padi dive center oman

The Turtles of Oman Are you into Turtles? If yes, Oman is your place to be. There are seven different types of sea turles around the world – and Omani waters are home to five of them. Keep on reading to get to know the different kind of turtles to see around Muscat while Scuba Diving in Oman. Many, Many Green Turtles The following sea turtles are the ones you find in our waters: The Leatherback Sea Turtles: She is not only the largest of all sea turtles with a size ranging from 1.2 up to 2.4 meters but also the oldest of all of them. They survived the extinction of the dinosaurs! But the Leatherback Turtle doesn’t come ashore in Oman – so they can only be seen during Snorkeling or Scuba Diving in Oman. Green Turtle: This turtle gets its name from the green fat found underneath its carapace. She is the one Sea Turtle we see most on our dives or while Snorkeling. Olive Ridley Turtle: This turtle is the second smallest in the world but the most abundant of all sea turtles. These turtles are known for their mass nesting and breeding. Thousands of females travel together and lay their eggs on the same beach. Hawksbill Turtle: The hawksbill sea turtle is unfortunately, a critically endangered species. Their appearance can be easily recognized by their sharp, curving beak and their saw-like shell margins. Loggerhead Turtle: The loggerhead sea turtle comes ashore to lay eggs less frequently than other types of turtle spotting. One is a real treat. The females nest every 2 to 4 years. Where to See Sea Turtles To see turtles – especially the Green Turtle – on shore, its totally worth a trip to the beautiful beaches in Ras al Hadd or Ras Al Jinz. But to see them while Scuba Diving in Oman, we can totally recommend the Daymaniyat Island for you. The tiny archipelago of rocky islands and the first marine reserve created in Oman is located north of Muscat within a 40-minute boat ride from Al Mouj Marina where MolaMola Diving Center is located The coral reefs surrounding the island are an important area for nesting sea turtles – and that is especially why the beaches at Daymaniyat Island are closed to enter during the months from May to October. Every year, an abundance of turtles migrate to the beaches and shorelines of the Arab Peninsula to dig a hole and lay their eggs. In Oman, which is one of the hot spots for turtle-hatching, the best time to see them is between May and August every year. During these months, around 20,000 turtles come to Oman’s beaches, especially on the Eastern side. These turtles lay 50,000 to 60,000 eggs during this period and are buried under the sand, just to protect them. After the eggs are laid, around 55 days later the eggs hatch and the babies begin their lives. The good news? Snorkeling or Scuba Diving with Turtles in Oman is possible year-round. Scuba Diving and Snorkeling with Turtles We think what most people love most while snorkeling or Scuba Diving, is to see a turtle underwater. They are so graceful as if flying underwater and very peaceful as well. On our dives either at Daymaniyat Island or Fahal Island, we spot a turtle almost every time. So what are you waiting for? Book the best Scuba Diving in Oman with MolaMola Diving Center right now. Previous PostNext Post

