Best time to dive Deep South Maldives

Fuvahmulah has tiger sharks year-round (peak December–April) with scalloped hammerheads October–April (schooling best December–March), whale sharks year-round but most likely December–May and oceanic mantas March–May. Monsoon swell can drop visibility to 15–25 m but doesn't stop the sharks.

Peak season: December–March

Best upcoming months:8.3February 2027 8.2December 2026 8.2January 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	9	10	10	10	10	10	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	10
Macro life	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
Coral & reef health	6	5	6	6	3	2	2	3	4	4	4	4	4	4
Visibility	8	9	9	9	9	9	8	7	7	7	8	8	8	9
Water temperature	10	10	10	10	9	9	9	10	10	10	10	10	10	10
Weather & sea state	7	8	9	9	9	8	7	6	6	6	7	7	7	8
Operations & access	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9
Wreck diving	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5

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)	20–30 m
December 2026	28.9 °C (84 °F)	25–35 m
January 2027	29.0 °C (84 °F)	25–35 m
February 2027	29.6 °C (85 °F)	25–40 m
March 2027	30.1 °C (86 °F)	25–40 m
April 2027	30.7 °C (87 °F)	25–35 m
May 2027	30.1 °C (86 °F)	20–30 m
June 2027	29.5 °C (85 °F)	15–25 m
July 2027	28.9 °C (84 °F)	15–25 m
August 2027	28.8 °C (84 °F)	15–25 m
September 2027	28.7 °C (84 °F)	20–30 m
October 2027	28.6 °C (83 °F)	20–30 m
November 2027	28.5 °C (83 °F)	20–30 m
December 2027	28.5 °C (83 °F)	25–35 m

Marine life calendar

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
tiger shark	Peak	Peak	Peak	Peak	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	Peak
thresher shark	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	Peak	Peak	Peak
scalloped hammerhead	Peak	Peak	Peak	●						●	●	Peak
whale shark	Peak	Peak	Peak	Peak	Peak	●	●	●	●	●	●	Peak
oceanic manta	●	●	Peak	Peak	●
reef manta	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●

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

About the diving

Difficulty: Advanced
Current strength: 4 / 5
Luxury level: 5 / 5
Typical depth: 10–35 m
Max depth of interest: 40 m
Dive styles: Day boat, Resort, Liveaboard
Suggested certification: Advanced Open Water
Nearest airport: GAN
Snorkelling: Limited
Known for: tiger shark, thresher shark, scalloped hammerhead, oceanic manta, whale shark

Famous sites: Tiger Zoo · Thoondu · British Loyalty · Manta Point (Addu)

Season notes & sources

Fuvahmulah has tiger sharks year-round (peak December–April) with scalloped hammerheads October–April (schooling best December–March), whale sharks year-round but most likely December–May and oceanic mantas March–May. Monsoon swell can drop visibility to 15–25 m but doesn't stop the sharks.
Addu, the southernmost atoll, feels the monsoons less and has reef mantas year-round.
The south came through the 2024 bleaching far better than the central atolls: reefs in neighbouring Huvadhoo showed no detectable coral loss and even gained cover, and Fuvahmulah's house reefs measured 41–64% live coral in a 2021 baseline. It isn't immune, though: southern lagoon reefs fell below 6% cover after 2016. Bleaching risk peaks in March–May.