By Karim Valji
We are looking for information about current snorkeling conditions on Maldives resort house reefs. We are returning to the Maldives in early February 2025. Resort choice will be based largely on the current snorkeling conditions on house reefs on the various resorts. Has anyone been to a resort in the last month or two with house reefs relatively preserved from bleaching?
Not many reefs are free from bleaching. Coral was not bad but neither was it vibrant when we were in Vilamendhoo recently… for snorkeling that is very easy from the shore, no boat required, and has loads of variety I would really recommend Vilamendhoo. With my camera I recorded 85 different species in our two week stay. Also saw turtles, sharks, and a manta ray on the house reef. It is also easy to get out to see whale sharks and manta rays as it is in South Ari Atoll.
We were at Dusit Thani Maldives in early July 2024. My husband saw a manta ray in the house reef early one morning (6:15 a.m.). We also saw a couple of turtles, black tipped sharks, and a variety of fishes. The house reef at Lily Beach Resort in November 2023 was better than Dusit Thani. We thought the size of the fishes were bigger at Lily Beach and the variety of sea life better there.
We just visited NOOE in the Vaavu atoll in August 2024. There were a ton of bait fish, lots of reef fish, loads of different parrot fish. On the edge were schooling fish: snapper and small tuna. Only a couple of black tip sharks, but an excursion to dive with large nurse sharks. The coral look pretty healthy.