Considering Liveaboard in December, questions.

[randpchi]

About the bags. I was thinking of taking a backpack to keep all my stuff in the bunk together. I figured I can put everything I'll need for the week in 1 backpack and leave it in my bunk with everything not stored topside (i.e. dive gear itself)? Think that would work?

Yes it will. Each bunk has a shelf that is about a foot wide by the width of the bunk.
A Mf towel is a good idea, I bring 2, one for the deck one for showers.
They do give you a plastic cup with blue tape on it to write your name.
Bring a light raincoat, it could get chilly on deck. Also a dry bag for the bin they have for your loose gear would add to your storage.
I have been late November, if you are cold tolerate a 3Ml should be ok. Expect temps in the low 70's

 

[Shasta_man]

As you point out scbaNE2179, there is not one "right" answer. For you and others, enjoying the liveaboard lifestyle as much as you do, I see you are already in the Caribbean, but there are some great sights and diving to see out in the Pacific too if you haven't been out there. Some amazing stuff in the ocean and on land too after the diving's done. There's a range of prices and quality there. I was chuckling at the 1 foot wide shelf as one of the boats I did had a 360 sqft state room I shared with another diver. Probably bring all of the guests from the BB with you. Dewi Nusantara Of course, that trip is $6K now I see but for 11 nights. It was less at the time and I can't typically afford big luxury but I was going alone (remember what I said about paying 2x) and the wife wanted to know I was coming back alive so I had to suffer with it. Flights to SE Asia can be surprisingly cheap so the total isn't necessarily as high as you might think. Probably cost me half of what it take for me to fly to Caribbean. Take the flight savings and put it on the boat. Anyway, plenty of good diving on liveaboards.

 

[Lorenzoid]

As you point out scbaNE2179, there is not one "right" answer. For you and others, enjoying the liveaboard lifestyle as much as you do, I see you are already in the Caribbean, but there are some great sights and diving to see out in the Pacific too if you haven't been out there. Some amazing stuff in the ocean and on land too after the diving's done. There's a range of prices and quality there. I was chuckling at the 1 foot wide shelf as one of the boats I did had a 360 sqft state room I shared with another diver.

That's a good point for people who may come across this thread later.

Before my first liveaboard, I had read--no doubt somewhere on SB--that there isn't any space for luggage, and I can anticipate them storing my rolling bag on land. I didn't have the foresight to ask the liveaboard I had booked about this--I just expected that's how it is with all or most liveaboards. When I arrived at the dock and asked about storing my rolling bag because I assumed there was no room in my cabin, they looked at me like I was from another planet and said, "There's plenty of room in your cabin for that, and besides, we don't have an office or anything here to store things in." Sure enough, there was space under the bed that was large enough to store my wife's and my roller bags.

 

[scbaNE2179]

I see you are already in the Caribbean

My true location is on a need to know basis! And yes, I have a true passion for Caribbean livaboard diving. Pacific is definitely wish list but the cost and expense getting there always delay my best intentions. The allure of the distance to the Caribbean from the states makes my vacation that much more accessible.

 

[outofofficebrb]

I've done a few liveaboards and have summarized below but in short, you are paying for better boats (more modern/updated, better finishing), more privacy (that may mean more square feet per person on board), ensuite bathrooms and private rooms, AC, 24 hour power, better food, plated instead of buffet, and definitely a higher crew to passenger ratio. (I recently had a 16 passenger to 13 crew ratio.) On some itineraries, don't just pay attention to the price as you say but look at the number of dives that you also get. You sometimes go from no DM to having a DM or even better, a better DM to diver ratio or more experienced ones when you pay more. I haul along camera gear so having camera friendly areas, dedicated equipment for care and maintenance is also something that I only find on a nicer liveaboard. The list goes on and on....but hopefully that gives you a gist.

Here's what I've been on:

-California's version of Blackbeard's out to the Channel Islands (Truth Aquatics - bunks, if you could even call them that, and 2 showers shared, 1 changing room, and a couple of bathrooms shared). informal dining, no table service, not enough seating for everyone to eat inside or all sit at once. 3 meals a day. no dive guides or DM included. you're on your own for getting your gear on/off and in and out of the water. They just fill the tanks and run the boat. Bare bones. nowhere to charge gear if you're a photographer. nitrox was an option.

-Mastro Aldo (Komodo Dive Center) for Komodo - private rooms and bathrooms but the bathrooms were not necessarily en-suite..but they were yours and only yours. AC. 4 meals a day plus snacks. plated dining. 1 DM for every 4 divers. diving off dinghies, assistance with gear (assembly, don/doffing), etc. room cleaning service daily. beer and wine not included. personal service. no power between certain hours at night. no nitrox.

-Raja Ampat Aggressor and Spirit of Freedom - private rooms, ensuite bathrooms with AC. dailyi room cleaning and turndown service. 4 meals a day plus snacks, beer and wine included on the Aggressor but not Spirit. 1 DM for 4-6 divers depending on group and skill level of divers. diving off dinghies, assistance with gear (assembly, don, doffing, and cleaning/rinsing and drying at end of trip), extremely personal service, MUCH larger boats and nicer finishes, power 24 hours a day. dedicated camera area/room with lots of power options. nitrox an option. pre-and-post trip arrangements like transfers to hotel or airports, etc.

 

[Shasta_man]

<<distance to the Caribbean>> giving away something there! As I mentioned it's surprisingly expensive for me to get to the Caribbean from California. It's all about frequently traveled routes. I have flown all the way to Indonesia for $750, but getting to the Caribbean can cost me $1000 or more between getting to the East Coast and then beyond. At the same time, flying to Palau (lHawaii-Guam-Palau; closer than Indo) can be $2500 from the West Coast nowadays. Prices to the Phillipines are probably reasonably cheap. .

