5 Reasons Liveaboard trips are a great choice right now
Posted on: August 13th, 2020
The last months have had us all struggling to get our scuba diving or travel itches scratched. Some have even talked about postponing traveling this year altogether.
Here are some reasons why booking a liveaboard for this year could offer great value and a unique experience in the best possible sense!
Overview
1. A large selection of boats have limited their maximum capacity on board to facilitate social distancing
2. A double room all for yourself at no or little extra cost!
Occupying a double berth room all by yourself usually means paying a single person surcharge as the boat operator could have sold the second berth at full fare. A large selection of boats have now waived this single surcharge fee, meaning that you could enjoy the comfort of a spacious double room, all by yourself at no extra cost!
Related: The benefits of going solo on your next liveaboard trip
3. Avoid crowds of divers
The pandemic and restrictions that ensued have significantly slowed down tourism. At the height of the crisis millions of flights had been cancelled, leading to the desertion of tourist attractions worldwide. Dive sites are no different. As tourism slowly starts picking up, you can expect only a fraction of the usual amount of divers at any of the world’s most beloved dive spots giving you that authentic exploring sensation that brought many of us to start diving in the first place. Some of the more popular dive destinations that are likely to be affected by this are: Australia’s inner Great Barrier Reef, the Similan Islands in Thailand, the Thistlegorm wreck in Egypt and the Blue Hole in Belize.
4. Extensive Corona safety and hygiene measures may be taken on board
Most operators have taken advantage of the lockdown to sanitize their boats thoroughly, especially the areas that are used intensively. You can expect one or more of the following measures taken by liveaboards:
- Body temperature checks at set intervals for guests and staff
- Designated quarantine procedures and medical referrals in case someone develops a fever on board
- Using the outdoor spaces on the boat in favor of the indoor communal spaces
- Social distancing on board whenever possible, if not, wearing a face mask will be mandatory depending on the destination’s social distancing rules
- Minimize contact between crew and guests
- Rinsing of equipment will preferably be done via a hose, not a bucket
- No sharing of equipment.
5. Deals! And more flexible terms
Nothing like a good deal to get your travel and diving itch scratched. The lockdown has imposed a pause on most dive operators businesses, which they are more than likely to want to catch up from. As restrictions are now eased in multiple destinations, deals and specials by our boat operators will help divers to get back to traveling and diving. Keep and eye on deals for upcoming departures here.
* The operators of the vessels portrayed in this article have waived and/or offered reduced single supplement fee on certain trips during the time of publication and promotion of this article (July/August 2020). While we try our best to keep the information on this site as fresh and current as possible, their offers may have changed in the meantime and may thus be no longer valid or applicable.
