I spent three weeks diving in the Maldives. I came back on Blueforce liveaboard after a great trip with them in Egypt. This is my review of the Blueforce one liveaboard in the Maldives. It covers the boat but also the central Maldives itinerary and the dive sites. Read on to find out if Blueforce One is the boat for you and get practical tips about your diving cruise in the Maldives.
Read the Liveaboard Review of Blueforce One in the Maldives and see how it went!
Content of this article:
Arriving on the Blueforce liveaboard.
The Maldives are remote islands off the coast of India. Despite being remote, it is easy to get there, as it is a popular tourist destination, and many airlines offer flights. I flew with Emirates airlines, which has up to four flights a day to Male, and you can see my review of their Business class flight here.
I transferred to the Blueforce liveaboard from another liveaboard (the Scubaspa liveaboard). I met with Sara, the cruise director from Blueforce liveaboard and her team at the airport.
They were a big team with Blueforce T-shirts and signs and were easy to find as they waited just outside the arrival door of the airport. Most of the other passengers were arriving at the same time. The Blueforce crew took care of my bags and transferred them seamlessly directly to my cabin on the Blueforce liveaboard.
The transfer from the airport to the boat is super quick and done by a tender boat. They tested everyone for Covid with a rapid antigen test while on the tender boat ( see the section below for Blueforce Covid procedures)
We were greeted on board with a mint mocktail. From there, they organized a long briefing to go over the safety measures, the Covid procedures, and the general cruise organization. It took over two -hours to do all the paperwork and pay the taxes ( make sure you budget for those as it came to about 300 euros), and we were finally shown to our rooms.
The great thing with the Blueforce Maldive liveaboard is that we started diving straight from day one, unlike many liveaboards. We had lunch, did the dive briefing, and went for a dive to the Fish factory, an excellent dive site near the airport.
Review of the Blueforce Maldives liveaboard
The first impression when you get on board is that the boat is nice and comfortable.
The main deck has a restaurant and an indoor lounge. The indoor lounge is the most spacious area of the boat, with many super comfortable lounge sofas. It has a large TV and a great sound system that you can use to watch movies. Bring your films on a USB stick or an Android phone if you want to enjoy this “onboard” cinema. The indoor lounge was kept very cold, so I didn’t use that room much, but it is an excellent place for people who like air conditioning.
The camera charging station is located in the indoor lounge and has plenty of charging points.
Tip: the charging plugs in the Maldives are UK-style. So bring adaptors for your electric gadgets. The Blueforce team also conveniently has some adaptors available in case you forget yours.
The restaurant is an outdoor area and very breezy. It has a panoramic sea view. All the meals are served buffet style. Due to Covid, they are now using small tables for 2 or 4 people instead of one big table.
On the upper deck are a bar area, a nice lounging area, and some more cabins. The area is shaded, so this is the best place in the boat if you want to relax outdoors in the shade.
The front of the upper deck is a vast lounging area that is great when navigating. But beware of the sun there. The Maldives is located near the equator, and the sun can be fierce.
The sundeck is vast and has plenty of sun loungers. A jacuzzi welcomes you to soothe your stiff muscles after all the diving. I loved hanging out on the sundeck to watch the sunset. We also had a few stargazing sessions.
Review of the cabin on the Blueforce liveaboard Maldives.
I stayed in a standard cabin 104. It is located below deck and is surprisingly spacious. The cabin has a large porthole window, providing direct sunlight into the room. The room is pleasantly decorated in cream and brown color, while the wooden floor and panels give it a natural feel.
It has two beds: one double bed and one single bed. The bed is super comfortable, and I slept prodigiously. Plenty of pillows of different sizes are provided.
Besides the beds, there is a small table that you can use as a desk or as a makeup table. In addition, there is a hairdryer by the table.
Tip: the storage space is minimal, especially if you share a room, so don’t pack too much. There is space under the bed to store your suitcases.
The AC in the room is individually controlled. Still, we found it sometimes hard to adjust and get the desired room temperature. The lighting has been well thought through, with many different options to light the room depending on your mood. A safety box is available to store your valuables.
