How to Pick the Best Liveaboard for Your Next Dive Vacation

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I have been on several land based boats that required divers to leave their shoes on the dock but on the three lobs I have done I have worn flips flops every time.
 
The article fails to discuss getting to and from the liveaboard departure point. Depending on where you live, some destinations have what can only be described as painful flights and connections.
Do you really want to arrive at 3am local time? Do you really want a 9 hour lay over in a 3rd world airport? Do you want to be lining up at 4am to check in? My travel agent offered me those exact things for a liveabord I was considering. I said no and found much better flights.

Can you really afford two days travel time to get there and two days back? That turns a 1 week vacation into an 11 day excursion. You might be better off staying for two weeks.

Also consider airfare: how much is it going to cost to get there?

Figuring out how to get to the destination on a reasonable schedule and at a reasonable price is a big part of selecting a liveabord.
 
The article fails to discuss getting to and from the liveaboard departure point. Depending on where you live, some destinations have what can only be described as painful flights and connections.
Do you really want to arrive at 3am local time? Do you really want a 9 hour lay over in a 3rd world airport? Do you want to be lining up at 4am to check in? My travel agent offered me those exact things for a liveabord I was considering. I said no and found much better flights.

Can you really afford two days travel time to get there and two days back? That turns a 1 week vacation into an 11 day excursion. You might be better off staying for two weeks.

Also consider airfare: how much is it going to cost to get there?

Figuring out how to get to the destination on a reasonable schedule and at a reasonable price is a big part of selecting a liveabord.

Please tell me where those places are & I'll check them off my bucket list.

Thanks
Dan
 
Taking a livevaboard trip is like having sex: when it's good... it great!. And when it's not great... it's still pretty good.
 
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Please tell me where those places are & I'll check them off my bucket list.

Thanks
Dan

It depends as much on your point of departure as your destination. I live within 1.5 hrs of four major international airports. (EWR, JFK, LGA, and PHL) and from there can pretty easily connect through the major hub of virtually every major airline in the world. I've made it from my bed in Princeton to my liveaboard bunk in Truk Lagoon via HNL, NRT, or ICN faster than some US residents can get to their nearest international gateway airport.
 
Getting there is half the fun.
A diving trip to Cocos Island took 15 days altogether. I did not enjoy the travelling but what choice do I have? Go somewhere else?
 
Liveaboards are my go to vacation!! If you love to dive I would highly recommend it, it's a way to get up to 27 dives in six days!! I usually travel by myself and within hours of arriving on board feel right at home with the other passengers. Do all the dives if you like, get some sun if you like -- whatever floats your boat. My preference are the boats that offer cabins with out bunkbeds, but in either case you don't spend much time in the cabin anyway. Warm towels and a gentle massage after the dive -- come on who wouldn't like that!! I've met some wonderful divers along the way and occasionally there is a difficult diver on the boat but make lemonade and enjoy yourself!! Eat, sleep, dive, eat, sleep, dive -- does it get any better?
 
Very informative. One thing I like to add to the list of things to bring: warm house slippers. Even if your diving in the tropics, the inside of the vessel may be cool. Slippers keep your feet warm & protected between dives. It is import to only wear them inside the vessel.

Absolutely. This is was one of the first lessons I learned as a newbie (Our waters are kind of chilly anyways during this time).
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

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