Maaya Thila
Depth is the range from the top of the site to its usual maximum; "recommended cert" is the mainstream-agency level operators usually ask for, not a legal rule. Currents and visibility change daily — treat everything here as planning ranges.
By day Maaya Thila is a lovely, compact pinnacle — turtles wedged under ledges, frogfish on the sponges, batfish escorting divers around the rim. After dark it becomes the most famous night dive in the Maldives. Whitetip reef sharks hunt in packs through the torch beams, ricocheting between coral heads after sleeping fusiliers, while moray eels free-swim and stonefish wait on the rubble. The action happens at comfortable depths on a circumnavigable reef, which is why liveaboards anchor here night after night. Its protected status has kept the thila's coral and its cast intact.
The moment you come for: Pack-hunting whitetips at night; turtles and frogfish by day
Topography: Round thila topping out near 6 meters, ringed by overhangs and satellite coral heads
Current: Usually manageable around the 80-meter-wide pinnacle, but the top can funnel flow between coral heads.
Know before you splash
Hazards: Night-dive separation and boat traffic above a busy anchorage.
Conservation: Protected marine area; keep torch beams short on hunting sharks and off resting turtles.
Nitrox: Worth it here — profiles sit in the range where enriched air meaningfully extends no-stop time (with the training to use it).
Who you'll meet
Frogfish
Giant Moray Eel
Great Barracuda
Hawksbill Turtle
Reef Stonefish
Whitetip Reef Shark
For photographers
Wide angle: ★★★★☆ · Macro: ★★★★☆ — editors' 1–5 rating of what this site gives each style of shooting