MV Mermaid II Liveaboard: Dive Sites Visited

Huge granite boulders, coral sloping walls, pinnacles, sandy areas. Sand blinding white, looks and feels like sugar.

55-60nm or 110-120km.

Great, averaging 20 to 30m, on good days over 40m.

Unusual granite formations, dramatic scenery, swim-throughs, large seafans, gorgeous beaches. Wildlife includes monitor lizards, various snakes, squirrels, and bats, along with birds like Pacific reef egrets, Nicobar pigeons, Brahminy kites and white-breasted sea eagles.  Corals excellent; unbelievable variety of both hard and soft. Multicolored, some of the best old hard coral growth in the world. Well protected. Many species of nudibranchs and other molluscs, colorful sponges and tunicates, as well as crustaceans like crabs, reef lobsters, and a wide variety of shrimp. Fusiliers and surgeonfish are common, as are groupers, wrasses, at least four species of lionfish. Home to a number of exotic, seldom seen fish, including frogfish, ghost pipefish, blue-spotted jawfish, firefish, and Andaman sweetlips. Jacks, mackerel, and dogtooth tuna harass the ever-present thick schools of baitfish.

Walls and a ridge on the main dive site. A pinnacle to the northwest of the ridge, not dived as often due to depth from the surface to the top of the rock (18m). The main ridge can be dived in almost any current and has plenty to keep you occupied for several dives.

75nm or 150km. About 12nm north of Island #9 in the Similans.

Usually great, from 15 to 40m

An underwater ridge runs along at 18-23m, with a southern and northern pinnacle. Most dive boats drop at the southern or biggest pinnacle. If the current is with you, you can swim along the ridge, but it's hard to find a shallow spot to do your safety stop.

95nm or 190km. About 20nm north-northwest of Koh Bon.

Variable, from 5 to 30m.

Can be fantastic or disappointing. Not to everyone's liking depending on what you see and how the current is. Either you love it or you hate it. Excellent growths of sea fans, whip corals, barrel sponges and other filter feeders, particularly in deeper areas. This is also a good area for leopard sharks and stingrays, as well as trumpetfish. Batfish will swim above the rock under the boat. Schooling fish are common, including dense mobs of snapper and chevron barracuda. On the main boulder where most people end up, not much coral. Manta cleaning station at certain times. Good deep dive if current is not too strong, you swim well, and your guide knows the site.

A series of pinnacles and peaks, starting at 40+m, ending just below the surface. One of the best dives in Thailand.

130nm or 260km. 9nm east of the Surin Islands.

Extremely variable , from 2 to 40m! Visibility depends on tides and runoff from shore. It's closer to freshwater rivers than the Similan Islands, thus the water clarity is not as consistent. But here it's not about the vis, it's about the marine life.

Home for porcelain crabs, harlequin shrimp, other bizarre shrimp and at least four different varieties of clownfish. Tigertail seahorses are seen commonly. Nudibranchs numerous. Scorpian fish, snappers, and a number of eel species including giant, white-mouth, fimbriated, snowflake, bar-tail and zebra morays. Lionfish everywhere, often "schooling". Excellent coral, dense colonies of sea anemones in shades of green, beige and brilliant purple cover many of the shallower rock surfaces, soft corals come in many shades of red, purple and blue. Octopus and cuttlefish, the latter of which are often seen mating and laying eggs among the rocky ledges. Whale sharks, manta rays, guitar sharks, soft corals in a rainbow of colors, schooling pelagic fish. Everything is possible here. This dive is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you're going to get.

Rocks and boulders, sea fans, staghorn coral

60nm or 110km north of Mu Koh Similan National Park. 120nm or 215km north of Phuket.

Variable , from 2 to 15m! Visibility depends on tides and runoff from shore. The islands get more rain than the Similans due to their proximity to shore. The islands are heavily forested so more vegetation washes into the water.

Surin is not as popular for diving as other places, but it's a popular spot for people to visit the Moken or often called "Sea Gypsies" or chao lay in Thai (considered by some to be derogatory). Some divers very much enjoy the Surin Islands and there certainly is a big area to explore, including some pinnacles or piles of boulders completely submerged. There are also fast drift dives between Surin Nua and Surin Tai (north and south islands). Often the visibility is poor and there is a definite lack of fish around the islands.

However, probably the main reason that people do not dive these islands more often is probably due to lack of time. Most of the dive trips do become a little rushed since the boats are trying to cover a lot of area in four or five days; other more interesting areas get more attention from the dive staff. You may dive here if it's windy and Richelieu Rock gets blown out. Or, if you do a longer northern-only trip, and if the divemaster has a favorite "secret" dive or two, then you may spend some time here. Turtle Ledges and Swift Passage are two of the more famous spots.

Surin has several beautiful small coves for anchoring and the topography is similar to many of the islands in Mergui in Myanmar. In fact, all of those islands you see from Surin to the north are in fact in Mergui.

Limestone walls, pinnacles, caves, deep bays

28nm or 50km east of Phuket City

Variable, 5 to 30m

Best, Two day trips from Phuket or Hin Daeng Itinerary on a liveaboard; Day trips available from Phuket. There are dive centers on the main island of Phi Phi Don.

What sets Koh Phi Phi and Krabi apart from other dive destinations in Thailand are two features: The first is the amazing limestone cliffs rising dramatically into the sky and plunging into the sea. The second is the remarkable number of dive sites, gorgeous little islands, and unbelievable beaches and coves that are concentrated in such a small area. Leopard sharks are very common here at most dive sites. Sponges, soft and hard corals, lush seafans, seawhips. Coral not as colorful as Similan, but healthy and interesting. Snappers, fusiliers, wrasses, parrotfish, five species of clownfish and anemones, leopard sharks, longtoms, gobys, lionfish, etc.

Small limestone islands, caves, sloping walls, overhangs. Pure white sand, sugar-like.

20nm or 36km south.

Great, from 25 to 50 meters

Best, liveaboard from Phuket; Speed boats available sometimes from Koh Phi Phi & Koh Lanta. Be warned of a long, bumpy ride. Day trips from Koh Lanta by normal dive boat take about two hours each way.

Two caverns begin in 10-meters of water. Safe to enter, even without a light, as the entrances are large and there is only one way in, and one way out. You can surface inside the island to view stalactites hanging down from the ceiling over 30m above the surface. The water clarity here is usually very good. Wonderful scenery, deep water. Corals healthy, but plain and not very colorful. Large seafans, seawhips everywhere. Sponges very common. Fish life good, including jacks, rainbow runners, barracuda.

Pinnacles, forming ridges and walls underwater. Huge area below, not possible to swim around in one dive at 18m. Hin Daeng breaks the surface, Hin Muang is entirely submerged.

55nm or 100km due south.

Variable, often fantastic, from 10 to 50m.

Best, liveaboard from Phuket; Speed boats available sometimes from Koh Phi Phi & Koh Lanta.

Best wall diving in Thailand. Very dramatic dive site, a bit scary the first time you get in the water it's so big! Huge sea fans, orange, red, white, pink. Soft corals abound. Not the best place for hard coral. Big fans make up for less hard corals. Lots of anemones, several species, but not as many anemone fish as elsewhere. Good schooling fish such as fusiliers. Not as many reef fish, but interesting always. Good manta and whaleshark place depending on the year. Open ocean exposed dive site. Exciting.