Maldives Liveaboards
Maldives Siren
Maldives Siren is a 112-foot purpose-built dive boat designed to offer comfort and luxury for all divers. The beautiful Phinisi was crafted in Indonesia from ironwood and teak, and has seven sails and ample space for all onboard. There are eight cabins for a maximum of 14 guests although on special charters you can bring up to 18 guests.
One double cabin has an additional single bed making it ideal for families, two of the twin cabins are convertible to double cabins, two twin cabins have two single beds each and two cabins three single beds. All cabins have private bathrooms, personal computers, entertainment systems and little luxuries such as bathrobes, mood lighting, individual air-conditioning controls and hairdryers. Common areas include a large cocktail bar with a 42-inch flat screen television, massage spa, laundry service, and a boutique. The dive deck is equipped with designated charging and preparation areas for camera and video equipment. Also onboard are two zodiacs, kayaks, waterskis and wakeboarding equipment. Nitrox is free for all Nitrox certified divers. Maldives Siren has itineraries all throughout the archipelago.
Manthiri
Manthiri is a luxury liveaboard built for the Maldives waters. Six cabins – four twins and two doubles with queen-size beds – accommodate a maximum of 12 divers. All cabins have private bathrooms, minibars, fans, plenty of storage and individual air-conditioning. Two separate lounge areas and a partially covered large sundeck give plenty of room to hang out and compare diving notes. The main lounge has an entertainment system and comfortable seating areas, and the smaller lounge is equipped with everything you need to work with your underwater photography: large camera table, laptop computer, slide projector and both 110 and 220 volt electricity.
Diving onboard the Manthiri is from a separate custom-built 54-foot dhoni with a toilet, hot water shower, rinse tank and plenty of room to store your dive gear. All tanks and compressors stay in the dhoni making the main boat more spacious. The stable and roomy boat sits close to the water making exit and entrance easy and comfortable. Manthiri offers Nitrox.
Maldives Aggressor
The brand-new 115-foot Maldives Aggressor features six cabins with a double and a single berth and four cabins with two single berths. Equipment onboard includes Nitrox, a dive tender and a satellite phone with email capabilities. There are three distinctly different types of diving: inside the atolls, outside the atolls and inside the channels or passes, which is where the currents are strongest and you'll find the greatest congregation of fish life. Most intriguing are the cleaning stations, found around every corner and under every ledge. Groupers, snappers, surgeonfish, eels, parrotfish, even giant napoleon wrasse park casually in corners, oblivious to all, while armies of wrasse, shrimp and other assorted cleaners pick at debris in their open gills and cavernous mouths.
The big attraction, however, are the schools of fish that patrol the reefs in colorful packs: humpback , black and white snappers, trevally jacks, barracudas, batfish, unicornfish, yellowback fusiliers and harlequin sweetlips almost comical in design. The reef's larger inhabitants, including sharks, rays and occasionally even whale sharks, are often seen cruising in the blue.
One of the best known boats in the Maldives with recently changed name to Ocean Star, is a beautifully appointed 110-foot dive boat cruising the many atolls of Maldives. Dive itineraries vary depending on the season and weather and the crew is excellent finding the best spots for manta rays and reef sharks. Onboard you will find eight air-conditioned cabins, all with private bathrooms, portholes, wardrobes, toiletries and bathrobes. Six cabins have side-by-side double and single beds and two cabins have a lower double bed and upper single bunk.
Up from the accommodation deck, a large salon area accommodates everyone with plenty of comfortable seating, and on the sundeck you will find both covered and sunny spots to relax and enjoy the views. To access the area’s shallow atolls, all diving is done from a 52-foot self-contained tender. All dive gear is stored and tanks filled onboard the tender. Ocean Star offers Nitrox.
