Liveaboards: the good, the bad and the ugly

[caymaniac]

I've been on only two liveaboards, but enjoyed both of them tremendously. We went on the "Diversity" off N.E. Austraila and the "StarDancer" in Paupau New Guinea, these are places that only a liveaboard is the most best way to the reach the far from shore reefs. We have been alot of places and feel that some places a liveaboard may not quite as desirable as others, like the ABC's or Cozumel.
I would not ever hesitate to use a liveaboard again, yes there are people that you will meet that don't think like you, that have different habits than you, but there is one thing in common on all liveaboards = "everyone onboard loves to dive". This common bond will create friendships that you've never had previously. Give it a go.

 

[DivingPrincessE]

Like Robint, I am a liveaboard addict as well. I was very resistant to the whole idea until we dove from our cruise boat in Tahiti in Oct 2005 and I loved it. My husband booked us on the T&C Explorer in Oct 2006. It was fantastic and when the trip ended I didn't want to get off the boat. Since then we have done liveaboards in May 2007, Oct 2007, Nov 2007 and planned Apr 2008, June 2008. There is just no other way to dive, and there is no one from the outside world to bother you (e.g. phones, blackberries, email). And yes, on every trip we have encountered a few odd balls, but we have also made great friends as well.

NT-
I'm also in NOVA and looking into my first liveaboard. It use to be so cheap to fly to the Caribbean and not it's outrageous to fly out of Dulles! Do you have any tips or do you just cough up the $400-700 it costs to get down there??

 

[NTSilver]

NT-
I'm also in NOVA and looking into my first liveaboard. It use to be so cheap to fly to the Caribbean and not it's outrageous to fly out of Dulles! Do you have any tips or do you just cough up the $400-700 it costs to get down there??

DivingPrincessE
I can usually find fares in the lower 400s using Kayak.com. Also, I prefer Dulles, however, ALL of Dulles fares are more expensive, so we fly out of DCA now. Sometimes we may travel on a Thurs and come back on a odd day, or travel very early or very late and that reduces the fare as well. Unfortunately due to the rising fuel prices, the 400s are the cheapest. I just got tickets for our next trip to Socorro and I think they were high 400s, but I shopped for about three weeks before I made the purchase.

Where are you doing your first liveaboard?

 

[DivingPrincessE]

DivingPrincessE
I can usually find fares in the lower 400s using Kayak.com. Also, I prefer Dulles, however, ALL of Dulles fares are more expensive, so we fly out of DCA now. Sometimes we may travel on a Thurs and come back on a odd day, or travel very early or very late and that reduces the fare as well. Unfortunately due to the rising fuel prices, the 400s are the cheapest. I just got tickets for our next trip to Socorro and I think they were high 400s, but I shopped for about three weeks before I made the purchase.

Where are you doing your first liveaboard?

Well I would like to do one around turks and caicos or even out of the bahamas...explorer, blackbeards, or aggressor...but I just can't afford to fly to any of those locations AND pay for the liveaboard (pricy). I was looking at liveaboards that leave out of FL because it seems to be the only place you can fly to relatively cheap if you wait for a special.

 

[mike_s]

Diving Princess...

a few other things to factor in on any liveaboard..... ( just food for thought).

1. There is a crew tip paid for good service. Typically 10 to 15% of the base charter fee.
2. now days, there is often a fuel surcharge. figure $25 to $100 bucks possible. (bet on it beign on the high side though.)
3. Departure fees, port taxes, security fees, par fees all based on where the ship departs from and to.
4. How to get to the boat? $30 taxi ride each way for example. You might have to hotel overnight to meet flights coming/going. One of the Florida boats moved to Key largo, so what used to be a $30 taxi ride from the airport is now a $70 per person each way ride on the Keys shuttle.
5. compare nitrox surcharge. For example. $100 on Aquacat, but twice as much on Nekton at $195 per week and they only guarentee 26%. Nekton can only accomadate something like 14 divers on Nitrox, so many on the boat wont' be able to use it. (this up from 6 divers on nitrox a year or two ago...)
6. Check cancellation policy and refund policy due to your cancellation or bad weather.

So bascially, figure any trip is going to cost you easily $300 or more than what is advertised in fees, etc....


