1st timer wants to do a liveaboard trip.

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Either an Aggressor or Explorer Ventures boat in the Caribbean. Turks and Caicos would be my favorite spot. They both visit pretty much the same sites.
 
The Bahamas is an excellent place for a first-time liveaboard diver! Great visibility, minimal currents, and easy travel make it a very easy destination. And a liveaboard is a great choice due to the remoteness of the sites in the Exuma Cays. We have three options in the Bahamas for different budgets and styles of travel.

Blackbeard's is our option for budget-conscious adventure travelers. With up to 19 dives per trip and a price tag of $1,055 plus port fees, it's one of the best values you can find in the dive world. People come back year after year for the adventure offered on this trip.

Aqua Cat is a luxurious alternative if you prefer added creature comforts and space onboard. On this trip, you can do up to 26 dives during the week with the option for shore excursions offered daily when the weather allows for it. Aqua Cat was recently voted the #1 liveaboard in the Atlantic/Caribbean again!

An incredible middle-of-the-road option is Cat Ppalu, our sailing catamaran. The same feeling of camaraderie and adventure that you'll find on Blackbeard's comes through on this trip, but you'll find yourself with a little more privacy.

Contact us for more info! We'd love to get you hooked on liveaboard diving!
 
Hello divers, Marcus here from NC. My dream Scuba vacation is to do a liveaboard dive trip. I 've got my sights set on doing a liveaboard dive trip in the next few years, so i'm starting my research now. Can anyone help with some information for a newbie wanting to do his 1st Liveaboard. Not wanting to break the bank here, but looking for a good,sound user friendly, budget minded outfit to go with. NO SKECTHY OUTFITTERS. I'm just an ole country boy who doesn't like shady people w/ hassles & surprises as mental baggage!!!!! I do the deep NC wrecks @ home so i like my sharks ! Maybe the Bahamas? That's sorta close to me. Open for ideas to help me get started here. Also can you maybe give me some kind of ball park cost estimates i might need to prepare for. Thanks for reading/helpful info.
Thank all you divers, now i got a place to start.
 
When it comes down to dollars per dive, it's hard to beat $1,055 for Blackbeard's Liveaboards with up to 19 dives. They call it camping at sea, which is fairly accurate, but it's a good experience. Your food, lodging, beer and rum punch are all included. The berths are basic but comfortable, and the food is actually pretty darn good (amazing for the tiny kitchen they have)!

My teenage son and I only had 9 dives each before our trip. They offer Advanced Open Water at a very good price($150 + C-card fee), and doing it on the cruise means you have 5 dives with a dive master to get you more comfortable. You get a good variety of Caribbean dives: shallow reefs, deep walls, night dives, etc.

And since you mentioned sharks, I'll say that in addition to seeing reef and nurse sharks just around the reefs, they also do one dive where the divers gather on the bottom (around 50 ft.) and then they lower a "chumsicle" down from above which leads to a lot of sharks swirling around.

As for other costs, besides a gratuity at the end for the crew (perhaps 10-15%), most people will probably need to arrive the day before the cruise departs. We stayed at a hotel right at the same marina for around $100. You'll also need transport to and from the airport. Can't recall exactly how much is was coming in, but not too bad. On departing, which is around 9 a.m. I believe, we booked a tour with Simply Dave Tours to pick us up right at the marina with our luggage, give us a quick tour around the high points of Nassau with a good lunch stop, and then dropped us at the airport all for $120 (in late 2018; lunch was paid separately), which I thought was super reasonable -- and Dave is really great, guaranteed to make you smile a lot, very highly recommended!
 
When it comes down to dollars per dive, it's hard to beat $1,055 for Blackbeard's Liveaboards with up to 19 dives. They call it camping at sea, which is fairly accurate, but it's a good experience. Your food, lodging, beer and rum punch are all included. The berths are basic but comfortable, and the food is actually pretty darn good (amazing for the tiny kitchen they have)!

My teenage son and I only had 9 dives each before our trip. They offer Advanced Open Water at a very good price($150 + C-card fee), and doing it on the cruise means you have 5 dives with a dive master to get you more comfortable. You get a good variety of Caribbean dives: shallow reefs, deep walls, night dives, etc.

And since you mentioned sharks, I'll say that in addition to seeing reef and nurse sharks just around the reefs, they also do one dive where the divers gather on the bottom (around 50 ft.) and then they lower a "chumsicle" down from above which leads to a lot of sharks swirling around.

As for other costs, besides a gratuity at the end for the crew (perhaps 10-15%), most people will probably need to arrive the day before the cruise departs. We stayed at a hotel right at the same marina for around $100. You'll also need transport to and from the airport. Can't recall exactly how much is was coming in, but not too bad. On departing, which is around 9 a.m. I believe, we booked a tour with Simply Dave Tours to pick us up right at the marina with our luggage, give us a quick tour around the high points of Nassau with a good lunch stop, and then dropped us at the airport all for $120 (in late 2018; lunch was paid separately), which I thought was super reasonable -- and Dave is really great, guaranteed to make you smile a lot, very highly recommended!
Thanks & big hug for your help!
 
Suggestions would be, if it's possible for you, is to connect with a local dive shop and/or scuba club. Many dive shops book trips (liveaboards, etc.). Having some familiarity with others on a livaboard can be a benefit. It's close quarters on a continuous basis. Many times the packages the clubs/dive shops provide are not bad deals as well. I've been on roughly 13 or so liveaboards. What makes it great is its the same core group that goes on these trips, so we all know one another.
 
I have only been on one live aboard...technical dive charter diving the USS Oriskany. Crew was supportive and hard working. Other fellow divers good and accommodating. Downsides...sometimes cramped with gear bags and equipment. Bunks to sleep in..so close quarters and facility usage. Other downside...long drive down from northern Virginia to Pensacola, FL and back with tanks and gear in a pick up.
 
I have only been on one live aboard...technical dive charter diving the USS Oriskany. Crew was supportive and hard working. Other fellow divers good and accommodating. Downsides...sometimes cramped with gear bags and equipment. Bunks to sleep in..so close quarters and facility usage. Other downside...long drive down from northern Virginia to Pensacola, FL and back with tanks and gear in a pick up.
You found the drive distasteful? But that’s why tech diving in the US is a plus. You can bring all of your crap.

Just try getting all of your OC doubles on a plane to Bikini….
 
You found the drive distasteful? But that’s why tech diving in the US is a plus. You can bring all of your crap.

Just try getting all of your OC doubles on a plane to Bikini….
No I did not find it distasteful just long. I dived Bikini Atoll 2006. 12 of the best deep wreck dives I ever did. At that time there was a full dive shop and crew on the island that accommodated divers...doubles, air, and deco etc. I believe the operation is now closed and the only way to dive Bikini is via live aboard. An Island that time forgot...no access to cell, no landline, no tv, no traffic, no shops...just huts with cots, basic bathrooms etc. Cafeteria food. Entertainment / Daily briefing room. It took four flights to one of the remotest places on Earth to get there...well worth it. The USS Saratoga is spectacular wreck to dive.
 

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