going on my first liveaboard

[ewaiea]

I'll "third" that about the lycra socks. My first liveaboard was the Kona Aggressor (Big Island of Hawaii). By the third day the backs of my feet were raw to the point it hurt to kick with my fins on in the water. Thankfully someone onboard had an extra pair of lycra socks that didn't fit me perfectly but it sure took the pain away immediately and gave my feet a chance to heal - I didn't miss any diving.

Call me crazy - and this is definitely a quirky one - but I like to keep my nails trimmed and they grow fast being in the water that often. My last trip I was kind of wishing I had a nail clippers. I know I know, gross! But hey, since we're making non-obvious recommendations I might as well pile on too!

Have an awesome time on your liveaboard trip - I have only done these trips as a solo traveler and I did room with the person on the trip this last time who was known as the boat's "pain in the ass"....but behind closed doors he actually was pretty nice and we got along great. You'll be so tired after each day - some of the GREATEST nights of sleep I've ever had have been on liveaboard trips. The two by-products of a liveaboard trip aside from the easy access to diving is the food (at least so far) and the great night's sleep....*sigh*

I'm heading out on the Palau Aggressor or Tropic Dancer this October for my first trip to Palau - third liveaboard ever, I'm counting down the days!

Take care!

 

[vladimir]

I'll "third" that about the lycra socks. My first liveaboard was the Kona Aggressor (Big Island of Hawaii). By the third day the backs of my feet were raw to the point it hurt to kick with my fins on in the water. Thankfully someone onboard had an extra pair of lycra socks that didn't fit me perfectly but it sure took the pain away immediately and gave my feet a chance to heal - I didn't miss any diving.

The real issue is the poorly fitting or poorly designed booties that are easy to overlook when you're doing two dives a day, but become painfully evident on a five-dive-a-day schedule. I had a pair with a seam over my instep that regularly drew blood until I changed booties. But I like the lycra sock idea and since they weigh nothing there's no downside to bringing them, especially if your booties haven't been thoroughly tested.

 

[Quero]

Not just booties, Vlad, but also full-foot fins. They can chafe and rub in different places. Any kind of socks helps whether they're athletic socks or dive-specific lycra ones. I usually advise people to bring a couple of pairs of cheap men's dress socks that can easily be replaced if one sock goes missing or gets a tear in it, and can simply be thrown away at the end of the trip.

 

[tanyadeweymarn]

Can't believe how hugely helpful you are all being - THANK YOU! Every post makes me think of something else to take and informs me a bit more. Why did I not do this sooner? Or will this end up being another one of my very expensive addictions (diving, traveling...... living aboard).
Extra swim wear, socks, clothes pegs (sorry terribly english), nail clippers and t-shirts ready to go. I have removed the shoes! Will I have space to stow my small (biggest you can take as carry on luggage on a budget airline) suitcase in the cabin? And (I know this is probably very blonde and silly but) will I get phone signal (the man refuses to learn to dive as he's 'not the strongest swimmer' (don't start me on it! - he's getting swimming lessons for his birthday!))

Please keep the tips coming. Loving hearing your thoughts
Tanya
x

 

[vladimir]

The phone signal will depend on the liveaboard. Probably not in Papua New Guinea, for example. Not very far from shore, anywhere. The Kona Aggressor gets a signal. Boats may let you use (for a fee) their satellite phone. Personally, I love sending out that email at work: "...in an emergency I can be reached by satellite phone at..." and knowing I won't have to talk to anybody all week.

 

[large_diver]

Another idea for Red Sea liveaboards that someone else suggested to me - bring a colorful bungee loop or ponytail holder to wrap around the waterbottle they give you. On large liveaboards it is often hard to keep track of which water bottle is yours as the day goes on!

Figure out what your cabin is like ahead of time including storage/drawers for clothes...this may affect what kind of bag you bring.

If using re-chargeables for camera, bring more than 1 (I usually bring 3)

Regarding phone signals - depends on where you are in the Red Sea. Last year on a "Deep South" itinerary I received a decent signal on my Blackberry until we went south of Marsa Alam. Down in the St. John's area you are less likely to get a signal, especially of well off-shore. Sometimes I wouldn't get a signal at all during the day....but my Blackberry would find a signal overnight and e-ail would make it in/our - very hit or miss.

Have a great time!

Chris

 

[Shasta_man]

I always bring 5 suits and 4 shirts so I can alternate, though I usually do the longer 12 night type trips. At 4-5 dives a day, you can quickly go through suits just in the first couple days.

