I just got back from a four-day trip on the liveaboard Mermaid II to the Similans. I also sailed on the MMII last February before she underwent a refit. I promised Sadie's Mom that I'd post my before/after impressions.
Improvements: All rooms now have private bathrooms--they are tiny, but that's okay. The way it was before, two rooms shared one bath, and often the people in one room or the other would forget to unlock the door from the inside, meaning that you'd have to bang on somebody's door at midnight, or search the boat to get them to correct the problem.
Setbacks (in my view): The dining area used to be on the upper deck, aft; and there was a sitting area fore on the main deck. They've converted the sitting area to the dining room and the upstairs is now called the "party deck". I don't like the dining area where it now is because that's where the boat pitches the most in even modest swells. Anybody who is the least prone to seasickness (as was one of my divers) simply can't even look at the food in that room, let alone sit down to eat. Most of us would get our food and go to the back of the boat and up the stairs to eat on the "party deck" anyway. So why not switch the positions of these places again? It was better the old way.
Eating and sleeping on the MMII: There is room for 20 passengers. We had a full boat, yet it didn't seem overly crowded aboard. That was good. Most of the cabins are on the main deck, and they have nice big windows to get fresh air. There are a couple of cabins below. Unless you like to fall asleep to the tune of engines, these rooms may not be the ideal option. The food is plentiful, but it's mainly rather insipid Chinese-style stir fry. If you're hoping to sample good Thai cuisine, you won't find it on the MMII. I am veggie, and I simply couldn't face day after day of stir-fried Chinese-style vegetables and rice. I lost some weight (which isn't necessarily bad, but wan't really my intent).
Diving from the MMII: The dive crew and the boat crew are all wonderful. The Thai instructor Nu is especially knowlegeable and has even co-authored a nice little book about the Similans, Richelieu Rock and Koh Tachai. You can buy the book from him once aboard. The dive deck is comfortable, the dive platform is very good (with one exception noted below). And Nitrox is available. The price has gone up from USD $3 a fill to $5 a fill, which is still quite affordable, but they're now using these little bitty cylinders (11 liters), which means that lots of people simply run out of gas before the regulation 60 minute dive time is up. If your consumption is good, no problem, but if you want to stay down 60 minutes and your air consumption is even average, you'd better skip the Nitrox and stick with the standard-sized air cylinders. They do have a couple of 15 liter tanks for those who need a bigger air supply per dive.
The problems experienced on our sailing: First one of the dinghies became unusable, so we were restricted to just one. The boat crew, though, did a great job getting us to and from the dive sites without much waiting around. They certainly earned their tips! Secondly, at one point the boat got ensnared in a buoy line, which dragged the dive platform down, allowing the sea water to flood the platform to a fair depth. Then the big rinse tank that sits on the dive platform floated off into the sea, together with cameras and dive lights. These items were not recovered, though the tank was picked up from the surface by the dinghy. Anything at all that is on a boat and is not tied down can easily end up in the water, and it was certainly short-sighted not to anchor this rinse tank somehow. The moral of the story is that if you take a camera or a light aboard the MMII, rinse it in the tank and then TAKE IT OUT! Don't leave it there to be lost to the depths. Also, insure your gear, because you never know when a freak accident may happen. (Luckily I took my Oly 5060 back to my cabin to change the battery, so it was safe and sound.)
Anyway, I had a great trip, no mishaps, and I even came back a bit thinner, LOL. I'll certainly go again, and would encourage those of you thinking about it to sail on the MMII. It's always nice, though, to avoid disappointment by knowing what to expect.
Q.
Improvements: All rooms now have private bathrooms--they are tiny, but that's okay. The way it was before, two rooms shared one bath, and often the people in one room or the other would forget to unlock the door from the inside, meaning that you'd have to bang on somebody's door at midnight, or search the boat to get them to correct the problem.
Setbacks (in my view): The dining area used to be on the upper deck, aft; and there was a sitting area fore on the main deck. They've converted the sitting area to the dining room and the upstairs is now called the "party deck". I don't like the dining area where it now is because that's where the boat pitches the most in even modest swells. Anybody who is the least prone to seasickness (as was one of my divers) simply can't even look at the food in that room, let alone sit down to eat. Most of us would get our food and go to the back of the boat and up the stairs to eat on the "party deck" anyway. So why not switch the positions of these places again? It was better the old way.
Eating and sleeping on the MMII: There is room for 20 passengers. We had a full boat, yet it didn't seem overly crowded aboard. That was good. Most of the cabins are on the main deck, and they have nice big windows to get fresh air. There are a couple of cabins below. Unless you like to fall asleep to the tune of engines, these rooms may not be the ideal option. The food is plentiful, but it's mainly rather insipid Chinese-style stir fry. If you're hoping to sample good Thai cuisine, you won't find it on the MMII. I am veggie, and I simply couldn't face day after day of stir-fried Chinese-style vegetables and rice. I lost some weight (which isn't necessarily bad, but wan't really my intent).
Diving from the MMII: The dive crew and the boat crew are all wonderful. The Thai instructor Nu is especially knowlegeable and has even co-authored a nice little book about the Similans, Richelieu Rock and Koh Tachai. You can buy the book from him once aboard. The dive deck is comfortable, the dive platform is very good (with one exception noted below). And Nitrox is available. The price has gone up from USD $3 a fill to $5 a fill, which is still quite affordable, but they're now using these little bitty cylinders (11 liters), which means that lots of people simply run out of gas before the regulation 60 minute dive time is up. If your consumption is good, no problem, but if you want to stay down 60 minutes and your air consumption is even average, you'd better skip the Nitrox and stick with the standard-sized air cylinders. They do have a couple of 15 liter tanks for those who need a bigger air supply per dive.
The problems experienced on our sailing: First one of the dinghies became unusable, so we were restricted to just one. The boat crew, though, did a great job getting us to and from the dive sites without much waiting around. They certainly earned their tips! Secondly, at one point the boat got ensnared in a buoy line, which dragged the dive platform down, allowing the sea water to flood the platform to a fair depth. Then the big rinse tank that sits on the dive platform floated off into the sea, together with cameras and dive lights. These items were not recovered, though the tank was picked up from the surface by the dinghy. Anything at all that is on a boat and is not tied down can easily end up in the water, and it was certainly short-sighted not to anchor this rinse tank somehow. The moral of the story is that if you take a camera or a light aboard the MMII, rinse it in the tank and then TAKE IT OUT! Don't leave it there to be lost to the depths. Also, insure your gear, because you never know when a freak accident may happen. (Luckily I took my Oly 5060 back to my cabin to change the battery, so it was safe and sound.)
Anyway, I had a great trip, no mishaps, and I even came back a bit thinner, LOL. I'll certainly go again, and would encourage those of you thinking about it to sail on the MMII. It's always nice, though, to avoid disappointment by knowing what to expect.
Q.
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. Is there any way we can take a look at your photos? Do you have a website link with them available? I love to see other folks' pictures and it would be a treat to see what we can expect to see in the Similans 
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