Our cabin was right below the staircase, and we could sometimes hear people coming up and down, but it was not too disturbing.
Tip: Electricity plugs are UK style. An adaptor was provided in the room for European plugs, but if you have a lot of gadgets to charge, you might want to bring extra adaptors.
Review of the Bathroom
The bathroom is spacious. It has a large shower area with a window that you can open to get fresh air into the room. Water pressure and water temperature were consistently good. A lovely touch is the small vanity mirror near the sink.
Bathroom towels were changed every three days. Outdoor towels would be provided on the diving boat during the day.
Tip: Bring your shampoo and conditioner, as they are not provided. You might also want to bring a small soap to use by the sink.
Diving organization on Blueforce liveaboard Maldives
Diving is essential for most people going on a liveaboard, and the Blueforce liveaboard delivers 100 percent.
A flexible dive sites scheduling
You can see that the team is passionate about diving and wants to deliver the best diving experience possible in the central Maldives.
They understand that a good dive depends on tide condition, weather, and the presence of other boats. Therefore, they adjust the planning hour by hour and decide dive sites and dive times based on the available information. At first, it can seem a bit chaotic, but it worked well, and we had a fantastic week of diving ( see more info below on the dive sites that we covered while cruising around the central Maldives).
For example, we woke up at 5:30 am one day to be the first and only group diving the Kudarah Tilah pinnacle. It was totally worth the early start, as it was an incredible dive with no other divers around. However, suppose you need to know the full itinerary and schedule days in advance. In that case, you might not feel comfortable on a boat with so much flexibility.
Diving groups are organized by diverse levels.
The Blueforce Maldives liveaboard organizes three dives a day. During our trip, there were four divemasters: Kiko, Fado, Sara, and Xile.
All the guests are assigned to a diving group for the week. Dive groups were created based on diving experience. Groups size ranged from three to seven divers, and all the dives were guided. My group had seven divers, and it sometimes felt a bit crowded underwater. They try and put camera people in the same group. They had been assigned a guide who is a marine biologist and excellent at spotting small critters.
Nitrox, Tanks, and Gears
Nitrox is available for 50 USD per week, and it is useful. Many of the dive sites are pinnacles, and we would spend a lot of time diving at 20 or 25 meters.
If you don’t yet have your Nitrox certification, you can do it while onboard for an extra fee. They would check the nitrox content for us, and it was consistently between 31 and 32 percent. Tanks were well-filled between 200 and 210 bars.
Tip: Computer, reef hooks, and SMB are mandatory so bring them. Also, bring a snorkel for the whale shark trip as they are not available for rent due to Covid.
The water temperature was consistently at 28 or 29 degrees.
Tip: A 3-millimetre wetsuit or even a rashguard will be enough for most divers. You could be tempted to dive without a wetsuit. Still, I recommend wearing at least a rashguard, as jellyfish and stinging planktons are present in the water.
Diving from a Dhoni
Diving is done from a Dhoni, a smaller boat that accompanies the Blueforce liveaboard.
The Blueforce Dhoni is spacious and well set up, which was good as we spent a lot of time on the Dhoni. Depending on where the boat was anchored, it took between 5 and 30 minutes to reach the dive site.
Tip: There is a drinking water gallon on the Dhoni, so bring your water bottle to refill it on the boat.
The dive briefings were professional, with a map of the dive site, a dive plan, and instructions on the current we were likely to encounter. The briefing would be in a mix of Spanish and English.
The maximum dive time is 60 minutes ( or 50 bars). The Maldivian government mandates that dives can’t be deeper than 30 meters. The diving was overall well-organized.
Review of the Covid procedures on the Blueforce liveaboard in the Maldives
I felt safe on board the Blueforce liveaboard during Covid.
Covid procedures in the Maldives
The Maldives is an excellent place to travel during Covid. Most resorts and activities are on isolated islands and outdoors. Every guest entering the Maldives has to do a PCR Covid test.
In the Maldives, the rule is that if anyone onboard a ship is diagnosed with Covid, all the passengers and crew need to be taken to a quarantined hotel for 14 days at their own expense! Even if they test negative for Covid.
