Trip Reports

Awe Inspiring Raja Ampat

It’s that time of the year again, the final trip for the Raja Ampat season is completed, and the boats will make The Crossing through the vast Banda Sea and later into Komodo and Bali. To reflect, the 2025/2026 Raja Ampat season was nothing short of awe-inspiring! Every trip hits differently, and no matter how […]

From Misool to the Dampier Strait: A Raja Ampat Liveaboard Adventure Aboard Mermaid II

This week onboard the Mermaid II, we welcomed a group of familiar faces coming all the way from Russia and embarked on a 9 day adventure through the stunning Raja Ampat islands, and it was nothing short of incredible Starting the trip by cruising down south and breaking the surface at Misool, we were immediately […]

Sixteen Days Biodiversity Super Special Maumere-Alor-Banda Sea-Raja Ampat Cruise 

The striking silhouette of Watu Warawutun volcano stood proud against a stary black backdrop. A faint orange glow radiated from within its belly, rising through its mouth to glow softly in the night sky. Suddenly, an explosion of light and colour painted the blackness. We stare in awe as Watu Warawutun erupts, firing a fountain […]

Incredible Array of Indonesia’s Marine Biodiversity

This week’s journey from Raja Ampat, crossing through the Banda Sea to Ambon, unveiled an incredible array of Indonesia’s marine biodiversity. From the inaugural night dive off the village of Sapokren, guests had the privilege of observing rare species such as the Flamboyant Cuttlefish and the enigmatic Wunderpus hunting crustaceans on the sandy seabed. As […]

Raja Ampat’s Incredible Encounter

This week’s voyage aboard the Mermaid One through Raja Ampat was marked by a series of incredibly unique encounters, ranging from oceanic manta rays and free-swimming wobbegong sharks to tiny blue-ringed octopuses and even a playful baby reef manta ray. Throughout the trip, guests encountered two species of wobbegong sharks: the ornate and the tasselled. […]

Whale and Bird Watching into the Heart of Raja Ampat

This week, the Mermaid One partnered with Naturetrek to lead an expedition encompassing snorkeling, whale watching, and bird watching into the heart of Raja Ampat. Our journey began in the southern region of Raja Ampat, where guests were treated to the breathtaking sight of hard and soft coral reefs teeming with vibrant marine life. Graceful […]

An Incredible Komodo Voyage Trip That Has it All

This trip has it all, a multitude of dive sites each with unique topographies suited to all kinds of diving, this, matched with the vastly diverse and rich abundance of marine life, made for an incredible voyage. Healthy reefs set the stage as fish of all sizes dance atop the corals in an explosion of […]

Another Action Packed Week

It was another action packed week aboard Mermaid II as it voyaged from Bali to Komodo. Sunday evening we went for a sunset dive at Satonda Reef where we briefly interrupted a pair of mating cuttlefish. Dive guide Bob spotted a tiny pygmy squid hidden amongst the coral reef. Our first day in the National […]

More Than Komodo

This weeks trip on board Mermaid II to Komodo National Park really proved why making the crossing from Bali to Komodo and back again can be so much more rewarding than taking a flight to Labuan Bajo. Aside from the logistics of additional flights and time lost in an airport there is a huge of […]

Pelagics of Komodo

This weeks trip aboard Mermaid II to Komodo National Park was one dominated by Pelagics. Crystal Rock was alive with current and having managed to descent into the sweet spot where the current splits around the pinnacle we were surrounded by Dogtooth tuna and Giant Trevalley as they hounded the fusiliers at speed. At Castle […]