Best time to dive Baa Atoll

Hanifaru Bay's manta and whale-shark feeding aggregations run May–November, largest July–October, when plankton also lowers visibility.

Peak season: July–November, January–February

Best upcoming months:7.4August 2027 7.4September 2027 7.3October 2027

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Overall diving, month by month

Balanced scoring · forecasts include the 2026/27 El Niño outlook

Confidence: Nov high · Dec medium · Jan medium · Feb medium · Mar medium · Apr medium · May medium · Jun low · Jul medium · Aug medium · Sep medium · Oct low · Nov low · Dec low

What's good when

Each attribute scored 0–10 for every month

	Nov2026	Dec	Jan2027	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Pelagic & big animals	8	7	7	7	7	7	7	8	9	9	9	9	8	7
Macro life	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6
Coral & reef health	5	5	5	5	2	1	1	2	4	4	4	4	4	4
Visibility	7	8	8	9	9	8	7	6	5	5	5	6	7	8
Water temperature	10	10	10	10	10	9	9	10	10	10	10	10	10	10
Weather & sea state	7	8	9	9	9	9	7	5	5	6	6	6	7	8
Operations & access	9	10	10	10	10	10	9	8	8	8	8	8	9	10

Climate outlook

How this year's forecast differs from a typical year

Water temperature +0.7 °C · Indian Ocean warms in the months after an El Niño peak (Nov 2026 – July 2027)
Coral & reef health -2.6 · Post–El Niño marine heatwave; high bleaching risk (as in 1998, 2016 and 2024) (Mar 2027 – June 2027)
Coral & reef health -1.3 · Reefs still recovering from post–El Niño bleaching (Jul 2027 – December 2027)

Water temperature & visibility

Month	Water	Visibility
November 2026	28.9 °C (84 °F)	15–25 m
December 2026	28.4 °C (83 °F)	20–30 m
January 2027	28.5 °C (83 °F)	20–30 m
February 2027	29.1 °C (84 °F)	25–35 m
March 2027	29.6 °C (85 °F)	25–35 m
April 2027	30.7 °C (87 °F)	20–30 m
May 2027	30.6 °C (87 °F)	15–25 m
June 2027	30.0 °C (86 °F)	10–20 m
July 2027	29.4 °C (85 °F)	8–15 m
August 2027	28.8 °C (84 °F)	8–15 m
September 2027	28.7 °C (84 °F)	8–15 m
October 2027	28.6 °C (83 °F)	12–20 m
November 2027	28.5 °C (83 °F)	15–25 m
December 2027	28.0 °C (82 °F)	20–30 m

Marine life calendar

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
reef manta					●	●	Peak	Peak	Peak	Peak	●
whale shark							●	●	●	●
turtles	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●

Peak = best odds · ● = regularly seen · blank = unlikely. Calendar months, every year.

About the diving

Difficulty: Beginner
Current strength: 2 / 5
Luxury level: 5 / 5
Typical depth: 8–30 m
Max depth of interest: 30 m
Dive styles: Liveaboard, Resort, Day boat
Suggested certification: Open Water
Nearest airport: MLE
Snorkelling: Good
Known for: reef manta, whale shark, turtles

Famous sites: Hanifaru Bay (snorkel only) · Dhigali Haa · Nelivaru Thila

Season notes & sources

Hanifaru Bay's manta and whale-shark feeding aggregations run May–November, largest July–October, when plankton also lowers visibility.
Hanifaru Bay is a protected area: scuba diving is banned, snorkelling only with timed tokens. Diving elsewhere in Baa Atoll is allowed.
The central atolls lost over 40% of their live coral on average in the 2024 bleaching, mostly branching and table corals in shallow water. Outer reefs and thilas recover faster than sheltered lagoon reefs, so expect good coral on channel and outer dives and patchier inner reefs. Bleaching risk peaks in April–May.