To show you should read the 'fine print' of any charter operation and be aware of what they charge, Here are some examples of fees from the Nekton Website.
Reservations Information

Northwest Bahamas, Cay Sal Bank and Cay Lobos Bahamas Cruises

• Bahamian Government charter fee of 4% of the cruise fare
• Bahamian Government departure fee of $15 per person
• US Passenger vessel excise tax of $3 per person
• $15 Port Everglades Port Charge
• $5 Port Everglades Port Security Fee
• $100 Fuel surcharge

Southern Bahamas

• Bahamian Government charter fee of 4% of the cruise fare
• Bahamian Government departure fee of $15 per person (payable at the airport)
• $100 Fuel surcharge

Belize Cruises

• $10 Belize Government Cruising Fee
• $45 Belize Government Port Charge
• $5 Half Moon Caye Park Fee (on itineraries that include Half Moon Caye)
• $2.50 Glovers Park Fee (on itineraries that include Glovers Park)
• $15 Belize Hyperbaric Chamber Fee
• $35 Belizean Government Departure Tax payable at the airport
• $25 Saturday Ground Transfer fee (roundtrip)
• $100 Fuel surcharge

Mona Island Cruises

• For those flying in/out of San Juan, optional shared Shuttle from San Juan to Mayaguez; $35 one way/$70 roundtrip
• $45 Port Change
• $100 Fuel surcharge
• $65 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Environmental Resource Fee

Fuel Surcharge
We're sure you've noticed yourself at the fuel pump! So have we! We regret that the continuing steep increases in global oil prices have forced us to join airlines, other cruise lines, and many other business that rely heavily on fuel oil in instituting fuel surcharges. Nekton can no longer afford to continue to absorb all of these considerable increases while still providing the level of exceptional value and service you deserve. Therefore, a $100 fuel surcharge per guest must now be collected.​

For comparison, here's Aquacat's
Scuba Diving Bahamas Liveboard Aqua Cat

Port Fees : $85 per person
Park Fees : $10 per person
Fuel Surcharge : $80 per person* ​

 

[WOODMAN]

What about tanks? Are they all Al80's? Are the dives recommended to 90fsw? The reason I ask is because I like to cruise the deeper limits, and prefer stateside to carry 120's and pony bottles. It IS reommended to dive the limits of your tank(e.i al80 80 + feet, 100's 100ft, 120's 120ft etc)
So, can you get larger tanks and pony bottles if you request them? Or is my comfort zone going to be limited to the AL 80's?B

I can relate to this, as I am a big monkey and burn through those 80cf tanks like there is no tomorrow despite everything I have tried to reduce air consumption. Bigger tanks are always of interest to me, and I have found that they are out there, if you look for them. In Cozumel, various shops are stocking 100 cf tanks now, and a few specialize in using 120's. On Bonaire, there are 100's to be had here and there, and Walt at RecTec (or is it RekTek?) has 119 cf tanks for rent. The Explorer fleet of liveaboards has a few 100's available- ask in advance. As for the Florida based liveaboards, I arranged to rent a 130 cf tank from a Miami dive shop, and then schlep it along with on two different boats with great results. (I got permission from the boat beforehand, of course.) It all depends on how well you do your homework, and how flexible you are. As with most things, if you want it bad enough, you can usually find it. Good hunting- Woody

 

[TravisD]

A big "second" on Mike_S's post -- for our January Aquacat cruise (siiighhhh) we spent right around $1000 in "extras" for the two of us -- Fuel surcharge, tip, marine park fees... which we paid before we ever left the house. But, on that cruise, the airport transfers were included (nice -- no haggling with cabbies over things, but I did give the driver $5 or so each way for handling bags)

Airfare wasn't *too* bad - $300/rt/pp from DCA to Nassau, which seems like the "normal" price, though I'm sure that there are some saver fares to be had now and then.

Then another $180 on the boat for souvenirs - shirts, the trip DVD... We skipped Nitrox since NDL's are not *our* limiting factor at this point (cue the Hoover sound effect)

One option if you have a lot of flexibility is to do last-minute trips. Call them 5-10 days before a trip is scheduled and see if they have any spots, and are willing to negotiate. I *hear* that some will do half-price trips to fill empty spots on the boat. It's a minimal incremental cost for them (I bet that food is the biggest expense!) and since you normally would tip based on the full-fare, the crew is happy since they're still getting paid

 

[DivingPrincessE]

Good tip Travis, I hadn't thought of that. If flights are that much cheaper out of DCA I might have to go that route...but Dulles is only 10 minutes from my house, so convenient. *sigh*

 

[TravisD]

Being in Westminter, DCA for us means driving right past BWI. But 2 hours on the road is worth it for a week of fun

If you weren't aware already, there's a "WAS" airport pseudo-code that you can use to search BWI, DCA, and IAD.

As it happens, about a third of the boat was occupied with a group out of Sterling for our trip. Group trip run by Sterling Silver Divers. Nice folks -we had a lot of fun. It was just surprising to end up on a boat somewhere with all these people from home.

 

[DivingPrincessE]

Yup I know the folks from Sterling Silver...no further comment...