Dive Review of Ocean Rover in
Thailand/Andaman Sea

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Ocean Rover, Nov, 2003, by Brian Woods, WA, US . Report 1079.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity	N/A
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$	N/A
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	Our forth liveaboard trip and best by far. Boat very well laid out and in great condition. Best crew hands down, valet diving at its best. Crewmembers were always about five steps ahead of you, especially Chai. They even put your fins on for you once you were in the dingy. All diving with the exception of one site was done from one of the two inflatables with entry via a back roll. Each dingy had a dive guide, Hans or Andy who were there to point out critters but they were not there to hold your hand and be your buddy. This topic was covered at the initial dive briefing. At the end of the dive, the dingy was there to pick you up wherever you surfaced which could be over a large area as most safety stops were done in blue water with strong currents. The drill at the end of the dive was to hand up weights, BCD and fins and enter via a ladder. All divers were issued 8’ safety sausages, which were used on occasions by some divers. Once back on the Ocean Rover, the crew was there to rinse your camera and help you out of your gear that was then rinsed and hung up to dry. After a quick warm water rinse on the dive deck, Pannee or Pantip the two hostesses, were there to hand you a warm towel to dry off. The time between dives was spent on the upper deck which hand both sun and shade. All meals were served in the lounge and were buffet style. The food was very good and there was always plenty to eat. Coolers were located in the lounge and upper sun deck and were stocked with pop, juices and beer. Beer and wine were available on an honor basis once you were done diving for the day. Also on the sun deck was an espresso machine which was a nice addition each morning while watching the sunrises. The diving was largely sea mounts in open oceans, which either broke the surface or came within a few meters of the surface. All sites had currents, which ranged from mild to hold on to your mask. Down drafts were seen at some sites. Fish life ranged from schools that blocked out the sun (only on one dive where there was a significant upwelling of cooler water) to macro. Numerous mating cuttlefish each day and zebra sharks were the only sharks spotted. I’d rate this more of a macro spot than large animal spot, at least on this trip. Overall, would we go back…certainly to the Ocean Rover for the boat and the crew and the diving is good but there are better spots to go to first.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	251-500 dives
Where else diving	Cozumel, Roatan, Bonaire, Cayman Islands, Hawaii, Fiji, Belize, Indonesia
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, dry	Seas	calm, currents
Water Temp	82-84°F / 28-29°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	75-125 Ft/ 23-38 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	Come up with air and do a 3-5 min safety stop
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	Schools	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	Boat designed with UWP in mind, lots of room to work on camera’s with multiply charging stations, 110 and 220v. E-6 processing available but not used on this trip. Computer available with P/S to download digital images. Crew very careful with camera gear, separate rinse tanks for cameras.

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Dive Review of Ocean Rover in Thailand/Andaman Sea

Ocean Rover, Nov, 2003,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Ocean Rover in
Thailand/Andaman Sea