Diving in Maldives: NH Havodda

We stayed at NH Havodda (full review here), and while the island itself was absolute perfection, our diving experience had its ups and downs. Here’s how it went.

Getting There

Getting to NH Havodda was an adventure in itself:

Emirates flight from Milan to Dubai – definitely an upgrade from our previous EgyptAir experience.
Dubai to Malé – The flight was also surprisingly short 3.5 hr, and we travelled over night. I was too excited to sleep honestly.
Domestic flight from Malé to Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll – The hotel provides this free of charge if you stay 4 nights or longer. It is included in the package so it is smart to book this directly through the hotel.
Speedboat transfer to the island – A short, easy ride and finally, we arrived in paradise.

Diving in Maldives NH Havodda, Dives&Miles — NH Havodda photo credit

First Impressions & Dive Center Drama 🤯

Now, here’s where things took a turn.

We landed on December 31st, ready to dive. So, naturally, we headed straight to the Dive Center Aquafanatics to book our dives for the next few days.

And that’s when we got some slightly bad news:

🚫 No diving until January 2nd.

😡 Why? Because the center was fully booked with 30+ divers and not enough instructors.

🤨 So they did tell us this in an email but we somehow overlooked this !

To say we were annoyed with ourselves would be an understatement. We specifically came to the Maldives to dive, and if we had known this earlier, we could have pre-booked our dives or adjusted our plans. So a good advice here is to read your emails carefully :)

Then came the second disappointment:

💨 January 2nd = Only a check dive on the house reef.

Now, I get it—check dives exist for safety but technically if you can prove that you dived in the past 6 (and we did in Egypt a few months before) you are not obliged to to the check dive so this felt completely unnecessary.

We weren’t here for shallow dives—we came for the big stuff. Drift dives, hooking onto rocks, and watching sharks swim past in strong currents. This was why we chose this atoll in the first place.

But then, another bombshell:

The dive center casually mentioned that sightings of big sharks, mantas, and large pelagics were actually rare.

Wait… WHAT? 😳

Apparently, apart from nurse sharks and reef sharks (which you can literally see while snorkeling), they didn’t get that many large sharks or mantas.

At this point, G was fuming, while I was quietly accepting my fate. This was only my second time seeing sharks up close, and I was still getting over my fear, so honestly, I wasn’t too upset. (Blame Jaws and The Beach with Leonardo DiCaprio for that.)

Making the Best of It: House Reef Snorkeling 🐢🐡

Since we had two days before our first dive, we decided to snorkel the house reef—and let me tell you, this was pure magic.

The dive center provides masks and fins free of charge for all hotel guests.

So right outside our overwater villa, we jumped into what felt like an alien world—a vibrant underwater aquarium filled with:

✅ Turtles casually cruising by

✅ Curious reef sharks that looked majestic and slightly creepy

✅ Anemones, clownfish (yes, Nemo is real), and colorful parrotfish

✅ Crystal-clear water that made every detail pop

It was so good that we stayed in for over an hour, just floating and watching this underwater world unfold around us.

Diving in the Maldives: Our Experience 🤿

Finally, on January 2nd, we got to start diving.

1️⃣ House Reef Dive (Check Dive)

📍 Entry: From the beach, near the dive center

Depth: 10m

👀 What we saw: Parrotfish, a moray eel, and some clownfish😴

Verdict: Slow, low visibility, and slightly boring. The current was stronger than expected, though.

2️⃣ Coral Forest

📍 Depth: 18m

👀 What we saw: Mostly coral, not a lot of fish🌊

Visibility: Meh🧐

Verdict: If you love corals, you’ll enjoy this dive. Otherwise, it’s a bit underwhelming.

3️⃣ Cabbage Thila

📍 Depth: 18m

👀 What we saw: Large coral formations shaped like huge cabbages (hence the name) Visibility: Similar to Coral Forest

🧐 Verdict: Pretty but not much marine life.

4️⃣ Meradhookandu (Favorite Dive) 🏆

📍 Depth: 20m👀

What we saw: Anemones, clownfish, batfish, eagle rays, tunas, turtles, picasso trigerfish, threadfin butterflyfish, convict surgeonfish, the powder blue surgeonfish 🐠🐢😍

Verdict: SO much life. This was the dive that made the trip for me. We even repeated it twice!

5️⃣ Kisseerehaa Inside

📍 Depth: 18m🌊 Current: Strong

!👀 What we saw: Not much, but fun to experience the current🤯

Verdict: I ran out of air in 40 minutes (still learning to manage my breathing in currents). First time seeing sweetlip fish, which reminded me of Yayoi Kusama art.

sweetlip fish Maldives — photo credit: petesaquariums

6️⃣ Meradhoo Thila (Shark Dive) 🦈

📍 Depth: 25m👀 What we saw: Nurse sharks & reef sharks

Visibility: Poor😳

Verdict: The shark dive that helped me get over my fear of sharks.

Marine Life, What we saw diving in Maldives 🐠🌊

purple and red anemones filled with clownfish everywhere, batfish, eagle rays, tunas, turtles, Picasso triggerfish, threadfin butterflyfish, convict surgeonfish, powder blue surgeonfish, blacktip reef sharks, whitetip reef shark, nurse shart, scorpion fish, trumpetfish, Moorish idols, and even more eagle rays.

Diving Costs at NH Havodda & Unexpected Extras 💸

Diving in the Maldives is an incredible experience, but it comes with a price tag. Here’s the pricing for dives at

Aquafanatics Dive Center (NH Havodda):

1 – 5 Dives → $71++ per person, per dive

6 – 9 Dives → $66++ per person, per dive

10+ Dives → $60++ per person, per dive

🚤 Boat Fees

(Not Included in Dive Prices! 😳)

Single Dive: $20++ per person, per dive
Double Dive (Morning Dive): $35++ per person

The Surprise Bill

What we didn’t realize at first was that the boat fee was not included in the dive package. So when we originally calculated our diving costs, we didn’t factor in the extra $20 – $35 per dive for the boat, which added up quickly.

For example, if you do 10 dives with a double morning dive each time, that’s an extra $175 just for boat fees.

And then there’s equipment rental:🎒 BCD rental alone was $10 per dive, but full equipment rental was $20 per dive, which didn’t make much sense in terms of pricing.

Final Thoughts on Pricing

If you're planning to dive a lot, ask for the FULL cost breakdown in advance so you don’t get a surprise at checkout.
If you have your own gear, bring it! The rental fees add up fast.
Diving in the Maldives is expensive, but it’s also a premium experience—small groups, high-end service, and a luxury destination.

Was It Worth It?

The Good:

✅ House reef = UNREAL for snorkeling

✅ Super private diving experience (small groups, never crowded)

✅ Great dive instructors (shoutout to Chad & Joel!)

The Not-So-Good:

❌ Lack of big marine life (sharks, mantas, etc.)

❌ Pricing surprises—boat fees not included in dive prices

💸 Pricing Tip: Equipment rentals are overpriced—G paid $10 just for a BCD (while full gear was $20?!). Always ask for the full price breakdown in advance.