About this trip
Eight days aboard a small cruising boat in the Maldives, built around one thing: manta rays. You travel with no more than 10 others, timed to coincide with the new or full moon when sightings in Hanifaru Bay tend to pick up.
A Manta Trust researcher joins the crew alongside your tour leader, running talks and hands-on sessions so you understand what you're looking at in the water and why the Maldives' marine environment is under pressure.
This isn't a passive snorkel trip. You take part in real data collection, learning to identify individual manta rays and feeding your observations into ongoing research.
What you'll do
- Snorkel Hanifaru Bay, Baa Atoll, timed around new or full moon manta gatherings
- Join talks and briefings led by a Manta Trust marine biologist
- Learn to identify individual manta rays by their markings
- Contribute sightings and data to active conservation research
- Small group of 10 or fewer aboard a cruising boat
- Sightings depend on the moon cycle and nature, so manta encounters aren't guaranteed
- Suits people genuinely interested in marine conservation, not just a beach holiday
- Group size is capped at 10, so it stays personal and hands-on
The same-vibe trips, side by side — price, value per day, and how each is moving. Only we can lay two operators' trips out honestly.
Sorted by fit — never by who paid. Price moves and availability come from our own daily tracking.
Getting there
Opens Trip.com, pre-filled — one-way so you can book your return whenever. Prices & booking shown there.
Where to stay
A night before your tour in Male · 8 Aug – 9 Aug
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