M/V Mermaid I Itinerary

2007-2008    2009

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2007/2008 Mermaid I Liveaboard Itinerary

BURMA SAFARI - 9 DAYS/9 NIGHTS

Departure Day

Guests transfer to Patong between 17:00-18:00 checking in at Royal Phawadee Village. A delicious Thai buffet is served after completing the check in process. Transfer to MV Mermaid I by 19:30 for boat and safety briefing, settle into your cabin then set up equipment. Prior to getting underway, the crew set off firecrackers to bring good luck for the cruise , dinner is served and we sail usually calm seas for 6 hours to the Similan Islands.

Day One - 4 dives

Wake up call at 7am in paradise ! After a continental breakfast, 1st dive around 8am at the beautiful coral encrusted crystal clear East Of Eden on island # 7 followed by a full western breakfast. Visit Princess Beach at Island #4, visit the small museum or shop for a Similans souvenir. Dive #2 at Koh Bon for chance for Manta. After a delicious lunch and time to relax, enjoy a 3rd dive at Koh Tachai for pelagics and the chance for whale shark and mantas followed by an interesting night dive. Then relax with a cool beer and new friends after a delicious dinner.

Day Two - 3 dives

First dive today either at Koh Tachai or the world famous Richelieu Rock. After breakfast, dive # 2 and # 3 at Richelieu Rock then its north to clear the Burma border. Relax on the wonderful sundeck or sort your Richelieu photos in our spacious saloon. After clearing the border and a delicious dinner, we head off for our 1st stop in Burma.

Day Three - 4 dives

Wake up in Burma and get ready for some fascinating diving. Today we dive High Rock, Stewart Island, Rocky Island and experience some great macro opportunities such as rare nudibrancs, stick pipe fish, spindle cowries and more. Not into small stuff - then check out the millions of moray, stone fish, scorpion fish, lion fish in full predatory action.

Day Four - 4 dives

Some call it "In through the out door" some call it Shark Cave - awesome diving awaits what ever you call it ! Maybe the nurse sharks will be in the chamber ? Maybe some Grey Reef sharks in their sleeping formation cruising in the canyon ? If not, then you will still be busy with loads of snappers, bait fish, sea horse, ornate ghost pipe fish, beautiful soft corals housing rare and unusual cowries and more.

Day Five - 4 dives

Today's feature site is Black Rock where we make 3 day and 1 sunset dive. Awesome dives with grey reef shark, white tip reef shark, leopard sharks, huge garoupa, giant marbled rays and trevally, huge remoras and masses of pelagic fishes. Top this off with ornate ghost pipe fish, frogfish and a million glass fish and this day will please every diver! Weather allowing we will cruise 8 hours overnight to the Burma Banks.

Day Six - 4 dives

An early start on our shark safari for nurse sharks, white tip and black tip reef sharks, silvertip sharks as we do 4 day dives on Heckford Bank (Big Bank) and Silvertip Bank. The Banks are really weather dependent as they are way out to sea. If the conditions are not favorable for the Banks, we will divert to some other great sites in the area.

Day Seven - 4 dives

Keep your eyes open for bull shark, white tip reef sharks and leopard sharks at Fan Forrest. Pinnacle during dive 1 & 2. After a scrumptious buffet lunch of Thai and western specialities Its time for a snooze on the sun deck, write up your dive log before the next dive around 3-4pm. The afternoon dive at Western Rocky Island is a treat for all with a tunnel going through the island full of glass fish, hinge beak shrimps and a regular haunt for nurse and other sharks. Before dinner, we make a night dive around Western Rocky for all the night treasures Burma offers. A great day's diving complete !

Day Eight - 2 dives

Two good dives around Western Rockies or closer to the mainland - then we cruise to Kaw Thaung for border clearance and maybe some sightseeing. Relax on board, sort pictures, snooze a little and enjoy the sunset at we cruise south to Thai waters and more great dives in the Similan Islands.

Day Nine - 2 dives

Last but not least, East of Eden or Anita's Reef followed by Boulder City or Shark Fin Reef - a great way to end a super 9 day safari. Make sure you leave some film/disc space for loads of reef fishes, pelagics, sharks, nudis and more ! Then enjoy lunch as we cruise south to Patong, Phuket. The crew will rinse your gear for you ! We arrive at approx 16:00 hours and will transfer you to your hotel where you can dream about your next cruise on board Mermaid Liveaboards !

TOTAL DIVES FOR BURMA SAFARI - 30 (22 in Burma, 8 in Thailand)

BALI - KOMODO - BALI - 8DAYS/9NIGHTS

Night 1

Check-in on board MV Mermaid I between 14:00-16:00 hours in Benoa Harbour Bali.
After the boat and safety briefing, equipment is prepared then settle into your cabin. Dinner is served at approx 19:00 hours as e cruise overnight to Moyo Island off the north west coast of Sumbawa.

Night 2/Day 1 - 3 dives

Start your adventure with a great dive in the calm, clear waters of Angel Reef at Moyo Island.
Massive elephant ear and barrel sponges, schools of long fin banner fish and red tooth triggers
In their hundreds, frog fish, nudibrancs, eels, surgeon fish, snapper, dog tooth tuna checking out what is for lunch ! Visit the local village then its lunch for us ! Then we cruise to Satonda Island
for a a macro dive followed by a world class night dive after watching a million bats fly at sunset.
After a great dive and dinner we cruise overnight to Sangeang Volcano off the north coast of Sumbawa.

