The Many Faces of Liveaboard Passengers
Lauren Rebbeck
You never know who you’ll meet when you cruise on a liveaboard—and I’m not just talking about the marine life under the ocean’s surface. From Indonesia’s Spice Islands to the Sea of Cortez to the Bahamas, Sudan, Galapagos and beyond, liveaboards ply the planet’s oceans and bring you to some of the dreamiest dive destinations. Once on board, you’ll also encounter a microcosm of virtually every kind of diver and dive personality.
The photographers are easy to spot, not just by their Pelican dry boxes and shiny dome ports—they’re also the first to sneak a peek into the electronics room, scoping the best spot for charging all manner of gadgets. Inevitably, one of them will already be in the galley by the time you’ve settled into your cabin, their laptop open to a macro shot of an obscure nudibranch or a wide-angle image of sharks.
As others gather, someone will ask where the photos were taken. This is when you might meet the diver who has been everywhere. You could be on the trip of a lifetime in the Maldives, getting ready to see mantas and whale sharks stream into Hanifaru Bay, but this person will say how you really should have been there to see the orcas and humpbacks feeding on herring in northern Norway last month.
Tec divers stand apart for their trimix and sidemount speak, which can sound like a different language to everyone else.
Related Reading: Close Encounter With a Whale Shark
And you’ll spot the couples by their matching T-shirts or rash guards emblazoned with the name of a dive shop in Bonaire or Cozumel, perhaps—wherever they last traveled with their hometown dive club. When they’re both equally passionate about the sport, poring over fish ID books in the lounge before dinner or clinking cocktails on the top deck at sunset, they might leave you wishing your own partner wasn’t convinced that “snorkeling is just as good.”
Longtime friend pairs are common liveaboard types too—the kind that meet up every year for an epic dive trip. They have a habit of skipping the night dive (and maybe the third or fourth one of the day too) for the chance to sip a cold one in the hot tub and reminisce. They’re not as young as they once were, and they suck a little more air now, but they’ve still got it—and the stories to match. They wouldn’t miss this annual trip for the world, and you’ll find yourself wishing you could grow up to be them someday.
Look for the surprising diver in the mix too—often the most humble and quiet of the bunch. The one who seems a bit clumsy on dry land, perhaps, then drifts effortlessly like a mermaid underwater, taking the most pleasure out of even the most basic checkout dive.
The newbies, their first time on a liveaboard, can be identified by their jitters. They might mention they’re new to diving just to set expectations from the start.
The best thing you can do is tell them they’ve got this, they’re going to love it—and then, of course, tell them the place they really need to dive next.
Related Reading: The Tempting Allure of Wreck Diving
5 Liveaboards for New Divers
Beginner divers keen to try their first liveaboard where the visibility is great (think 100 feet) will find tons to love in the Cayman Islands aboard the Cayman Aggressor IV. With room for 18 guests in 9 cabins, the comfortable yacht has amenities like a stairway (instead of a ladder) leading down into the water to make everything a little easier and more comfortable.
The islands you’ll visit on this beautiful, 105-foot-long trimaran that plies the waters of the British Virgin Islands are all so close together that sailors can navigate them by line of sight (translation: You can always see which island you’re headed to next without having to rely on instruments to get there). The diving in the BVI is similarly mellow, whether you’re basking in the color and corals on shallow reefs around Norman and Salt Islands or getting hooked on wreck diving atop the remains of the RMS Rhone, a U.K. Royal Mail Ship that met her demise during a hurricane.
As far as Caribbean dive destinations go, it's hard to find more pristine reefs than the ones that await 60 miles off the south coast of Cuba in the protected marine park, Jardines de la Reina (Gardens of the Queen). And with this liveaboard as your base for exploration, you'll be planted within easy striking distance of the best dive sites for a whole week of incredible descents (the liveaboard stays stationary here instead of moving around, since all the primo diving is right at your doorstep). Some 80 dive sites await, many in shallow waters, and shark sightings (reefs and silkies), goliath grouper, silver tarpon and thick schools of jacks are all standard underwater sights.
Belize might be best known for the Great Blue Hole, a massive marine sinkhole some 43 miles off the coast of the Central American country. But other thrills await new divers in the shallows here too. Belize’s many walls begin their plunges to the great depths at spectacular shallow reefs, where turtles, reefs sharks and more than 600 species of other fish and marine life swarm the sun-dappled scene.
If you’re new to liveaboard life, Blackbeard’s cruises offer budget-friendly boats and exciting itineraries through the Out Islands of the Bahamas. Shark dives, drift dives, walls, blue holes and other wonders await. The company’s ships make it easy for solo travelers to plan an affordable trip too, thanks to the availability of single-sized berths in dormitory-style cabins. It’s a great way for a beginner diver to get hooked on the fun of liveaboard life.
