Dive Review of Seven Seas in
Indonesia/Banda Sea, Raja Ampat

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Seven Seas, Dec, 2009, by jean miller, CA, USA ( 2 reports). Report 5333.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation	N/A	Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	[None]This was a 14 day trip beginning in the Banda area and ending in Raja Ampat. The boat was less than expected, a former cargo carrier converted into a liveaboard. The rooms were small, no storage under the beds, no closet, but enough shelves to get by. The bathroom was quite small; it took a long time for the water to get warm. Towards the end of the trip we were cautioned to use less water. The rinse tanks consisted of two cut off plastic barrels, one for cameras, the other for everything else. When we ran low on water, the "everything else" rinse tank only contained a few inches of water. Towels were assigned with room numbers on them. We kept the same towels for the entire trip, spread on clothesline on the dive deck to dry between dives. We were lucky it didn't rain. The crew was attentive, but divers were assigned to skiff one or skiff two. The skiffs weren't marked. A diver was supposed to come up and hold up one or two fingers, a signal to the approatiate skiff. I came up alone from one dive, waves breaking over my head. Unfortunately, skiff two was nearby, and I had been assigned to skiff one. Skiff two waved me off, and it took several minutes for skiff two to find me. I complained to the cruise leader. He did listen and advised both skiff drivers to pick me up in rough seas. The owner of Seven Seas was aboard. I found him arrogant and defensive. I complained that the teak floor at the bottom of the stairs leading to my room was slippery and suggested he put a towel or some kind of mat there. It took him several days to place a towel in the slippery spot, then only because he found the leak himself. In addition to the owner, there were nine paying passengers and six NGO's (non-government organazition) The trip was free for them. The owner of Seven Seas was a consultant to these NGO's and so I believe had a vested interest in their agenda. Most of the diving was less than good. This is the fourth time I've been to Raja Ampat, and I've come to expect more variety, more visibility and much less current. Banda diving was great, but we were only there for two days. The last two dives were memorable, mantas coming in so close and staying for an hour. Had this trip lasted one week, it would have been much better, which makes me very sad.
Websites	Seven Seas
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	Over 1000 dives
Where else diving	Cayman, Cozumel, Egypt, Tahiti, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	dry	Seas	calm, choppy, surge, currents, no currents
Water Temp	80-82°F / 27-28°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	100-15 Ft/ 30-5 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	Sixty minute time limit
Liveaboard?	yes	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	1 or 2	Mantas	Squadrons
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	1 or 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 Seven Seas in Indonesia/Banda Sea, Raja Ampat

Seven Seas, Dec, 2009,

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 Seven Seas in
Indonesia/Banda Sea, Raja Ampat