I wear a 1mm skin to get in and out of the suit easily and it protects your achilles area where dive boots tend to have a big seam and rub. I've seen people just put their foot in a plastic bag to put on their wet suit. As mentioned, make sure your boots fit well. Uusually no need for the heavy sole/shore dive walk out type.

Pace yourself. The week trips aren't so bad, but the long trips can turn into marathons to keep yourself well. I don't sleep well leading up to getting there, so I pace myself by not necessarily doing every dive on day 1-2, like maybe the night dive. You've got to get good rest and let your ears rest to keep doing dives over and over, but by the end of the trip with usually the best places, I'm still doing the five dives daily.

 

[WOODMAN]

Another vote for the full length lycra skin and lycra socks in your dive boots. I have always used a skin as my basic first layer of body protection, and even went so far as to get one of the premium skins which is made of heavier lycra and stands up to wear much better. I can't tell you how many times it has saved me from sunburn and inadvertent contact with stinging nasties underwater, and it sure helps with donning wetsuits, shorties, etc. The lycra socks were a more recent idea, and now I would not be without them either. Boots slide on and off sooo much easier with them in place, and skin rubbing is much reduced or eliminated. Woody

 

[Joe Cool]

My first liveaboard was two years ago and it was a trip to Tubbataha (Sulu Sea Philippines). My brother and I shared a room so that was a no-brainer. I am not a natural socializer so on my next liveaboard trip (on my own), it will be interesting for me to find out how that experience would turn out. I find it hard to start conversations aside from commenting about the weather. I try to socialize but eventually run out of steam (conversation topics) quickly.

During my first liveaboard, I brought all my equipment with me including a P&S U/W camera. All packed in one large duffel bag using the fins as side stiffeners. To keep things together, I used a couple of luggage straps around it. I had one 3mm wetsuit, dive boots and socks. My boots are wide inside so I needed socks to fill in the void. The socks helped big time to keep from having raw skin areas around my foot. I also had a dive vest with me that I use to add more thermal isulation around my upper body when needed.

I only had two swim shorts that I use alternately. I use one pair of shorts a day then wash it at night. I hang it to dry outside, If it is just a bit damp, I leave it in the cabin and let the AC suck up all the remaining moisture. It works but it makes it feel cold when you wear it for the first time again. During that 1 week liveaboard, I have 5 t-shirts, a boardshort, several underwear, and a set of sleep wear (long-sleeve t-shirt and shorts). I recycle t-shirts as long as they are not soiled and they don't stink. I hang them to dry in the cabin.

My brother wore a pair of Lycra swim shorts under his wetsuit. It was easier to don and doff a wetsuit with those compared to regular swim shorts. I'll use a couple of pairs on my next trip.

When I board the ship, I wear sandals. While I am on-board the ship, I wear flip-flops. I never go bare foot on deck for safety reasons.

 

[ewaiea]

In response to the email questions - I am the type that if email is available I probably wouldn't use it. The only thing I would do is perhaps update my co-workers with my status that I am in fact safe and sound but will be out of contact for the next 7-10 days. In Papua New Guinea I lost cell service as soon as I hit Australia as well as PNG and didn't regain it until I was back home in Honolulu.

The Star Dancer (at the time) docked at a nice little resort called Walindi and they had internet for a nominal fee. That enabled me to quick put a facebook upload of some photos and comments, check my email and let my loved ones know that I was fine at the end of the trip - the beginning of the trip I just used the wifi at the Sydney Airport. On the Kona Aggressor I had cell service pretty much the whole time - if I had the extra money to hap-hazzardly do it - I'd love to go do a "sneak-away" trip on the Kona Aggressor, they had an awesome operation and it's hard to resist since it's so close to where I live.

Let me say again - you are really doing the right thing by letting your addiction of diving grow naturally by doing your first liveaboard. I see no other way I could enjoy a dive trip more. Sure there's a few land based dive centers I'd like to hit in Tahiti, or in North Sulawesi (Lembeh Strait) and a few in the Caribbean (Roatan and the Caymans) but other than that - if there's a liveaboard nearby I'll still probably take that option.

And traveling alone is not a bad way to do these trips - it's a given that everyone onboard is as much if not more into diving as you are. Which I don't know about you - but I almost never talk about my liveaboard addiction to people I know because they aren't divers. And the dive friends I do have never want to do liveaboards because they like the bar-hopping land-based experience......so socializing on liveaboards (even though I'm somewhat intraverted) has always come pretty natural to me. Other single travelers often will be-friend you because you'll have that basic thing in common.

Have fun in the Red Sea - if you take another trip next year I'll be doing the Dancer Fleet - either Milne Bay, PNG or the Alor Islands, Indonesia. Let me know if that tickles your fancy