Baa atoll, expect cobalt waters and underwater wonders

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Baa Atoll map   

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Baa Atoll is one of the Maldives’ less-trafficked regions. To those approaching in sea planes or speedboats, its fifty islands appear like gleaming gems scattered carelessly upon the cobalt sea. With few resorts dominating the region, those that are here surpass expectations of luxury, solitude, and attentive service. Because of its remote location, many of the islands in Baa Atoll are uninhabited and perfect for day trips where couples can be alone together and simply listen to the sounds of silence. Nothing is more satisfying than endless hours spent floating in the crystal ocean with snorkel and mask, ogling the profusion of sea life below.

Plenty of fascinating scuba sites, primarily on underwater mountains, or thilas, abound throughout Baa Atoll. These unique landforms feature endless caverns and overhangs plastered with soft corals and sheltering everything from lobsters to nudibranchs. Underwater adventures in Baa atoll are sure to be just as breathtaking as those on the snow-white beaches or in the jungled highlands. Baa atoll is also the home of Hanifaru Bay, well known as a site where tides sweep profusions of plankton. And where there is plankton, there are giant manta rays and whale sharks. Diving among a veritable stampede of these behemoths is an unforgettable experience that will leave you simply speechless with wonder.

Goidhoo island, made famous by a French explorer in the 1600s, is a part of Baa atoll with an interesting history. A French vessel called the Corbin was once wrecked nearby the isle, and its surviving sailors took shelter on Goidhoo island, where they were marooned for many years. During that time admiral Pyrard de Laval write an in-depth study of the region and its people that is the first known account of Maldivian culture. Later, Goidhoo and two nearby islands were utilized as prisons where women, murderers, and general criminals were separated on the three respective islands.

Today, Goidhoo and other Baa atoll islands are simply places of resplendent beauty and honest living, where sandy roads are criss-crossed by red land crabs, bougainvillea grows in profusion, and ancient banyan trees form enchanting central meeting places for villagers and resort-goers alike. Your time spent in Baa atoll promises to be one of union with nature, fun in the sun, and soaring underwater adventures.