Night 3/Day 2 - 4 dives

The Nusa Tenggara region has some extremely interesting and unique marine life. Today we spend the day diving around Sangeang Volcano - 2-3 dives for rare nudibrancs, pygmy seahorse, leaf scorpion fish, blue ribbon eels, black sand diving with all its treasures and underwater hot springs that support this very unique marine environment. Night dive here too or head on over to Gili Banta for the chance for Star Gazers and coral cat shark.

Night 4/Day 3 - 4 dives

Current depending, we start the day at GPS Point Gili Banta famous for its sharks and pelagic fishes.
Then we enter the Komodo National Park and for more exhilarating blue water/fish soup diving !
Gili Lawalaut has several great dives - if the tide is right we hunt grey reef shark and dolphin at Taka Toko Gili Lawalaut. Lighthouse Reef and The Old Passage offer fast drifts with pelagics, maybe manta ! Crystal Rock offers awesome soft corals in gold and orange hues plus the chance for sharks, turtles, giant Maori wrasse, a ‘fish soup” dive. Tonight we dive the famous Pink Beach - spectacular colours and frogfish, slipper lobster, basket stars, robust sea cucumbers unqiue to the area plus more !

Night 5/ Day 4 - 3 dives

Start your day with an exciting visit to Loh Liang Komodo National Park to walk with the dragons ! And as we quietly walk through the bush setting look out for Komodo dragons, deer, wild boar and birds.
Then relax as we cruise south to dive the Three Sisters or Pillarsteen at Padar Island. Next stop is a diver's paradise - Horseshoe Bay Rinja Island - home of one of the top 10 dives in the world-
Cannibal Rock - an abundance of corals, sponges, ascidians, sea apples, black corals, turtle, cuttlefish, loads of reef fishes too ! Here we can also watch dragons scavenging on the beach, monkey, deer, wild pigs along the shore, go beach combing…. Maybe even a chance to follow whales and dolphin feeding in the calm bay. We overnight at this peaceful place, diving at one of the many fabulous spots.

Night 6/Day 5 - 4 dives

More world class dives roday as we relax in Horseshoe Bay Rinja Island - the Yellow Wall of Texas is absolutely stunning covered with enormous yellow soft corals. Go slowly along the wall looking for unique creatures but don't forget to look out into the blue to see what's coming by…maybe e make a deep dive to check if the tiny yellow pygmy seahorses are on the giant gorgonians at depth.
Nusa Kode offers more walls and critter chances coupled with white tip reef sharks etc ! Torpedo Alley is famous for its "electric" rays and perhaps one of the best night dives of your life for critter fanciers.

Night 7/Day 6 - 4 dives

Today we'll head on over to Manta Alley to watch in awe as these magnificent creatures feed, play and get cleaned at the many cleaning stations. In the afternoon we can check out more big fish dives maybe at Loh Serah, Tatawa Kecil or the infamous "Current City" Batu Bolong - come face to face with reef sharks, turtles and giant Wrasse. Many good night dives around here - Gili Darat is great for sleeping turtles, colourful reef stonefish, spanish dancers - calm sea - a good place to sleep.

Night 8/Day 7 - 4 dives

The diving around Gili Lawalaut, Tatawa Kecil, Gili Darat is so awesome you will all want more so today we make 2-3 dives in clear arm blue waters - loads of fish both big and small. Then we'll head off for a a night dive at either Gili Banta or maybe Batu Putih in Sumbawa - both interesting sites. Overnight we cruise back to Satonda and Sumbawa - solar powered nudibranc, ghost pipefish anyone ?

Night 9/Day 8 - 2 dives

We enjoy two good dives around Sumbawa and Moyo Islands - a chance to shoot anything you missed at the trip beginning . Then the crew wash your equipment for you while you relax on the sundeck or downloading your pictures, enjoying our trip video as well just before dinner with all your new friends.

Last Day

After breakfast we transfer you ashore at 9am to continue your vacation…or its time to head home to start planning your next Mermaid cruise !

TOTAL DIVES FOR BALI/KOMODO/BALI - 28

2009 Mermaid I Liveaboard Itinerary

ANDAMAN ISLANDS - 9 DAYS/10 NIGHTS

Departure Day

Guests check in on board Mermaid I between 14:00-16:00 hours. After settling into your Cabins, boat safety and cruise briefing, we cruise overnight to our first dive de destination.

Day One - 4 dives

This is an Exploration Cruise in the "fish soup" waters of The Andaman Islands ! We will dive known favorite dive sites and explore new sites ­ advanced divers will have an awesome time in and around the following islands plus more !

Day Two - 4 dives

Passage Island
The Sisters
Invisible Bank, Flat Rock
Barren Island
Narcodam Island

Day Three - 4 dives

Button Island, Campbell Shoal
Ritchies Archipelago, Minerva‘s Ledge
Plus more great dive locations

Day Four - 4 dives

We will allow 2 days each for diving the incredible volcanic sites of Barren Island and Narcodam Island, famous for black sand, underwater hot springs, walls and more !

Day Five - 4 dives

Throughout the trip we will select areas for exploration dives so bring your compasses to help chart new and unusual dive sites along the way.

Day Six - 4 dives

Wherever practicable, an open deck will be offered to maximize dives at these wonderous dive sites.

Day Seven - 4 dives

Night dives will be available each night subject to safety. If a night dive is not feasible we will do our best to get in a sunset dive to investigate the local marine life habits.

Day Eight - 4 dives

Be some of the early divers in this almost last frontier of diving in the Andaman Seas ! This is what memories are made of and we look forward to sharing this opportunity with you

Day Nine - 4 dives

Day Ten

Disembark after breakfast for transfer to your hotel or the airport. Please remember to allow 24 hours after last dive before flying !

TOTAL DIVES FOR ANDAMAN ISLANDS - 36