Tip: Check Emirates’ health insurance offer. They offered free health insurance during my trip that would cover Covid health treatment and quarantine if needed.
Rapid Antigen test before boarding the Blueforce liveaboard
In addition, Blueforce did test all the guests and crew with a rapid antigen test before allowing them to board the cruise. The test was mandatory and free of charge. It was the first time I saw a diving liveaboard do a generalized test, and I found it a great idea. It made me feel safer, knowing that every person on the boat had just tested negative.
Onboard Covid procedures
Blueforce has strong Covid procedures in place as they really want to avoid getting Covid onboard. Masks are required in the indoor lounge for dive briefings and in the restaurant.
Guests are asked to wash their hands before using the food buffet. The whole crew is fully vaccinated, and most of the guests are as well.
Hand sanitiser bottles have been placed throughout the boat.
Pre-departure PCR test
Blueforce can help you arrange a PCR test onboard if you need it for your onward travel. It is very straightforward as a nurse comes on the boat, and the cost is 45 USD.
Overall, those procedures made me feel safe. After the cruise, I did get a test as it is required to board the next boat, and I am happy to report that it came out negative again.
Review of the food on Blueforce liveaboard Maldives
Blueforce serves three meals a day and a snack.
Breakfast would be served around 8 am after the first dive. It had the usual bread and fruit. The chef also prepared pastries, and those were diverse and mouthwatering. I loved the ones with melted cheese inside. The warm chocolate pastries were also delicious.
Eggs were available on-demand, and the chef would cook them for you any way you wanted.
Lunch and dinner were buffet-style. Four or five dishes were offered for every meal and varied. There would usually be one or two salads, a plate of vegetables, meat (chicken or beef) and a fish dish. Rice and pasta accompanied each meal.
The food was primarily European with a few Maldives specialties. A large fruit platter was a nice finishing touch after lunch and dinner. Ice creams were always available on demand.
A lot of food was provided so that we never went hungry.
The passengers on Blueforce liveaboard
The Blueforce fleet is Spanish-owned. During our trip, about half the passengers came from Spain. All the other passengers were from Europe and the US. Hence, the briefing was done in both Spanish and English.
It was a great group of people. I was a bit worried by having so many Spanish people on board from the same group. I shouldn’t have been. They were very inclusive, and everyone mingled together.
Review of the internet on a Maldive diving cruise
There is no internet onboard Blueforce liveaboard in the Maldives. If you want an internet connection during the cruise, read my article about getting internet while diving in the Maldives.
Review of the itinerary on the Blueforce liveaboard
The route is different every week as Blueforce tried to avoid other boats to provide uncrowded diving. We did the “5 atolls classical” itinerary.
Day 1: Arriving and check dive
As all the guests arrived before noon, the Blueforce liveaboard team offered a dive on the day of arrival. I was pleased about that as most liveaboards usually don’t dive on the arrival day.
The check dive was at the Fish factory dive site. It is located near the airport and is a fantastic dive site. The local fish factory releases fish waste in the water, attracting an incredible number of stingrays and moray eels. It makes for an out-of-this-world dive experience!
Day 2: Starting to explore the magnificent pinnacles of the Maldives
Blueforce liveaboard organized four dives today.
The first dive of the day was at the Kandooma Thila dive site. It is a pinnacle inside a channel. It can have a powerful current, so they dropped the advanced divers in the channel. In contrast, less experienced divers were dropped off on the protected side behind the corner with fewer currents.
Kandooma Thila pinnacle starts at 10 meters and goes down to 40 meters with a few terraces. There are smaller pinnacles on the north side. The wall is full of whip and fans corrals.
As we went down, there was a medium current going on. We stumbled onto a “fish soup.” Schools of jacks, tunas, GT, anthias, triggerfishes…
Suddenly, we saw a majestic school of 10 eagle rays. They stayed with us for over 10 minutes. They are so grateful. We saw a massive group of grey sharks and a few black tips, but the visibility was not great.
We did a day dive and a night dive at the Alimathaa pier dive site. This site is famous for its vast quantity of nurse sharks during night dives.
