Candice LandauLast Updated on October 14, 2024 by Candice Landau
Ah, the question dive travelers love to ask. Should you book your next dive trip on a liveaboard, or perhaps go the resort route and book a day boat instead?
The options are many and varied and the choice truly depends on what you want to get out of the trip. Below I’ll summarize the pros and cons of each in order to help you pick the best option for you!
1. The Liveaboard Route
Many divers will choose a liveaboard dive boat over a day boat because it allows for the ability to see a lot of sites in a fairly large area.
For example, on my recent trip with Aggressor Adventures in the Maldives, I was able to dive multiple islands adn see a variety of underwater landscapes. A day boat, by comparison, would not have been able to reach teh number of sites we were able to (they were spread over a large area), or would have taken infinitely longer to do so, meaning you’d essentially be on a liveaboard.
If you’re looking to get a broad overview of an area (and possibly dive the area’s BEST sites, teh liveaboard route may be for you).
The other nice thing about liveaboards is that you get to know a small group of people pretty well. Usually this is a good thing. Ocassionally you get a bad egg, but it’s very rare they ruin the whole trip for everyone. Add to that the ease of having food served for you, as well as tanks filled for you and it just makes this a seriously relaxing option.
The downside to this type of travel is that it can be more expensive. Some liveaboards cost $6,000. Of course, there are also many deep discoutns depending on when you book. Last-minute openings can be as affordable as $1,800 so keep an eye open, subscribe to liveaboard company website newsletters and look at larger booking sites like PADI travel and liveaboard.com.
The other downside is that you won’t be able to explore the land-based things many countries have to offer.
On my recent trip to the Red Sea, I was able to get the best of both worlds and enjoy a week on a liveaboard, followed by a week of shore and day boat diving in Marsa Alam with Red Sea Diving Safari. On the latter half of the trip I enjoyed an excurison into the desert to experiene tea with the bedouins, a camel ride, and desert stargazing. I would not have been able to do this on my liveaboard trip, though I certainly could have added (and did) separate time on after.
Of course, the other con of liveaboard diving is that if you’re really prone to seasickness, you won’t catch much of a break. A student I trained not long ago struggled with this. In spite of getting dramamine she had to be asked to be taken back to shore after just a couple of days.
And finally, if you’re traveling with non-divers, consider their desires. There truly isn’t a whole lot for non-divers to do on a liveaboard. In the Maldives, my cousins and aunt joined my trip. While both my cousins dived, my aunt did not. She did have a couple of opportunities to snorkel but that was it. And while she was a great sport and excellent surface support, I can’t imagine it was that much fun…
Pros of liveaboard diving
- See a wide-variety of dive sites in a short period of time
- Dive the best sites only that an area has to offer
- Easy living: food and dive gear setup are taken care of for you
- You don’t need to plan the itinerary—it’s all taken care of for you
Cons of liveaboard diving
- You won’t get to see many of the land-based attractions
- You’re stuck on the boat meaning if you don’t like someone, it’s too bad
- You might not be able to escape things like sea sickness
- You don’t have control over the itinerary
- It could be more expensive
- There isn’t a whole lot for non-divers to do
2. The Day Boat Route
Day boat diving, by comparison, is usually done with half a mind to see some of the land-based attractions. For example, if you’re heading to an area with lots of cute restaurants, shops, and topside activities, you might not want to miss out and spend the whole time on a boat. I’ve been told Bonaire and Curacao are not to be missed for this. I’d say the same of Cozumel! Ian Popple at Reef Smart Diving tells me Curacao is a blast for the towns and for things to do. Keep this in mind when booking a place. What are you really looking to get out of it?
For example, I loved my trip to the Big Island of Hawaii. I dived with Jack’s Diving Locker and Kona Honu Divers. Though I wasn’t able to see all the Hawaiian islands, I was able to get a really get sense of the underwater scene and of the main island. Not only did I explore much of what Kona had to offer for a plant-based eater, I was also able to do a bit of a road trip to see Volcanoes National Park, Hilo, the cultural center, various waterfalls, different beaches, and multiple breweries (yes, that’s important to a beer aficionado like me). Had I been on a liveaboard I’d have missed all of this!
The other thing that’s great about day boat diving is you can switch operator, or try multiple operators. I do this in many locations I dive. In Loreto, Baja, I dived with three different operators: Blue Nation, Dolphin Dive Baja, and Sea and Land Tours. Each had their unique strengths and I was able to get a really rounded sense of the diving in this area. The same was true in Hawaii though I only dived with two of the main operators there.
For example, I loved the in-depth explanation of all the critters we’d be seeing on the Kona Honu boat courtesy of Sarah (she even had a cool flipcard) but I also loved that Simone, on the Jack’s Diving Locker boat helped me critter spot for photos and underwater videos.
Day boat diving can be more affordable too, though this really depends on where you book it and whether you’re going Airbnb/some other vacation rental route, or a resort. Many resorts can be expensive so it could go either way.
The other nice thing about day boat diving is you can mostly control when you dive. Sometimes there are limits in place—for example, the manta night dive on Hawaii might only happen twice a week on specific days—but often you can choose those days yourself.
When it comes to setting up dive gear and hauling it to the boat, I’m not super worried. Some people, however, prefer to set it up, or have someone else set it up and be done. I’m a typical “tech diver” however and like to set it up myself first so they see how it’s done. I do after all follow GUE procedures with my wing setup, and most people who haven’t taken a fundies course don’t know how to route a hose appropriately. Again, it depends on you!
Though day-boat diving can leave you half the day to explore topside attractions, it can also limit you. When it doesn’t limit you (Ramones in Belize took us on a 3 hour long boat ride to see the Blue Hole) it does take a lot longer. Again, kudos to Ramones for breaking the stereotype. Also, if you figure out who to do Blue Hole with on doubles you are sorted. The stalactites are seriously awesome at 120ft.
Pros of day boat diving
- You can see land-based sites and explore topside attractions
- You can easily switch operator or experience different operators
- It could be a more affordable option
- You have more control over your schedule and more flexibility about dive days
Cons of day boat diving
- You might have to set up dive gear every day
- You might have to haul your dive gear to the boat every day
- Meals are not always provided and don’t always cater to all diets
- You won’t necessarily see the best sites in the area (some will be too far away)
- You won’t get to know the people as wella s you would on a liveaboard
So, how do you pick? Of course, you could absolutely do both as I did in Egypt—a week on a liveaboard and a week doing day boat diving.
Book This Not That
In my opinion, here are the questions I’d ask and what I’d personally recommend.
- Is the focus of the trip diving or a variety of topside touring and diving?
- Diving: Book a Liveaboard
- Both: Book a Dayboat
- Will you be taking non-divers?
- Book a Dayboat
- Do you like more valet-service diving?
- Book a Liveaboard
- Do you want to get a broad sense of a wide area?
- Book a Liveaboard
- Do you want to get a good sense of a specific area?
- Book a Dayboat
- Do you want to sample multiple dive operators?
- Book a Dayboat
- Do you want control over your own schedule?
- Book a Dayboat
- Do you want to see the best dives an area has to offer?
- Book a Liveaboard
- Do you want someone else to do all the planning and set up the schedule?
- Book a Liveaboard
What am I missing?! Tell me people…or am I the source of all truth. I hope not, I have more to learn (insert crying face emoji here…is this a cry for help? Maybe???)
