Which is your favourite

Each Atoll in the Maldives has its very own turtle hotspot.

And what do turtles do in these hot spots? They eat, sleep, rest, swim around, explore, get cleaned, come to the surface to breath, meet other turtles, look for new feeding spots and repeat. Only once in all my years of diving I have seen turtles mate and that was at the surface.

Lhaviani Atoll

The name of the turtle hotspot is Kuredu Caves. It gives the impression of being a turtle airport, as constantly one turtle is arriving and one is leaving. They come here to meet other turtles and rest.

South Ari Atoll

Kahambu Thila is just one of many turtle hotspots in this Atoll. Kahambu is the local name for hawksbill turtle. Guess which turtle we mostly see there… The favorite food of the hawksbill is a brown anemone which grows here in abundance. Turtles who live here never go hungry.

Laamu Atoll

The name of the turtle hotspot is Hithadhoo West, an outer reef where they hang out in cleaning stations, rest, meet other turtles and eat.

Raa Atoll

The number one hotspot is Kottefaru Golden Wall but actually you won’t see that many turtles in the deep part along the wall but rather along the shallow top reef. Their shells blend in with the colors of the coral and you have to look carefully to spot them. You can observe how they use their fins and grab a tasty piece of coral and bite down on it with their sharp beak like mouth.

Baa Atoll

Two turtle hotspots are right next to each other Turtle Reef and Kuda Gaa. One is the shallow house reef of the local island Dhonfanu where we see the turtles also while snorkeling. Here we are lucky to see both, hawksbill and green turtles. They eat and make friends with the resident batfish. The second spot is a small pinnacle about 25 meters away from Turtle Reef. After a decent in the blue water to about 15 meters you will see turtles on the top of the reef, resting right in the middle of a green coral bush and in the different caves along the bottom. Here they get cleaned and rest.

We would love to hear all about your favorite turtle hotspot and if you are still looking for one, we are happy to introduce you to our hotspots.

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