A few questions about liveaboards

A friend of mine and I have been thinking about possibly going on a trip together somewhere at some point. Descriptive, I know, but we're both students, so everything depends on our schedules and what won't break the bank for either of us.

I've been perusing travel sites looking for ideas of where we could go, mostly resorts, with a hypothetical date being the last week of Feb (our spring break) and have now started thinking about liveaboards as well. Having never been on a liveaboard (we're both new divers), I've got a few questions.

With the massive amount of AI resorts in mexico and the carribean, it seems like you can book a decent trip at almost the last minute, but generally how far in advance do you have to book spots on a liveaboard? Does this change depending on when you want to go?

How friendly are they towards new divers, in terms of help from the DMs and the sites they pick for dives? Am I going to be missing out because I've only got an OW cert with a 60' limit? Are there areas that would be good to do now vs waiting till I have AOW and could go deeper?

I was looking into Explorer Ventures' Saba/St. Kitts, it's cheaper than most everything else I saw, but is this reflected in what you're getting? Any recommendations of where to go or what to look for in choosing a liveaboard would be appreciated.

Live aboards are great. There is one potential problem based on your questions however. The dive sites are picked based on schedules and weather for the most part. You'll have 14 to 20 divers on most boats and they can't possibly accomodate special needs for the most part. That being said, most boats take good care of newer divers by giving them special attention. Don't let the OW versus AOW bother you. It's experience that really counts. In 18 years of diving, I've never had anyone ask what cards I have but rather what experience I have. The only exception would be dive schools. You can dive to whatever depth you are comfortable with. The 60' limit is not an absolute rule but rather a suggestion based on the amount of training and experience you have at the time you are certified.

While I'm a firm believer in live aboards, I'm not sure I'd recommend one if you have fewer than 30 or so dives in a variety of conditions. There are just too many variables on most live aboards. Sometimes you may encounter current of dives that are deeper than you want. You'll have little control over those things on a liveaboard. Some live aboards don't put a DM in the water with you (I worked on one) and I wouldn't recommend you dive in that situation without futher training and experience.

Take a less expensive trip to Roatan (can be really cheap) or Belize and get some experience and additional training. You'll enjoy your first live aboard a lot more.

Try the Belize Aggressor. I have done the Belize Aggressor and it is a great boat. In Belize there is usually little or no current with great visibility. You can get in up to 5 dives a day, including night dives. They are very helpful with new divers and will put a DM in the water with you on each dive if you want all you have to do is ask.
At a resort you usually get 2 boat dives a day, maybe 3, night dives are extra. Usually meals are extra, depending on where you stay. IMO you get much more for your money with a liveaboard vice a land-based operation.

thanks for the input. i appreciate the tip about roatan, just checked on travelocity and found something that could be promising for much less than the liveaboards and even most of the AI resort packages they have too. waiting a year or so might be a good idea so i can get some more experience so i don't get on a boat and realise there's more diving to be had than I'm ready for, either in quantity or conditions. 2 dives a day might be just right... for now.

oreocookie:

thanks for the input. i appreciate the tip about roatan, just checked on travelocity and found something that could be promising for much less than the liveaboards and even most of the AI resort packages they have too. waiting a year or so might be a good idea so i can get some more experience so i don't get on a boat and realise there's more diving to be had than I'm ready for, either in quantity or conditions. 2 dives a day might be just right... for now.

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I wouldn't give up so quickly on a liveaboard! Some itineraries are perfect for newbies and a great way to gain more experience.
Check out the Nekton Nekton Cruises > Home
their Bahamas trips, NW Bahamas and Medio Reef, are excellent for newbies!
See my Medio reef report here: http://www.rnrscuba.net/NektonRorqual_TripReport.html

also the Aggressor has a couple - Kona and Belize
Aggressor Fleet | The ultimate in live-aboards since 1984 (but the Aggressor is much more expensive)

Roatan is a great land-based option, check out my Cocoview Resort trip report from last month here: CoCoView Resort, 2008

robin

Liveaboards are truly great and, when total costs are considered, not too expensive. Remember to factor hotel,car,food and time when comparing costs. But also don't forget that a tip is expected after liveaboards that may be 15% of the total price of the package. This can really jack up the prices.
I'd also recommend Belize Aggressor and any of the Bahamas liveaboards which are among the most reasonable to do (cheaper flights to Bahamas too). They are all great for newbies and will give just information / help as much as you require. The other advantage for la's is that you don't have hassle time trying to get onto a boat. This can be a real drag at times. I'd say go for the Liveaboard.