Diving the Daymaniyat Island, Oman Are you looking for the best place to dive in Oman? Good news: You found it! Daymaniyat Island is also called the Maledives of Oman because of its turquoise water and stunning coral reefs. There are many places to dive – but nothing is like Daymaniyat Island During your time in Oman you may find some other places to dive like Bander Khayran or Fahal Island. But to be honest with you: The dive sites there are nothing compared to the ones in Daymaniyat Island. The Daymaniyat islands is a Nature Reserve protected by the Omani government and home to endangered sea turtles, untouched coral reefs, and exotic fish. Therefore, the islands are one of Oman’s leading dive spots! During the months of May to end of October, no one is allowed to enter the island – as they are an important nesting site for turtles as well as a wide range of migratory birds. The care from the Omani government about the Daymaniyat Island can be seen underwater as well. Despite from old fishing nets, there is almost no trash to be found. The corals are healthy and the marine life is blooming. Great visibility up to 30 meters The Daymaniyat Island offer warm water with crystal clear visibility most of the times – especially during winter months when the water is a bit colder and contains less plankton. Anytime from October up to May can promise you visibility up to 30 meters – always depending on the sea condition of course. Water temperature ranges between 23 degrees Celsius in winter and up to 32 degrees in summer.  And yes, you may have figured it out already: Diving in the Daymaniyat Island can be done year-around. Scuba Diving here in Oman is possible every month of the car with April to May and September to October being the best combination of surface and sea temperatures. Summer time is Whale Shark time During the summer months – from June till the end of August – the temperature in Oman is very hot. But what is better than going to the ocean when its too hot to stay on land? Correct – nothing. But you know what? We can even top that. From July to late September is the annual whale shark season in Oman! During summer we spot the Whale Shakrs regularly in big groups. We usually stop our boat as soon as we see the whale sharks so you can enter the water and snorkel with them. But sometimes, if you are very lucky, you can even see them during your dive. But you are still wondering what’s more to see when diving the Daymaniyat Island? Don’t worry – you won’t be disappointed. We have many colorful, tropical fish and hard and soft corals to gaze at. There are many nudibranchs and reef fish in our area – and if you are into bigger fish, we got you covered with different types of turtles, rays such as Stingrays or Cowtail ray and Zebra and Black Reef Shark.  So what are you waiting for? Book your Scuba Diving trip to Daymaniyat Island with us today.   Previous PostNext Post

Snorkeling and Diving in Muscat: Fahal Island On the southern side of Al Mouj Marina the limestone wedge of Fahal Island offers divers healthy soft and hard coral gardens, a cave swim-through, and opportunities to see various species of shark resting on the seafloor. Maybe this is the reason why Fahal Island also owns the nickname “Sharks Island”. Located 4km from the mainland Al Fahal Island is situated around 4km from the mainland and has an area of just 2.24 km2. It is composed mostly of around 55 to 35 million year old Eocene limestone and marl. This limestone was originally part of the sea floor. It is made up from the shells of marine organisms such as bivalve shellfish, coral and algae, deposited in a shallow marine environment. The island outcrop is now exposed on the surface due to uplift and change in sea levels. Even tho the Island is very close to shore, it takes us around 20 to 25 minutes to reach Fahal by boat as our boat is located a bit north from Fahal Island at Al Mouj Marina. But you will enjoy the boat ride a lot, it’s a great chance to have a look at Muscats coastline. Excellent Diving with healthy corals This small island offers excellent diving with reefs found down at 40 meters and the calm waters around Fahal Island are suitable for divers of all levels. The sea life around Fahal is varied and interesting. Schools of fish are often seen swimming in and around the corals and reefs, they are of different species, shapes and colours and are fascinating to watch. One can see schools of barracuda swimming by. Giant eagle rays will be gliding past in a distance and sharks are often lazing on the shallower sandbanks. A very lucky few have even seen whale sharks swimming by. The Muscat sea area is rich in corals and at the centre of this diversity are the Fahal Islands, next to Daymaniyat Island ( https://molamoladivingcenter.com/daymaniyat-island-more-than-just-an-island/ ). We wrote a previous Blog post about our favorite dive sites at both, Daymaniyat and Fahal island. Check it out here: https://molamoladivingcenter.com/ultimate-list-of-best-dive-sites-in-oman/ Are you ready to dive at Fahal Island soon? Book our dive with us today. Previous PostNext Post

