BURMA SAFARI - 9 DAYS/9 NIGHTS
Departure Day
Guests transfer to Patong between 17:00-18:00 checking in at Royal Phawadee Village. A delicious Thai buffet is served after completing the check in process. Transfer to MV Mermaid I by 19:30 for boat and safety briefing, settle into your cabin then set up equipment. Prior to getting underway, the crew set off firecrackers to bring good luck for the cruise , dinner is served and we sail usually calm seas for 6 hours to the Similan Islands.
Day One - 4 dives
Wake up call at 7am in paradise ! After a continental breakfast, 1st dive around 8am at the beautiful coral encrusted crystal clear East Of Eden on island # 7 followed by a full western breakfast. Visit Princess Beach at Island #4, visit the small museum or shop for a Similans souvenir. Dive #2 at Koh Bon for chance for Manta. After a delicious lunch and time to relax, enjoy a 3rd dive at Koh Tachai for pelagics and the chance for whale shark and mantas followed by an interesting night dive. Then relax with a cool beer and new friends after a delicious dinner.
Day Two - 3 dives
First dive today either at Koh Tachai or the world famous Richelieu Rock. After breakfast, dive # 2 and # 3 at Richelieu Rock then its north to clear the Burma border. Relax on the wonderful sundeck or sort your Richelieu photos in our spacious saloon. After clearing the border and a delicious dinner, we head off for our 1st stop in Burma.
Day Three - 4 dives
Wake up in Burma and get ready for some fascinating diving. Today we dive High Rock, Stewart Island, Rocky Island and experience some great macro opportunities such as rare nudibrancs, stick pipe fish, spindle cowries and more. Not into small stuff - then check out the millions of moray, stone fish, scorpion fish, lion fish in full predatory action.
Day Four - 4 dives
Some call it "In through the out door" some call it Shark Cave - awesome diving awaits what ever you call it ! Maybe the nurse sharks will be in the chamber ? Maybe some Grey Reef sharks in their sleeping formation cruising in the canyon ? If not, then you will still be busy with loads of snappers, bait fish, sea horse, ornate ghost pipe fish, beautiful soft corals housing rare and unusual cowries and more.
Day Five - 4 dives
Today's feature site is Black Rock where we make 3 day and 1 sunset dive. Awesome dives with grey reef shark, white tip reef shark, leopard sharks, huge garoupa, giant marbled rays and trevally, huge remoras and masses of pelagic fishes. Top this off with ornate ghost pipe fish, frogfish and a million glass fish and this day will please every diver! Weather allowing we will cruise 8 hours overnight to the Burma Banks.
Day Six - 4 dives
An early start on our shark safari for nurse sharks, white tip and black tip reef sharks, silvertip sharks as we do 4 day dives on Heckford Bank (Big Bank) and Silvertip Bank. The Banks are really weather dependent as they are way out to sea. If the conditions are not favorable for the Banks, we will divert to some other great sites in the area.
Day Seven - 4 dives
Keep your eyes open for bull shark, white tip reef sharks and leopard sharks at Fan Forrest. Pinnacle during dive 1 & 2. After a scrumptious buffet lunch of Thai and western specialities Its time for a snooze on the sun deck, write up your dive log before the next dive around 3-4pm. The afternoon dive at Western Rocky Island is a treat for all with a tunnel going through the island full of glass fish, hinge beak shrimps and a regular haunt for nurse and other sharks. Before dinner, we make a night dive around Western Rocky for all the night treasures Burma offers. A great day's diving complete !
Day Eight - 2 dives
Two good dives around Western Rockies or closer to the mainland - then we cruise to Kaw Thaung for border clearance and maybe some sightseeing. Relax on board, sort pictures, snooze a little and enjoy the sunset at we cruise south to Thai waters and more great dives in the Similan Islands.
Day Nine - 2 dives
Last but not least, East of Eden or Anita's Reef followed by Boulder City or Shark Fin Reef - a great way to end a super 9 day safari. Make sure you leave some film/disc space for loads of reef fishes, pelagics, sharks, nudis and more ! Then enjoy lunch as we cruise south to Patong, Phuket. The crew will rinse your gear for you ! We arrive at approx 16:00 hours and will transfer you to your hotel where you can dream about your next cruise on board Mermaid Liveaboards !
TOTAL DIVES FOR BURMA SAFARI - 30 (22 in Burma, 8 in Thailand)
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