Dive Review of Marlin Lodge/Bossi Yacht/Marlin Lodge in
Africa/Bazaruto Archipelago

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Marlin Lodge/Bossi Yacht/Marlin Lodge, Aug, 2002, by Tom & Tresa Jaskunas, Co, USA . Report 352.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity	N/A
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$	N/A
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	We stayed 13 nights at the Bazaruto Archipelago. The first 2 nights at Marlin Lodge then 10 nights on the yacht Bossi and the last night back at the lodge. The Archipelago is a series of small sand islands about a 1/2 hour boat ride from Vilanculos on the main land. We flew to Vilanculos by way Johannesburg. The air service is very small and has its own way of doing things. We did not ever get a "ticket" just confirmation we had a seat, We were required to carry all of our luggage to the plane, the ticket counter at Johannesburg did not show any sign that the carrier even existed until minutes before some one showed up to sign us in. We got several warnings from the travel agent (Island Castaways)prior to the flight that there was a very strict weight limit on the bags (10kgs per person). We were very concerned about the weight issue with all of the dive gear. In the end we were over by a few kgs and paid an extra charge of less than $10 (paid going nothing coming back). There is nothing wrong with the air service just a little strange. The islands have mosquitoes and clearly Malaria so be sure to take proper precaustions. Marlin Lodge is very nice with good food and excellent service. Our first night was spent in one of their new rooms. Very impressive just one thing missing, a mosquitoe net. We woke up in the middle of the night being eaten alive (thank God for the medication). We complained the next day and were given an older room with a mosquitoe net and a fruit basket for our trouble. The second room was fine. The next day we went out with the resort's dive operation. Very fast boats, small groups (4 to 8 divers) and a dive guide who knew the water. The best diving we saw was a dive site on the ocean side of the islands called 2 mile reef. Very clear water, excellent fish life and beautiful coral ( I would rate this site in my top 5). Because the site is exposed to the open ocean the swells can be sizable so not every boat is up to the job. Although we tried to dive at two mile reef from the Yacht (Bossi)later in our trip we never made it. After our second night at the Lodge we were picked up by the crew of Bossi. The Yacht is a 45' cataraman that normally sails the waters of Madagascar. Because of the political trouble in Madagascar the boat had moved to Mozambique. The boat was clean, our room with private bathroom was large, the crew of 3 were helpful and professional and we ended up being the only guests on the boat. There were however a few problem. First the skiff used to take us to the dive sites was one step up from useless. Under powered, dangerous to get in and out of and could not handle the sizable swells on the ocean side of the islands. The boat's system for generating fresh water was broken as a result we were limited to the fresh water the boat could carry. This meant salt water showers with a fresh water rinse and a lost day in the middle of the trip to get more water. Last the boat really was not a live-aboard. Although we clearly were there to dive we did less than 10 dives in 10 days. The diving we did from the yacht was on the protected side of the island, generally shallow, good visibility with great numbers of small fish (in one case an absolute wall of fish) with lots of macro stuff to look at. The morning we got off the boat we ran back to Marlin Lodge so we could make one last dive on 2 mile reef. It was the best dive of the trip. So if I was to do the trip again I would stay at the lodge for a greater part of the trip, bring a thicker wet suit (5mm) and pack a mosquitoe net.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Belize, Honduras, Grand Cayman, Mexico, Brazil, Anguilla, Dominica, Fiji
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny,cloudy	Seas	calm,currents
Water Temp	0-0°F / -18--18°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	30-150 Ft/ 9-46 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	no
Enforced diving restrictions	required to follow group guide
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	1 or 2	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter	N/A	Boat Facilities	N/A
Overall rating for UWP's	N/A	Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	[None]

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Dive Review of Marlin Lodge/Bossi Yacht/Marlin Lodge in Africa/Bazaruto Archipelago

Marlin Lodge/Bossi Yacht/Marlin Lodge, Aug, 2002,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Marlin Lodge/Bossi Yacht/Marlin Lodge in
Africa/Bazaruto Archipelago