Many of our repeater guests of ‘the olden days’ will remember the transfer journey from Malé to Kuredu by boat, aboard the Kuredu Express, not all those memories will be fond ones – it was a long, hot and bumpy ride with many succumbing to seasickness on the way. Those days are long gone and the seaplane transfer, or even the domestic flight and short boat trip, are a much more pleasant way to start your holiday but, the Kuredu Express lives on…as a dive site!
Sunk in February 2023, the 18-metre-long boat sits upright on a sandy bottom at a maximum depth of 11.5 metres with the shallowest part being just 3-4 metres below the surface. Due to the shallow depth, it can be enjoyed by snorkelers as well as beginner and course divers alike.
The area around the wreck is interesting with a big coral mount reaching up to 3 metres and sloping down to 11 metres on the side of the wreck/lagoon and to 20 plus metres on the reef side. There have been regular encounters with sting rays and turtles in the sandy areas around it and, during the East Monsoon, we have even seen mantas a couple of times. The wreck itself is still settling in but a small school of batfish has already made it their home. Some of the blocks in the shallow sandy areas around the wreck (5-8m) host scorpionfish, octopus and pufferfish.
We had the pleasure of hosting acclaimed underwater photographer and journalist, Stuart Philpott, and whilst he was here, he visited the wreck of Kuredu Express and took these incredible photos.
If you would like to dive the Kuredu Express Wreck, pop into the Prodivers dive center and ask about the PADI Discover Scuba Diver program or the PADI Open Water Diver course. Alternatively, if you are already a qualified diver and would like to relive your transfer memories from a different perspective, go and have a chat with the Prodivers team and they’ll do their best to arrange it!
