Raja Ampat liveaboard trip on the Seven Seas

[edpdiver]

edpdiver, My wife and I were thinking about booking one of the south Komodo trips for next year. For the dates we want the upper deck cabins are unavailable. Did you hear any complaints about engine and generator noise for those in cabins 5 and 6?

Reuben,

I cannot answer the question directly. I do know that one couple who were directly adjacent to the engine on the lower deck were bothered by engine noise, but they were a little sensitive to issues I considered minor. So they may have just been sensitive; I cannot say for sure. I know that no one else was bothered at all. I hope that this helps a little. I really liked the boat and crew a lot. I would ask them directly about your concerns, and see what they say.

Best of luck.
Erwin

 

[AlMitch]

Erwin you mentioned that this was your third trip to RA, who did you dive with on the previous two trips and if they were different boats/ resorts would you be able to compare them? Comparisons are always helpful.
Amazing photo's and I cant believe you spotted the Rhino!

 

[edpdiver]

Erwin you mentioned that this was your third trip to RA, who did you dive with on the previous two trips and if they were different boats/ resorts would you be able to compare them? Comparisons are always helpful.
Amazing photo's and I cant believe you spotted the Rhino!

Al, our first trip to Raja Ampat was on the Archipelago Adventurer 2, which is not around any longer after an accident a couple of years ago. I would rank that boat as slightly more luxurious (larger salon and cabins for example). I would say that the crews were equally great. Our other trip to Raja Ampat was land-based, specifically, Sorido Bay Resort. That was an excellent resort, but I prefer a liveaboard for Raja Ampat for a couple of reasons. First, many dive sites are pretty far apart, and you miss much of the variety by being at a land-based resort. Secondly, most of my favorite Raja Ampat dives are farther south (closer to Misool). With that said, I would not hesitate to recommend Sorido Bay Resort; I would more strongly recommend doing a liveaboard. Incidentally, I never would have seen the Rhinopias; that was spotted by my excellent dive guide, Tomy!
- Erwin

 

[scorpiofish]

For Rueben,

I've been in Cabin 6 and had no issues. Cabin 7 isn't any bigger, just up above.

AIMitch,

I've been on:

1) Seven Seas - 3 times
2) Arenui
3) Damai I
4) Damai II
5) Ondina

The Seven Seas isn't in the luxury class of 2 through 4, but the food is provisioned out of Bali, which falls in the more luxurious boats. The crew is very experienced and the boat has lots of good features.

Of these boats, my favorite is the Arenui. I just heard they added Ronald from Lembeh Resort as a dive guide. They have four guides for 16 divers. Three of them are in my all time top 6 dive guides, Ali, Toby and Ronald. My all time favorite guide is on the Dewi Nusantara, another luxury boat.

Traditionally the Seven Seas would only have two guides, Karl and Tommy, but they finally added a third.

I would also give the Damai I super high marks. If I needed a lower price and willing to go with a little less luxury, then I'd probably choose the Pindito.