You can't really generalize about the amount or difficulty of diving on liveaboards or land based, it is going to vary with the boat and destination. But as said, you're not going to have much control over where you dive. They're going to want the best diving based on conditions (and usually where they have adequate moorings) for the majority of their passengers. I would say with liveaboards you do pretty much get what you pay for. The CEII while not at the higher end has a pretty good rep. Land based trips are a lot more variable in costs vs. what you get.

I do agree for the OP it couldn't hurt to do a land based trip and get a little more experience first, though some liveaboards would probably be fine. Sometimes you can get a spot (and a deal) on a liveaboard a couple weeks before, and sometimes they are booked a year or more in advance. It depends on the destination and time of year. Land based trips will generally be less of a problem last minute, although there are some very popular places that also book up far in advance. February is a pretty popular time for people to want to escape cold weather in the US, or to go during spring break just like you're looking at, and that's not far away so I wouldn't wait long whatever you decide to do. Airfares can be high in February for the same reasons.

robint:

I wouldn't give up so quickly on a liveaboard! Some itineraries are perfect for newbies and a great way to gain more experience.
Check out the Nekton Nekton Cruises > Home
their Bahamas trips, NW Bahamas and Medio Reef, are excellent for newbies!
See my Medio reef report here: http://www.rnrscuba.net/NektonRorqual_TripReport.html

robin

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I read your Medio Reef report - Wow! Do you think that an intrepidly snorkling, but non-diving spouse would be a happy camper aboard that boat and on that itinerary?

I'm booked on the Belize Aggressor for the last week of Feb and flying out of Montreal. I wouldn't classify the trip as inexpensive because from Montreal, you need to connect through Dallas, Atlanta or Miami to get to Belize city. You'd probably also want to arrive a day early as even a few hours delay on the available flights from Montreal would mean that you miss the boat and have to hire a water taxi ($200). This trip is about $1500 CAD more than I would normally spend on a land based dive trip to Mexico or the Caribbean.

I chose Belize in part because my buddy for the trip is currently down in Florida doing his AOW and has less than 20 dives. While I haven't been yet, my understanding is that the service on Aggressor is awesome, the diving is world class and crew is very friendly to divers of all skill levels. For me and my buddy, that is worth the extra cash and I'm really looking forward to it.

Roatan is a great place and would be much less expensive. Cozumel is also not bad. For either place you can get a package from Montreal to one of the resorts that has a dive-op and so you won't need a car.

The resorts on the Mayan Riviera are not great for Ocean diving. Many have their own (often overpriced) dive ops and discourage you from using outside dive shops (by not letting them pick you up at the resort etc). There are lots of turtles, but the vis can be terrible. The Mayan Riviera is great for cenotes though. Cenotes are underwater caverns many of which are suitable for open water divers with a guide. They are by far my favorite diving.

bcaderunr:

I read your Medio Reef report - Wow! Do you think that an intrepidly snorkling, but non-diving spouse would be a happy camper aboard that boat and on that itinerary?

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I think an avid snorkeler would enjoy this trip or the NW itinerary (from what I have heard). Both have shallower sights, so easy for snorkelers enjoyment. The boat and the crew are fabulous and everyone has a good time no matter how many dives they do. I would NOT take a non-diving spouse who doesn't snorkel though as there isn't much to do but read or sit in the sun while the divers are out. On our Cay Sal trip in 2006 we had one lady (at least 70 yrs old) who only did 3-4 dives all week, she was there with her son who was an avid diver. She had a great time just sitting on the upper deck or in her room reading, then joining the rest of us for meals. (But I don't know how many other people would enjoy it.... she told me that her late husband and her did lots of trips together on boats and to her it was like being out with him.. )

robin