Tiger Harbour

Shallow horseshoe-shaped plateau at the entrance of Fuvahmulah's harbour, where centuries of discarded fish remains drew in a resident population of tiger sharks. Groups descend to about 8–11 m, kneel on the sandy-rock seabed and watch several tiger sharks, often with silvertip sharks, giant trevally, barracuda and jacks around them. Beyond the plateau a sandy wall with little coral drops from about 10 m into the blue.

Facts

Region: Maldives – Deep South
Area: Fuvahmulah
Depth: 5–15 m
Level: intermediate
Current: low
Type: reef
Coordinates: -0.3035, 73.4395
Highlights: tiger sharks, silvertip sharks, trevally, barracuda, moray, lionfish, harbour-entrance plateau 6–10 m
Permit: Fuvahmulah City Council requires a paid permit for diving in Fuvahmulah waters (rules reported June 2023: USD 40 per foreign diver with a Fuvahmulah-based dive school, USD 55 with safaris or schools based elsewhere, USD 200 per person on foreign vessels); dive centres must be registered with the council and anchoring at dive points is banned. Fees and rules may have changed – check with your dive centre (adhadhu.com).
Issuer / contact: Fuvahmulah City Council
- Phone: +960 686 0001
- Email: info@fuvahmulah.gov.mv
- Website: https://fuvahmulah.gov.mv/en/contact-us
- phone from the council citizen portal https://afuncity.mv/; the council site lists the short number 1618; office: Narguis Magu, Maadhadu, Fuvahmulah
Tips: Codes of conduct (Fuvahmulah City Council, Ministry, dive association, 2024–25): stay at least 5 m from the sharks and the fish heads, stay up-current of the bait, kneel and do not swim around, wear a dark full-length exposure suit (hood and gloves recommended), no flash, strobes or video lights, no touching; max 4 divers per guide, at least 3 guides and max 20 divers per group. Council rules cap the site at 35 divers at a time. Note that the Maldives diving regulation formally prohibits shark feeding.

Tiger Harbour

Facts

Sources