Similan Islands Liveaboard Itinerary
The following itinerary depends on weather, sea and diving conditions. Times, activities and dive sites are subject to change at the discretion of the Hallelujah tour leader.
All of our liveaboard guests will be picked up at their hotel or at the airport in the afternoon. To avoid a long taxi journey we recommend staying in Khao Lak. You will be taken to our pier at 19:00 to board the Hallelujah. We typically depart at 21:00, after a full boat briefing and a hearty dinner. Guests usually spend the time after dinner getting to know their fellow diving buddies that they will be spending the next 4 days with. Then your Similan Islands liveaboard adventure can begin.
Day 1
06:30 Wake up call
07:00 West of Eden
08:45 Breakfast
09:30 Beach visit
11:00 Shark Fin Reef/Boulder City
13:00 Lunch
14:30 Elephant Head Rock
16:00 Snack
18:30 Turtle Rock
20:00 Dinner
Day 2
06:30 Wake up call
07:00 North Point
08:30 Breakfast
09:00 Beach visit
10:30 Three Trees
12:00 Lunch
13:30 Koh Bon
15:30 Snack
17:00 Koh Tachai Pinnacle
19:30 Dinner
Day 3
06:30 Wake up call
07:00 Koh Tachai Pinnacle
09:30 Breakfast
11:00 Richelieu Rock
12:30 Lunch
14:00 Richelieu Rock
15:30 Snack
17:00 Richelieu Rock
19:30 Dinner
Day 4
06:30 Wake up call
07:00 Koh Bon
08:30 Breakfast
09:30 Group Photo
11:00 Boonsung Wreck
12:30 Check Out Of Cabins
13:00 Lunch
14:30 Arrive at Tap Lamu Pier
What To Expect
Wake Up
Every day at 06:30 you will be woken by a gentle knock from our dive crew. Wake yourself up properly with some freshly brewed coffee and a light breakfast. You will be greeted by the staff and get a full dive safety briefing informing you all the procedures for our Similan liveaboard. The boat boys will help you in to your equipment and get you in to the water.
Dive 1
Finding yourself immersed in the clear, warm tropical waters of Thailand is the best way to wake up.
Dive groups are a maximum of 4 people, unless friends request to dive together.
The first dive of the liveaboard itinerary will be a check dive. We will check the divers in each group are well matched in terms of ability and air consumption.
At the end of this and every dive, you and your group will surface and indicate to our dingy driver that you’re ready to be picked up. The captain of the Hallelujah will come and pick you up. No surface swims, ever.

Breakfast
After every dive, once back on board, our staff will help you out of your equipment and place it in the racks for you. You can grab a quick freshwater rinse from the shower on deck and then head up to the outdoor eating areas where a hot buffet breakfast awaits you. Our staff will fill your tanks while you eat.
Beach Visit
After breakfast (only on days 1 and 2) we can visit the beach. These are some of the most famous and beautiful beaches in Thailand. Whats even better, as we go quite early, we will arrive before all the speedboat day trippers. Not many people get to enjoy the magnificent scenery in peace.
All activities are optional. Some guests prefer to stay out of the heat and spend their time in the air-conditioned lounge looking at the pristine beaches from a comfortable distance. Sun worshipers may decide to their time on the sun deck. Others may prefer just to stay in the shaded areas reading or relaxing with the other passengers.
Day 1 we will visit Princess bay on Similan Island #4. Day 2 we can climb up to the famous viewpoint at Donald Duck bay on Similan Island #8. If you were looking for a new profile picture, look no further than the view from sail rock.
Dive 2
Dive 2 is usually at about 11:00. Dive groups might be reorganized to put divers of similar skill levels together, based on observations from the check-out dive. Obviously we never split up people who want to dive together.
As the groups are usually all sorted by this point, we can have a bit more fun diving the best areas of the Similan Islands. As the liveaboard trip progresses we may get to sites with more current (especially around full moon). However, current brings lots of nutrients to the Similans and this attracts the bigger marine life.
Every day we will get a little bit shallower on each dive of the liveaboard itinerary. If you really want to explore the deepest and best parts of all the dive sites in the Similan Islands, then it is worth considering diving on Nitrox. This will give you a lot more flexibility with your dive profiles.

Lunch
A delicious buffet lunch is served after dive two. Food is a variety of Asian and Western dishes and the menu changes for every meal on every day to give you as much variety as possible.
Dive 3
Dive three is between 13:00 and 14:00.
By the time you reach day 2, you will have left the Similan Islands and started heading up to the more Northern dive sites like Koh Bon, Koh Tachai Pinnacle and Richelieu Rock.
This is where the diving can really start to get interesting as this is where you are more likely to see the much larger pelagic marine life. Look out for Manta Rays, Whale Sharks or other sharks.
The best time of year to spot Manta Rays and Whale Sharks is usually between February and April. However they can appear any time of year. Remember, the ocean is not a zoo.

Snack
For anyone that is still hungry, an afternoon snack is served at around 16:00.
Our wonderful cooks love trying new things so there is always a range of food to choose from. Dishes include Mango and sticky rice, pizza, sushi and a large selection of fresh fruits.
Dive 4
If you are interested in night diving then we will do one on the first day. For anyone who is not an advanced diver, you can do your Adventure Diving Night training, or even take the full advanced course while on the boat.
For the rest of the trip we will do sunset dives. Sunset dives can be the highlight of the trip as the feeding frenzies often happen just before the sun goes down. The sunset dive at Koh Tachai Pinnacle is a real favourite for the diving staff and something to look forward to.

Dinner
After the night dive, dinner is served and after that some people head straight to their cabins, others prefer to relax on deck having a beer and talking about the days dives and discussing what adventures they hope to have on tomorrows dives.
Other Liveaboard Itinerary Info
As is typical on a four day cruise, there is no beach visit on Day 3 as we will most likely be all the way out at Richelieu Rock. You will have the chance to just relax on the boat. This is where having a nice big liveaboard really comes in beautifully. There’s always plenty of room for everyone and the liveaboard itinerary allows for plenty of relaxation time around the Hallelujah.
On the final day of our Similan Islands cruise, we will do 2 more dives and then return to our pier about 14:30. Get your last few photos (including the big group photo) and exchange your email and Facebook with your new diving buddies. Then finally, after some goodbyes, we will take you back to your hotel.
This is a rough example of how our Similan Islands liveaboard operates. Each individual trip can change slightly and we may change one or two dive sites depending on what is currently around. It is important to realise that year by year the reef in the Similan Islands changes. Our experienced dive guides know the area very well and will always try and take you to the best spots possible.
At Big Blue Diving Khao Lak, we try to provide you with all the information you need to make sure your diving holiday is everything you expect it to be. If there is any information about the MV Hallelujah, the Similan Islands or about Liveaboard diving in general, please feel free to ask. Just email us at info@bigbluedivingkhaolak.com
Did You Know?
Richelieu Rock is not in the Similans.
Often the highlight of a Similan Islands Liveaboard, Richelieu is actually part of the Surin national park.
What else would you like to know?