Wetsuit for Maldives

[Steve Garnham]

Hi all
First day on here...quick question that's probably been asked a hundred times, in your experience, would a 5mm full wetsuit be too much for Helengeli in the Maldives in March next year? Thinking about the "nasties" that may be waiting for me!
Sorry if this has been asked before, but until I find my way round...

 

[Outbound]

Water temps in the Maldives are pretty warm. Most folks use a 3mm suit for those kinds of water temps, but everyone is different. For me, a 3mm suit is a bit too thin for multiple dives per day for multiple days in water cooler than about 82 degrees F. I can kinda get away with wearing a 3mm vest underneath, but I'm most comfy in a 5mm suit. Above the low-80s, 3mm is perfect for me.

A 5mm suit will serve you well for a wide range of temperatures. But in the end, you'll probably end up getting a couple of different wetsuits (and maybe even a drysuit) for all the types of diving you'll end up doing.

 

[chillyinCanada]

3mm was great for me. I don't think that I even ever had to break out my beanie. (4 trips)

 

[Diving Dane]

Been there many times, and have always used a 1mm or t-shirt and shorts. The 1mm I actually only use to protect against any accidental scrape or such, not for thermal protection, which I don´t find I need in the Maldives. 5mm I would be very uncomfortable with.

But as others have said, we´re all different

Have a great trip, and enjoy some fantastic diving!

 

[lexvil]

I dove the south in March of this year, water was 85°, stopped wearing the 1mm and just went with swim trunks and rash guard, did get into a bunch of invisible stingers on one dive. I would think for a cold water diver 3mm would be the maximum you would want to use.

 

[Neilwood]

A lot depends on personal tolerance to cold and how many dives you are doing. If doing multiple dives per day and/or multiple day diving, I would err on the side of a thicker suit. Heat loss is cumulative and can add up over a lot of dives.

Worse case with a thicker suit is that you feel too warm on the surface in which case you pour a water bottle down the inside to cool down or you are too warm in the water so you open the neck/wrists to flush some water in.