It can get hectic during night dives with up to 50 divers. People do not know that the sharks get active even before sunset, so you can skip the crowd and still see those fantastic sharks.
We did a 3:30 pm dive and saw over 50 nurse sharks, and we also did a night dive.
A few eagle rays joined the party. It is a very, very special dive as you get so close to the sharks, so don’t miss it. It is not for the faint-hearted, and it takes a while to get used to seeing that many sharks during a night dive!
Day 3: Looking for whale sharks in the South Ari Atoll
The Kudarah Thila dive site is one of the famous dives sites in the Maldives. It is a small pinnacle that starts at 14 meters. It is very popular with divers and can get very busy underwater.
Blueforce wanted us to enjoy the site alone, and so they offered a sunrise dive. We left before 6 am (!!) to be the first boat on the pinnacle, and it was worth the early wake-up call as we were the only boat on the pinnacle.
It is a super special dive site with so many fishes. The place is full of yellow snappers, fusiliers anthias, and all their predators. There are many sea fans, and it has some of the best corals I have seen in the Maldives. The top plateau is covered in anemones inhabited by nemos.
With the overfishing going on globally, it is becoming harder to find such a fish accumulation. It makes the Kuradah Tilah dive site in the Maldives even more exceptional. I loved every moment of that dive. Don’t miss this dive site!
We then went looking for whale sharks in the South of Ari Atoll. Sighting is not guaranteed, and the search can be long…
It feels like you’re looking for a needle in a haystack. On the positive side, the cruising was pleasant, with the beautiful view of the reef and the sandbanks. The Blueforce crew passed fresh pineapples around, and they were delicious.
Don’t expect to be alone. This is a popular spot, and at least 20 boats were cruising the area and looking for sharks simultaneously like us. Unfortunately, we didn’t find whale sharks that day. But they are definitely around. I went back to the same place a few days later while staying at Maafushivaru resort, and we found two whale sharks. You can read about it here.
We didn’t find whale sharks but still decided to do a dive in the area. The dive site is a sloppy reef mixed with a sandy bottom. However, we did spend a long time in the blue, still hoping to find whale sharks.
We saw a school of 10 long-horned pygmy devil rays. They swam alongside us for 5 minutes and were absolutely mesmerizing to watch. At first, I saw that they were baby mantas, but their skin was more shiny silver.
We also saw one eagle ray, a few white and blacktip sharks, and four turtles. So, while we were disappointed that we had not seen any whale sharks, it was still a pretty good dive!
How to swim with whale sharks?
Whale sharks are enormous, but they are also slow and gentle. They often feed on the surface, so snorkeling is an excellent way to encounter them. The best way to approach them is slowly!
Whale sharks have eyes on the side and can’t see much in the front.
To avoid them diving down, it is better not to be in front of them and give them space.
We then went to a gorgeous tropical island with a pretty beach for sunset. I went for a long walk along the beach, listening to the sounds of the birds. Around 6 pm, a few huge bats made an appearance, gliding over the sea.
The Blueforce liveaboard crew prepared a barbecue with fresh fish, shrimp, and lamb. We ate right on the beach, and it was such a lovely setting.
After we came back on the boat, a manta was feeding right off the boat back platform! It kept doing circles under the light, eating the plankton that was attracted by the light. Some passengers decided to go snorkeling. Others drank tea while watching one of the world’s most amazing shows.
What a day this has been!
Day 4: Stunning corals, dolphins, and mantas
We started the day with another stunning pinnacle. Five rocks dive site is composed of 5 pinnacles close to each other that start at 14 meters and come down in a sandy bottom at 35 meters. It is possible to dive in between the rocks, but some canyons are narrow. It is a small dive site, and to ensure that we would be the only divers there, we woke up again at 5:20 am and did a sunrise dive. It was a great idea. Towards the end of the dive, two more boats came, and the site became a zoo with bubbles and divers everywhere …
As we went down, sharks were sleeping on the sandy bottom. A fantail Ray was having breakfast. We saw the anemones opening up. The sun illuminated the corals. Some giant groupers live inside the cave. There are schools of fusiliers, bannerfishes, and yellow snapper. Sharks, tunas, and rays patrol the area.
