Snorkelling with Turtles and Sandbank Stop, Dhiffushi

Dhiffushi: a quiet local island at the edge of North Malé Atoll

Dhiffushi lies at the far north-eastern tip of Kaafu Atoll, about forty-five minutes from Malé by speedboat, and it is one of the smallest and calmest inhabited islands open to visitors. A handful of guesthouses, a long sandy beach on the eastern shore, a football pitch and a harbour where the fishing boats tie up make up most of the island; the pace is slow and the reef is close. If you are wondering how to get to Dhiffushi, scheduled speedboats and the slower public ferry from Malé both land at the harbour where this trip starts.

Our boat leaves the Dhiffushi harbour at eight in the morning, when the lagoon is still glassy and the turtles are feeding in the clearest light. With a maximum of six guests, the guide knows everyone's name and swimming level before the boat has cleared the harbour wall, and the equipment is fitted individually on board.

The turtle reef: snorkelling with turtles off Dhiffushi

A short ride from the harbour is a reef that green and hawksbill turtles use as a feeding and resting ground. Green turtles, the larger of the two, graze on seagrass and algae and can exceed a metre in length; hawksbills are smaller, with a narrow beak for picking sponges out of the coral and a shell patterned like tortoiseshell. Both must surface to breathe every few minutes, and the guide positions the group so you see them rise and dive without getting in their way.

The rules are explained before you enter the water: keep a few metres back, never touch, chase or block a turtle, and let it come to you. Watched this way the turtles carry on feeding as if you were not there. The guide also shares what he knows about nesting beaches, turtle age and the threats the animals face. Roughly an hour is spent on the turtle reef.

The coral reef and its fish

The turtle reef is also a living coral reef, and after the turtles the guide takes the group along the drop-off where the shallow reef flat falls away into blue water. Here the hard corals, table corals and branching staghorns, shelter parrotfish, surgeonfish, angelfish, butterflyfish, clownfish in anemones and clouds of small damselfish, with the occasional reef shark or eagle ray passing in the distance.

North Malé Atoll reefs are known for good visibility, especially in the dry season from November to April, which is the best time to visit Dhiffushi for snorkelling. The guide keeps the small group together, points out what you are looking at and helps beginners get comfortable with mask and snorkel. Coral is never stood on or touched; you float above it, and fins make that effortless.

The sandbank: a white island to yourselves

The final stop is a sandbank, a crescent of pure white coral sand standing in turquoise water just off the reef. With only six guests on the boat, you often have the whole sandbank to yourselves, which is rare in the Maldives. The crew lands you on the sand for a swim in waist-deep water, a float in the shallows and the photos everyone wants: white sand, water in three shades of blue and nobody else in the frame.

There is no shade on a sandbank, so bring a hat, sunglasses and reef-safe sunscreen; meals are not included on this short trip, but bottled water is on board. After about half an hour the boat returns to Dhiffushi harbour, two hours after departure, leaving the rest of the day free for the island's beach or an afternoon outing.