Turks & Caicos Explorer II Trip Report

[Karloss]

To me, a great liveaboard vacation is one where I don't have TV or Newspaper or Internet. I'm there to dive. And I make my own dive my own way with nobody telling me how to do it. The crew will always help you out and give tips on any particular dive if you ask, but being left to my own devices is priceless.

Liveaboards aren't luxury boats, if you want people to wait on you hand and foot and have more amenities you might be more comfortable in a land based resort. I'm not saying this to be critical or mean, I'm just telling it the way it is.

Cheers,
JP[/QUOTE]
I totally agree. Of course this all could be a matter of perspective and expectations. I suggest trying another Liveaboard before totally writing them all off.

 

[jkotovsky]

Seahorse81, the divemaster who got bent was Alexandra. No reason was given to us for how it happened or why. The boat was able to secure another divemaster for the week after us. I met her and it would be her first time diving on the Turks & Caicos Ecplorer II. I think she was of German descent, but I do not remember her name.

 

[jkotovsky]

JP, thank you for your response and your points. They are helpful, especially the bow line suggestion for night dives. You are right, the crew did have to work extra hard when they were down 2 crew members for most of the week. For what it is worth, I did tip within the guidelines provided, I just did not feel good about it.

Maybe liveaboards are just not for me, but as time passes, I remember mostly the good things, not the bad ones. So, I may try again sometime in the future, but not too soon.

 

[Doubler]

For those with internet and cell phone anxiety, the Kona Aggressor has these services pretty much all week. Gets a little spotty down by South Point. That plus hair dryers and the Night Manta Dive what could be better.

 

[Mossman]

The only liveaboard I've seen in twenty years with a hair dryer was the Kona Aggressor. If you do another liveaboard, you should bring your own.

Actually, most (if not all) of the Aggressor boats DO have hairdryers, including the T&C Aggressor.

Liveaboards aren't luxury boats, if you want people to wait on you hand and foot and have more amenities you might be more comfortable in a land based resort. I'm not saying this to be critical or mean, I'm just telling it the way it is.

So you're claiming that the phrase "luxury liveaboard" is an oxymoron? Perhaps it is, in a sense, as I've never been on any liveaboard that even approaches a low-end cruise ship in terms of amenities and comfort. However, liveaboards can make up for that in service. Some do literally wait on the passengers "hand and foot" (I was on one boat with 8 passengers and a crew of 18), and some have quite large cabins and very comfortable staterooms, complete with table service at dinner and chocolates on the pillow at night with the evening turndown. It may not be fine crystal and caviar, but it doesn't have to be a rustic camping experience either.

 

[johnspierce]

Actually, most (if not all) of the Aggressor boats DO have hairdryers, including the T&C Aggressor.


So you're claiming that the phrase "luxury liveaboard" is an oxymoron? Perhaps it is, in a sense, as I've never been on any liveaboard that even approaches a low-end cruise ship in terms of amenities and comfort. However, liveaboards can make up for that in service. Some do literally wait on the passengers "hand and foot" (I was on one boat with 8 passengers and a crew of 18), and some have quite large cabins and very comfortable staterooms, complete with table service at dinner and chocolates on the pillow at night with the evening turndown. It may not be fine crystal and caviar, but it doesn't have to be a rustic camping experience either.

No, that's not what I'm claiming. You even admit it doesn't approach a low-end cruise ship in amenities and that's exactly what I was saying. Liveaboards are awesome. My favorite vacation by far, but they are not what I would call "luxurious". You get your own drinks, whenever you want. Sometimes the rooms are noisy and they are usually small. The crew on every single one I've been on worked their butt off to make us happy, but it's not luxurious. I did not say it was a rustic camping experience.

Oh and I was just on the Galapagos Aggressor -- no hairdryers. 6 months before that I was on the Cayman Aggressor, --no hairdryers, so I will disagree with you on that one. I discussed this with my wife last night and she agreed, the only liveaboard we've been on with a hairdryer is the Kona Aggressor. I have not been on the T&C Aggressor, but I've done T&C Explorer twice. I have been on both Aggressor and Explorer boats quite a few times and although there are some differences between every boat, the experience is actually more similar than different. I can tell you the T&C Explorer vessel itself is one of the nicer boats I've been on with bigger rooms than most.

But I think you've missed my point entirely. If you want to be pampered, shore-based operations do a much better job and so do the large cruise ships. Liveaboards at the price they charge give a huge value for the money, but it's not going to rival a $250 per day resort in amenities and nor should it. It's about the DIVING, right?

 

[arkstorm]

Nice uneducated generalization on Cali, Arkstorm. There's a whole mix of individuals in the state just like when I lived in PA, NY, and IA too, covering the range of attitudes from the one you wanted to assign it, all the way to your own too. Recycling is an obvious no-brainer for anywhere in the world. Every time I take out my tiny amount of garbage and huge amount of recycling and think of the volume of people in the world, it's UNBELIEVEABLE that anyone thinks it possible to sustain disposing of all that. We even, GASP, throw the food scraps in with the yard waste now. That said, reality is it can only be an admireable goal for many places in the world.

