With huge success during the recent past, InterContinental Maldives Maamunagau Resort is very pleased to announce their fourth Manta Retreat. The Manta Retreat for this year is scheduled in March from 17th-20th March 2025 during Maamunagau manta season. It is when the young manta rays start frequenting the lagoon of this resort only a few minutes off shore. The Manta Retreat aims to spread wide the curiosity and excitement to learn about manta rays and their natural habitat. It is an excellent opportunity to learn, explore, and understand these gentle giants, as well as the work of the Manta Trust, as guests will be invited to have dedicated workshops, snorkelling excursions, and even partake in the naming of a Manta, leaving a part of their heart in the Maldives.
The retreat has been designed for travelers who are looking for something more than just a traditional Maldivian holiday, an opportunity to explore what lies beyond the sandy beaches. Participants can look forward to an insightful and eye-opening few days with the island-based Manta Trust Team, spending time up close with manta rays in the resort's exclusive lagoon.
The fourth Manta Retreat will entirely be on the meeting of manta rays dwelling in the surrounding waters of the island and protection and ocean conservation. Meral Hafeez, the Manta Trust base leader at InterContinental Maldives, will lead the retreat and take participants along to uncover the secrets of manta rays. Leading this retreat again is one of the greatest joys of the year. No matter how many times I’m fortunate enough to encounter these animals and share them with eager learners, it’s always magical to see people in awe of these incredible creatures. I’m excited to share the wonders of Maldivian marine life and manta rays with the participants of the Manta Retreat. There can never be too many people learning about the significance of these animals and the marvels of the ocean, and I’m delighted to be part of this retreat to showcase it all.
The Manta Trust is one of the world's leading manta ray research organisations and works to achieve global conservation of manta rays, their relatives and their habitats through coordinated global research to support action affecting conservation efforts, education and collaboration. Realising the one of a kind advantage of lying on an island, so near a newly found nursery ground for the juvenile mantas, InterContinental Maldives started engaging itself with Manta Trust back in 2019. InterContinental Maamunagau Resort sits close to an exceptionally large and well-healthy manta population whose presence presents unmatched opportunities to study these amazing animals for Manta Trust scientists at the resort. In 2023, the Maamunagau Lagoon was declared an Important Shark and Ray Area (ISRA), thus becoming the first step in the recognition of manta rays as a vital habitat and, as such, priority for conservation.
The lagoon is home to a juvenile aggregation site for manta rays and serves as a key area of research for the Manta Trust team. Guests will also have the chance to meet up close with the manta rays and get in touch with research that the Manta Trust team has been carrying out on the resort since 2019. The team records and identifies pubs of young manta rays that have been located in the lagoon based on their unique prints on the bellies. There the participants can also adopt a manta ray, learn more about the whole process, and get to give the adopted animal its name in the Manta ID workshop. A number of dive and snorkeling excursions and cruises are available in various options in return for supplementary charge. Even personal meetings and interaction with a biologist at your disposal on personal invitation.
Guests staying at InterContinental Maldives also have the opportunity to enjoy the luxury resort's facilities as well as their villa or residence accommodation. There is also plenty to keep adults and children entertained in case some family members or travel partners are not participating in the retreat.
For certified divers, options are available to ensure all guests find their individual way of interacting with manta rays.
There are dedicated dive spots in the surrounding area of the resort where one can observe the natural manta ray 'spa', known as cleaning stations, which really do show the incredible symbiosis of marine life that exists in the Maldives. Following huge success in recent years, InterContinental Maldives Maamunagau Resort is pleased to launch their fourth Manta Retreat. This year's Manta Retreat is happening in March from the 17th-20th March 2025 during Maamunagau manta season, where young manta rays are found in the resort's lagoon just a few minutes away from shore. Spreading curiosity and excitement to learn about manta rays and their natural habitat, the Manta Retreat forms a great platform to learn, explore, and understand these gentle giants and the work of the Manta Trust. Guests will be treated to dedicated workshops, snorkeling excursions, and even to name a Manta, and leave a piece of their heart in the Maldives. The retreat has been designed for travellers who want something more than the traditional Maldivian holiday: an opportunity to explore what is beyond the white sandy beaches. Participants can expect an insightful, eye-opening few days with the island-based Manta Trust Team, spending time up close with manta rays in the exclusive lagoon of the resort.
The fourth Manta Retreat will focus entirely on meeting the manta rays that call the island's surrounding waters their home and their protection and ocean conservation.
Meral Hafeez, the Manta Trust base leader at InterContinental Maldives, will lead the retreat and take participants along to uncover the secrets of manta rays. "Leading this retreat again is one of the greatest joys of the year. No matter how many times I’m fortunate enough to encounter these animals and share them with eager learners, it’s always magical to see people in awe of these incredible creatures. I’m excited to share the wonders of Maldivian marine life and manta rays with the participants of the Manta Retreat. There can never be too many people learning about the significance of these animals and the marvels of the ocean, and I’m delighted to be part of this retreat to showcase it all." The Manta Trust is one of the world's leading manta ray research organizations.
Using coordinated global research to aid conservation efforts surrounding manta rays, their relatives and their habitats, the Manta Trust aims to achieve global conservation through Research, Education and Collaboration. Identifying the special position of being positioned on an island in such a proximity to an area recently known as a young manta feeding ground, the InterContinental Maldives went into partnership with the Manta Trust in 2019. A large healthy population of mantas is prevalent in the immediate area surrounding InterContinental Maldives Maamunagau Resort, presenting researchers based here at the Manta Trust a rare opportunity for study. In 2023, it was declared the first Important Shark and Ray Area (ISRA), the start of a sequence of events intended to recognize Maamunagau Lagoon as an extremely important habitat area for manta rays and further enhance its recognition for conservation value. The juvenile manta aggregation site is contained within the lagoon, but the Manta Trust team focuses its researches in this entire area.
The resort is providing a unique opportunity for guests to encounter the incredible sight of manta rays closely and interact with the research that the Manta Trust team has been conducting on the resort since 2019. By part of their research, the team identifies and records the young manta ray pubs in the lagoon based on their one-of-a-kind belly prints. In the Manta ID workshop, participants will learn everything about the process, and even get to adopt and name a manta ray. Additional experiences such as diving and snorkelling trips, cruises, excursions or spa and wellness treatments can be booked individually for an additional charge. Private one-on-one sessions with the Manta Biologist are available on request. Guests staying at InterContinental Maldives also can enjoy luxury resort's facilities, as well as the villa or residence accommodation. There are also plenty of things to keep adults and children entertained in case some family members or travel companions are not participating in the retreat.
For certified divers, there are options to ensure that all guests find their individual way of interacting with manta rays. Dedicated dive spots are in the area around the resort that allow divers to observe the natural manta ray spa, known as cleaning stations, showcasing the incredible symbiosis of marine life in the Maldives. If you visit maldives in 2025 maldives times is here to tell you here is the Best resorts in the Maldives.
