MV Seaisee; Liveaboard diving in Indonesia; 10 out of 10 and is rated 'Exceptional'; from £281, $343, €320/day. Customer Review:
”komodo national park. I had an unforgettable experience diving around Komodo national park. The boat was modern, clean, and specially designed for diving. The food was excellent. The crew was friendly and the dive master was very knowledgable. I felt like royalty during my stay and wish I could have stayed longer.” Recommended for: diving facilities, great cabin, knowledgeable crew.
Tiare Cruise; Liveaboard diving in Indonesia; 9.7 out of 10 and is rated 'Exceptional'; from £334, $407, €381/day. Customer Review:
“Raja Ampat done in style – such a wonderful adventure! Too many highlights. Relaxed holiday with range of 2 to 4 dives per day combined with onshore activities including some hard (staired) climbs for amazing views, a trip to Jellyfish lake and culminating on a wonderful dinner on the beach. The diving was simply more than I imagined – frequent mantas, large schools of fish, octopus, endless soft and hard corals healthier than anywhere I have been, and amazing night dive at Sapokreng – the flamboyant cuttlefish! Mixed nationality passengers made for interesting conversations – a wonderful trip. Will definitely try to go again!” Recommended for: The Indonesian crew worked tirelessly and always with a smile, the casual chicness of the gorgeous boat and the amazing dive sites – like nothing I have seen and overload of Mantas!
Scubaspa Zen; Liveaboard diving in Indonesia; 10 out of 10 and is rated 'Exceptional'; from £450, $549, €513/day. Customer Review:
“Absolutely great. We had a wonderful time during this trip. We were able to dive under perfect conditions. The boat is large and very confortable. The use of a dhoni instead of a zodiac to reach the various dive sites makes a lot of difference in terms of confort and safety. We felt blessed compared to the other liveaboards. The crew was very nice and flexible so we were able to spend at our request two full days in the « Manta Valley » as the conditions were perfect and we really enjoyed this unique experience with the manta rays which was really the highlight of our trip. The dive guides and the crew manager was also flexible and keen on making sure that we reach the dive sites without other boats around. Besides, if you like diving but also enjoy spas, small trekkings and drinks at night time – pick this boat and this crew.” Recommended for: Diving, crew and the boat.
MV Samambaia; Liveaboard diving in Indonesia; 9.4 out of 10 and is rated 'Superb'; from £363, $443, €414/day. Customer Review:
“PERFECT ! Marvelous boat & team. The absolute dream for a dive trip. Seriously! Exceptional experience. The boat is new (launched in september 2015) and a marvel of traditional and modern ironwood and teck wood work. We were lucky to get the master cabin which is the best floating room we ever had on such trips (comes with a king size bed, full 9 feet ceilings, private bath and most importantly a stunning 280° continuous windows on the main rear deck and the beautiful Komodo sea and islands landscapes!).
Each time you set foot on board (and there are many occasions), you are welcome with a large smile and either a fresh drink or a hot chocolate (quite precious after night dives). Marvelous combination of Italian hospitality at its best (the boss and owner was on board with his son and lovely wife), including wine tasting and high fooding standards, perfect Indonesian seamanship and service, with expert massage on request, and a wonderful German diving instructor (with both a serious dedication to safety, a refreshing sense of humor and a true ability to share his passion and vast knowledge a the marine life).
We took the nitrox course (the nitrox is free on board).The dive sites are world class, among the best we dived for the last 25 years (that includes Sipadan, the Red Sea, Djibouti, Costa Rica, Cozumel, Turkey, Corsica, Phuket / Phi-Phi, Ko Tao, Cebu, Sri Lanka, Bali, Lombok / Gillis, West indies, Turks & Caicos, Tioman…). In a week around the national park of Komodo, from Bima to Labuan Bajo, you can expect to sea amazing soft corals, most of the indo-pacific benthic life (including a large number of stone fishes, cuttle fishes, nudis..), turtles, sharks, mantas… Some “firsts” for me were the attack of the ominous bobbit worm, the “live” feeding of a starfish by an anemone, the “live” feeding of a very large holothurie, the magic show of the Spanish dancer, among the best video footage I got.
On the top of the liveaboard experience and diving, the Komodo dragon encounter is not to be missed. Not such much at the Rinca ranger station (although the hike there is worth it), than the pack of 5 roaming freely on the beach at horseshoe bay! If you are looking for an amazing week, do not hesitate one second, Go for it !” Recommended for: BOAT – DIVES – TEAM.
MV Solitude Adventurer; Liveaboard diving in Indonesia; 9.5 out of 10 and is rated 'Exceptional'; from £119, $145, €136/day. Customer Review:
“Amazing! 5 star service! Completely spoiled by the staff!! Boat is spacious and like a yacht! The Manta Ray dive was spectacular. Spent an hour watching them. All the dive sights were fantastic and so different. The crew is so on top of everything, very spoiled. The deluxe cabins with the windows made the trip sooooo awesome, watching all the beauty from your own cabin. Plus the upper deck was a great place to hang out. The BBQ and all the food was so good, again its worth the little extra money to get the personal service, amazing cabins and best diving ever!!” Recommended for: Service, Boat, and the diving was the best I’ve ever done, worldwide.
