Liveaboard

[mswatson]

I am going on a LOB trip to similan(thailand). I got my cert in may this year with extra 2 dives while my friend hasn't dived in 3 years (less than 10 dives total). It's our first LOB experience.

I'm thinking of going for the 4D/4N,15 dives. It covers similan, koh tachai, koh bon and the famous Richelieu rock. Richelieu rock is more more advanced divers due to strong currents. However it's is still ok for OW divers, as I would have gotten some training in the calmer water of similan before moving to Richelieu rock area.

Another option is doing a 3D/3N, 11 dives to only similan and koh bon.

I can't decide which LOB to choose. While I have experienced doing 6 dives in 2 days before and also did my training in strong currents, I'm not sure if 4d/4N is going to be too taxing for my friend whose last dive was 3 years ago. Both has it's pros and cons. Longer LOB cover more sites, shorter LOB less taxing.

Divers can choose to skip dives at any point on the LOB.

Any advice on this?

Thanks!

 

[SharkEsq]

I just got back from a 4D/14-dive trip there (on the Pawara with West Coast Divers) - you can see my trip report in the Thailand forum. I'm not particularly experienced (50 dives), and tend to vacation dive only once or twice a year. For me, none of the sites we went to were particularly challenging, though most of our dives had max-depths in the 60' to 80' range, so AOW or at least some deep diving experience is probably a good idea. The few places with current weren't strong enough that it created technical challenges - just a bit more kicking and higher air consumption. That being said, you could encounter more current than we did, so it's good to be prepared for that. I think it's more a question of how comfortable you two are in the water - there are people with 10 dives that are quite comfortable, and people with many more dives that aren't.

4 dives a day can get mentally tiring after a while, but for me, at least, I think I would have regretted only 3 days of diving - especially if you're traveling a long way and want to get as much diving out of your trip as you can. But I don't think not having been diving for 3 years would make 4 days vs 3 days a question of more or less "taxing" - if you're in decent physical shape, diving 4 times a day isn't going to be physically exhausting. And, worst case, you can skip the 4th dive if you're not in the mood. The one thing you might do is see if you can get a DM/Instructor just for the two of you (likely at an extra cost, obviously) - that way, you can get any extra help/guidance you might need on any of the more challenging dives, and you won't be holding anyone else back if you two want to stay shallow or call dives early for some reason. You could even use that as an excuse to get your deep and/or Nitrox certs done.

And one other idea would be to try to get in a few more dives before hand - if you get to Thailand early, you could do a day trip (or two) one of the closer locations just get back in the groove so you don't feel like a n00b on the boat.

 

[Nasser]

I would go for the 4D/4N package. You have more variety of sites and more options. Nothing says you or your friend have to do every dive, but if you want to... it's there.

 

[Diving Dubai]

As far as LOB choices, I recommend Wicked Diving. They are friendly and safe. So safe that I went back 5 weeks after our trip and let them take my 2 children on DSD dives. The boat is small but comfortable, the food is great - we loved it so much we extended our stay even though (for us) the diving wasn't remarkable.

Richelieu rock is out to sea so you can get some choppy conditions and on all the pinnacles you can get a little current which may unnerve someone with little experience - although the currents not significant

The Wicked crew match 4 people max to 1 Dm and all of the same or similar abilities. I would suggest you friend might need a refresher on the check dive. Just take a look on Trip Advisor for Wicked diving Kao Lak. They can't do enough to assist even before you board. And yes you can dive as much or as little as you like. I normally skipped the Night dives and had a beer and watched the sunset instead.

 

[mswatson]

Thanks sharkesq for the trip report, advice and recommendations! I just realized there's a Thailand forum! The thought of having a private DM did cross my mind. However it's only available on LOB that offers daily return to land (eg:mv sea heaven), which I dislike the idea of having daytrippers onboard. Too crowded I feel. West coast divers was in my LOB list until I decided to lower my budget haha. I've read many good reviews about them!

