Ari & Rasdhoo Atolls · Maldives · Drift · Reef
Panettone Thila
Mantas swooping past a reef cut with shelter channels
Photo: John Hepburn · CC BY 4.0
Panettone Thila is a manta point in Ari Atoll, in the channel north of Thudufushi. Strong currents of sometimes more than 2 knots make it a drift dive, and channels cut into the flat reef give divers somewhere to shelter while mantas and big fish pass in the blue.
Also known as Kalhahandi Huraa, Panettone.
Where it is and how deep
3.7990° N, 72.7160° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
In the flatter sections of the reef, channels about 2 or 3 metres wide cut in a metre or so below the reef top. Divers with good buoyancy control use them to shield themselves from the current, sharing the shelter with the fish that gather there.
Further along the reef, the blue holds schools of rainbow runners, the occasional dog-toothed tuna, big-nosed unicornfish, starry rabbitfish and midnight snapper, along with barracudas, huge trevallies, grey reef sharks and whitetip sharks. Large mantas swoop past, sometimes barrel-rolling in front of divers.
Marine life and season
- Manta rays
- Trevally & jacks
- Tuna
- Barracuda
- Reef sharks
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Prime |
Season follows Ari & Rasdhoo Atolls: The seas are calmest from December to May, but manta numbers peak from August to November.
Know before you go
- Currents here are strong, sometimes more than 2 knots.
Dive videos
Panettone Manta Point - Maldive 2014 · Compagnia Mar Rosso on YouTube
Sources
- Ari Atoll diving — Dive The World
- Diving in Panettone Maldives — Divebooker
- Dive Spot Thudufushi — IDive Diving Center
- Panettone dive-site details — ScubaDiving.place
- Kalhuhandhihuraa (OpenStreetMap) — OpenStreetMap contributors
Photo credits
- Seven grey and white devil rays swimming together in open blue water above a pale sandy bottom by John Hepburn, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
More dive sites in Ari & Rasdhoo Atolls
Pinnacle
Ocean-facing pinnacle at the mouth of Bathala channel
Mantas at a cleaning station from December till April
Reef
A canyon cut diagonally through the middle of a channel reef
Pinnacle
South-side overhangs with gorgonian fans and black corals
Glassfish packed into the wheelhouse of a sunken trawler
Pinnacle
An estimated sixteen resident grey reef sharks
Pinnacle
A pinnacle eroded into five separate pieces, 12 m to 40 m
Grey reef sharks hunting in the blue around a tiny volcano-shaped top
Similar dives elsewhere
A brief, powerful drift where threshers and hammerheads come out of the blue
Manta cleaning stations at 10–15 m, with 8–9 mantas at once on a good day
A drift run deep to 26 m or shallow to 20 m
Two-tier drift: overhangs at 10-15 m for beginners, 25 m for the experienced