What’s the Best Time for Diving in Oman? Are you curious when you should visit us to enjoy Oman’s Best Diving Experience? Honestly, we are accessible year-around!  However, check out below to see what Oman has to offer and which month is best for Whale Sharks and when the best visibility at Daymaniyat Islands is too! Diving in Oman Oman and the diving around Muscat is the perfect place for beginners. The diving is simple and calm, the water is warm and the marine life is full of life and colors. We have many colorful tropical fish and hard and soft corals to gaze at. If you are into Makro, there are many nudibranchs and reef fish in our area – but if you are into bigger fish, don’t worry, we got you covered with many turtles, Zebra and Black Reef Shark and during the right season even Whale Sharks. The water temperature ranges from 19 degrees Celcisus in winter up to 28 degrees in summer. Visibility is best when the water is a bit colder and can range between 15 to 30 meters. Our depths range from 5 down to 28 meters. There are deeper dive sites of course but the best views are usually between 10 to 20 meters. Whale Shark Season Are you ready to snorkel with up to 20 Whale Sharks at the same time? The Whale Shark is the largest known fish species alive today. They are very graceful, slowly-moving and stunning to observe. We see them on our way to Daymaniyat island usually during summer, with July to September being the best time to encounter them. We stop the boat so you can jump in the water and snorkel with them. If you are lucky enough, you can even see one or two on a dive. Trust us, this will be an experience you treasure forever.. Visibility at Its Best As we said before, visibility is at its best during the winter months. Anytime from October up to May we can promise you visibility up to 30 meters. Just wear a 5mm wetsuit during the winter months (November to January) as the water is a bit colder and the air as well. Come Join Us! Are you ready for the best diving in Oman? With MolaMola Diving Center, a PADI Dive Center, we take you diving year-round with April to May and September to October to be the best combination of surface and sea temperatures and with July to September the best months for Whale Shark encounters. Next Post

Diving in Oman: Ultimate List of the best Diving Sites You are travelling to Oman and you’re keen to go diving? Go for it! Oman is still relatively undiscovered for diving – but offers healthy marine life, warm waters and amazing dive sites. Keep on reading to discover the best places to dive and the best dive sites! Go for Daymaniyat Island There is no better place to dive around Muscat than Daymaniyat Island. The nature Reserve protected by the Omani government offers everything you are looking for: Whalesharks during the summer months, lots of turtles, rays and Zebra sharks all year around. Colorful hard and soft corals, lots of Lion- and pufferfishes and huge moray eels. The islands are about 40 to 50 minutes away by boat from Al Mouj Marina, where MolaMola Diving Center is located and the ride to the island is a joy for itself. Surrounded by the blue ocean, getting a little ocean breeze before arriving at the place who is also called “the Maledives of the Middle east”. We have more than 20 dives sites at Daymaniyat island, but here are some of our favorite ones: Aquarium: One of our favorite dive sites is located 15 minutes before Daymaniyat Islands. This is an underwater rock and you start your dive at about 7m down and then either swim south or north along the wall, depending on the current. To the north your dive brings you over a sand chute and then along the wall to a small plateau down about 22-24 meters. Turning south you swim along a wall and then over an area of sand and coral blocks. All the walls as well as the whole plateau is loosely covered with blue coral bushes, some soft corals and small sponges. Look down to the sand, sometimes there are leopard sharks, lemon sharks or rays. Blacktip reef: This dive site impresses with the huge coral blocks at the very beginning. You continue the dive to a wall with a large plateau on about 18 meters covered with coral bushes at the end. Keep an eye out as you might always see Rays, Black Tip Sharks and also Moray Eels hidden in the caves below the rocks. Three sisters: This dive site lies on the eastern side of the bay. You dive along a wall with lots of large rocks nicely covered with hard and soft corals. On the flatter parts you will find coral gardens with table corals and lots of small reef fish. Don’t miss the large cave which reveals itself about 10m down with lots of Sweepers in it. Fahal Island is good for diving as well Next to Daymaniyat Island we do visit Fahal Island as well from time to time. We do prefer to dive at Daymaniyat Islands – but Fahal offers healthy corals and lots of huge Honeycomb moray eels that are worth a visit. We did spot a Zebra shark at Fahal as well, and lots of big Cowtail stingrays. Next to Fahal you can also dive in Bander Khairan – but to be honest with you: if you have the choice between Bander Khairan, Fahal or Daymaniyat Islands: go for Daymaniyat. You won’t regret it. Previous PostNext Post