Eagle Ray is a 100-foot luxurious liveaboard especially designed to dive the Maldives waters. Maximum of 14 guests are accommodated in seven cabins, all equipped with air-conditioning, private bathrooms, windows and mini bars. Three cabins have a double bed and four two twin beds. All diving is done from a 15-foot support dhoni that also stores all your diving equipment. Eagle Ray offers Nitrox.
The tour takes you through various atolls of the Maldives where, besides plenty of good dive spots, you will see the scenic beauty of the Maldives. Experience the rich culture and diverse lifestyle of the hospitable locals of these islands. After diving you can relax in the comfortable lounge furnished with sofas or under the sun on the sundeck. By dusk the boat usually anchors near an island or sandbank where you can decide between a night dive, visit to an uninhabited island or relaxing on the deck under the starlit sky.
Ark Royal is a new 115-foot luxury dive liveaboard with creature comforts hard to find on most liveaboards. There are nine very large cabins, all with private bathrooms, air-conditioning, televisions with DVD players, CD players, small refrigerators, safety boxes and telephones. Four of the cabins have large twin beds, and four queen-size beds. The suite, located on the top deck, comes with a queen-size bed and its own private jacuzzi – enjoy the bubbles with gorgeous views over the ocean from large picture windows.
Ark Royal was designed to make your stay comfortable with added touches of sophisticated luxury: a beautiful lounge with an extensive movie and music collection, Wi-Fi, a fully-stocked bar, tasty meals either in the indoor dining room or al-fresco, sun loungers and deck furniture on the spacious sun deck and the best of all, an onboard spa. Relax with massages and steam bath treatments between dives! The vessel’s excellent dive deck is spacious and diving is done from a large dhoni. Diving itineraries range from seven to eleven nights and take in many different areas of the Maldives. Ark Royal offers Nitrox.
Sea Spirit and Sea Queen are Maldives Scuba Tours liveaboards known for their high standard of service and ease of diving. Sea Spirit is 92-foot long and has six cabins for a maximum of twelve guests. Four of the cabins have lower double and a lower single bed, two only a lower double bed. Sea Queen is 85-foot long and also has six cabins for a maximum of twelve guests. All cabins have a lower double and an upper single bunk. Both vessels’ cabins are air-conditioned and have private bathrooms, port holes, wardrobes and fans.
Comfortable and informal common areas include a large saloon with a full entertainment system and plenty of both shaded and sunny deck space. Tea, coffee and soft drinks are available at all times, and delicious dinners featuring both international and local recipes are often served on the deck to give you a chance to enjoy the gorgeous views. All diving is done from support dhonis which store all the diving equipment making the main vessel more spacious. All your gear is safely carried onboard the support boat. Sea Spirit’s 52-foot dhoni and Sea Queen’s 45-foot dhoni both have Nitrox and can support Rebreather.
The 125-foot luxurious wooden-hull safari yacht Carpe Vita Explorer was launched in January 2011. It provides guests with an exceptional first-class yachting experience, large staterooms and unmatched open-air comfort. The main deck has a restaurant and a lounge with an entertainment area equipped with a flat-screen television, DVD player, sound system and a library, all with plenty of comfortable seating. Adjoining the lounge there’s an outdoor shaded lounge with cushioned benches and beautiful views of the islands. Upper deck offers an alfresco dining area and a fully-stocked bar. The sun deck has both shaded and sunny areas with chaises, and a jacuzzi.
The upper deck has two VIP cabins with a king-size or two double beds each. The two main deck cabins have a queen-size bed or two double beds, and the six lower deck cabins a queen-size bed and a twin each. All the ten very large cabins offer a private bath and shower, separately controlled air-conditioning and plenty of storage space.
Carpe Vita Explorer is ideally sized and equipped for divers. Four daily dives are conducted directly from a 65-foot dhoni, which is fully equipped with a bathroom, hot-water showers and both air and Nitrox compressors. The main boat has a swim platform with two fresh water showers, and a specialized camera table with charging stations. The boat offers 7-night and 10-night scheduled itineraries throughout the Maldives archipelago.