MV Dolphin Queen Liveaboard Reviews & Specials - Bluewater Dive Travel

MV Dolphin Queen Liveaboard

3.75
(1 REVIEW)
Dolphin Queen Liveaboard
liveaboard diving

Destination: Thailand

Itineraries: Similan Islands, Koh Bon, Koh Tachai, and Richelieu Rock (4 Nights) | From $179++/night

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MV Dolphin Queen Quick Pitch

The Dolphin Queen is a great budget-friendly option for exploring the Similan Islands. With short 4D/4N excursions, its a great way to quickly explore some of the best dive sites in a limited amount of time.

 

Dive Overview

The Thai islands and the Andaman Sea are known for widely varied underwater terrain, friendly fish, and diverse marine life, with warm water throughout the year. Marine life includes soft and hard corals, fields of anemones, nudibranchs, harlequin shrimp, cuttlefish and seahorses, plus regular sightings of mantas, zebra sharks, and the legendary whale sharks.

[See: Similan Islands Dive Travel GuideThailand Dive Travel Guide]


Check Out This Great Video from MV Dolphin Queen!

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Accommodations

Types of Cabins, Amenities and Photos

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MV Dolphin Queen Accommodation Details

The boat accommodates up to 24 divers with 3 standard quad cabins, 2 double bed cabins, and 1 twin bunk bed cabin on the main deck. There are also 2 deluxe bed cabins on the upper deck. All have airconditioning and windows. There are 3 communal showers onboard.

MV Dolphin Queen MV Dolphin Queen

Main Deck Double Bed (LEFT) and Twin Bed Cabins (RIGHT)  

MV Dolphin Queen MV Dolphin Queen

Bunkbed (LEFT) and Upperdouble (RIGHT)  

 

MV Dolphin Queen Cabin Details

  • 2 double bed cabins on middle deck
  • 2 double bed cabins on lower deck
  • 1 twin bed, two person cabin on lower deck
  • 4 quad bed cabins for 4 persons on lower deck
 

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General Facilities

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MV Dolphin Queen
 MV Dolphin Queen

Lounge / Dining Area (LEFT) and Sundeck (RIGHT)  

MV Dolphin Queen MV Dolphin Queen

Dive Deck (LEFT) and Kitting-up area (RIGHT)    

 

MV Dolphin Queen Boat Features

  • AC
  • Sun deck with mattresse & hammocks
  • Masseuse
  • Camera rinse tanks
  • Shaded social & dining area
  • Music system
  • Movie library
  • Nitrox
 

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MV Dolphin Queen Liveaboard Deck Plan

MV Dolphin Queen

 

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Schedule & Rates

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Rates & Availability

For information on departure dates, rates, and availability email us at info@bluewaterdivetravel.com or call us at +1-310-915-6677 and we will gladly help you plan your dream dive vacation!

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Dive Information & Destinations

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Itinerary Overview

The MV Dolphin Queen will be doing 4 days / 4 nights to Similan, Koh Bon, Koh, Tachai, and Richelieu Rocks, and five-day liveaboard safaris and cruises from December through April each high season in Phuket.

  • Day 1 - Arrival at around 4:30pm, introduction to dive staff and crew. After getting settled in your cabins,  you will be briefed on the rules and safety procedures on the boat and then dinner will be served. Departure from the dock is at 6:30pm. 
  • Day 2 & 3 - Dives will be held at the Similian Islands before heading north to Kon Bon island, infamous for its Manta Rays. The boat then heads northwest to Koh Tachai, one of the best dive sites in Thailand, and proceeds to Richelieu Rock. 
  • Day 4 - The MV Dolphin Queen returns to port between 2-4 pm
  • *Day 4 - Dives will be held at Koh Tachai or Koh Bon, stopping by the Boon Sung wreck on the way back)
  • *Day 5 - Arrival at the Taplamu pier is between 2-4pm
  • *only applicable to the 5-day liveaboard packages

Daily liveaboard schedule

  • 6am - Wake up, have a light breakfast with coffee and fresh fruits.
  • 7am - First dive, usually around 55 mins with a 5 min safety stop
  • 11am - Second dive
  • 1pm - Lunch is served
  • 3pm - Third dive, snacks and drinks are available until the next dive
  • 6-7pm - Fourth dive, the dusk or night dive
  • 7-8pm - Dinner is served

Similan Islands

  • What to look for: 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 mollusks, 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.
  • Reef type: Huge granite boulders, coral sloping walls, pinnacles, sandy areas. Sand blinding white, looks and feels like sugar.
  • Distance from Phuket: 55-60nm or 110-120km.
  • Visibility: Great, averaging 20 to 30m, on good days over 40m.

 

Koh Bon

  • What to look for: Hard corals are sparse but pretty. Soft corals are especially pretty as they are wildly-colored. When the current is strong, the soft corals are full and bulbous. Sea fans are less common than they used to be, but still very pretty and healthy and multicolored. Fish life is abundant, with schools of jacks and snappers charging through clouds of glassfish that hover around large fan corals and barrel sponges. This is a favorite manta spot on the ridge and in the bay. On deeper dives, rays and leopard sharks are seen. Sometimes nurse sharks on the northern bommies. If swell running, water cascades through an opening from the other side of the ridge, creating large clouds of bubbles that 
  • come surging down to greet you during your safety stop.
  • Reef type: Walls and a ridge on the main dive site. A pinnacle to the northwest of the ridge, not dived as often due to the 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.
  • Distance from Phuket: 75nm or 150km. About 12nm north of Island #9 in the Similans.
  • Visibility: Usually great, from 15 to 40m

 

Koh Tachai

 

Richelieu Rock

  • What to look for: 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.
  • Reef type: A series of pinnacles and peaks, starting at 40+m, ending just below the surface. One of the best dives in Thailand.
  • Distance from Phuket: 130nm or 260km. 9nm east of the Surin Islands.
  • Visibility: 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.
 

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Other Information

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Boat Specifications

  • LOA: 25.5m (84ft)
  • Cruising speed: 8 knots
  • Beam: 5.5m (18ft)
  • Maximum speed: 10 knots
  • Fuel: 9,000 liters
  • Number of guests: 22 persons
  • Water: 10,000 liters + maker
  • Dinghy: 1 X 4.2 m with 40hp
  • Engines: Hino, 2 X 380 hp
  • Nitrox: Yes
  • Generators: 24 hours/day
  • Compressors: Bauer 2 X 190 liters/ min..

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Got Questions? Ready to Book?

Call us today at 310-915-6677 or email us info@bluewaterdivetravel.com

And let us book your dream vacation!

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Underwater Gallery 

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MV Dolphin Queen MV Dolphin QueenMV Dolphin Queen MV Dolphin QueenMV Dolphin Queen MV Dolphin Queen

 

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Reviews (1)

4
3
4
4

I did the 4 day 4 night (14 dives) liveaboard in the similan islands. The dolphin queen was a good value and even as one of the boats with the most guests it was not crowded. Divers were split into 6 groups of 4 divers and only 2 groups entered at once. The crew prepared and packed up all the equipment. All we had to do was the diving. They had an extremely talented photographer onboard that displayed the photos every night and sold them at a great value at the end of the trip. There was lots of good food. Staff and crew were very helpful. We saw lots of marine life though nothing very rare or spectacular.

Visited on 01/2014 - Submitted on 03/01/2014

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