Planning a trip to Thailand who can help me arrange this?

[bowlofpetunias]

We are thinking of making a Trip to Thialand and have heard the diving is excellent. Can anyone recommend a good operator to deal with? We will have a mix of experienced and inexperienced divers. I would really appreciate some suggestions from those of you have been there. How did you arrange it.. this is my first time trying to organize a group. I want to make sure everyone has a great experience and I figured the best way to do that would be to ask those of you who have traveled there. I may be a cynic but I figure every diver operator will tell you they are the best so I would most like to hear from divers who have been there what worked for them. Thanks

 

[lord khram]

If you want the best diving Thailand has to offer, you need to do a live aboard in the Andaman Sea, but depending on diver experience you may find some of the best sites ruled off limits to the less experienced divers. Second to that you can still reach some good dive sites in the Andaman by being land based and booking single day trips. The diving on the East side in the Gulf of Thailand is really only mediocre to poor, with the exception of a couple of dive sites near Koh Tao, and a couple near Koh Chang, Pattaya simply is not a realistic option for a dive specific holiday, but if you are going there for other reasons, again there are a couple of OK dive sites.
I have not dived in the South of Thailand for some time so will not make specific recommendations for operators. There are others that post on here that are far better placed to give such advice.

 

[Wingy]

Can recommend StevenL in Kata and Poseidon Dive Centre in Krabi - have personally used both operators and would recommend both.

 

[wedivebc]

Tragically, the person most capable and likely to reply to this request was recently lost in a dive accident.

RIP Quero

 

[Buadhai]

Tragically, the person most capable and likely to reply to this request was recently lost in a dive accident.

RIP Quero

What a sad and puzzling tragedy.

I've spent quite a bit of time reading the A&I thread (Scuba diver dies after being found floating at Kurnell, NSW, Australia) wondering how this could happen to someone who seemed so competent and meticulous.

A real loss for the Thailand dive community. I will miss her counsel and advice.

(Sorry for the OT post, but I thought an explanation was in order.)

 

[watboy]

I think you should start of by determining when you wanted to make the trip and how many days you want to go for. I agree with LK, that if you are going haul it from Australia, you should check the Andaman sea (west coast). There's not a lot on the gulf side that would warrant a long haul flight to see.

The Andaman sea is generally split into the North side, (Similans, Richileu rock, Koh Tachai/Bon etc), and the South Andaman (Koh Phi Phi, Koh Ha, Koh Bida, Hin Daeng / Muang). In my opinion, the North Andaman is best seen by live aboard while the South Andaman has the best day trip diving available. If you don't want do a liveaboard, my personal favorite is Koh Lanta. From there, Koh Haa, the Bida's, Hin Daeng and Muang are all a quick speedboat ride away.

We are thinking of making a Trip to Thialand and have heard the diving is excellent. Can anyone recommend a good operator to deal with? We will have a mix of experienced and inexperienced divers. I would really appreciate some suggestions from those of you have been there. How did you arrange it.. this is my first time trying to organize a group. I want to make sure everyone has a great experience and I figured the best way to do that would be to ask those of you who have traveled there. I may be a cynic but I figure every diver operator will tell you they are the best so I would most like to hear from divers who have been there what worked for them. Thanks

 

[Buadhai]

Have to agree with watboy. If you can swing a live aboard, it would definitely be worth your while.

If not, there is some very fine diving in the South Andaman and Koh Lanta is a great place to stay.

 

[bowlofpetunias]

To tell the truth I am concerned about livaboard... I have been known to get seasick esp if there is an issue of fumes... that is what has kept me from going that way.. how are the operations there for that?

 

[watboy]

Any half decent liveaboard should keep the engine/compressor fumes away from the cabins, dining/lounge areas. But you may get a wiff of it on the dive deck, the better boats would be fume free everywhere. If you have an issue of seasickness, then avoid liveaboards, there's not alot that can be done to help you once you start hurling.

The day trip boats are a mix. The super econo budget backpacker cattle transports can spew smokescreens of fumes. The bigger boats with upper decks, let you escape the fumes. Or speed boats that let you out run your fumes.

The other issue is how many dives per day you want to go. Liveaboards easily let you do 4 dives per day, with the last being a night dive. If you want to do 4 shore dives a day or a night shore dive, you may have to be more selective in where you stay. If memory serves, from Koh Phi Phi, you can easily do 4 dives a day since you can almost swim to a few good dive sites (but don't, biggest danger in my view is getting hit by speed boats, lots of traffic around Phi Phi).

To tell the truth I am concerned about livaboard... I have been known to get seasick esp if there is an issue of fumes... that is what has kept me from going that way.. how are the operations there for that?

 

[Buadhai]

As watboy states, there is little likelihood of fume problems on a modern liveaboard. I've been doing liveaboard trips in Thailand for two decades and have never had a problem with fumes.

Motion sickness is a different story. A couple of weeks ago I was on a boat in the southern gulf of Thailand. The trip was cut short a day due to foul weather and heavy seas. Many people on board, including crew members, were seasick.

I don't get seasick, so I have a hard time relating. But I have observed the misery.

But, I don't understand how a day trip is different from a liveaboard. Last year my wife accompanied me on a day trip boat out of Phuket and she got horribly seasick; a first for her. If conditions are unfavorable, you're going to get ill no matter how long the trip is.

All that said, if you dive the Andaman during the "dry" season (from mid-October through March or so), the chances are good that you'll have calm seas and nice conditions. However, no guarantees.