When to book Galapagos and Raja Ampat liveaboards

[DK_Scuba]

Hello everyone,

My partner and I are planning a 1 year trip around the world starting in June 2025 and plan on doing 2 liveaboards along the way. Galapagos in July or August or 2025 and Raja Ampat in Aprilish 2026.

We were wondering for these destinations in particular would it be wise to book some budget liveaboards early or wait until we are traveling and book last minute deals while in the area? We are budgeting wisely for these but definitely cannot afford to pay for the higher end boats so I'm worried our options will be very small if we wait.

Would love to hear your thoughts.

Thanks!

 

[suwu]

For what it's worth, I booked a liveaboard for Raja Ampat in Dec 2023 2 weeks ago. I found that (5 months ahead) there were plenty of cheaper options still available. A lot of the luxury ones were booked out or limited in space.

 

[drrich2]

IIRC, the big Aggressor Fleet annual sale was some time back, but the big Black Friday shopping season is yet to come. If I were you, I'd try to find out how sales were in the past.

I'd book well in advance. Visit PADITravel.com or similar and look to see if there are discounted rates for some weeks when you might like to go.

Decide just how 'budget' this trip needs to be. I chose the Humboldt Explorer for the Galapagos and the Indo Siren for Raja Ampat because I like budget-minded mid-range providers that are comfortable with good food, good diving, air conditioning and perhaps lacking enough 'extra' luxury touches I'd hardly miss to knock off a big chunk of cost.

On other other hand, if your idea of budget is no air-conditioning, shorter trips than usual for the area, etc..., you may be targeting a different service tier. I'll link you my trip reports so you can see what costs looked like from a solo traveler perspective.

Humboldt Explorer Jan 13-20, 2020 - Trip Report - Humboldt Explorer Jan 13-20, 2020

My Research Notes from Planning Galapagos Trip

Raja Ampat 10-Night Indo-Siren Liveaboard Dec. 2 – 12, 2022 Trip Report - Trip Report - Raja Ampat 10-Night Indo-Siren Liveaboard Dec. 2 – 12, 2022 Trip Report

By the time you factor in airfare, hotels, etc..., neither is a cheap destination coming from North America, and I suspect from Canada. People looking for budget options sometimes turn to the Philippines.

 

[Lorenzoid]

We were wondering for these destinations in particular would it be wise to book some budget liveaboards early or wait until we are traveling and book last minute deals while in the area?

I don't have an answer, but I'm curious about last-minute deals while being "in the area." Boats book online, often through agencies far away. It's not like you can walk up to a boat, find out they have a space on a trip in the next week, and book there. Boats are on the move. Most have no "office" there. If you are traveling around the world for a year, what is the likelihood of you just happening to be in the Galapagos or Raja Ampat in some window of a few weeks before a particular boat with a last-minute space is departing?

 

[Shasta_man]

I'd agree it is pretty unlikely you would happen to catch a boat at the time you are in those locations, particularly a boat you would want to be on. Further, getting to those locations takes considerable time and expense, particularly Raja Ampat. I could also imagine how terrible it would be to go all the way there and the boat does not work out. If you cannot afford both, then consider just going to one and booking a boat in advance for there. Raja Ampat probably has more cheaper boats but note budget boat could be fine but budget boat could also risk your life because of low standards.

 

[DK_Scuba]

IIRC, the big Aggressor Fleet annual sale was some time back, but the big Black Friday shopping season is yet to come. If I were you, I'd try to find out how sales were in the past.

I'd book well in advance. Visit PADITravel.com or similar and look to see if there are discounted rates for some weeks when you might like to go.

Decide just how 'budget' this trip needs to be. I chose the Humboldt Explorer for the Galapagos and the Indo Siren for Raja Ampat because I like budget-minded mid-range providers that are comfortable with good food, good diving, air conditioning and perhaps lacking enough 'extra' luxury touches I'd hardly miss to knock off a big chunk of cost.

On other other hand, if your idea of budget is no air-conditioning, shorter trips than usual for the area, etc..., you may be targeting a different service tier. I'll link you my trip reports so you can see what costs looked like from a solo traveler perspective.

Humboldt Explorer Jan 13-20, 2020 - Trip Report - Humboldt Explorer Jan 13-20, 2020

My Research Notes from Planning Galapagos Trip

Raja Ampat 10-Night Indo-Siren Liveaboard Dec. 2 – 12, 2022 Trip Report - Trip Report - Raja Ampat 10-Night Indo-Siren Liveaboard Dec. 2 – 12, 2022 Trip Report

By the time you factor in airfare, hotels, etc..., neither is a cheap destination coming from North America, and I suspect from Canada. People looking for budget options sometimes turn to the Philippines.

Thanks a lot! Our budgets seem to line up pretty well. We want as much diving as possible with a reputable operator but don't need any bells or whistles. Our budget for the 2 liveaboards tops out at $10,000 CAD each.

Looking into past sales is a great idea so I'll definitely be doing that. Thanks!

 

[DK_Scuba]

I don't have an answer, but I'm curious about last-minute deals while being "in the area." Boats book online, often through agencies far away. It's not like you can walk up to a boat, find out they have a space on a trip in the next week, and book there. Boats are on the move. Most have no "office" there. If you are traveling around the world for a year, what is the likelihood of you just happening to be in the Galapagos or Raja Ampat in some window of a few weeks before a particular boat with a last-minute space is departing?

I'd agree it is pretty unlikely you would happen to catch a boat at the time you are in those locations, particularly a boat you would want to be on. Further, getting to those locations takes considerable time and expense, particularly Raja Ampat. I could also imagine how terrible it would be to go all the way there and the boat does not work out. If you cannot afford both, then consider just going to one and booking a boat in advance for there. Raja Ampat probably has more cheaper boats but note budget boat could be fine but budget boat could also risk your life because of low standards.

Thanks guys, the more I look into it the more I see the last minute galapagos deals are primarily for the naturalist cruises (so no diving). So we will definitely focus on saving for paying these in advance. Thanks!

 

[Homunculus]

I don't have an answer, but I'm curious about last-minute deals while being "in the area." Boats book online, often through agencies far away. It's not like you can walk up to a boat, find out they have a space on a trip in the next week, and book there. Boats are on the move. Most have no "office" there. If you are traveling around the world for a year, what is the likelihood of you just happening to be in the Galapagos or Raja Ampat in some window of a few weeks before a particular boat with a last-minute space is departing?

i've actually met someone who was a freelance traveling around South America and was in Guayaquil and she approached travel agencies daily and over a period of 2-3 days she was able to get a spot for ~2K. So i do believe this approach works but you have you be (a) risk taker, (b) have several days to spen hoping for the spot.