Dive Review of Mermaid Liveaboards in
Indonesia/Raja Ampat/Banda Sea/Maumere

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Mermaid Liveaboards: "5 Star Diving, 3 Star Boat", Apr, 2023, by Gary & Robin Schiendelman, PA, US ( Sr. Contributor 27 reports with 43 Helpful votes). Report 12430.
Photos Submitted with this Report Click on an image to see an enlarged version and captions
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	This trip was the Mermaid’s Biodiversity Super Special Trip. 16 days beginning in Raja Ampat and continuing thru the Banda Sea to Alor and ending in Maumere. There is no doubt that this is some of the best diving in the world and this area should be on everyone’s bucket list. It is a trip best suited to experienced divers due to the possibility of strong and unpredictable currents. We covered over 1000 nautical miles and were able to dive at many different types of sites. A total of 48 dives were offered. We also did two land visits. One was a short hike to a look out point at sunset. The other was a morning at Banda Neira featuring a visit to a museum, Dutch fort and a nutmeg plantation where we sampled some local tea and sweets. That was a very interesting glimpse into the brutal history of the islands. We are thinking most divers reading this have already decided on Indonesia as a destination and are looking for information on the dive boats that are available so we are concentrating this review on the boat. We stayed at a land resort for a week before boarding the Mermaid II in Sorong. The transfer was seamless and the Mermaid had a tender waiting for us at the harbor in Sorong when we arrived. We went from the transfer boat to the tender to the Mermaid without setting foot on land. Since the Mermaid allows for boarding at any time during the first day, we didn’t have all the guests arriving at once with the chaos that goes with that. Upon arrival, we were shown to our cabin. Although we had sent multiple emails requesting a cabin closest to the stern (due to seasickness) we were shown to a forward cabin. After a wait while they contacted the main office, they did change us to a different cabin that was further to the back of the boat. If we had been one of the last to board, it probably would not have been possible to change. There was a safety briefing after everyone boarded that basically consisted of a warning not to charge in your room unless you are there and awake, advising that life vests are under each bed and how to get to the muster station in the bow of the boat. No drills. There is a ... Subscribe to get the full story. Active subscribers continue reading here
Websites	Mermaid Liveaboards
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	Over 1000 dives
Where else diving	Indonesia, PNG, Solomon Isl, Red Sea, Maldives, South Africa, Mozambique, Cocos Isl, Galapagos, Socorro, Palau, Var Caribbean locations, New Jersey, Florida, No Carolina, Philippines, Fiji
Closest Airport		Getting There	Philadelphia to Doha to Jakarta to Sorong Return flights Maumere to Bali to Doha to Philadelphia. Long but not difficult. We planned long layovers that allowed some sleep at airport hotels in Doha and Jakarta
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	calm, choppy, surge, currents
Water Temp	84-86°F / 29-30°C	Wetsuit Thickness
Water Visibility	40-90 Ft/ 12-27 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	?
Enforced diving restrictions	No deco diving 60-70 minute dive time
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	1 or 2
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		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	[None] ... Subscribe to get the full story. Active subscribers continue reading here

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Dive Review of Mermaid Liveaboards in Indonesia/Raja Ampat/Banda Sea/Maumere

Mermaid Liveaboards: "5 Star Diving, 3 Star Boat", Apr, 2023,

Photos Submitted with this Report

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 Mermaid Liveaboards in
Indonesia/Raja Ampat/Banda Sea/Maumere