Maldives MV Eagle Ray Liveaboard

Has anybody dived with MV Eagle Ray before?

My group of diving buddies are about to confirm a trip with them.

Any feedbacks and dive reviews are appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Hi,

I am diving with them in the fall 09. How was your trip?

Hello there, I dont mean to be bias.
But the dive master on MV Eagle Ray is one the most experienced divers in Maldives. He has been in this business over 20 years. Manik has probably 10,000 or more dives. He is the former dive guide for manthiri (which is one the leading safari boats in Maldives). And the crew is as well experinced and very friendly.

I believe that you would have a phenomenal trip, as Manik himself is a dive fanatic!

Please if u have any questions feel free.
Best regards.
Loona
Oceanic Dreams

entropy:

Hi,

I am diving with them in the fall 09. How was your trip?

Click to expand...

Hi, it was fantastic! Food was good, but expect lots of bananas (desserts & snacks) and same food at every breakfast (bread, roshi, chicken franks, your choice of eggs, butter, marmalade, free flow of orange drink, coffee and tea). We requested for curry at every breakfast, we got it.

Lunch & dinner: wide variety, very balanced diet, buffet style: pasta, fish, chicken, veggies, rice, curry, fruits and some side dishes, dessert is served after every dinner by the stewart Sena. We noticed that Sena would change into a white polo-T and black pants at every meal time, I felt it was professional.

The chef actually baked me a surprise birthday cake! It was presented by the crew with the lights switched off at the dining area. I was touched.

The senior dive master, Manik didn't dive with us because of his serious sinus problems and he has been seeking medical advise, he's praying that it would be solved by next March. Manik was there to make sure everything goes well and we didn't have anything to worry about.

Instead we dived with Asraf and Sapey, we enjoyed the dives very much. Whale sharks, mantas, eagle rays, marble rays, barracudas, white tips, schools and schools of snappers and other fishes. Dive briefing before every dive, Asraf would draw the dive sites on the white board and explain in detail what to expect during the dives. Very helpful dive dhoni crew who took care of us ladies very well. We were totally spoilt by the sincere and helpful crew.

Total 12 crew (3 on dive dhoni + 2 divemasters) to 14 divers. What more can you ask for?

I would definitely dive with them again.

We were on the Eagle Ray for a 10-day trip in May/June 08. I second Oceanic Dreams comments about Manik and the crew of the Eagle Ray. We had a great trip even though it was the onset of the wet monsoon. Boat is very comfortable, food was great and Manik is quite the character in addition to be a great dive guide.

I dove with the Eagle Ray back in 2009 and I can't say enough good things about this boat and her crew! First off I could not believe how affordable the price was and was afraid it was going to be crappy at but the boat is fine. The food is awesome... seriously I am a picky eater and the food was the best on all the liveaboards I've been on. Whoever wrote about Mailik up there is right about him. Super nice guy and he really went out of his way to make sure we each had a great time. He was not able to dive when I was on the boat due to some sinus or pressure injury but he did an excellent job running that ship. He posted 2 of his crew on the roof as spotters one day to ensure they could find us a Whale Shark and sure enough... they did!!! Right as we got our gear on and got in the water. It was the first time I ever saw a whale shark and for me a very special experience. Here is the video if you are interested in seeing it: THE WHALE SHARK on Vimeo

Anyway I could go on and on but you really can't go wrong with this boat. It's not the fanciest boat I've ever been on but who cares... the diving is some of the best I've ever seen and trust me. I've dove all over the world.
Rosh
Sarosh Jacob saroshjacob.com Adventure

Really silly question......I wanted to check air fares to ????? Not sure where the Eagle ray sails out of could someone please help me with that...Thanks

Eagle Ray starts cruise from the lagoon next to Male' International Airport.
If you reach the above airport same day of departure, they will pick you up from the airport. You just need to inform them your arrival details.

@sea

Hi guys, I'mnew to Scubaboard, but I wanted to let everyone know I had an excellent trip with MV Eagle Ray. I dived from 7-14 Jan with them, so very recent. Our guides were Sappe and Buka. Nice guys and experienced. Food was excellent, including a beach bbq on Thursday and a Maldivian buffet on Friday. Rooms were spacious and kept clean daily.
On the dives: we didn't see a whale shark, but pretty much everything else. I would definitely recommend MV Eagle Ray.

Hey guys, just bumping this thread as I'm looking to book the MV Eagle Ray for later on this year, but they don't seem to have a website or direct contact. If possible I'd like to book direct, so does anyone have contact details for these guys?Cheers, and thanks in advance,John