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Liveaboard diving involves spending a few days and nights or more aboard a boat which sails around the best scuba diving sites. Guests and passengers relax on the boat between three or four dives each day. Most days include a trip to a beach or bay. The diving begins early in the morning and the last dive is at night. the Similan Islands in Thailand are extremely popular for liveaboard diving.

Scuba diving in Thailand is an extremely popular sport and growing every year. It is good fun, and educational for new divers to learn about marine conservation as well as that sharks and other sea creatures should be treated with respect, rather than fear. It is good for the country's economy as it enables local and international businesses to prosper, including attracting local tourists and those from abroad. Thailand has many beautiful islands, beaches and diving spots on both its coasts. From a diving visitor's point of view, there are a few aspects to consider when choosing the best places in Thailand to go scuba diving. The two coasts, Gulf in the east and Andaman Sea to the west, have several different areas for scuba diving, some of which are better for accommodation, non-diving activities, and of course different kinds and levels of diving conditions and marine life.

After nearly five months of waiting, The Similan Islands National Marine Park is finally open once more! This is excellent news for everyone involved, from boat captains to visiting tourists. Each year the authorities close the marine parks to the public during the wet season in order to give the ecosystem a break and because the seas can be quite rough. Being so far (60km. +) from the mainland means that rescuing anyone who has fallen victim to the waves is difficult and hazardous. But now here we are in mid October and the first day trips have been and returned, reporting wonderful conditions at the start of this 2013-14 diving season.

Achtung - Für deutschsprachige Kunden

MK Oktavia ist stolz darauf, Ihnen mitteilen zu können, das wir Ihnen ab nächste Saison(2013-2014) deutschsprachige Tauchlehrer anbieten können. Obwohl die meisten Deutschen auch der englischen Sprache mächtig sind, ist es mit Sicherheit ein Vorteil, wenn die Kurse und Tauchausflüge in der Muttersprache angeboten werden.

Many new visitors to Thailand are unaware of exactly where places are, and can waste time and money travelling around unnecessarily. Those coming to join a Similan Islands liveaboard cruise or day trip directly from Phuket airport should understand why it's not a good idea to travel into Phuket's main town and resort areas.

Although The Similan Islands are becoming quite well known as Thailand’s premier diving location, there are those who say that Richelieu Rock is the best actual dive site. Unfortunately, some people are led to believe that Richelieu Rock is in The Similan Islands and expect to dive there on a Similans cruise. This is not the only confusion about Thailand’s best diving sites, so here’s a summary of what is where.

We would like to confirm that the recent oil slick, caused by PTT in The Gulf of Thailand, will not affect diving in The Similan Islands in any way. The accident happened on the other side of the Thai-Malay Peninsula and has no chance of reaching the crystal-clear waters which surround The Similan Islands, Richelieu Rock, Koh Bon & Koh Tachai.

While it is commonly written and said that diving at The Similan Islands on Thailand's west coast is only for experienced and certified scuba divers, this is not absolutely true. Although most visiting tourists on the day trip boats and liveaboard cruise ships are scuba divers with experience, looking for something better than they can find near the mainland, it is also worth mentioning that the demographic of passengers on Similans boats is extremely diverse. Not only do novice divers enjoy Similan diving safaris, non-divers and even children are frequently found to be relaxing on boats, snorkelling and exploring the beaches.