant trevallies, and dense schools of fusiliers. Guraidhoo Kandu and the adjacent Lhosfushi-Medhu Faru stretch provide overhangs bedecked with soft corals, plus reliable sightings of turtles, Napoleon wrasse, and the occasional manta. This is demanding diving as currents are often strong, but the rewards are exactly what experienced divers seek.
Then comes Rasdhoo-Madivaru, a site that alone justifies the trip. The hook-shaped corner syphons nutrient-rich water through the channel, and on an incoming tide you can hook in and observe scalloped hammerheads in the early morning, alongside grey reef sharks and eagle rays. From there, the Maldives Master moves into North Ari, where 2 legendary thilas await. Fish Head, an isolated pinnacle, is renowned for its grey reef sharks and dramatic undercuts, while Maaya Thila hosts a similar topography but is dominated by white-tips, with turtles, batfish, and clown triggerfish adding colour to the walls. At Fesdhoo Lagoon, an overnight stop offers a unique bonus: after sunset, the crew lights the water, and if conditions align, manta rays glide in to feed, allowing a stationary night dive that is both serene and unforgettable.
South Ari brings the trip to a close with a different set of highlights. Angaga Thila, a small seamount, shelters resting stingrays and moray eels in its overhangs, while the deliberately sunk Kudima Wreck has become a thriving artificial reef, perfect for macro hunters seeking frogfish, ghost pipefish, and nudibranchs. Meanwhile, Kudarah Thila dazzles with its dense soft and hard corals, and Lily Rock, a manta cleaning station, offers close, respectful encounters with these gentle giants during the northeast monsoon. Throughout these dives, the reef slopes, channels, and pinnacles of the central atolls reveal a consistent richness. Not every dive will deliver mantas or hammerheads, but the sheer variety of fish life, from anthias to dog-toothed tuna, ensures that every immersion has its own story.
Felidhoo Atoll offers some of the most exhilarating channel diving in the Maldives. Miyaru means 'shark' in Dhivehi, and the name tells you what to expect: grey and white-tip reef sharks in large numbers at the channel entrance. Devana Kandu funnels strong ocean currents that carry plankton-rich water, drawing in grey reef sharks, white-tips, nurse sharks resting on the sandy floor, and eagle rays soaring in the flow. Dhiggiri Kandu mixes gentle drifts with high-energy pelagic action: barracuda, tuna, eagle rays and reef sharks drawn in by the incoming tide.
Your last diving day comprises 2 morning dives before the boat heads back to Malé after lunch. The Maldives Master anchors overnight in the harbour, giving you time to pack and reflect on the week.
Final Day
Early breakfast precedes disembarkation, followed by transfer to the airport. A great cruise with plenty of dives, and a cross-section of the Maldives’ finest diving. All delivered with the reliability and local knowledge that define the Maldives Master liveaboard experience.
Maldives Central, Southern & Deep South Atolls (11 Days / 10 Nights - 25 Dives)
Trip highlights: whale sharks, hammerhead sharks, shark action, manta rays, schooling fish & big pelagics
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, very popular, wall diving, wreck diving
Dive sites and activities: North Male, South Male, Felidhoo, Meemu, Thaa, Laamu, Huvadhoo, Fuvamulah, Huvadhoo
Day 1
Embarkation takes place at Malé International Airport, where the crew from the Maldives Master liveaboard will be waiting to welcome you aboard. Once onboard, you'll receive introductions, a full boat orientation and the mandatory safety briefing. Dinner is served as the Maldives Master slips her moorings and cruises south overnight. There is no diving on embarkation day.
Core Days
Over the next days, the Maldives Master liveaboard works her way south through North Malé, South Malé, Vaavu, Meemu, Thaa, Laamu, Huvadhoo and Fuvamulah atolls. North Malé sets the tone. At Lankan Manta Point, you'll drop onto a sloping reef scattered with coral bommies, These are cleaning stations where, during the southwest monsoon, manta rays queue in patient procession, wings outstretched, while cleaner wrasse tend to them. Just 200 metres away, Lankan Caves offers a different mood: wide overhangs and shallow caverns draped in soft corals, with shafts of light filtering through to illuminate glassfish and soldierfish clustered in the shadows. Nassimo Thila, with its dramatic coral-covered pinnacles and swim-throughs, is a favourite among photographers.
