Ron Hunter’s Dive Expeditions Presents:
Maldives Liveaboard Diving

Plus remote “Grande North” exploratory adventure diving

Fifteen days, fourteen nights: 23rd Oct – 6th November 2010

Tour leader: Ron Hunter

Australia / Maldives

Saturday 23rd October 2010

Depart Sydney (SYD) on Singapore Airlines flight SQ232 at 12:40 pm
Arrive Singapore (SIN) at 17:40 pm
Depart Singapore (SIN) at on Singapore Airlines flight SQ452 at 20:40 pm
Arrive Male, Maldives (MLE) at 22:10 pm
We will be met at the airport and transferred to our home for next thirteen days, the MV “ Manta Cruise”

Sunday 24th October 2010

Early morning, whilst we are still sleeping the “Manta Cruise” will slip her moorings and set sail for the first of our dive sites.

Those of us, who are still asleep, will be woken at around 8:00 am for breakfast, and then we will enjoy the first of our dives in Maldivian waters.

After the morning’s dive “Manta Cruise” will set of for a two to three hour passage to next of our dive sites, which we will explore in the mid afternoon.

Only two dives today, as we will once again travel for around two hours to our overnight mooring, which is the next dive site, waiting for us to enjoy the next morning.

All of our diving during the next thirteen days will be off the Dhoni dive tender which will travel the short distance from the “Manta Cruise” on her mooring to the dive site. The Dhoni also has all the cylinders and air compressor onboard, so no lugging cylinders around and no compressor noise.

Monday 25th October thru to Thursday 4th November 2010

For the next eleven days the pattern will be along the lines of:

Early morning tea or coffee, fruit and a light breakfast, then enjoy the first of the day’s dives and then back to the “Manta Cruise” for a hearty breakfast whilst she motors towards our next dive site.
…. or, very early morning dive to see the schools of Hammerhead Sharks and other early critters and then back to the “Manta Cruise” for a hearty breakfast whilst she motors towards our next dive site
Our second dive will be before, or just after lunch, and then back to the “Manta Cruise” for either lunch or afternoon tea, whilst she motors towards our next dive site
Our third dive will be in the late afternoon or at least one night dive, and then back to the “Manta Cruise” for a few beers (San Miguel beer “on tap”, how good is that!) and a sumptuous dinner, and maybe a glass of wine or two; after all we have earnt it.
During this time, we will normally motor for two hours to our next overnight mooring, ready for next morning’s dive site. Most days we will do three dives, but on some days, depending on the length of the passages between dive sites, we may be able to only manage two dives.

M.V. “Manta Cruise”

Grande Nord (North) Expeditions diving:

We start in the centre part of the Maldives archipelago, here we can expect to see and swim with Whalesharks.

Then we venture northward stopping and diving at all the best sites and passes as we go. VisitingManta Raycleaning stations all the while on the lookout for Whalesharks.

We will definitely spend some time at Baa Atoll. See the email about this later in this itinerary.

In the far north we will be in real exploration territory, diving sites that few divers if any have ever dived before. This really is adventure diving at its best. Diving the best of the Maldives with no other boats and divers around, as most of the forty odd other liveaboards all do seven-day voyages around the central section of the archipelago.

We will not be retracing our path, sailing, diving and snorkelling in an extended loop, until finally after thirteen days we return to Male.

Friday 5th November 2010

Today is our last day onboard “Manta Cruise”, so no SCUBA diving today as we fly out of Male around midnight tonight.

We will be spending the day snorkelling and exploring uninhabited coral cays and atolls, lunch will probably be a BBQ on the beach plus more to keep us entertained. After returning to our berth in Male we will have dinner onboard tonight, before being transferred at around 21:00 pm to the airport for our flight home.

Note the San Miguel on tap. How good is that !

Maldives / Australia

Friday 5th November 2010

Depart Male (MLE) on Singapore Airlines flight SQ451 at 23:25 pm

Saturday 6th November 2010

Arrive Singapore (SIN) at 07:05 am
Depart Singapore (SIN) at on Singapore Airlines flight SQ219 at 09:00 am
Arrive Sydney (SYD) at 20:20pm

What you can expect to see:

Whalesharks, pretty well guaranteed

Hammerhead Sharks, lots of
Grey Reef Sharks, lots
White-tipped Reef Sharks, lots
Leopard Sharks, often seen
Silver Tip Sharks (occasionally)
Thresher Sharks (maybe)
Big shipwrecks, in the far North
Manta Rays, squadrons of
Eagle Rays, flights of
Mobula Rays, similar to Manta Rays
Enormous Tuna, in the passes
“Mustapha” the Napoleon Wrasse
Humphead Parrot Fish

Barracuda
Sailfish
Swordfish
Blue Ribbon Eels
Mosaic Eels
Ghost Pipefish
Leaf Fish
Scorpion fish
Frogfish
Green Turtles
Hawksbill Turtles
Hard and soft corals
Warm, blue water

Following is a part of an email that I received from my friend, Brazilian diver and National Geographic Staff Photographer, Daniel Botelho. “Ron, is your schedule for the Baa Atoll? We will be there next November, it is the ultimate must for Maldives, just check it out, I recommend you to this place a lot, Hanifaru Lagoon at this atoll is a place for hundreds of mantas bumping on hundreds of whale sharks, crazy stuff.”

Ron Hunter, tour leader, profile: www.diveforster.com.au www.whaledive.net

Ron is a vastly experienced SCUBA diver, PADI Divemaster and traveller, and has travelled and led groups of divers to most of the great dive and adventure locations in the world.

Fact file

Tour costs INCLUDE:

Return Singapore Airlines flights Sydney – Maldives, via Singapore
Return airport / boat transfers
Thirteen nights / thirteen days onboard M.V. “Manta Cruise”
All meals, snacks, coffee and tea whilst onboard
Twenty-five to thirty SCUBA dives including cylinders, air fills, weightbelts
Dive Guides (without cameras) services

Tour costs do NOT INCLUDE:

NITROX fills which are available and need to be pre-booked @ $USD 6.00 per fill

Snacks at the airports and drinks other than listed
Items of a personal nature including alcohol

Cost ex: Sydney, Australia: $AUD 5420, ex: Male, Maldives $AUD 4035 costs as at 7th October 2009

Costs (excluding flights) are based on an exchange rate of $AUD 1.00 = $USD 0.92

# All costs are based on a twin-share accommodation basis.

# Flight schedules and flight times in itinerary are as at 31st August ‘09 and are subject to change

# Please note that the Maldives is a Muslim country, and Male the capital, is totally dry (no alcohol). Additionally travellers cannot bring alcohol into the country. The boat does serve alcohol, so no problems there; except that you cant import a bottle of duty free for the voyage.
For travellers coming from other parts of the world, you can either fly direct to Male, or meet up with us in Singapore, but you will need to book yourselves onto the same flight as us from Singapore to Male, Maldives.
** Travel insurance is compulsory on all of our tours. We strongly recommend taking out travel insurance at the same time as paying your deposit. Covermore, our recommended insurance provider, will cover you from the time of paying your premium, until your tour’s return date. We suggest carefully checking conditions of any other travel insurance you may be considering.
For information regarding flights and travel insurance contact Cameron at our Travel Agent:
Harvey World Travel – Tuncurry NSW - Licence number: 2TA 5683 / 2TA 5684
Cameron.Tuncurry@harveyworld.com.au ‘phone 02 6554 6673 fax 02 6554 8712