9N8D Diving Komodo with MV Mermaid I,
Bali to Komodo, Indonesia

2009 & 2010 Cruise Schedule

» Click here for Mermaid II Komodo Schedules

Itinerary

Day 00 / Check-in on board MV Mermaid I between 14:00-16:00 hours in Benoa Harbour Bali.
After the boat and safety briefing, equipment is prepared then settle into your cabin. Dinner is served at approx. 19:00 hours as we cruise overnight to Moyo Island off the north west coast of Sumbawa. No diving.

Day 01 / Start your adventure with a great dive in the calm, clear waters of Angel Reef at Moyo Island. Massive elephant ear and barrel sponges, schools of long fin banner fish and red tooth triggers in their hundreds, frog fish, nudibrancs, eels, surgeon fish, snapper, dog tooth tuna checking out what is for lunch ! Visit the local village then its lunch for us ! Then we cruise to Satonda Island for a a macro dive followed by a world class night dive after watching a million bats fly at sunset.
After a great dive and dinner we cruise overnight to Sangeang Volcano off the north coast of Sumbawa. 3 dives.

Day 02 / The Nusa Tengarra region has some extremely interesting and unique marine life. Today we spend the day diving around Sangeang Volcano – 2-3 dives for rare nudibrancs, pygmy seahorse, leaf scorpion fish, blue ribbon eels, black sand diving with all its treasures and underwater hot springs that support this very unique marine environment. Night dive here too or head on over to Gili Banta for the chance for Star Gazers and coral cat shark. 4 dives.

Day 03 / Current depending, we start the day at GPS Point Gili Banta famous for its sharks and pelagic fishes.
Then we enter the Komodo National Park and for more exhilarating blue water/fish soup diving!
Gili Lawalaut has several great dives – if the tide is right we hunt grey reef shark and dolphin at Taka Toko Gili Lawalaut. Lighthouse Reef and The Old Passage offer fast drifts with pelagics, maybe manta!
Crystal Rock offers awesome soft corals in gold and orange hues plus the chance for sharks, turtles, giant Maori wrasse, a “fish soup” dive. Tonight we dive the famous Pink Beach – spectacular colours and frogfish, slipper lobster, basket stars, robust sea cucumbers unqiue to the area plus more! 4 dives.

Day 04 / Start your day with an exciting visit to Loh Liang Komodo National Park to walk with the dragons! And as we quietly walk through the bush setting look out for Komodo dragons, deer, wild boar and birds.
Then relax as we cruise south to dive the Three Sisters or Pillarsteen at Padar Island. Next stop is a diver’s paradise – Horseshoe Bay Rinja Island – home of one of the top 10 dives in the world – Cannibal Rock – an abundance of corals, sponges, ascidians, sea apples, black corals, turtle, cuttlefish, loads of reef fishes too! Here we can also watch dragons scavenging on the beach, monkey, deer, wild pigs along the shore, go beach combing…. Maybe even a chance to follow whales and dolphin feeding in the calm bay. We overnight at this peaceful place, diving at one of the many fabulous spots. 3 dives.

Day 05 / More world class dives roday as we relax in Horseshoe Bay Rinja Island – the Yellow Wall of Texas is absolutely stunning covered with enormous yellow soft corals. Go slowly along the wall looking for unique creatures but don’t forget to look out into the blue to see what’s coming by…maybe e make a deep dive to check if the tiny yellow pygmy seahorses are on the giant gorgonians at depth.
Nusa Kode offers more walls and critter chances coupled with white tip reef sharks etc.! Torpedo Alley is famous for its “electric” rays and perhaps one of the best night dives of your life for critter fanciers. 4 dives.

Day 06 / Today we’ll head on over to Manta Alley to watch in awe as these magnificent creatures feed, play and get cleaned at the many cleaning stations. In the afternoon we can check out more big fish dives maybe at Loh Serah, Tatawa Kecil or the infamous “Current City” Batu Bolong – come face to face with reef sharks, turtles and giant Wrasse. Many good night dives around here – Gili Darat is great for sleeping turtles, colourful reef stonefish, spanish dancers – calm sea – a good place to sleep. 4 dives.

Day 07 / The diving around Gili Lawalaut, Tatawa Kecil, Gili Darat is so awesome you will all want more so today we make 2-3 dives in clear arm blue waters – loads of fish both big and small. Then we’ll head off for a night dive at either Gili Banta or maybe Batu Putih in Sumbawa – both interesting sites. Overnight we cruise back to Satonda and Sumbawa – solar powered nudibranc, ghost pipefish anyone? 4 dives.

