Dive Review of Aggressor Fleet in
Maldives/Maldives Aggressor

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Aggressor Fleet: "Excellent first experience in the Maldives.", Feb, 2022, by John A Shives, TX, US ( 2 reports). Report 12166.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	The flights to Dubai from Houston, were very long (14+ hours). Long layovers, then the final leg to Male. An overnight stay in a nearby hotel allowed me to get some much-needed rest. A mistake on my part caused me to miss my flight to the boat, but a quick save by the hotel staff, helped me get on track and I got the flight to Addu City, and made the boat on time. Regarding Covid-19, masks were required on the way to the boat, while on the planes, airport, etc. But once we got to the boat, restrictions were relaxed, as everyone was fully vaccinated, or they would not have made it there. No one wore masks. Everyone was required to get COVID tested to exit the country. Due to a last-minute cancellation of a large group, due to COVID, there were only 7 passengers for the entire trip. Everyone had their own suite, if they so desired. The boat was very nice, rooms were clean, and the AC worked great. We were right on the equator and of course, very hot. The AC was appreciated. The crew were very friendly. The food was good and plenty of it. The menu consisted mainly of regional cuisine which is a combination of Indian-Sri Lanken, and Maldivian. There was beer and wine available at the evening meals. There were plenty of fresh desserts. Breakfasts were made to order. There was coffee, tea, milk, and juices of various types available, each day. The Dive Masters and Manager were very helpful and well trained. The dive boat (Dhoni) was well equipped. There were no issues with the NIROX fills. Full fills on all dives. The Maldives is mostly high-speed drift diving. Depths were right at 100 +/- ft, so NITROX is mandatory. Both 80 and 100 cu ft tanks were available. I used a steel 100. As soon as you got back to the dhoni, the crew began filling tanks immediately. A thorough dive briefing was conducted prior to every dive. They were very informative. The divers were split into two groups, with one dive master leading each group. The typical dive consisted of everyone following their respective DM in with a giant stride off the side. Once in, an immediate decent was made and once the particular dive site was reached, the DM signaled everyone to attach their reef hooks to an area of dead coral. There was an abundance of pelagics, usually gray reef sharks, and an occasional Napolean wrasse. After everyone reached 5 min. NO DECO time, all divers released their reef hooks, and the group drifted down current, a DSM was deployed and the dhoni picked us up. Mid-week, after the evening meal, a 5–6-meter whale shark paid us a visit and was there all-night feasting on abundance of small shrimp and baitfish that were attracted the deck lights. Lots of photos and videos were taken. We made 2 attempts to dive with manta rays, but they were a no-show. on the 3rd day, we made a tiger shark dive at Favamulah atoll. There was a very thorough dive briefing conducted by the local DMs conducting the dive. The local fisherman dump their yellowfin tuna carcasses at the same spot, outside to the channel leading into the harbor, so as not to attract them into the harbor. Everyone was given a 4 ft aluminum staff to hold up vertically, if a shark decided to approach a diver. The DMs conducting the dive actually used their staffs a couple of times. It was my first time to be so close to apex predators of that size. There were 5-6 sharks (poor visibility made it difficult to get an exact count). There were two very pregnant females that I estimated to be 8-10 ft in length and approximately 5-600 lbs. in weight. It was a thrilling dive. I got some good video from the dive. This was my first dive trip in the Indian Ocean, and the Maldives is world-class diving. I had a camera tray malfunction which caused me some problems, and I ended just taking GoPro videos and some wide-angle still photos. All in all, it was a great trip and lived up to the high standards I expect from an AGGRESSOR boat. I have been on 4 AGGRESSOR boats (Palau, Kona II, Tahiti, and Maldives). All have been memorable trips. The boat manager, Shakur and his fellow DM Amir were awesome and great hosts. Hope to return to the Maldives one day.
Websites	Aggressor Fleet
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Cozumel, Bonaire, Grand Cayman, Palau, Little Cayman, Solomon Islands, Christmas Island, Australia (GBR-Coral Sea), French Polynesia, Fiji, Maldives, Philippines.
Closest Airport	Male	Getting There	Houston, TX-UAE(Dubai)-Male-ADDU City
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	calm
Water Temp	82-83°F / 28-28°C	Wetsuit Thickness	4
Water Visibility	75-150 Ft/ 23-46 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	no
Enforced diving restrictions	[Unspecified]Max. depth 105 ft. Max. time before NO DECO-5 min.
Liveaboard?	yes	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	Schools	Whale Sharks	1 or 2
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	Adequate charging station space and compressed air. The charging areas were on the back deck, with good ventilation, on indoor/outdoor carpet covered, metallic tables and benches

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Dive Review of Aggressor Fleet in Maldives/Maldives Aggressor

Aggressor Fleet: "Excellent first experience in the Maldives.", Feb, 2022,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Aggressor Fleet in
Maldives/Maldives Aggressor