Snorkeling visibility: our estimates for each reef
How far you can see underwater is not in any travel guide. That is why we have written it down ourselves for years — at every reef we visited. This page collects all values in one place: 31 entries from 7 places, from April 2025 to August 2026.
While snorkeling I estimated visibility, water temperature and depth, just as I experienced them on the days I was there. On dives the dive computer measured depth and duration, and values with a named source show what is usual there, not how it was for me.
All values are our own estimates, written down on the same day or the day after. Every row names its source. Where a value was a range ("10–15 m"), the range is shown — nothing is smoothed out.
The conditions are listed next to the number, because the number alone says little. The same spot had 25 meters for us in the morning and 15 from noon on, because the wind stirred up sediment. If you are planning, you need both.
You may quote and link these values — a mention of riffnah.de is enough. If you want to add your own values or something doesn't fit: ronald@riffnah.de.
Dhigurah · Maldives
| Date | Spot | Visibility | Water | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 08/05/2026 | From the beach — the Bikini Beach side · from the beach | 5 m | 28 °C | fairly strong wind, high waves, hazy from stirred-up sand |
| 08/06/2026 · 12 p.m. | Rangali Madivaru — the whale shark tour · from the boat | about 20 m | — | sunny; fairly rough seas on the way out · Depth: 8 m |
| 08/06/2026 · 1:30 p.m. | Bodufinolhu Thila · from the boat | about 20 m | — | sunny · Depth: 8 m |
| 08/07/2026 | The sandbank · from the beach | about 10 m | — | constant sediment, in the mornings too — shallow water, churned up by the waves |
| 08/07/2026 | Turtle Reef · from the boat | about 10 m | — | did not snorkel as far as the reef edge · Depth: reef edge at high tide 5 to 8 m |
Where the values come from (5)
The note behind each of these 5 values is in German, on the German version of this page.
Flic en Flac · Mauritius
| Date | Spot | Visibility | Water | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02/01/2026 · in the morning | The lagoon from the beach · from the beach | around 20 m | — | sunny · Current: noticeable, with or against the direction you swim · Depth: at the surf wall at most 2 m |
| 02/01/2026 | Crystal Rock and Île aux Bénitiers · from the boat | 20 m | — | sunny, hardly any wind · Depth: coral stop down to about 4 m, hip-deep at the rock, anchorage 3 to 4 m |
| 02/02/2026 | Turtle Point · from the boat | 20 m | — | sunny · Depth: at the reef 2 to 3 m, in deeper water around 8 m |
Where the values come from (3)
The note behind each of these 3 values is in German, on the German version of this page.
Fulidhoo · Maldives
| Date | Spot | Visibility | Water | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 04/01/2025 · evening | The jetty in the evening · from the beach | — | — | shallow water right at the landing, about 10 people at the jetty |
| 04/01/2025 | Bikini Beach · from the beach | about 30 m | — | — · Current: none worth mentioning · Depth: about 5 m after about 100 meters |
| 04/01/2025 | The nurse shark tour · from the boat | over 20 m | 29 °C | — · Depth: around 5 m |
Where the values come from (3)
The note behind each of these 3 values is in German, on the German version of this page.
Kamadhoo · Maldives
| Date | Spot | Visibility | Water | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 08/09/2026 | Bikini Beach — the house reef · from the beach | about 10 m at the surface, from 5 m depth about 20 m | 28 °C | choppy surface · Current: light |
| 08/09/2026 · evening, after dark | The harbor basin in the evening · from the beach | — | — | observed from the edge of the basin, not in the water |
| 08/10/2026 · afternoon | Bikini Beach — the house reef · from the beach | 10–15 m | — | slightly choppy sea; in the morning monsoon rain and wind · Current: light |
Where the values come from (3)
The note behind each of these 3 values is in German, on the German version of this page.
Maalhos · Maldives
| Date | Spot | Visibility | Water | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 08/12/2026 · 4 p.m. | The house reef of Maalhos · from the beach | about 15 m | 28 °C | stirred-up sediment at the reef edge, where the reef drops off from sandy ground · Depth: 8 m |
| 08/13/2026 · 10 a.m. | Kihaadhuffaru Thila · from the boat | +20 m | — | — · Depth: 8 m |
| 08/13/2026 · 10:30 a.m. | UNESCO Thila · from the boat | +10 m | — | open water, lots of plankton · Depth: 2 m |
| 08/13/2026 · 11 a.m. | Dhonfanu Reef · from the boat | +20 m | — | reef without sediment and without sandy bottom · Depth: 8 m |
| 08/14/2026 · 4 p.m. | Hanifaru Bay · from the boat | +10 m | — | lots of plankton; heavy rain on the way there had churned up the sea · Depth: 2 m |
| 08/15/2026 · 1:01 p.m. | The house reef of Maalhos · from the beach | 15 m | — | beyond the reef edge, no sediment · Depth: 6 m |
| 08/16/2026 | Faana Faru · from the boat | about 20 m | — | no sediment |
Where the values come from (7)
The note behind each of these 7 values is in German, on the German version of this page.
Rasdhoo · Maldives
| Date | Spot | Visibility | Water | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 04/01/2025 | Rasdhoo Beyru — the house reef · from the beach | about 25 m | 29 °C | — · Depth: about 5 m |
| 04/01/2025 | Turtle Reef · from the boat | over 20 m | 29 °C | — · Depth: about 5 m |
| 08/18/2026 · before noon | Rasdhoo Beyru — the house reef · from the beach | about 25 m | 29 °C | — |
| 08/18/2026 · 1:32 p.m. | Rasdhoo Beyru — the house reef · from the beach | about 15 m | — | blurred by the sediment · Depth: 3 m |
| 08/18/2026 | Rasdhoo Beyru — the house reef · from the beach | — | — | blacktip reef sharks in the shallow part, some at a distance of 5 m (on both trips, April 2025 and August 2026) · Depth: about 50 m to the reef edge, at low tide in places only 50 cm of water above it |
| 08/19/2026 · 12:08 p.m. | Madivaru Corner · from the boat | 20 m | — | — · Current: strong · Depth: 17 m |
| 08/20/2026 · morning | Rasdhoo Beyru — the house reef · from the beach | about 20 m | — | — |
Where the values come from (7)
The note behind each of these 7 values is in German, on the German version of this page.
Sharm El Sheikh · Egypt
| Date | Spot | Visibility | Water | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/27/2025 | Ras Mohammed — the reef in the open sea · from the boat | 30 m | 26 to 30 °C | calm surface · Current: none · Depth: on the dive down to 20 m |
| 10/29/2025 | Ras Bob — the house reef in front of the Serenity Lodge · from the beach | 30 m | 27 °C | cloudless · Current: light · Depth: on the dive down to 20 m |
| 10/29/2025 | Gordon Reef — Strait of Tiran · from the boat | 30 m | 26 to 30 °C | cloudless, choppy surface · Current: strong · Depth: on the dive down to 20 m |
Where the values come from (3)
The note behind each of these 3 values is in German, on the German version of this page.