There are three daily dives in the program except for the first day (1 dive) and the last day (1 dive), total of 26 dives for 11 day safari (if weather permits). At 5:45am the day starts with coffee, tea, crackers and a dive briefing. At 6:15am we get on the dhoni for the first dive and have breakfast after. Around 11:00am we will do the second dive followed by lunch and around 3:00pm the third dive follows. We try to have 3 hours surface interval between dives, but in between we have to sail and anchor as well so the program may differ sometimes. Dinner is served around 7:00pm. We have hot meals for lunch and diner, including much (self-caught) fish.

Bottles and lead weights (no soft lead) are available on the accompanying dhoni where the diving equipment is put away.

Dive Computer and Surface Marker Buoy are manditory. Note that in a safari we do about 26 dives so make sure your battery is charged. Using another computer in between dives is only possible after a surface interval of 24 hours so a spare battery or replacement of the battery before the start of the safari is therefore recommended.

Water temperature is between 27°C and 30°C. A 3 mm. shorty or full suit is sufficient for most people. A full suit is preferred as a protection against coral, rocks and plankton.

Strongly recommended for your own safety:

– Current hook – (Tropical) gloves (see our story below) – Strobe-light (in your jacket) – A mirror (old cdrom in your jacket) – Whistle – Dive Torch

We don’t have a lot of spare diving equipment on the boat, mainly the most subject to wear materials such as o-rings and mouth pieces. We have a couple of spare computers, a couple of spare fins and masks and a couple of high and low pressure hoses. We have no spare regulators or jackets ! T orches and other electrical devices can be charged (220 volts), Dutch outlet. Gloves We have been experimenting with gloves. Because currents can be extreme in the Maldives and sometimes we even have to climb from rock to rock it is recommended to wear gloves. Since diving gloves are quite expensive and usually only last 2 weeks, we tried something else, namely Nitrill coated gloves. They remain intact for a couple of weeks but rip in the end on top at the edge between cotton and the latex coating. They are an ideal replacement of the expensive diving gloves. We give these gloves 9 out of 10 points!