Similan Islands Liveaboard: Cloud Nine for Diving Aficionados

One of the top 10 dive destinations in the world, the Similan Islands can be found just about 100 km northwest of Phuket. The region was declared a National Park in 1982 and has since been well protected to preserve its natural beauty. The Similan Island group is comprised of 9 granite islands, running north to south, along with numerous smaller rock outcroppings, white sand virgin beaches, and a tropical garden above water. These collectively create spectacular dive sites with crystal clear warm waters below the surface of the sea.

Liveaboards to the Similans run seven months per year, between mid-October and early May. From May to end of September, Similan islands are closed for diving, snorkeling or any tourist activities in order to allow to marine life to recover and preserve the extraordinary beauty of Similan Islands. Diving varies from magnificently dizzying landscapes to gently sloping coral reefs and deep rocky gorges. East coast dive sites are hard coral reef dives although soft corals also exist. The area also boasts an abundance of marine life. Diving here is relaxed, with weak to moderate currents.

West coast sites, on the other hand, are a little more challenging because of their depths and the complex currents. The area is known for its submarine rock formations and huge granite boulders. Advanced divers will also enjoy giant sea-fan corals and exciting swim-through. This unique mixture of dive sites is exactly what makes diving cruises to Similan Islands the best experience for diving aficionados who find the undersea endlessly fascinating.

Other famous dive sites that you should consider visiting include the East of Eden, the Elephant Head, Christmas Point and the world famous Richelieu Rock. These dive sites open to a world of underwater caves, huge boulders, eerie narrow passages, and over 500 species of soft and hard corals inhabited by an incredible variety of marine life, ranging from guitar rays to leopard sharks, manta rays, turtles, and whale sharks, all waiting to be explored. For underwater photographers, the Similan Islands are also a paradise for muck and macro photography.

Get Complete Fun of Thailand Trip by Scuba Diving

If you are planning a trip to Thailand, do not forget to get a closer look into one of the best scuba diving destinations in the world that Phuket Islands is. A holiday in Thailand is incomplete, without having a complete scuba diving trip around Thailand’s coastal of Andaman Sea.

If you are planning your vacation in Thailand, the best way to plan it is to ensure you have a scuba diving package booked before you start your aquatic holiday. Any trip to Thailand should include a dive trip around Andaman Sea’s Islands and also to get the best scuba diving experience the place has to offer. The Island of Phuket, for instance, has a fascinating scuba diving spots.

The reason behind why Phuket or the nearby islands, such as the Phi-Phi Islands, is famous for diving and snorkeling, is because of its underwater treasures. The Andaman Sea costal of Thailand has some of the richest bio-diversity of Indian Oceans’ marine life. Since the main idea of scuba diving or free diving is to experience the life beneath the ocean, what better place that the one that gives you a glimpse of the world of Nemo, sea turtles and sharks!

Complete your diving holiday to the kingdom of Thailand, by visiting Phuket Island and all its nearby scuba diving spots, to have an exhilarating underwater experience. And, if you are worried about not having scuba diving experience, don’t worry. There are highly experienced scuba instructors, who will make sure that you will get the experience of your lifetime. With them, you will discover what swimming underwater like a submarine creature is.

Apart from scuba diving, you can also enjoy a day trip on a diving boat, and visit the beautiful Racha and Phi-Phi Islands, or have a hand at snorkeling and free diving, if you are adept in swimming. So, if you have booked a trip to Thailand, make it a fulfilling holiday, with everything the place has to offer - scuba diving, snorkeling, and an ocean of exciting underwater explorations.

Enjoy the underwater treasures of Thailand by Diving in Phuket

No where can you get a glorious view of inland as well as the life underwater, than the Kingdom of Thailand. It is, thus, often seen that several people around the world flock to the Island to have an eyeful of all those underwater treasures on Andaman Sea - Thailand.