This site has the most beautiful corals I have seen while in the Maldives. The Gorgonias, black and whipped corals, were stunning. Whoever tells you that there are no nice corals in the Maldives has not dived this site.
The trip back to the boat turned into a dolphin-watching experience. We followed a pod of dolphins for about 15 minutes. After such a good dive and the exhilaration of the dolphins jumping, everyone was ready for breakfast.
For the second dive of the day, we went looking for manta rays at the Mahivadu Camel Rock dive site.
It is always so special to swim alongside mantas. They are 400 million years old, so they are older than dinosaurs… Mahivadu Camel rock is a cleaning station in the middle of the channel. Mantas like outgoing current best, so we were diving the channel at the right time. Everyone hooked in a circle around the cleaning station. It was busy down there with a few more boats and at least 60 divers!
We then waited for the mantas to appear. One made an appearance after 20 minutes, but it didn’t hang around. I used the rest of the time to observe two shrimps working out on their tunnels in symbiosis with a fish. It was super cute. Towards the end of the dive, we drifted along the coral boulders and saw a shark and a few schools of fish.
I spent the afternoon relaxing on the sundeck. A trip on the Blueforce liveaboard is more than just diving. We went for a walk in Dengethi village, and it was interesting to see what a Maldivian village looks like. The sunset was spectacular.
Day 5: Mantas and octopus attack
Fishhead dive site is in the central area of Ari Atoll and is another of the best dive sites in the Maldives.
Fish head is a pinnacle that starts around 10 meters and goes down to 30 meters. The place is full of sharks. Barracudas are on the hunt. Turtles swim around. Brown coral covers the top.
The shark population has decreased a lot during Covid due to illegal shark fishing. Shark finning in the Maldives is still illegal. Still, there is intense pressure to open it again to compensate for the drop in tourism revenue.
The visibility wasn’t excellent, and the beginning of the drive was uneventful. After 40 minutes, we found a group of large silver sharks hunting fusiliers.
As we stood watching them, we saw a scene from the “my octopus teacher” movie! An octopus in weak condition got eaten by a fish. Fortunately, it released its ink. If you observe the slow-motion video, you can see it escaped 🙂 What a dive with a happy ending! We did our safety stop as part of a school of fusiliers being hunted by giant trevallies.
We moved on to the Fesdu wreck dive site. Located in the Fesdu lagoon, this dive site is a shallow lagoon that goes down to 15 meters and is famous for mantas.
The wreck is located on the edge of the lagoon between 22 and 28 meters. The coral reef is quite damaged. The water warming events of 2009 and 2014 have damaged many of the reefs. The coral is growing back on some sites faster than others.
Tip: A section of the dive site is covered by black corals that are very fragile, so be careful with your fins.
During the beautiful sunset, Blueforce put some strong lights at the back of the boat to attract plankton that attracts mantas. A manta came and was the perfect excuse to go for a night dive with mantas.
We all sat in a circle on the sandy bottom and waited for the manta to come and feed off the plankton attracted by our torches. The manta swam super close to us. It was a majestic experience, but the visibility was not great due to the sandy bottom.
Tip: Take an extra kilo or two on your weight belt to make sure you can kneel on the bottom quickly and try not to move to avoid kicking sand.
The bottom was a bit busy with all the divers from our boat down there. The bottom is very muddy, so the visibility got affected as soon as people moved a bit. Another way to enjoy the manta is to snorkel with it. The manta will likely stay feeding by the boat for a few hours. So, if you want to be alone with it, just wait until all the divers are done and go snorkeling. You will likely get a better view of it. Please don’t come too close and respect its feeding space.
Tip: Don’t forget, the more you respect the manta and give it space, the more likely it is to stick around and interact with you.
Day 6: Shark frenzy and mating cuttlefishes
Maaya Thila dive site is another stunning peninsula that starts at 5 meters and goes down to 30 meters. There are a few smaller pinnacles on the west side. Sharks and rays swim in the blue.
