Addu Atoll · Maldives · Reef · Coral garden
Banana Reef
A banana-shaped reef dived from the surface to 30 m
Area photo: ╚ DD╔ from Male, Maldives · CC BY-SA 2.0
A reef in Addu named for the curve it draws when seen from above, dived from the surface down to 30 metres. The shallow end is gentle enough that the same reef is used for snorkelling and freediving, and the fish are settled enough to hold still for a camera. With the current running, schooling fish, whitetip reef sharks and tuna come along the reef.
Also known as Banana Reef Addu.
Where it is and how deep
0.6606° S, 73.1933° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
The reef takes its name from its shape, which reads as a banana from above, and the profile follows that outline underwater. There is diving from the surface all the way down to 30 metres, so the range is yours to choose: work the deep end of the reef early while you have gas and no-decompression time in hand, then come back up into the coral gardens and leave the shallowest water for the end of the dive and the safety stop.
How much you see depends on the water moving. With current running there are large numbers of schooling fish along the reef, with whitetip reef sharks and tuna working the same stretch. In slack water the interest is the coral gardens themselves and the reef fish in them, clownfish and triggerfish among all kinds of coral fish. The fish here are not shy of a camera, and the shallow end is gentle enough that the reef is also used for snorkelling and freediving, so scuba divers are not the only traffic.
Marine life and season
- Reef sharks
- Tuna
- Reef fish swarms
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good |
Season follows Addu Atoll: Addu's resident dive centre rates January to April driest and busiest and July to September best for visibility; May-June and October-December are wetter. Full and new moon run the strongest currents.
Sources
- Banana Reef Addu dive site — Scubago
- Tourism in the Maldives — Wikipedia
In The Logbook
- What wetsuit for what water temperatureGear & kit · 11 min read
More dive sites in Addu Atoll
Channel & pass
A year-round manta point at 19-25 m inside the channel
Wreck
The largest wreck in the Maldives, on her port side at 33 m
Channel & pass
Drift the channel corner on either tide, 5 to 25 m
Channel & pass
Table, mushroom and brain corals down a steep slope to 25 m
Hard coral gardens from 6 m to a 20 m drop-off
Wall
Easy wall from a 5-8 m reef top down past 30 m
Reef
Tigers, grey reefs and silvertips on Addu's outer reef
Similar dives elsewhere
Moorings from an 8 m coral garden to a 30 m wall
Swim-throughs and pinnacles from 10 metres, diveable year-round.
Swim-throughs behind walls of glassfish, and no current
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Manta cleaning stations at 10–15 m, with 8–9 mantas at once on a good day