Live aboard in Western Hemisphere

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Mariner11

Registered
Messages
44
Reaction score
9
Location
Milwaukee, Wisconsin , USA
# of dives
50 - 99
Hi ,
Have been crushed during this 2 yr pandemic with only 2/3 quarry dives . Want to take a week off in March/April from the hospital when this current surge subsides and go on a live aboard diving trip .
Because if only a week or max 10 days off would have to be a liveaboard in the western hemisphere where I can get to quickly from the US Midwest
Looking for suggestions from the group , looking for the (1) best diving ,(2) most comfort , (3) the most valet type service , price is not a problem

Thanks in advance
 
Difficult question, many, many possibilities.

What is your diving level, advanced, intermediate, beginner? Do you want to dive from the mother ship or RHIB? What do you want go see, reefs, big animals, diversity? Tame or wild? Narrow it down to help with suggestions.
 
Located in Nassau, Bahamas, I love the Aqua Cat liveaboard so much that my fifth trip since 2020 will be May of this year. There is not a negative thing to say about this operation. The rooms are spacious compared to the cramped liveaboard norms in the industry. The dive deck and common areas are very big and open, so you never feel cramped. There's lots of room to spread out. The food is amazing, along with a fantastic crew that will do everything for you--100% valet. The side trips are really fun, too.

The dive itinerary goes to Exuma Cay and Eleuthera, weather dependent, of course. The reef is not in the best of shape with the coral disease rampant in the Caribbean also affecting this area of the Bahamas. What the diving lacks is more than made up with the onboard experience. You can do a night dive every night, if you wish, one of my favorite things to do in scuba diving.

The company has a loyal following of customers who do repeated trips. I've met some guests that have sailed on the Aqua Cat 15 and 20 times.

Check them out! Dive the Bahamas | Snorkel, Kayak, SUP, Hike, Fish, Relax

Have a great trip!
 
Difficult question, many, many possibilities.

What is your diving level, advanced, intermediate, beginner? Do you want to dive from the mother ship or RHIB? What do you want go see, reefs, big animals, diversity? Tame or wild? Narrow it down to help with suggestions.
Have about 70 dives , nitrox/rescue/wreck 1 cert

Can’t do a long 10 day cruise due to work commitments so prob a 7 day cruise

Mixture and diversity probably

Primary reason is also relaxation to get away from work

And if any would do a tec 40/45 or equivalent or a side mount course that would be a bonus
 
Have about 70 dives , nitrox/rescue/wreck 1 cert

Can’t do a long 10 day cruise due to work commitments so prob a 7 day cruise

Mixture and diversity probably

Primary reason is also relaxation to get away from work

And if any would do a tec 40/45 or equivalent or a side mount course that would be a bonus
You are not likely to find a liveaboard that caters to sidemount diving. They may exist, but Caribbean operators are loath to put 2 tanks on a diver.

Any of the Caribbean or Mexican liveaboards are worthy of the trip. They might not be as flash as the Galapagos or Maldives, but they tend to be straight up good diving.

For large animals you can try Soccoros in Mexico, but they are likely already booked. I agree with Ron Goodman, Turks and Caicos is great diving with both an aggressor as well as an Explorer Ventures boat. IMO Bahamas is meh, (exhumas), but aquacat does have a loyal following and is considered a luxury boat. You might find a bunk available, but unlikely.

The EV Caribbean Explorer has solid diving, as does the Belize Aggressor/Roatan Aggressor.

If you want to stay in the Caribbean, it’s just a matter of finding the amenities you want and an available bunk.
 
Agree with above, and will add I think Bahamas may be a good option because of the easy travel, as well as "easy" full service valet diving. I did the Aquacat back in May and really enjoyed the trip even though the diving was not the best. We still saw plenty of sharks, rays and turtles, but the other smaller marine life was lacking. The selling point of Aquacat for me is the boat and crew- great food, spacious cabins, beautiful topside views, lots of room to hang out on the boat and cool excursions that complimented the dive experience. Sounds like you want (and deserve) a nice vacation to go along with your diving, and I think the Cat would fit the bill nicely.

Here is my review and video:

Trip Report - Aqua Cat- May 15-22 2021

Looks like they have some single spaces available in the spring, per their website:


I also loved Turks and Caicos Aggressor, but the dives are deeper and the boat is definitely more setup specifically for diving (not as many creature comforts).

Good luck!
 
Hi @Mariner11

I was afraid you might have waited too long to make reservations, so I searched Aggressor for their boats in the western hemisphere. To my surprise, there were some openings

In March, there is 1 week in the Bahamas, 2 weeks on the Belize III, 1 week in Roatan, 2 weeks in Socorro, 3 weeks in Turks & Caicos, and 4 weeks in Galapagos. Three of the weeks in Galapagos were on sale for $1200 off. I did not include Cocos, it is a 10 day trip.

In April, there is 1 week in the Bahamas, 1 week on the Belize III, 1 week in Roatan, 1 week in Socorro, 5 weeks in T&C, and 4 weeks in Galapagos. I will be doing a week on the Aggressor IV in Belize starting on April 9

So, you do have opportunities at the current time. i would imagine other operators might have some openings also. Your training option is not likely to work out, but there are some nice diving locations available.

Good luck
 
I love T & C as a whole- have been 4x land based (not much diving) and once on the Aggressor (27 dives).

The highlight for me was the amount of sharks and turtles. Dives are from the back of the Aggressor, always moored, usually hanging over the wall making navigation very easy. Top of the wall starts around 50'-60'. You can follow the guide or go off as buddy pairs, so long as you do not enter deco, and you return to the boat at 500 psi or 60 minutes dive time. The wall is beautiful- sheer drops down to 7000 feet in some spots. Wall is covered in healthy corals, lots of fish life and good pelagic action. There are also some shallower dives over different formations. No wrecks, drift dives, shore excursions or much else to do on the boat after/between diving. Food was very good.

Definitely a solid option, add a few days before or after on Providenciales to take in Grace Bay Beach. Lots of great restaurants, high end shopping and touristy stuff to do if you have any interest.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/peregrine/

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