MV Mermaid II; Liveaboard diving in Indonesia; 9 out of 10 and is rated 'Superb'; from £235, $287, €268/day. Customer Review:
“An amazing experience. This was our second time aboard the Mermaid having previously visited Komodo in 2014. That trip was amazing and would have been hard to beat but this was just as good, if not better. Nothing is ever a chore for the wonderful crew, so friendly and helpful. The dive guides were fantastic especially our guide Ketut who really looked after us. All the dives were planned in advance and we went to the best sites. Very clear briefings and safety was always front of mind. The boat is really well maintained and stocked. Everything is organised to the finer details and is like a well oiled machine meaning you’re never left waiting. The food is incredible, the best we’ve had on a liveaboard. The Mermaid really sets the bar.” Recommended for: Diving, food, and crew.
Indonesia liveaboard diving is for all diver levels including beginners, intermediate and advanced divers. The diving includes spectacular coral reefs and amazing marine biodiversity of Raja Ampat, or magnificent mantas, swirling currents of The Cauldron and Komodo Dragons of Komodo National Park.
Liveaboard scuba diving in Indonesia offers some of the best variety of marine life found on the planet.
Indonesia is an undisputed liveaboard diving and scuba diving mecca. Indonesia is the world’s largest archipelago, which includes 11,000 uninhabited islands and around 34,000 miles of coastline to explore.
Underwater you’ll discover over 500 species of coral, more than 2,000 species of fish, which is what scuba divers from around the world come to experience. But don’t be put off by that thought, because when you dive from a liveaboard, you will visit some of the remote places of Indonesia where you’ll be alone with only the fellow divers onboard the dive boat.
Liveaboard dive trips to Indonesia include the famous Komodo National Park, where you find sharks, manta rays and dolphins. But on top of that you will find an abundance of reef fish and small creatures including nudibranchs and seahorses too.
Indonesia liveaboards also dive the fabulous Raja Ampat, which has pristine coral gardens and gin-clear waters. Raja Ampat is in the Banda Sea, which has undersea mountains and pinnacles, which were formed by previous volcanic activity.
As well as diving Komodo and Raja Ampat, you can also choose a liveaboard with itineraries to dive Indonesia’s ‘Forgotten Islands,’ which are only accessible by liveaboard dive boats. Plus enjoy amazing drift dives over ridges and canyons at Lombok Strait.
Table of Indonesia liveaboards
This list of Indonesia liveaboards is in descending customer rating order, so the liveaboards with the highest customer rating will be at the top of the list. To filter this table for the features that are important for your Indonesia liveaboard trip, select from the list of filters below.
Note: The above “Price Per Day” was correct at the time of producing this article, as was the exchange rate used to convert the GBP cost to US Dollars and Euros. For an up-to-date cost for your chosen liveaboard, please visit the “Book” link above.
Indonesia Liveaboard Dive Sites
Komodo National Park Diving
On the island of Komodo you can experience the infamous Komodo Dragons on the land excursions offered with Komodo liveaboards.
But when you dive under the surface you will be spoilt with hammerhead sharks, whitetip reef sharks, manta rays, turtles and an abundance of difference varieties of reef fish species. If that’s not enough, you may even be lucky to spot dugongs, or even a whale too.
Komodo National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site which is in the middle of the Indonesian archipelago.
Komodo dive safaris range from is 8 to 12 days, and the Komodo liveaboards depart from Bima Bay (Sumbawa), Labuan Bajo (Flores) or Maumere (Flores), which are all about one hour’s flight from Bali or Jakarta.
Diving in Komodo is year-round but the best time to dive there is from May to October during the Southwest Monsoon when water visibility is at its best and water temperatures are around 30°C (86°F).
Komodo liveaboard itineraries include dive sites around Sangeang Volcano and Sumbawa island, whilst the dive safaris that leave from Bali also include Moyo, Satonda, Gili Banta, and Gili Lawa Laut dive sites in their itineraries too.
Raja Ampat Diving
Raja Ampat diving is possibly one of the the best dive areas in the world, as it’s still considered untouched and teaming with marine life.
The archipelago of Raja Ampat is remote, is also known as The Four Kings and boasts around 1,500 islands. Diving Raja Ampat from an Indonesian liveaboard can be challenging for intermediate and expert divers, but there are also dive trips suitable for beginners divers too.
Raja Ampat dive sites include Kri Island, Manta Ridge and The Passage. At these dive sites you will see sharks, manta rays, an abundance of reef fish and all types of creatures and pristine coral too. The biodiversity in this region is second to none, where you can see 75% of the world’s coral species and sea life.
Raja Ampat liveaboard itineraries are between 7 to 12 nights long and you can dive all year-round. But most Raja Ampat liveaboards operate between October to April when the seas are at their calmest, and then the water temperature is between 27°-30°C (80.6°-86°F).
Best time to dive Indonesia
You can dive Indonesia year round, but the best time to go is May to October for Komodo and October to April for Raja Ampat.
I hope you enjoyed this page about Indonesia liveaboard diving
I’d love to hear from you. Tell us about your adventures of diving and snorkeling, in the comments below. Please also share your photos. Either from your underwater cameras or videos from your waterproof Gopro’s!
If this article hasn’t answered all of your questions. If you have more questions either about snorkeling or scuba diving (or specifically about Indonesialiveaboard diving), please comment below with your questions.
There will also be many more articles about scuba diving (and snorkeling) for you to read and learn about these fabulous sports.
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