Diving services
onboard this vessel are provided by Sea Explorers Dive School (www.seamaldives.com),
a PADI 5-Star Gold Palm Facility # 9584. All major dive-related
decisions throughout the safari trip will be made by the Dive Base
Leader (Dive Instructor or Divemaster assigned to the vessel by Sea
Explorers) in conjunction with the boat Captain.
· The
Captain and the Base Leader will give an overall briefing at the start
of the trip about the general procedures and protocols onboard the
vessel. It is very important that you attend this briefing as there will
be a lot of practical information discussed regarding the diving on the
trip. If you have any special needs or will require direct assistance
during dives, please use this opportunity to inform the Base Leader.
·
Sea Explorers will provide 2 to 3 dives per day
EXCEPT on the day of your arrival and the day of departure. There will
be ONE night dive scheduled during the trip, which will take place of
the normal third dive of that day.
· Due
to adverse weather conditions or route changes, it may sometimes not be
possible to conduct three dives on a particular day. While we will make
every reasonable attempt to make up for the missed dive on another day,
we CANNOT guarantee that it will always be possible.
· Requests
for dives in addition to the offered package will need to be discussed
with the Base Leader and the Captain. The decision will depend largely
on the pre-planned route and the schedule of the other guests.
· There
will be a dive briefing given by the dive guide prior to each dive.
Please attend these briefings and do not hesitate to ask questions if
clarification is needed.
·
In the Maldives, most dives are drift dives, and all
diving is conducted from a dedicated dive dhoni (local boat) which
accompanies the safari boat throughout the trip. Once a dive commences,
the dhoni crew track the bubbles and pick up divers as they surface at
the end of the dive. Dives will be conducted in small groups, each led
by a Divemaster.
· Divers
should dive in BUDDY PAIRS and we advise you to stay within your group
at all times. While each individual diver is responsible for his own
dive plan within the framework of the briefing given by the dive guide,
it is understood that buddy pairs will follow the same dive plan.
· Due
to the repetitive nature of liveaboard diving, each dive should be a
MAXIMUM of 45 minutes. You MUST begin your ascent when one of the buddy
pair reaches 50 bar of air remaining OR when dive time is 45 minutes.
All dives should be planned as NO DECOMPRESSION STOP dives.
· All
divers MUST make a safety stop at the end of every dive by remaining at
a depth of 5 meters for 3 minutes. As a signal for the dive dhoni and as
a caution to other vessels, surface marker balloons must be deployed
while you are at your safety stop. If you do not have your own, we have
a number of balloons available for rent.
· Following
Maldivian law, NO dive should be deeper than 30 meters. In keeping with
PADI guidelines, we recommend that each repetitive dive in a day be
shallower than the one preceding it.
· All
divers MUST dive with a dive computer and follow its built-in safety
guidelines accordingly. If you do not have your own, a number of
computers are available for rent from the vessel.
· As
a 5-Star PADI facility, Sea Explorers offer a full range of PADI courses
including Open Water, Advanced Open Water and many specialty courses.
Please let us know in advance if you would like to undertake any dive
courses during your trip so that we can ensure that we have the
necessary equipment and instructors available onboard.
· Extra
dives and equipment rental will be charged to the individual diver. Loss
of rental equipment will be charged according to the price list
displayed onboard.
· We
strongly advise you to conclude your diving AT LEAST 24 hours before
your flight is scheduled to depart.