Oman’s Underwater Charm: Snorkeling in Oman Today we saw the Jackson family – 5 turtles in one single spot. But that’s not it: we saw many turtles more, some parrotfishes, some cute little moray eels, some trumpetfishes, some pufferfishes, some butterflyfishes and of course some angelfishes. Their color ranges from blue to yellow, from orange to black, from green to red – its truly magical. But this is just a little part of Oman’s underwater charm – keep on reading to discover more. Swim with the Whalesharks Snorkeling in Oman offers you beautiful, colorful tropical fish and healthy corals. You can lots, lots, lots of turtles and if you are lucky, you might even be able to spot rays or Black tip sharks. Did you know that we even have a season for the Whalesharks here in Oman?From July to late September is the annual whale shark season in Oman. During this period, we spot them regularly in big groups. So, if you plan to join us on a trip during summertime, there is a high chance of spotting whale sharks on our way to the dive site in Daymaniyat island! And what’s better to do during the hot Omani summer than a swim in the water with these gentle giants? You Want to Go Deeper? Try Diving! And if you feel like going deeper after all your Snorkeling on the surface – don’t worry, we got you covered. You can even try Diving with us!If you feel comfortable enough during the Snorkeling, we will give you a little briefing about Scuba Diving, put you in the gear and we will take you down to about 7meters depths so you can go closer to your favorite marine life and enjoy breathing underwater for the first time. What do you think? Are you ready for Snorkeling in Oman with MolaMola Diving Center? Just write us a message today and we will make sure you will have the best day ever! Next Post

Snorkeling and Boat Trips to the Turtle Bay Oman Have you visited Ras al Jinz / Ras al Hadd during your vacation here in Oman to see the turtles nesting? Yeah? Well done, it is such a beautiful place. And now you are looking to swim with some of the turtles? Even better! You found the right place to do so. We will take you to Daymaniyat Island – the best place for Snorkeling in Oman and the place where you can meet the Jackson family. A group of 5 turtles living at the Turtle Bay. Five from 7 Different Types of Sea Turtles Are in Oman There are seven different types of sea turles around the world – and Omani waters are home to five of them. Every year an abundance of turtles migrate to the beaches and shorelines of the Arab Peninsula to dig a hole and lay their eggs. During these months, around 20,000 turtles come to Oman’s beaches. What a big number, right? All of these turtles live inside our Omani Ocean – and they LOVE Daymaniyat Island. The Jackson Family at Turtle Bay Turtle Bay is the best site to snorkel at Daymaniyat Island if you want to see the turtles. Sometimes we can see more than 8 turtles at the same spot, and there are more all around us. We usually can also find the Jackson family, 5 turtles living together. It’s truly a magical sight: swimming in crystal clear, warm water, watching turtles swimming, eating and playing with each other. What are you waiting for? The turtles are here all year around. You can just book your Snorkeling trip with us and we will make sure you can see them! Next Post