Moving south into South Malé, the diving shifts up a gear. Cocoa Corner is classic channel diving: hook in along the reef edge as the current funnels through, and let the ocean's traffic flow past: grey reef sharks, white-tips, and schooling eagle rays riding the current, with tuna and trevally patrolling the blue. Nearby, Kandooma Thila rises dramatically from the channel floor, a 300-metre-long pinnacle where soft corals cover the walls in shades of pink and orange. Guraidhoo Kandu, part of a protected marine area, is renowned for sharks and eagle rays, with the occasional sailfish or hammerhead.
Felidhoo Atoll offers some of the most exhilarating channel diving in the Maldives. Miyaru Kandu delivers grey and white-tip reef sharks in large numbers at the channel entrance. Golden Wall lives up to its name: a dazzling blanket of golden soft corals covering the vertical reef face. Fotteyo Kandu is considered by many to be the best dive site in the Maldives, with steep walls, overhangs, swim-throughs and strong currents that attract grey reef sharks, whitetips, eagle rays, barracuda and jacks. Rakeedhoo Corner, guarding the southernmost tip of Felidhoo, feels like diving on the edge of the world: raw, remote, and brimming with the energy of the open ocean.
Meemu Atoll brings more pelagic action. Gaa Huraa is an amazingly colourful dive with crystal-clear water and large numbers of grey reef sharks. Muli Corner is a wide channel where strong currents mean you hook in at the corner to watch the action before riding the drift past thousands of snappers. At Kurali Manta Point, a large coral block in the channel entrance serves as a manta cleaning station.
Thaa Atoll is well-known for its abundance of aquatic life. Olhugiri Kandu offers plenty of pelagic action as large schools of fish attract hunting white-tip reef sharks, tuna, jacks and eagle rays. Dhiffushi Kandu delivers more pelagic sightings and lots of reef fish along steep walls and ledges. Dhiyamigili Corner offers the potential for hammerhead shark sightings, along with jacks, snapper, tuna, Napoleon wrasse, reef sharks and stingrays.
Laamu Atoll has an amazing coral reef forming the majority of the atoll's circumference. Isdhoo West is a long, continuous wall between 5 and 30 metres with overhangs and colourful corals. Fushi Kandu is one of the most popular channel dives, where nurse sharks and stingrays rest on the sandy bottom and grey reef sharks, white-tip reef sharks and eagle rays are regularly found. Vadinolhu Kandu's strong currents attract an abundance of pelagics, including white-tip reef sharks, eagle rays, tuna, trevallies and Napoleon wrasse.
Huvadhoo Atoll, the deepest and second-largest atoll in the Maldives, offers crystal-clear waters and stunning topography. Kooddoo Kandu transforms on incoming tides into a bustling underwater thoroughfare where grey reef sharks and eagle rays glide by. Villingili Kandu showcases the scale of the southern atolls, with grey reef sharks, silvertip sharks, eagle rays, barracuda, trevally and dogtooth tuna moving through the blue. Nilandhoo Kandu is shaped by strong, nutrient-bearing currents that attract a diverse range of marine life. Maarehaa Kandu, on the southeastern rim, offers grey reef sharks cruising in formation around the channel mouth.
Fuvamulah Atoll, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, boasts the most diverse coral ecosystems in the country. What sets this unique atoll apart is its resident tiger sharks, as well as frequent sightings of black oceanic mantas, whale sharks, thresher sharks, silvertip sharks and scalloped hammerheads. Tiger Zoo offers close encounters with up to 10 tiger sharks, an exhilarating, must-do dive for adventurous thrill seekers. The north side features an abundance of healthy corals and reef fish, while the south plateau offers a bluewater dive above the plateau where it is possible to see up to 7 different types of sharks.
Final Day
An early breakfast is served onboard before final disembarkation from the Maldives Master.
Maldives Deep South Atolls (8 Days / 7 Nights - 16 Dives)
Trip highlights: whale sharks, shark action, manta rays, schooling fish & big pelagics
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, wall diving
Dive sites and activities: from Huvadhoo Atoll, Fuvamulah: North Side, South Plateau, Addu Atoll: Maa Kandu, Kuda Kandu, Kuda Hoholha, Bodu Hoholha, Meedhoo Wall, Meedhoo Coral Garden, Banana Reef, Gan Inside, British Loyalty Wreck
Day 1
For divers who have already explored the central atolls and are looking for something wilder, the Deep South route delivers. This 7-night expedition takes you to the edge of the Maldives, where the channels run deeper, the currents push harder, and the pelagic encounters are less predictable. Embarkation takes place either at Kooddoo Airport in Huvadhoo or at Gan International Airport in Addu City, depending on your departure date. Once onboard, you'll receive introductions, a full boat orientation and the mandatory safety briefing. Dinner is served as the Maldives Master prepares for the days ahead. There is no diving on embarkation day.
