Do you remember your best summer ever when you were a kid? Mine was summer camp, and the only thing on the menu was fun.
I hadn’t thought about that in years, decades even … until last April when I booked a liveaboard with Sea Dragon. One week aboard the M/V Andaman with a small group of adults who, like me, got to revisit that feeling. Endless summer (well, one week but felt longer). Great company and an exceptional crew who really are experts at making you feel comfortable and safe in a non-pampering kind of way.
This is not a luxury cruise! That scene is not for me. You are on a boat, with all the movement, smells and sounds that go with it. You are fed simple but delicious food, and plenty of it. You will sleep in a bunk, unless you have booked one of the four double rooms. You will dive with guides who clearly love what they do and want to share their knowledge and love of diving with you.
The nice balance of Thai, European and Burmese DM’s and crew was also impressive.
Sea Dragon has been around a long time, starting out some 30 years ago as a small dive shop in Kao Lak. They’ve grown a little, but not too much. Still feels like a homespun operation with some employees having been with the company for several years. I think that says a lot about any businesses credibility.
The way it works is the trips are broken down into segments of 4 days that can be combined into longer trips of 7 or 11 days. So, if you depart from Kao Lak you will dive the Similan and Surin Islands, and the spectacular Richelieu Rock (which is everything they say it is). Some guests will disembark at the northern port of Khuraburi while others will board. So if you’re on a 7 day trip you’ll do the Surin/Richelieu loop again, returning to Khuraburi and taking a shuttle back down to the dive center at Kao Lak. If you’re doing 11 days you will continue on the boat south to Kao Lak. Yes, you will revisit some of the same dive sites but personally this was not a problem for me, I always saw something new.
Big thanks to Stephan for excellent pre-trip communication as well. This was my first liveaboard and I had a lot of questions, he answered all of them promptly.
I can’t speak about the other Andaman liveaboard operators, but I wanted an authentic experience and for me Sea Dragon was the perfect choice.
If anyone has any questions about this boat, post them here or message me and I will do my best to answer.
Go have fun!
I hadn’t thought about that in years, decades even … until last April when I booked a liveaboard with Sea Dragon. One week aboard the M/V Andaman with a small group of adults who, like me, got to revisit that feeling. Endless summer (well, one week but felt longer). Great company and an exceptional crew who really are experts at making you feel comfortable and safe in a non-pampering kind of way.
This is not a luxury cruise! That scene is not for me. You are on a boat, with all the movement, smells and sounds that go with it. You are fed simple but delicious food, and plenty of it. You will sleep in a bunk, unless you have booked one of the four double rooms. You will dive with guides who clearly love what they do and want to share their knowledge and love of diving with you.
The nice balance of Thai, European and Burmese DM’s and crew was also impressive.
Sea Dragon has been around a long time, starting out some 30 years ago as a small dive shop in Kao Lak. They’ve grown a little, but not too much. Still feels like a homespun operation with some employees having been with the company for several years. I think that says a lot about any businesses credibility.
The way it works is the trips are broken down into segments of 4 days that can be combined into longer trips of 7 or 11 days. So, if you depart from Kao Lak you will dive the Similan and Surin Islands, and the spectacular Richelieu Rock (which is everything they say it is). Some guests will disembark at the northern port of Khuraburi while others will board. So if you’re on a 7 day trip you’ll do the Surin/Richelieu loop again, returning to Khuraburi and taking a shuttle back down to the dive center at Kao Lak. If you’re doing 11 days you will continue on the boat south to Kao Lak. Yes, you will revisit some of the same dive sites but personally this was not a problem for me, I always saw something new.
Big thanks to Stephan for excellent pre-trip communication as well. This was my first liveaboard and I had a lot of questions, he answered all of them promptly.
I can’t speak about the other Andaman liveaboard operators, but I wanted an authentic experience and for me Sea Dragon was the perfect choice.
If anyone has any questions about this boat, post them here or message me and I will do my best to answer.
Go have fun!
