Similan & Surin Islands
M/V Andaman

You should arrive for check in and equipment fitting by 4pm at the latest on the day of departure.

The M/V Andaman departs in the evening, so please have dinner beforehand. Our dive center has two neighbouring restaurants and you can safely leave your luggage with us whilst you dine.

We all meet at our dive center at 19.30 for your Trip Supervisor to give the pre-departure briefing. Your dive equipment (unless you have your own) will already be onboard, so you don’t need to worry about that, and most of the dive staff for your trip will also be at the harbour, preparing for your arrival.

At about 20.00 we depart the dive center for the harbour. The taxi ride to Thap Lamu harbour, our departure point for the Similan Islands, takes about 30 minutes and the air-conditioned minibus ride to Khuraburi harbour, our departure point for the Surin Islands, takes about 1 hour 20 minutes.

On arrival at the harbour, our boat crew will transfer your luggage from the taxi to our boat while our dive staff welcome you onboard, show you to your cabin and give you some time to settle in. As we depart the jetty, your Trip Supervisor will call you all together on the middle deck for the boat orientation and briefing, as we set sail for the Similan Islands, Koh Tachai or the Surin Islands. The crossing takes about 4 hours to the Similans or Koh Tachai, 3 hours to the Surins.

A typical day will usually follow this pattern:

• 06:20 Early wake-up call, giving you time to grab a tea/coffee and maybe a snack
• 06:40 Dive brief on the middle deck (extended brief on day 1 covers our diving & safety procedures)
• 07:30 Dive 1
• 09:0 Western-style cooked breakfast in the dining area

Time to relax onboard, take the dinghy to the beach (if available), snorkel from the boat or, if we are steaming between the islands, just lay back and enjoy the scenery

• 11:00 Dive brief on the middle deck
• 11:30 Dive 2
• 13:00 Thai-style lunch in the dining area

More time to relax, snorkel, swim – or maybe it’s time for a short nap?

• 15:00 Dive brief on the middle deck
• 15:30 Dive 3
• 16:30 An afternoon snack is served on the middle deck, come and help yourself
• 18:00 Dive 4 – sunset dive (on day 2 of the 4-day trip only)
• 19:00 Dive 4 – night dive (on day 1 only)
• 21:00 Thai-style dinner in the dining area.

On the final evening of the 4-day trip we have a barbecue and cocktails on the upper deck instead. Time to meet the cook – and the elusive Captain! Evening onboard – enjoy the company and share a drink with your fellow divers and our staff

We designed the M/V Andaman to prove you don’t need a luxury liveaboard and deep pockets to dive some of the world’s top dive sites – in comfort and style!
Choose your onboard accommodation to suit your budget: opt for one of our best value 6-berth bunks or splash out on a private ensuite double cabin. With a maximum of 20 guests, 5 dive staff and 6 boat crew you’ll never feel crowded onboard, with a choice of five diverse areas to relax in: socialising around the main tables, stretching out on a sun mattress, swinging in a hammock, cooling down in your air-conditioned cabin or lounging in a bean bag.
We have very high safety standards, medically-trained international PADI dive staff, fun-loving, experienced boat crew that have been with us for years, an abundance of good food (it might feel like you never stop eating) and we dive the very best dive sites in the Andaman Sea.
The 26m steel hull ensures the smoothest ride possible through the waves, and we supply electricity 24 hours daily. With three full length decks and the unusual and much-loved feature of a split-level sun deck, where we hold our popular barbecue and cocktail evening on the final night, we’re sure you’re going to love your time onboard with us as much as you will love diving these world-famous dive sites.

This is where we dive and sleep – two of the three most important aspects of any liveaboard trip (we eat on the middle deck).

The accommodation area is towards the front of this deck, with two double ensuite cabins, two double cabins and two six-berth cabins with individual bunks complete with privacy curtains and personal reading lights. All cabins have sea view, 220v plug sockets and ample storage space and all are air-conditioned, so if you need to escape the midday heat then this is where we think we’ll find you.

The three bathrooms with toilets and hot water showers are in the middle of this deck, plus there are three hand-wash basins with mirrors, for quick access, just outside.

At the stern is the all-important dive deck where your equipment and tanks live and where we have fresh water tanks so you can rinse your computers, torches and cameras after diving. We enter the water just two groups at a time, so there’s space to kit up for your next dive, and our attentive boat crew will be on hand to help you – they often seem to be everywhere at once. The large dive platform, where all the excitement starts, has two ladders and two fresh water showers for a quick rinse after diving or swimming.

Here you will find the service area supplying hot and cold drinks, cornflakes, fruit and cookies, freely available throughout the day. It’s a great place to hang out, fill in your log book and trawl through our selection of fish identification books. You’ll find the fridge and ice boxes here as well where you can help yourself to free soft drinks and, in the evenings, a selection of cold beers for sale, maybe whilst challenging a fellow diver to a game of backgammon or having some laughs over a fun card game with our engineer.

Three times daily our cooks will serve a selection of our family style meals here, starting with a western-style breakfast followed by Thai-style lunch and dinner, plus a light snack mid-afternoon. The two large communal dining tables, surrounded by cushioned seating, encourage a lively, social atmosphere so feel free to move around at mealtimes and meet your fellow divers. Our dive staff will dine here with you, but our Thai crew prefer to eat separately – so they can add more ‘spice’ to their food!

The rest of the middle deck houses the staff quarters, galley and wheelhouse. Accessible only from the lower and upper decks, many guests never actually stumble upon this area as it is tucked out of view.

Our favourite deck! Running the full length of the boat this easily accessible split-level deck starts just four steps up from dining area, so no ladders to climb. The open-air sundeck at the bow has a collection of foam sun mattresses and bean bags and is the best place for sun worshippers, panoramic views, catching the sea breeze or for stealing a quiet moment with a morning coffee while watching the sunrise. This is also where we host our barbecue party on the final evening. As we steam between the islands if we feel the boat suddenly swerve off-course, we all rush to the top deck to see what the captain has spotted – maybe the water spout of a whale in the distance, or perhaps a family of dolphins surfing our bow wave.

The centre of the top deck is shaded by a sun roof, and here you’ll find a wooden table and various benches, plus a large platform covered with padded mattresses, complete with several swinging hammocks – a lovely space in which to drift off as we cruise around the islands. This popular spot is great for reading, relaxing, lazing around out of the sun or taking an afternoon nap, ready for your next dive.