Shasta_man: I made no generalization about Cali, just San Fransisco. So if you are going to call me uneducated I would start by getting your facts straight. San Fran is a known hotbed of liberal ideology which was the gist of the poke. But you clearly don't get the point of my comment. No one is saying that recycling isn't a good idea. The point is that recycling isn't available in every corner of the world and to downgrade a liveaboard operation for not recycling is simply unfair.

 

[Mossman]

No, that's not what I'm claiming. You even admit it doesn't approach a low-end cruise ship in amenities and that's exactly what I was saying. Liveaboards are awesome. My favorite vacation by far, but they are not what I would call "luxurious". You get your own drinks, whenever you want. Sometimes the rooms are noisy and they are usually small. The crew on every single one I've been on worked their butt off to make us happy, but it's not luxurious. I did not say it was a rustic camping experience.

I guess it's your generalization that I disagree with. Sure, liveaboards share a lot in common: you live on them and you dive from them. Other than that, there are plenty of differences: ensuite heads or not, table service vs. buffet, skiffs vs. diving off the stern. On some liveaboards, you don't usually get your own drinks because there is a bartender aboard. On some liveaboards, the cabins are huge. On some liveaboards, the crew doesn't work their butts off.

Oh and I was just on the Galapagos Aggressor -- no hairdryers. 6 months before that I was on the Cayman Aggressor, --no hairdryers, so I will disagree with you on that one. I discussed this with my wife last night and she agreed, the only liveaboard we've been on with a hairdryer is the Kona Aggressor. I have not been on the T&C Aggressor, but I've done T&C Explorer twice. I have been on both Aggressor and Explorer boats quite a few times and although there are some differences between every boat, the experience is actually more similar than different. I can tell you the T&C Explorer vessel itself is one of the nicer boats I've been on with bigger rooms than most.

The Aggressor website states that the Galapagos Aggressors have hairdryers:
http://www.aggressor.com/_pdfs/VS_Galapagos.pdf - maybe you can get your money back based on their false advertising. I once went on a boat that advertised more than what we received and we got a $1,000 per person refunded.

My last Aggressor trip was the Palau Aggressor. It has hair dryers. I have a friend who's been on both the T&C Explorer and the T&C Aggressor and thought there was a big difference between the two (he strongly preferred the Aggressor). I've never done an Explorer trip because of reviews like his so I really can't compare.

But I think you've missed my point entirely. If you want to be pampered, shore-based operations do a much better job and so do the large cruise ships. Liveaboards at the price they charge give a huge value for the money, but it's not going to rival a $250 per day resort in amenities and nor should it. It's about the DIVING, right?

I've been on plenty of liveaboards that do a great deal of pampering. Some even have massages available. I've eaten lobster, excellent steaks, and sashimi aboard liveaboards that also have wine lists better than many dive resorts I've been to. The bartender makes pina coladas and margaritas. Dinner is served at the table by crew dressed in tuxedos and wine is refilled upon request. After a night dive the crew hands you hot chocolate laced with rum along with your warm towel. And then you can sit in the hot tub or watch a movie on a big-screen TV along with popcorn and other snacks. Of course that's luxury. You just don't get it on ALL liveaboards, which is why it's not possible to generalize about the level of luxury on liveaboards. That's my point.

 

[johnspierce]

Whatever guy... it's plain you just want to argue and I don't really care what you think. You haven't been on the Galapagos Aggressor or the Explorers boat so I don't think you are in any position to tell me what it was like. You can continue to try and argue with me if you want, I've said my part and I'm done.

 

[jupitermermaid]

I was surprised to hear about your experience! I went on the TCE II last April, and had a wonderful time! Capt. Ken was an amicable person and was always available to talk to guests. Chef Stan is a superb chef and always made wonderful meals and snacks. The staff was always working, whether we noticed what they were doing or not. Our DM was not the one you had that suffered DCI, but we had a remarkable DM that stayed with us till the last one was low on air and had to surface. I would dive again with them in a heartbeat!

Of course, when there is an emergency (such as the DM getting bent), it's easy to get "bent" out of shape (pun intended....lol) because of missed dives that you paid for. You're not connected to the person, but you paid for a certain amount of dives and weren't able to get the most out of. Yeah, that stings. I understand that. We work hard for our money and want it to go as far as it can when it comes to our vacation.

Having poor vis, no one can count on good vis all year 'round. Yeah, I get PO'ed when I pay a charter to take me out diving and end up with either aborting a dive or diving in less than desired vis due to the weather. But.....is it the dive op's fault? No. That is something that no one can control. We can get upset about it, but we can't blame anyone for the conditions we dive in at certain times of the year.

I'm really sorry you felt you had a bad experience. But if you're going to live in reality, the reality is that you don't always get what you hope for. But I believe that people always try to do their best, but not everyone realizes it. To me, the TCE II is a top-notch operation, and I look forward to diving with them again!