Core Days
Over the next days, the Maldives Master liveaboard explores the southernmost reaches of the archipelago. Huvadhoo Atoll, the deepest and second-largest atoll in the Maldives, is your first playground. Its outermost reefs form a discontinuous barrier to the open Indian Ocean, with 40 reef segments separated by deep channels. Current-swept channels, vibrant walls, caves and thilas provide diving that ranges from exhilarating drifts to relaxed reef exploration. At Kooddoo Kandu, you'll hang on the corner and watch grey reef sharks, eagle rays and predatory barracuda work the current. Villingili Kandu is a sweeping channel where large numbers of grey reef sharks and silvertips are regular fixtures. Nilandhoo Kandu offers a fast-paced drift through colourful soft corals, with reef sharks, eagle rays, barracuda and enormous schools of trevallies. At Gemanafushi Blue, you drift in open water hoping for scalloped hammerheads, whale sharks or silky sharks.
Fuvamulah Atoll is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and something entirely different. There are no thilas or channels here, just a continuous reef that drops into deep water. Tiger Zoo is the main event. Up to 10 tiger sharks patrol the sandy harbour entrance, and the encounters are close. A detailed safety briefing precedes every dive, and the experience is led by guides who know these sharks intimately. Beyond Tiger Zoo, the North Side offers healthy corals and reef fish, with the occasional thresher shark. The South Plateau is a bluewater dive above a deep plateau where white-tips, silvertips, grey reefs, tiger sharks, threshers and scalloped hammerheads can all appear, and if you're very lucky, a Mola Mola or whale shark might put in an appearance.
Addu Atoll, the southernmost region of the Maldives, is your final destination. This heart-shaped atoll is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and one of the few places in the Maldives where manta rays can be found throughout the year. Maa Kandu is the signature site: a sandy terrace at 17 to 20 metres with scattered coral blocks where mantas glide in on plankton-rich currents to be cleaned. Kuda Kandu offers dynamic drift diving along a reef slope where schools of fusiliers, big-eye trevally and eagle rays sweep past. Kuda Hoholha and Bodu Hoholha are spectacular wall dives with dramatic drop-offs and caverns draped in gorgonians and sea whips. The British Loyalty wreck is the largest shipwreck in the Maldives, a 140-metre oil tanker scuttled in 1946, now an artificial reef colonised by corals and sponges, with batfish, trevallies and fusiliers circling its hull.
Final Day
Breakfast is served onboard before disembarkation and transfer to the domestic airport.
[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].
A cruise aboard the Maldives Master liveaboard follows a rhythm designed to maximise your time in the water and ensure a seamless, relaxing experience, complemented by a culinary highlight crafted by a dedicated team of chefs.
The day typically begins with an early morning wake-up call, followed by coffee, tea, and pastries to energise you for the first dive. The schedule typically features 3 dives per day (around 6:30 am, 10:30 am, and 4:45 pm), with at least one night dive per week. Ample time is reserved between sessions for rest, sunbathing on the expansive deck, or a soak in the Jacuzzi. Non-diving activities like snorkelling, stand-up paddleboarding, or a local island visit are seamlessly integrated, and the week often features a special beach barbecue on a deserted sandbank.
All meals are served as generous buffets in the spacious indoor dining area on the main deck, featuring a diverse mix of international and local Maldivian cuisine. Dietary restrictions and preferences are gladly accommodated with advance notice.
* Breakfast (Full service at 8:30 am): A hot and cold buffet with bread, porridge, fruits, Maldivian breakfast items, coffee, tea, and juice.
* Lunch (12:30 pm): A varied buffet typically including rice or noodles, fish, chicken, or beef, and a dedicated vegetarian dish.
* Dinner (7:00 pm): A buffet with selections such as rice or pasta, fish, chicken, or beef, and a dedicated vegetarian dish.
* Snacks: Afternoon snacks are provided at around 4:30 pm.
* Beverages: A variety of soft drinks, water, tea, and coffee are available throughout the day. For alcoholic beverages, the Maldives Master typically operates a well-stocked honesty bar system, where the liveaboard guests can help themselves to beers, wine, and spirits and note down their consumption for settlement at the end of the cruise.
