I was on the AquaCat in 2020 just before the world shut down. Allstar Liveaboards currently has reduced pricing, so I booked Jan 23-Feb 6, 2021, two weeks on the AquaCat in Nassau, Bahamas, to dive at Exuma Cay.
General Information about AquaCat
The AquaCat is a catamaran and, boy, is she a nice ride. There are 11 cabins for up to 23 guests. There were 13 guests each week. I'm a single traveler, and the single penalty is reduced to 20% through April 2021. In addition to the fare, the port fees and taxes were $276 per week. As opposed to other liveaboard companies, the fees and taxes are paid in advance along with your fare and not as a cash payment on board. You may add crew gratuities to your onboard credit card account. Alcoholic beverages are free. The round-trip airport transfer to the boat is included for free on Saturdays only (day of embarkation and debarkation). If you need a transfer on another day or a pickup from a hotel, it’s $18 per person.
Nitrox at 31% is $15 per tank or $150 for the week. The analyzer tool is provided, and you need to fill out the log each time. Wi-Fi is not available on the boat, but when you’re in the marina, there’s free wi-fi at The Green Parrot. This restaurant has great food, but the service can be extremely slow. The Bahamas sales tax is 12%, and in restaurants a 15% gratuity is automatically added to your bill, so there's no incentive to provide good service.
Pre-Trip COVID Testing
The Bahamas requires a negative COVID test taken no more than 5 days before your travel date. Once you’ve got that, you have to get a Bahamas Visa, which costs $40 or $60 (depending on your length of stay). The Bahamas Visa was really easy and fast to get. Once I paid the fee, the approval came through in about 20 minutes. Since I was there for 2 weeks, I paid $60. The Visa includes insurance coverage in case you get sick or test positive. You are also required to get a negative antigen test every 5 days in order to continue your stay. The liveaboard had an exception because we’re at sea for more than 5 days. Allstar provides the antigen test for free, but since I was staying on for 2 trips, the second antigen test, which got me home, was $25.
When I arrived in the Bahamas, the rule was you were required to quarantine, but since you’re in the marina and then on the boat, it’s considered quarantining on the boat. During my two weeks there, the Bahamas lifted the quarantine rule and now you can roam about the island without any quarantine.
Flights
I flew on American , which is not blocking middle seats for COVID. However, the flights to Nassau were about two-thirds full, so I had the entire row to myself. The flight home had only 9 people on the flight. Now that mask wearing is required by federal law in airports and on planes, there is better compliance, but there’s still those people who don’t care about the rules.
COVID Protocols on the Boat
There is no reduced capacity on this liveaboard, so I was thankful it was only half full. The staff wore face coverings, but the guests had the discretion to wear a mask. Lots of hand sanitizer was everywhere on the boat and the staff and guests were very diligent about using it. The self-serve buffet has been substituted with the food being served in the buffet line by the staff. The silverware is individually wrapped in a paper sleeve versus the bucket with knives, forks and spoons where lots of hands are touching. The drink station is still self-serve with a soda and beer dispenser available anytime. You can also still make your own tea and coffee.
Demographics
All guests were from the U.S. ranging in age from a 22-year-old to 60s and one family of five, with an 11-year-old boy getting his open water certification on the trip.
The Boat
I love this boat! It was very clean and sparkly from the sprucing up it got last summer during the shutdown. The entire interior has been painted. Everything about this catamaran is spacious, from the dive deck to the salon to the upper deck. There is plenty of room in the salon to spread out and relax or watch a movie on the big screen TV. This boat has 3 levels. The first level you will find the cabins and dive deck. The second level is the salon and dining room plus the outdoor dive briefing area. The third level is the sun deck with loungers and the bar.
The staff shared with us that during the lockdown, they spent five months on a mooring in Exuma Cay, only setting foot on land a couple of times and only for a couple of hours. Apparently, the dock fees in Nassau to sit idle is $2000 per week, so they went out to sea to sit on their own mooring for quarantine.
Unfortunately, the boat was shut down for a few weeks last November because a guest brought COVID on board and infected two crew members. One was mildly symptomatic. The other was moderately sick with visible symptoms and loss of taste and smell, which still remains. The guest didn’t find out he was positive until he returned home.
