Surfing

Maldivians have been surfing using planks for a long time. However, modern surfing came to the Maldives in the late 70s. In 1973 Tony Hinde an Australian surfer took a break from surfing in Sri Lanka and together with a friend set sail for the Africa. He was never to reach his destination. His ship seriously off course was shipwrecked on the shore breaks of Male'. Tony discovered the thrill of surfing on the Maldivian reefs. He changed his name to Tony Hussein Hinde, married a local lady, opened his own surf agency and decided to stay for good.

The recent O’Neil Deep Blue Contests held in the Maldives has placed Maldives firmly on the world’s surf map. While most of the recognized surf breaks are in Male’ Atoll, there is certainly more to be discovered. Some resorts provide boats (Dhoni's) to transport surfers out beyond the breaks up to three times per day for two hour periods whereas charters offer surfers the chance to surf the reefs for longer periods.

Surfing Season

The best season for Surfing in the Maldives is determined to a large extent by the monsoon circulation. Each year there are two monsoons seasons, the north-east monsoon from December to April and the south west monsoon from May to October.

The Surf Season runs from mid February to November when

swells are produced by winter low pressure systems in the

southern Indian Ocean. The early part of the season has the

most stable weather, with light, favourable winds. Swell

consistency and size improve from February, with March,

April and May having very clean conditions.

June to August have the most potential for big swells (the

WQS contest is held in June every year), although tropical

storms can be more common in these months.

September and October are also very consistent months for swell, with variable winds and tropical storms becoming less frequent. November is still quite consistent for small to medium size waves and the weather is usually perfect.

Surf Breaks

The best known surf breaks are in the North and South Malé Atoll and most surfers stay in resorts close to these breaks. However cruise operators offer specialised surfing cruises, that give you the opportunity to test some of the less known surf breaks in the atolls further away from Malé Atoll.