For lurkers benefit, as well as scbaNE2179, you could get very cheap in Asia. Certainly something serviceable particularly if you are willing to live like the locals like in food (which I like to do but can only go so low) but also quality down to lower than you would want to go down to dangerous.

Also mention the mystifying "single supplement". No, you don't HAVE to pay it if going solo. I've had more than one boat work out to my own room for the double occupancy price. Spent most of the Fiji trip hanging out with crew and their kava. Since my idea of great location is one where the phone stops working when you leave the dock and the TV is only for the dive video you took today, toughest part can be leaving what's actually important in life to readjust to the real world.

Naming other spots to recommend, besides Palau, and Raja Ampat and Komodo as mentioned above, are Fiji and Solomon Islands. Tahiti is close but not many liveaboards. Expensive to get to.

 

[jlcnuke]

I think "starting" location can be almost as important as destination when planning vacations (at least for me).

For a "local" flight of 2-6 hours, I don't mind being a sardine in economy class seating. For a 12-24+ hour transit time, I'm not going unless I'm flying business of first class personally. At that point, the round-trip airfare alone to Fiji is going to cost as much (or more) than what it would cost me to for an entire trip to a really nice live-aboard (or all inclusive resort) in the Caribbean. In addition to costs, the travel-time can influence it greatly as well. I'd love to go dive the GBR etc, but that's 30+ hours each way, plus lost time (effectively) for jet-lag. That doesn't work very well if I've only got 9 days off of work (or even two weeks really). Since getting two weeks off in a row is an exception, no the rule, trying to plan a trip longer than that isn't feasible.

When I retire, I'll probably spend 2-3 months on the other side of the world within the first couple years (first class flights out there and back, a week or two each in various destinations in the region before coming home). Until then, however, anything over 6 hours is probably costing more than I want to spend (due to upgrading to first class) and taking up more of my limited time off on traveling than I'd like to spend doing so.

 

[KathyV]

The Aggressor Fleet is offering their anniversary sale right now, but you have to book now and travel by end of April:

Aggressor Fleet's 34th Anniversary - 34% OFF - Book before 11/24!

 

[jlcnuke]

The Aggressor Fleet is offering their anniversary sale right now, but you have to book now and travel by end of April:

Aggressor Fleet's 34th Anniversary - 34% OFF - Book before 11/24!

I wish there sale was good a bit longer . My vacations for the rest of this year are planned ans I generally don't get another vacation until Memorial Day, which is after the sale dates.

 

[RTee]

BB....bring back fond memories. As far as luggage goes, a softsided backpack or a good old duffle bag (like Navy style) is recommended. However, they used to offer the possibility of stripping the entire content of your suitcase and store it at their home base until your return. BC/BP and reg assembly goes on your dedicated tank and will remain there until you leave. Neoprene stuff goes to the lifelines and secured with big clothing pins and the remainder (weight/weight pouch/weight belt, mask, fins end up in lazarette located in the horsehoe area (communal area located forward of the helm...BB vessel being centered cockpit). It does not take to long for the vessel to look like a refuge boat, especially when Aquacat happened to join you at a diving site. Your clothes end up on the shelf at the foot of your bunk. I was there in February 2011 air temperature varied from mid to high 70s and water temperature averaged 73-75F (most of folks in our group, including myself wore full length 7mm and I am glad I brought it. Normally I am a 3mm type of guy in Coz/Bonaire at that time of the year).

Revisiting pics of that trip, there were days a T-shirt and short were adequate but on cloudy and windy days, I wore long pants, polar and a polar tuque topside (and that was mid day). especially in-between dives. In all likelihood, the only time your wetsuit will be dry will be the first time you put it on after that you will experience various levels of dampness...lol. At the time, I only had a small underwater camera. Nowadays, I travel with an Olympus 4/3, tray and arms, strobes and video light which would be problematic on BB.

When I went, they had enough folks for two of their sailboats (Morning Star (ours) and Pirate Lady (now a wreck)). I was part of a group of 17 plus one outsider and the second boat mainly consisted of onesies and twosies. We had a great time, the other vessel, not so, and just because of a single individual. You quickly run out of places to hide on a 65 ft sailbaot.

FWIW, I went accompanied with my girlfriend (we are now married) and she enjoyed it for what it was. We shared one of the two mid-ship cabins with another couple that we knew. It worked great as the girls deconflicted the timings for the mid-afternoon "nap" . The galley/dinette area is functional but cannot accommodate a large group, let alone a full load of 22 + 5 crew. So most of the time we went down, grabbed our chow and went back up to the horseshoe. There is no doubt that we will do other liveaboards but she made it clear that when we do so will be striving for one level up (privacy and better overall amenities).

Now, not quite sure if this was mentioned by anybody but $ will buy you more than privacy and nitrox. In all likelihood, it will also be synonymous of a larger and more stable vessel on the water. During ur week, we probably had a swell ranging between 4 to six feet throughout which made travelling and exit out of the water rather interesting. The first couple of days, sitting room at the horseshoe was plentiful as 1/3 to 1/2 of the folks were chumming water and then folks slowly developed their sea legs.

Diving....great overall and very diversified. Got to see plenty of reef sharks in their natural environment (they did not do shark feeding on our trip) and other creatures. Before any dive, we got a thorough pre dive briefing from the DM but then were on your own for the dive. The only time he came along and led the dive was for the Washing Machine... a must do.