Learn to freedive in the Maldives and swim with manta rays and whale sharks

Coming face to face with a manta ray is an unforgetable experience – and nowhere is better for manta encounters than the Maldives. There’s even a chance to spot the largest and most placid of sharks – a whale shark!

Join Emma Farrell on the holiday of a lifetime as we travel to the to Casa Mia resort in the Maldives this November.  Here in the warm waters of the Indian Ocean, you can learn to freedive or build on your existing skills before exploring the underwater paradise that awaits. In no time you’ll be diving the submerged pinnacles and reef tops, swarming with turtles, rays and great clouds of reef fish. And with each day starting with a morning yoga session, relaxation is guaranteed.

A range of sites in the heart of Ari Atoll will be chosen to suit your training sessions as well as give you the best chance to meet some of the Maldives’ most famous inhabitants. The dives will be at a leisurely pace, with plenty of time for you to build on your new skills. Then head to manta cleaning stations and watch these beautiful big rays swoop in. Look for small black tip sharks and turtles on the reef tops. And if you are lucky, a whaleshark may just cruise on past. There can be no doubt – this is learning to freedive in one of the most incredible locations in the world.

Your home for the week

Casa Mia is an intimate resort with only 10 rooms. All are modern, stylish and spacious, with the option of either a beach room (ground floor) or sea view room. Each room has air con as standard and can be furnished with either double or twin beds. Surrounded by lush gardens and right on the beach front, Casa Mia is the ideal destination to escape the modern world and experience island living at its best.

Activities

Over the week you’ll have a chance to train on lines, in confined water, and recreationally freedive on the reefs and atolls around the Maldives where you can see the most incredible array of underwater life.

You’ll also get two yoga and breathing classes a day, including the profoundly relaxing practice of yoga nidra under the stars.

Your lead instructor will be Emma Farrell, so you’ll have the chance to learn at a relaxed pace from one of the world’s most experienced instructors and her friendly and experienced team.

RAID Freediver, Advanced Freediver and Master Freediver courses will be available during the week for an additional charge; you must be at least RAID Freediver or equivalent qualified or booked to do the RAID Freediver course in order to come on the holiday.