Scuba diving at Maldives!

Jatin and I went for a trip to Maldives in Feb 2009. The place is gorgeous - sandy white beaches, beautiful blue water, a gorgeous reef, and so much more.

Some friends asked me to blog about the trip - in particular the diving. So here are some details about the best part of the trip - the scuba diving:

- If you can snorkel, you can most probably dive. So do give the 'beginners lesson for diving' a shot. They teach you some basics of diving for free, and you pay only if you are confident you want to dive.

- We went through Delphi's school of diving, and they charged us USD 75 for one dive. (The cost included equipment - oxygen tank, fins etc, but not the wet suit). PADI school of diving is cheaper, and better, so if your island has a PADI centre, go for it. They even give you a certificate after the dive :)

- You are charged separately for renting a digital camera. Delphi's charged us USD 45. PADI charges approximately USD 30. I would say renting a cam is completely worth it!

- You can dive only 24 hrs after you fly in, and 24 hrs before you fly out of the Maldives. This is to give enough time for your body cells to adjust to the changes in pressure due to flying and diving. Plan your dive accordingly. If you want to try snorkeling for a day before diving, plan accordingly.

- It was freakin cold in the water, especially at greater depths. If you wish, wear a tee to keep you warm, instead of wearing just a wet suit.

Diving is a wonderful experience. We went diving only upto a depth of 8m, but got to see many different types of fish, corals, oysters, and even a sea turtle :)

So, in a nutshell - if you go to the Maldives - definitely go diving!