Customer Feedback

Here is some feedback from two guests on Oktavia in late April. It's pretty typical of what people think of Oktavia.

Hi Paul

We had a great trip on the Oktavia. The crew  was very friendly and so was the owner who was also on the trip.

The boat was the best liveaboard I have been on in Thailand and the food was great.

The diving was exceptional with 15 dives 4 of them on Richelieu Rock which is one of the best dive sites in the world.

Thanks again for all your help,we had a fantastic time.

Thanks

Cliff and Anna

Thailand Liveaboards in October

MV Oktavia:

We have had two announcements from the Thailand National Parks department this week. Firstly, confirmation that marine park entrance fees will rise next season from 400 baht to 500 baht per foreigner.

Better news is that the the Similan and Surin marine national parks will be opening a couple of weeks early this year on 15 October.

So far two boats have added October dates to their schedules. they are Octavia and Deep Andaman Queen. More boats are sure to follow.

Free Nitrox on Pawara. And free WI-FI

Last season Pawara became the first boat to offer free WI-FI to it's guests, it's still one of the few boats that does.

This season it will also be offering free nitrox to certified divers.

If you are not nitrox certified you can do the PADI Nitrox specialty onboard.

Pawara is excellent value in the upper mid price range category. Cabins filled up fast last season.

To book please contact us

Similan Explorer review

I've just got some detailed and constructive feedback from a diver who went on Similan Explorer in late April. There are positives and negatives but overall it's positive. I thought I'd copy the full unedited review here.

Hey Paul,

It was really good! I had a very good time with some excellent diving. Even seen a couple of Manta's!

Feedback

Boat.

The boat was really good, looked clean and spacious. We where only with 6 divers though, I think if there where 20 divers on board it would be a lot less comfortable.

Crew

John and Lisa where great, professional and fun! The only comment I gave them is that they could share there knowledge more. They didn't always seem to realize that what they see every day is new to most other divers. Like drift diving for example, they could have made this into a interesting subject to have a bigger briefing about. Now they just named it. I think if they would have taken a little more time to teach in stead of just guide it would have been even better.

The Thai crew was super fun and friendly, the only comment I would have there is that they start yelling (in a friendly way, but still) GO! GO! GO! when people where entering the water. For non divers this might seem like normal, but as a diver I think entering the water is something that should happen slowly en safely. 

Food

Good and tasty food (considering it was made in a small kitchen on a boat) that was made with heaps of love and care by the Thai lady's.

I did get a fish bone stuck in my throat for about two days, but that can happen anywhere. What wasn't so nice though was the diarrhea I had for a couple of days afterwards.

Equipment

I used my own equipment, but for what I have seen it looked good.

Over all the trip was a 100% success! And the things that could be better don't way up to the rest that was amazing.

I hope this will help you.

White Manta Liveaboard Review

White Manta has just finished it's second season in Thailand and is now on it's way round to Layang Layang. The feedback from White Manta guests is always excellent and it will be one of our top recommendations for next season. But book early because most trips were full months in advance this season. 

This feedback from Linda who was on the boat in February is typical:

Hello Paul!

The trip was AWESOME!!!!  The White Manta was beautiful, the staff wonderful, the food amazing!!! Oliver Fitch was our dive master and he was a delight.  Our room was roomy and very comfortable.  The diving was memorable.

I would highly recommend the White Manta!!

Peter Pan Liveaboard Feedback

Another happy diver :)

Hey Paul,

Our trip on the Peter Pan liveaboard was awesome!

We had a really amazing adventure, doubled the amount of dives we had done and got way more comfortable diving.

I loved Sandra, who was our dive master. I just hope her ear is ok.

Rut and all of the entire staff on the boat were just wonderfully fun and professional.

I absolutely will recommend Peter Pan to anyone I talk to and maybe we will do the South trip one day.

We saw some great stuff. The most fish I have ever seen in my life. Not much on the big side, but that's ok.

Thanks again for being in quick contact with me everytime I emailed you.

I have no complaints.

And the cook on board was also incredible. Not only did he serve delicious food every day, he was extremely accomodating to my girlfriend's 

dietary restrictions at every meal. He always made something special just for her.

Thanks again!

Courtney

Hallelujah Liveaboard Review

This is the feedback from a recent (Dec 2012) guest on Hallelujah liveaboard:

Hi Paul,
I had a great time on board Hallelujah. The dive instructors made everything they could to show us the good stuff, and we had lots of fun together. The boat crew was really helpfun and friendly, and I loved the food. The cofee was not so good, and some of the dive equipment was not 100%. But after all, the trip exceeded my expectations, and I will not hesitate recommending the trip to my friends. I also hope I will have the opportunity to go again to the Similand Islands with your crew another time.
Best Regards, Thor

Hallelujah consistently gets good reviews. To be honest the feedback from all boats is coming back positive at the moment, probably because the diving in December has been so good. When divers see cool stuff underwater they tend to rate the boats higher, they also leave bigger tips to the crew.

Richelieu Rock Day trip diving

If you have just one day to dive in Thailand, the best dive site is Richelieu Rock.

Our day trip with two dives to Richelieu Rock departs three days per week between November and April. Trips run on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Departures from Khao Lak are at 8.30am, returning at about 4pm.

The price is 4,950 baht per diver plus 700 baht national park fee. If you need to rent equipment that's just 400 baht extra.

If you are staying in Phuket we can arrange transfers to the boat for you. It'll be aong day but worth it if you see a whale shark!

Book your Richelieu Rock day trip diving here

South Siam Liveaboards first trips

South Siam III

South Siam has announced the start dates for their two liveaboards for this season which is approaching fast.

South Siam III starts on 20 October. South Siam III dives the Similan Islands and Koh Bon. It's a great budget boat that offers a totally flexible schedule, stay one day or stay ten, up to you.

The first Similan day trip is 20 October. The first Koh Bon day trip is 21 October.

South Siam IV starts trips to Richelieu Rock on 27 October. South Siam IV is a great option for divers with limited time who still want to dive Similan, Koh Bon, Koh Tachai and Richelieu Rock.

Both these boats already have plenty of bookings and are confirmed to start on the above dates.

Special Richelieu Rock only liveaboard

There is one cabin still available on Nautica's special 4 day 4 night liveaboard to Richelieu Rock.

Nautica

Trip dates are 8-12 January 2013, start and finish is in Thap Lamu. Nautica will cruise directly to Richelieu and spend all 3 full days there doing 12 dives. On the final day there will be two wreck dives at the Premchai Wreck and the Boonsung Wreck on the way back to Khao Lak.

This is a great trip for divers who want to spend extended time on Thailand's number one dive site. These type of trips are popular with serious underwater photographers, we often get requests from documentary firm crews to dive in just one place. 

Richelieu Rock is the best place in Thailand to dive with whale sharks.

Nitrox is available so you can extend your bottom time. Want to bring your own rebreather? Nautica can accommodate that.

If you are interested please contact us.