Day 08 / We enjoy two good dives around Sumbawa and Moyo Islands – a chance to shoot anything you missed at the beginning of the trip. Then the crew wash your equipment for you while you relax on the sundeck or downloading your pictures, enjoying our trip video as well just before dinner with all your new friends. 2 dives.

Last Day / After breakfast we transfer you ashore at 9am to continue your vacation…or its time to head home to start planning your next Mermaid cruise!

Total 28 dives!

cforms contact form by delicious:days

MV Mermaid I is a 28m, double engine steel motor yacht. She comfortably holds 15 guests in 01 Master State Room (king bed), 01 Single and 04 Deluxe Cabins (double or twin beds) and 02 Budget Cabins (double/twin beds) below deck.

The Master, Single and Deluxe Cabins have ensuite bathrooms, refrigerators and panoramic windows offering great sea views during your dive cruise. The budget cabins are below decks with ensuite bathroom and refrigerator. All cabins have TVs so you can review your pictures, DVD access, bathrobes, toiletries and loads of fluffy towels.

There is a wide stern dive platform with two exit ladders and fresh water showers. 4 camera rinse tanks and large camera table will please all photographers. Delicious Thai and western meals are served in our “Sawasdee Restaurant” with large windows to enjoy the views. Our new barbeques are also a great hit! After meals relax in our saloon equipped with TV/DVD and music center and library with a full selection of marine life books. There are two outside decks, one shaded with outside seating and the fabulous sundeck with sunshade plus cushioned sun beds a great place to relax.

EANX NITROX is available on every cruise.

MV Mermaid I
Bali > Komodo > Bali Trip Information

Number of Dives/Site selection
We plan a minimum of 20 dives subject to weather conditions and security/safety
issues. Dive site selection detailed in the published itinerary is subject to change by the Captain or Cruise Director without prior notice. There are numerous fantastic sites in Nusa Tengarra and Komodo and our objective is to take you to the best of the best ! Repeat guests – we‟ll take you to some new sites or more of those you really love !

What diver certification level is needed for diving in Komodo?
Everyone is welcome on board, no matter what level your certification. Dive groups and site selection will be chosen to meet your safety, comfort and diving ability – and is subject to the discretion of the Cruise Director. Our professional dive crew will take you on the easy route or to another site if you don‟t like currents. If you are up for it, we‟ll take you right into it for all the action the site offers ! You may wish to bring a reef hook for some dive sites.

Dive Guides and Diver Safety
Our experienced dive crew would be delighted to assist you. Divers are welcome to dive with their buddy on sites deemed suitable by the Cruise Director. For diver safety the use of individual dive computers is mandatory for all divers. Nitrox fills and courses are available on board to enhance your diving safety. Please allow 24 hours between last dive and flying. Guests are requested to show diving certification cards
on checking in and are strongly recommended to have valid dive insurance (Padi, Dan or equivalent).

Departure and Arrival Times
Guests are required to arrive in Bali no later than 14:00 hours which will allow us to
make our planned 16:00 departure from Benoa port. Final cruise departure time is subject to guest arrival times.
Please liaise with Mermaid Liveaboards if your flight times cannot fit this schedule.

Transfers
Transfers from/to the airport or hotels in the south are free of charge. From destinations in central and
northern Bali, there is a small charge. Please refer to the price list.

Guests arriving before 12 noon on departure day will be transferred to PT Indonesia Liveaboards at Sanur Beach
where you can leave your luggage in safety till boarding transfer at 14:00 hours. After meeting the friendly crew at PT Indonesia Liveaboards you can relax on the beach, enjoy a massage,go sight seeing or shopping till 14:00
hours when you will be transferred to the vessel.

Pick up times : 13:00 – Nusa Dua, 13:30 Jimbaran, Seminyak; 14:00 Kuta Beach, Legian, Sanur Beach;
11:00 Tulamben; 12:00 Candi Desa, Padangbai, Ubud; Time to be advised for Lovina Beach and northern Bali.