The black corals are spectacular. The amount of large pelagic is stunning. At some point, we were surrounded by at least 20 sharks, schools of barracudas, tunas, school of jacks,…
And we saw all this despite the poor visibility!
The shallower area is full of anemones. We found some mating cuttlefishes!!! The overhang near the top of the pinnacle is entirely covered in millions of glassfish.
This was an undeniably great dive, and we were the only boat diving there!
We continued with more pinnacles at the Bathalaa Maagaa Khan Thila dive site. It is a corner with a sloping reef on one side and a wall on the other side. The coral is pretty damaged, and the lack of sun made it look dull. That, combined with poor visibility, made it an underwhelming dive. The place, however, has tons of sharks. Some of the grey reef sharks were very big!
By sunset, it was time to go to a sandbank for a few sunset drinks. The place was categorically dreamy. We walked all along the sandbank, and it quickly turned into a beach dancing party. It was super fun and gorgeous.
Day 7: Eagle Rays, sharks, and more sharks at Rashdoo
Today is already the last day of diving, and it felt too short!
We did one dive at the Rashdoo dive site. Rashdoo Madivaru is a channel between Rashdoo island and Madivaru island.
The wall is covered by soft corals but is less impressive than some of the dive sites we did earlier in the week.
This is, however, not why you dive this site. The location in the channel and the deepwater surrounding it make it a great spot to observe big pelagics. Anything can pass by. We had good visibility and went to hook at 20 meters to watch the show. We saw countless sharks. Some of them are huge! Foureagle rays passed by. One of them came to check us out and posed for my video! Unfortunately, my neighbour used its strobe and spooked it away.
Tip: Most rays don’t like flash strobes, so please don’t use them.
Tip: Be very careful when you surface. When we surfaced, some people from a nearby resort were doing jet ski right on top of the dive site. They were driving at full speed. This is an accident waiting to happen… so use your SMB and watch out before surfacing on this dive site.
As we navigated back to Male in the afternoon, we saw the most amazing circular rainbow around the sun.
So really, how good is the diving in the Maldives?
I was hesitant to travel and dive to the Maldives and kept postponing it because many people told me the corals had been destroyed and bleached. The diving was not so good.
I shouldn’t have listened to them. I had an incredible two weeks diving in the Maldives.
What truly amazes is the number of fishes. Vast schools of fusiliers, yellow snappers, bannerfishes, and anthias are out of this world. Sharks and turtles are everywhere. It seems that the Maldives currently does a better job at protecting its fishes on the most famous dive sites than South East Asia, where many of the most famous places are being fished illegally.
Granted that, you can find much nicer corals in Indonesia and South East Asia. Read my articles about diving in Indonesia for more info
But the Maldives has a lot to offer and many world-class dive sites. It can be busy with 6 or 7 boats in the same area, but diving with a boat like Blueforce will help you avoid most of the crowd.
Wide-angle photographers will be in heaven. However, I have not found many nudibranchs and small critters, so it might not be the best place for you if you are passionate about macro photography. My favorite places for Macro photography are in Sangean island, Ambon, Lembeh and the Sangihe islands.
Corals in the Maldives were heavily damaged by two El Nino events of 2009 and 2014, but the corals are starting to recover. On the positive side, all the water temperature is super pleasant. With every single dive at 29 degrees, you might not even need a wetsuit!
The corals on some dive sites like Kudarah or fives rocks are gorgeous, and I was told they are regrowing quickly. The lack of divers during Covid has also helped many sites to recover. It is still a lot less crowded than usual, and there has probably never been a better time to dive the Maldives!
In conclusion of my review of the Blueforce liveaboard.
Blueforce liveaboard is a fantastic boat that is totally tailored to divers. The atmosphere is friendly and laidback, and the diving is excellent. It caters to both advanced and more junior divers. The diving in the Maldives is fantastic, and I look forward to diving it again.
To book the Blueforce liveaboard, check their website here.
For more information about traveling in the Maldives, check my review of the Scuba Spa liveaboard and the Maafhusiaru resort, which is an excellent option for a few days of relaxation after a diving cruise.
Do read my article about flying to the Maldives, as it has practical tips on avoiding the chaos at Male airport.