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1/30/2022 0 Comments Swim with Whale Sharks and Manta Rays in the Maldives: An Unforgettable Marine AdventureI can’t even believe this is real… This has been a lifelong dream of mine and I am so lucky! Honestly, nothing shows this experience better than my YouTube video which you can watch here. If you’re looking for some more written details, click the read more button to find out everything! Experienced Snorkelers OnlyFirst time snorkeling? Great! I’m glad you’re branching out. Unfortunately first time snorkelers are not allowed to go on the Whale Shark Trip due to its expected chaos. Getting to the SpotWe took the Dhoni to the spot, which in the video I call Sun Island but in reality the spot is much closer to Dhigurah Island. It takes over an hour to get to there which is pretty standard coming from Centara going to either Whale Shark (WS) spot. Yes… there are more than one and I will be making more than one post because each trip is super different. Multiple TripsWe did go on multiple trips and this was our first trip. It took place on December 17, 2021 with Best Dives Maldives. Out of three WS trips we went on over the course of 3 weeks, this was the only one that went to the spot by Dhigurah. The WS dive (which I didn’t think was worth the time or money) also goes to this spot. The SpotThis is the same place I came to years ago when I encountered my first WS in Maldives. I am very familiar with it and was surprised when we went farther down the outer reef before stopping. Nevertheless, I LOVE this spot because it was not crowded. The first time I visited had mass crowds but by now, Whale Sharks are becoming more abundant in Maldives and therefore the spots aren’t as crowded. COVID may also impact crowds. With that being said, us and one other boat were at the spot. The other boat had around 4 swimmers on it and ours had 6-8. A maximum of 12 people on the site is insane and super lucky. At one point, I was alone with the WS and that may never happen again in my life… HOW LUCKY! JUMP!We were told by the other boat that was there that there was a Whale Shark in the area. Then, we saw a Manta Ray and the guide said we could jump. I was stir crazy from being on the Dhoni with no luck and I was happy to jump in with hopes to see something. So, I jumped and leading the crowd, I eagerly looked for a Manta Ray. I wanted to make sure I didn’t miss it so I turned around to check behind me and there was a WHALE SHARK swimming directly towards me. I screamed to alert my mom to turn around and then the whole experience began. I will later find out that this is a new Whale Shark to the Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme and I get to give it a name. This is WS572 “Akram.” Whale SharksWe ended up seeing the same Whale Shark twice and we saw it feeding. This was my first time seeing a Whale Shark feed and I was so excited! The Whale Sharks do not come to Maldives for feeding (they come for thermoregulation - to warm their bodies) but they still have to live so they feed too. Hands down this was the coolest thing I’ve ever seen and I got to swim alone with the WS. Manta RaysSo, we jumped in for a Manta Ray, but ended up seeing a Whale Shark. Where did the mantas go? They came back eventually once the Whale Shark swam off but there were some events in between. We re-entered the boat after the first encounter and not everyone saw the Whale Shark because they weren’t ready. Tip: be READY to jump as soon as the boat begins to slow down- mask on, fins on, camera recording, snorkel in, near the gate. Whale Sharks wait for no one and if you’re not ready when the guide says jump, you will probably miss the shark. Anyway, we got back on the boat and then jumped off to do a “reef snorkel.” We were speeding after the guide who was swimming so fast that I thought he saw something but he didn’t. So, we got back on the boat because they said they saw mantas. The boat dropped us by the mantas and I think there were about 5 different individuals feeding and swimming. The mantas were beautiful and we hung around them until I heard a bunch of people screaming… The guides were screaming “Whale Shark” so I took off after that and was able to swim alone with the shark where I saw it feeding. Heading BackAfter this experience, we headed back on the Dhoni. Everyone saw the WS and enjoyed the mantas and time had run over (thankful to the staff for allowing us to run over for the sake of the experience!). We drove back to the resort for the same amount of time it took to get there, arriving back around 1:00 pm or 13:00 just in time for lunch. On the way back, I enjoyed a nice Dhoni sun deck nap.
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