There are several places where you get a great deal of scuba diving experience in Thailand. Phuket Island, for instance, is a scuba diver’s paradise. The Koh Bida Nok and Koh Bida Nai, the two diving locations around Phuket and Phi-Phi Islands gives you some of the best that Phi-Phi dive sites have to offer. Every scuba diver wants to get the best of their passion, diving on the best coastal locations of the world but also enjoying all the colors the ocean has to offer. The fact that Phuket Island has both a beautiful array of diving locations and colorful fauna and flora is what makes it one of the best diving destination in the world.

Apart from Scuba diving, there are tourist centers that offer to give you the thrill of underwater diving, without the heavy scuba equipment. Free diving involves staying from a few seconds to several minutes for the most gifted in the ocean, without any air supply, and have a chance of becoming one with the sea creatures in. Such free diving will give you the joy of having an uncommon and fascinating experience, which you may want to repeat over and over again.

So, if you are a diving enthusiast, or would like to learn diving, the best place to start your exciting journey is to book a scuba diving package to Thailand. The whole vacation or the experience, whatever you like to call it, will keep you enthralled in its magnificence.

Liveboard Diving in Similan Islands: A Trip You Will Regret Missing

Liveboard diving and cruises are the highlight of any water-based holiday in Phuket. With Similan's snow-white beaches and verdant tropical islands, it is no wonder why Similan islands are one of the main bases for liveboards in the region. Above water are stunning nature playgrounds while below are spectacular dive sites that are arguably among the best in the world.

The Similan Islands are noted for being Thailand's most sought after diving and snorkeling location. Unlike other underwater playgrounds in the country and the rest of the world, the islands are only open 7 out of 12 months in a year (from October 15^th all the way through May 15^th). This is in a bold attempt to preserve its sites and allow for nature to flourish, undisturbed. The 5-month period also keeps visitors away from less than ideal weather conditions to explore the beauty of the region.

Diving in the Similan is one of the most exhilarating experiences you will ever have in Thailand. For many people, liveboard diving in its untouched waters is a once in a lifetime journey that will take you in the enchanting world of majestic mantas, giant whale sharks, and other underwater creatures you couldn't even imagine. The rich marine life, crystal clear waters and untouched nature of Similan islands are major things to look forward to in any Thailand trip.

Around the islands are unrivaled dive sites that you would hate to miss, among the most popular of which include the world famous Richelieu Rock, Elephant Head Rock and Deep Six, which can be found right off Island 7. Island 9 is the best kick off point for an adventure in the famed Breakfast Bend or for a quick stop at Koh Bon, which is a popular site for day trippers, being one of the most scenic Liveaboard dive locations in Thailand. Koh Bon is also a great place to spot swarms of manta rays.

Forget The Morning Blues! Wake Up To Ocean Colors with Phuket Scuba Diving

Joining a Liveaboard is one of the best ways to make the most of a diving holiday in Phuket. Liveaboards are perfect if you want to dive in areas that are far from the island, especially if they cannot be covered by a short dive day trip. In this type of holiday, you get to stay comfortably in a high-quality boat and wake up to the sights and sounds of the sea. Dive and explore the underwater environment at any time you wish. Start your morning with a dive, enjoying the beautiful colors of bright corals and schools of fish.

Liveaboards are recommended if you want to dive around the Tarutao group or the Hin Muang and Hin Daeng group. Hin Muang is the highest vertical wall in the country, with a southern side that drops more than 60 meters and a gentle eastern side with two long ridges descending into the deep blue. Hin Muang is completely submerged and it is a rock formation with an abundance of marine life. Large colorful sea fans adorn its walls, and schools of glass fish flock around the rocky outcrops and fans while searching for trevallies. Shallower sections are covered by anemones.

Hin Daeng is another submerged boulder with healthy soft red corals. One side is around 60 meters deep and the others seem like they can disappear into the abyss. Shallower sections of the pinnacle are covered with anemones, and sea fans cling to steep walls.

Some liveaboards can take you to other colorful places on the west coast, like Richelieu Rock. Find a reputable diving tour specialist in Phuket that is accredited by PADI. This way, you can be sure that you can be guided by skilled and professional divers, and you can ride in a large and state of the art boat that is designed for divers.