Why It’s Worth to Do a Refresher Course! Many of us are in the same situation: Covid made us stuck in our home base, not able to travel and especially not able to Scuba Dive. Since you’ve had a long break from Scuba Diving, it is worth taking a Refresher Course. Get to know why and what the course looks like. Better to Be Over-Prepared than Risk a Problem Even though, your PADI certification never expires, it is better to be over-prepared than risk a problem because you forget something important. If you have been out of the water for a while, your Scuba skills might feel a little rusty and in need of a tune-up. A refresher is a program, where divers receive the assistance and supervision of a dive professional in a pool or shallow water environment while they review the basic skills of diving. It should also include a thorough review of equipment usage and some knowledge development. The Refresher differs from a ‘check dive’ in which a group of divers might be asked to check their weighting and perform a few skills to demonstrate basic diving competence before heading off into deeper water to enjoy a regular dive. Step by Step with a Private Instructor With us, you will be going through step by step with a private instructor. He or she will help you to set up your equipment, will review with you some of the basic skills required for Scuba Diving but will also give you some more pro tips along the way. Then together you will jump into the water, to review some basic but very important skills. You will stay below the surface until the instructor can feel that you feel comfortable again – then you can join the rest of the group for two amazing dives. Use Your Own Judgement Honestly, as from our experience, 90 per cent of the divers who ask to do a refresher don’t really need to do one, and 90 per cent of the divers who refuse a refresher really do. This makes sense: Usually people who belong to the safe, considerate diver (who everyone would love to dive with) tend to book a Refresher – even if they would be fine without it. But usually people who refuse to do a Refresher program are the ones who tend to create problems for everyone. A good diver should be able to use their own judgement to determine whether or not they would benefit from a thorough refresher program or just need an easy check-dive to get themselves back into the water. Are You Asking Yourself Now – Should I Take a Refresher? PADI suggests that divers who did not dive in the last six months should take a Refresher course. In our opinion, this can vary a bit. If a diver was certified Open Water but made no other dives after the course, then a refresher is essential if the next dive is anything more than a few months later. For a diver with less than 20 logged dives then 6 months out of the water would warrant a tune-up of some description. An absence from the water of more than two years should make even experienced divers consider a confined water session before heading out into the depths. Worried about the Handsignals? You feel like taking a PADI Refresher Course with us? Check all the details here  You have been diving within the last six months but you keep on forgetting the Scuba Handsignals? Don’t worry – we got you covered with our Blog post here: The most important Scuba Diving Hand Signals. Next Post

Can I dive on my period? You planned your vacation. You booked the flights. And your dives with MolaMola Diving Center are all set. And then, there is this time of the month where you will be getting your period. And it turns out to be exactly on the same dates as your planned dives… It happens. Probably almost every female diver has asked herself: Is it safe to dive while I am on my period? Be it shark attack, weakness, visual or hygienic issues. Keep on reading to find out everything you need to know about diving on your period.   Is there a chance of shark attack if I dive on my period? Some people worry that they’ll be more prone to a shark attack if they go in the water during their period. The good news: There is no evidence that correlates sharks attack and menstruation, nor are there any reported cases of shark attacks on women who are on their period.  Thankfully, sharks are not going to smell your blood and come pursuing you because you’re menstruating. The warning that a shark can smell blood from five kilometers away is taken as fact, but this does not mean the smell makes the shark any more interested in you as it would be a floating log. Studies have been carried out to watch the shark’s reaction to human blood. Sharks seem inquisitive, however not forceful when human blood is in the water. The conclusion is a relief as it turns out, sharks are most attracted to fish gastric juices (not even fish blood) which bodes well for the shark as a fish that is releasing gastric juices is certainly handicapped and easy prey. So, don’t worry about the sharks. You should actually be paying more attention to preventing a sunburn, or dehydration while on a dive trip! Stay well hydrated to prevent DCS and a sunburn Diving on your period is generally okay. Nonetheless, studies have demonstrated that scuba diving while bleeding may add to a diver’s danger of decompression sickness. One study recorded, that women were twice as liable to experience decompression sickness throughout the first week of their menstrual cycle. So please make sure to ascend conservatively and stay hydrated when diving on your period, not only to prevent DCS but also a sunburn and dehydration. Diving on our period? We feel no difference For us female Divers at MolaMola Diving Center, we feel no difference with Diving on our period. We love Diving in Oman and are enjoying it on every day of the month. However, as we know, each body is different. During their time of the month, some women may have stronger pain than others, experiencing severe and possibly debilitating cramps. In that case, the advice is the same as taught from the PADI Open Water course: safety is always the most important thing. Dive only if you feel good and comfortable to do so. Feel free to reach out to us on our Instagram if we wish to know more to clear your doubts. See you on the boat! Previous PostNext Post