---------- Post added November 24th, 2015 at 09:39 PM ----------

As far as LOB choices, I recommend Wicked Diving. They are friendly and safe. So safe that I went back 5 weeks after our trip and let them take my 2 children on DSD dives. The boat is small but comfortable, the food is great - we loved it so much we extended our stay even though (for us) the diving wasn't remarkable.

Richelieu rock is out to sea so you can get some choppy conditions and on all the pinnacles you can get a little current which may unnerve someone with little experience - although the currents not significant

The Wicked crew match 4 people max to 1 Dm and all of the same or similar abilities. I would suggest you friend might need a refresher on the check dive. Just take a look on Trip Advisor for Wicked diving Kao Lak. They can't do enough to assist even before you board. And yes you can dive as much or as little as you like. I normally skipped the Night dives and had a beer and watched the sunset instead.

Thank you for the recommendation! I read so many good reviews about wicked and have checked out everything that I wanna know with the company. The thing is they are sailing to Richelieu rock during my available period, and their 3 days 9 dives cost is on par or just slightly more expensive/lower than a 4d/4n similan-richelieu LOB (depending on which). I'm not too sure if heading straight for the north is a good idea for greenhorns like my friend and myself. But I'm so attracted to awesome reviews those divers gave!

 

[SharkEsq]

I'd look in to the private DM/Instructor option a bit more, since there were some on our boat. One guy had an instructor (Andy from AndysScubaDiving.com) that was not part of the boat crew and the two of them dove as a pair the whole time. And there were a couple other DM/Instructors on the boat that weren't part of the crew as well. I'm not sure what the economics are - I *think* some of them got paid a daily rate by their customer, and also acted as "half-crew" (and slept in crew quarters or on sofas in the lounge) in return for not having to pay the liveaboard fee themselves. But you could contact the LOB and/or some of the local diveshops that offer instructors to see what it would cost to have someone like that.

 

[mswatson]

I'd look in to the private DM/Instructor option a bit more, since there were some on our boat. One guy had an instructor (Andy from AndysScubaDiving.com) that was not part of the boat crew and the two of them dove as a pair the whole time. And there were a couple other DM/Instructors on the boat that weren't part of the crew as well. I'm not sure what the economics are - I *think* some of them got paid a daily rate by their customer, and also acted as "half-crew" (and slept in crew quarters or on sofas in the lounge) in return for not having to pay the liveaboard fee themselves. But you could contact the LOB and/or some of the local diveshops that offer instructors to see what it would cost to have someone like that.

Thanks for the advice! I'll check it out asap!

 

[Diving Dubai]

Thank you for the recommendation! I read so many good reviews about wicked and have checked out everything that I wanna know with the company. The thing is they are sailing to Richelieu rock during my available period, and their 3 days 9 dives cost is on par or just slightly more expensive/lower than a 4d/4n similan-richelieu LOB (depending on which). I'm not too sure if heading straight for the north is a good idea for greenhorns like my friend and myself. But I'm so attracted to awesome reviews those divers gave!

You'll safe with Wicked, and their instructors are great. When I was there I saw new divers being safely escorted on a dive there. I have no affiliation with Wicked apart from diving with them 3 times in different locations. They are the only operator I could recommend.

you sound very excited, you'll have a great time.

 

[mswatson]

You'll safe with Wicked, and their instructors are great. When I was there I saw new divers being safely escorted on a dive there. I have no affiliation with Wicked apart from diving with them 3 times in different locations. They are the only operator I could recommend.

you sound very excited, you'll have a great time.

I think the whole planning is wearing me out haha. I'm the planner for the whole trip and here are so many things that I need to plan, such as dates, budget, our dive experience and lots more. My top priority is to ensure my friend dives in a safe environment and enjoys the trip

Planner's stress haha

 

[Land Fish]

Hi there. I had a look at the travel related forum and I couldn't find the article you mentioned. Would you mind sharing the link here please? I'm heading to Similan for Christmas, and it would be nice to know more beforehand. Thank you