Water Temperature and Wetsuit recommendations
The Flores Sea with its usually clear blue waters, great visibility has water temperatures of approx 26-28 degrees
(northern dive locations) – a 3-5 mm shorty is okay with most guests comfortable with a 3-5mm long. The Sumba Sea (southern dive locations) has an average temperature of approx 24 degrees – the awesome diving let’s you forget about the cooler waters ! Think about a 5mm long possibly adding a vest or renting a shorty to go over the top if you feel the cold. Hood, gloves and booties are strongly recommended for these cooler waters.

Equipment on board
Full rental equipment is available including a good range of long wetsuits and a few open heel fins. Please advise your rental equipment needs including sizes when you book. MV Mermaid I carries mostly 12 litre steel tanks with a few 15 litre steel/aluminium tanks available. Tank valves are international and some DIN adapters are available on board. Any dive equipment failure or loss will require you to rent a replacement from Mermaid Liveaboards at our published rates. If Mermaid Liveaboard equipment is lost/damaged, full replacement cost will be charged at the discretion of the Cruise Director. Published equipment prices are available on board.

Camera Stations
There is a large camera table on the dive deck with several rinse containers catering for small to super large camera/video setups. There are several power points in every cabin plus throughout the saloon area for charging. Each table in the saloon has an electrical outlet for your laptops. Usually our dive crew will have a laptop available in case you experience any problems with yours. As possible, we also offer a DVD burning service in case you cannot bring your laptop with you.

Electrical current and plugs
220 volts is standard throughout the boat. 110v adapters are available. Please ask
the Tour Leader on boarding if you are not sure what to use.We have a few adapters on board. The cabins can
handle both the following plug types :-

Meals
Our Thai cook is excellent, preparing a variety of Thai and Western dishes. Please advise any special meal
requirements on the guest information form.

Currency
Please pay all on board costs in € Euros, $ US or Indonesian Rupiah. We can also accept credit card payment for all on board costs excluding crew gratutities. Credit card payments incur a 3% fee. We suggest you also have some rupiah for souvenir shopping in Komodo, massages, small items etc at Sanur Beach. Exchange rates vary. The airport‟s rate is lower than the rate you find at most small currency exchanges. Bank rates are low
and take a long time. $ US and € Euros are accepted by the souvenir sellers in the Komodo National Park but rupiah is preferred. There are several currency exchange services and ATM machines near PT Indonesia Liveaboards and at the airport and ATM‟s at Benoa port.

Luggage and what should I bring?
All luggage will be taken on board. If you have large bags you do not need on the trip, please arrange to leave at your hotel if possible or at PT Indonesia Liveaboards in Sanur. Other items you
may need on board are bathing suits, shorts, t-shirts, sunscreen and a light weight jacket or sweater. Good walking shoes for your time in Komodo National Park! (trainers are fine – slip on sandals not recommended).

Can I be contacted while on board?
You can use your mobile phone most days except when we are in the north.
Other times you are welcome to use our satellite phone. The number is 001 870 764 853 149 (local telco IDD code, ie 001 + <870> +<764 853 149> (for fixed line to our mobile) Please note the charge is €3 per minute for outgoing calls and €1.50 per minute for incoming calls.

Insurance
You need 2 types of insurance when planning your dive holiday.
1) Diving insurance is strongly recommended due to the high cost for you should you have a diving accident and require hospitalization and/or hyperbaric chamber care. Please contact www.diversalertnetwork.org to check which Dan area can cover you. Click on About Dan for links to all the Dan organizations around the world.

2) General travel/cancellation insurance. There are several companies around the world that can assist and we suggest you look at www.worldnomads.com for reliable and professional service recommended by The Lonely Planet. If you are unable to make your dive trip and the date has past our cancellation terms and conditions we are very sorry but regardless of the circumstances we cannot refund or transfer to another date.

Medical Assistance
Mermaid I cruises to remote areas however we are prepared to handle most accident or medical emergencies. Mermaid’s management team is available 24 hours a day via our satellite communications to expedite tried and tested emergency evacuation plans to the nearest recompression chamber and/or modern hospital in Bali. Our dive crews are first aid trained and we have an extensive first aid kit on board plus loads of emergency oxygen. Please bring any of your own medications that you may need. You can help as well by making
sure you are in good condition for diving – prevention is always better than the cure. Please remember to dive safely and to make sure your Dan or other dive insurance is up to date.

I want to dive Bali as well!
There is loads of excellent diving in and around Bali as well. Contact your agent for special Liveaboard + Bali diving/accommodation packages. Detail how many days/diving days you would like, what class accommodation and we can recommend a package to suit.