SB won't let me continue, so more to come......
General Information about AquaCat
The AquaCat is a catamaran and, boy, is she a nice ride. There are 11 cabins for up to 23 guests. There were 13 guests each week. I'm a single traveler, and the single penalty is reduced to 20% through April 2021. In addition to the fare, the port fees and taxes were $276 per week. As opposed to other liveaboard companies, the fees and taxes are paid in advance along with your fare and not as a cash payment on board. You may add crew gratuities to your onboard credit card account. Alcoholic beverages are free. The round-trip airport transfer to the boat is included for free on Saturdays only (day of embarkation and debarkation). If you need a transfer on another day or a pickup from a hotel, it’s $18 per person.
Nitrox at 31% is $15 per tank or $150 for the week. The analyzer tool is provided, and you need to fill out the log each time. Wi-Fi is not available on the boat, but when you’re in the marina, there’s free wi-fi at The Green Parrot. This restaurant has great food, but the service can be extremely slow. The Bahamas sales tax is 12%, and in restaurants a 15% gratuity is automatically added to your bill, so there's no incentive to provide good service.
Pre-Trip COVID Testing
The Bahamas requires a negative COVID test taken no more than 5 days before your travel date. Once you’ve got that, you have to get a Bahamas Visa, which costs $40 or $60 (depending on your length of stay). The Bahamas Visa was really easy and fast to get. Once I paid the fee, the approval came through in about 20 minutes. Since I was there for 2 weeks, I paid $60. The Visa includes insurance coverage in case you get sick or test positive. You are also required to get a negative antigen test every 5 days in order to continue your stay. The liveaboard had an exception because we’re at sea for more than 5 days. Allstar provides the antigen test for free, but since I was staying on for 2 trips, the second antigen test, which got me home, was $25.
When I arrived in the Bahamas, the rule was you were required to quarantine, but since you’re in the marina and then on the boat, it’s considered quarantining on the boat. During my two weeks there, the Bahamas lifted the quarantine rule and now you can roam about the island without any quarantine.
Flights
I flew on American , which is not blocking middle seats for COVID. However, the flights to Nassau were about two-thirds full, so I had the entire row to myself. The flight home had only 9 people on the flight. Now that mask wearing is required by federal law in airports and on planes, there is better compliance, but there’s still those people who don’t care about the rules.
COVID Protocols on the Boat
There is no reduced capacity on this liveaboard, so I was thankful it was only half full. The staff wore face coverings, but the guests had the discretion to wear a mask. Lots of hand sanitizer was everywhere on the boat and the staff and guests were very diligent about using it. The self-serve buffet has been substituted with the food being served in the buffet line by the staff. The silverware is individually wrapped in a paper sleeve versus the bucket with knives, forks and spoons where lots of hands are touching. The drink station is still self-serve with a soda and beer dispenser available anytime. You can also still make your own tea and coffee.
Demographics
All guests were from the U.S. ranging in age from a 22-year-old to 60s and one family of five, with an 11-year-old boy getting his open water certification on the trip.
The Boat
I love this boat! It was very clean and sparkly from the sprucing up it got last summer during the shutdown. The entire interior has been painted. Everything about this catamaran is spacious, from the dive deck to the salon to the upper deck. There is plenty of room in the salon to spread out and relax or watch a movie on the big screen TV. This boat has 3 levels. The first level you will find the cabins and dive deck. The second level is the salon and dining room plus the outdoor dive briefing area. The third level is the sun deck with loungers and the bar.
The staff shared with us that during the lockdown, they spent five months on a mooring in Exuma Cay, only setting foot on land a couple of times and only for a couple of hours. Apparently, the dock fees in Nassau to sit idle is $2000 per week, so they went out to sea to sit on their own mooring for quarantine.
Unfortunately, the boat was shut down for a few weeks last November because a guest brought COVID on board and infected two crew members. One was mildly symptomatic. The other was moderately sick with visible symptoms and loss of taste and smell, which still remains. The guest didn’t find out he was positive until he returned home.
SB won't let me continue, so more to come......
