Arora Virgo Liveaboard, Maldives
The Atolls of Male and Ari (7 nights) | From $246/night
Arora Virgo Quick Pitch
Formerly known as the Emperor Virgo, the Arora Virgo offers interesting itineraries to the atolls of Male and Ari. The boat accommodates up to 18 divers in spacious en-suite cabins, equipped with large windows on the upper and main decks, and portholes on the lower deck.
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Accommodations - Facilities - NEW! Schedule, Rates & Availability - Dive Info & Destinations
Location
Round trip transfers to and from the Male airport are included. Transfers from the airport to the boat run at 11:00, 16:00 and 22.30. Check out is at 07:00 and 09:00 on the last day of the cruise. Guests will be at the airport by 07:30 and 09:30 respectively.
Dive Overview
The Maldives is filled with giant creatures of the deep. From mantas to whale sharks and all types of sharks, the Maldives has it all.
[See: Maldives Dive Travel Guide]
Accommodations
Types of Cabins, Amenities and Photos
Arora Virgo Accommodation Overview
Accommodating 18 divers over her 32m length, all her cabins have double/twin beds, and cabin 3 can be booked as a triple. All cabins are ensuite. Upper and main deck cabins have large windows giving amazing views to the ocean and islands beyond.
Standard Cabin in Double configuration & Upper Deck Twin
Standard Cabin in Twin configuration & Standard Bathroom
Arora Virgo Cabin Details
- Upper deck cabins: 2 double/twin
- Main deck cabins: 2 double/twin
- Lower deck cabins: 5 double/twin (1 available as a triple with a small single bed)
General Facilities
Lounge & Dining Area
Sun Deck & Diving Dhoni
Arora Virgo Boat Features
- Select liveaboard for just 18 divers
- Lower and upper deck twin or double cabin options
- Welcoming, spacious saloon and restaurant-style dining area
- Spacious saloon with internationally stocked bar
- Onboard WiFi (local charges) when in range
- Loungers for sunbathing at the upper deck
Arora Virgo Dive Facilities
- Large dhoni
- Free Nitrox
- Rebreather friendly
- Supports Poseidon MKV1, AP vision and manual megalodon units
Food & Drinks Aboard Arora Virgo
All-inclusive, mouth-watering cuisine with international dishes. Includes 3 meals per day and afternoon snacks.
Schedule, RateS & Availability
The actual rates are based in EUR. The starting price indicated above may vary based on the current exchange rate.
The rates shown below are per person in USD for Standard Lower Deck Cabins. The pricing at the time of booking may vary depending on the latest EUR/USD exchange rate.
Supplements for other cabin types: Upper deck: €200/person/week. Main deck: €160/person/week. All twins have beds side by side. All cabins booked for sole use are charged at the normal rate + 50%. If a Double with single bed cabin is booked as a twin share then a €30 per week supplement is added to guarantee the double bed.
[See also: Inclusions & Exclusions]
Inclusions
- Shared cabin
- 7 nights, 6 days diving
- 3 meals a day
- Afternoon snacks
- 1 BBQ dinner on local island (weather allowing)
- Unlimited drinking water, tea, coffee
- Total of 17 dives (inc 1 night dive)
- Guide, tanks, weights
- Free Nitrox
- Return airport transfer
- Government taxes and bed tax
- Land visit
- Separate diving dhoni
Exclusions
- Flight
- Diving equipment
- Alcohol, soft drinks, juices
Rates & Availability
For more information on rates and availability email us at info@bluewaterdivetravel.com or call us at +1-310-915-6677.
Dive Information & Destinations
BEST OF MALDIVES
This is the Best of the Maldives - and it delivers exactly that. This is where you dive the best and most famous dive sites of the Maldives in a week of wonderful liveaboard diving across Male and Ari atolls. For this itinerary, you should be comfortable with drift dives. Currents can be strong. All your diving is made from dhonis or zodiacs to give precise entry and exits points. Experienced divers can dive in a buddy pair unguided.
- Rasdhoo Atoll: Hammerhead Dive, Beautiful Reef with Pelagics
- North Ari Atoll: Grey Reef Sharks, Maaya Thila Night Dive, Multiple Manta Cleaning Stations
- South Ari Atoll: Whale Sharks, Beautiful Pinnacles
- South Male Atoll: Grey Reef Sharks, Eagle Rays, Other Pelagics, Beautiful Macro Wreck.
- Vaavu Atoll: Action packed night dive with Nurse Sharks and others.
- North Male Atoll: Beautiful Pinnacles.
DEEP SOUTH & SOUTHERN SHARKS (FEBRUARY & MARCH)
7 day trips - Laamu to Addu / Addu to Laamu
February and March are the best times to sail to the southerly Maldivian atolls and dive into the shark action in these out-of-the-way southern dive sites between Huvadhoo and Addu (Seenu) Atolls. Spend a week away from the madding crowds and dive Foammulah and Huvadhoo on the lookout for the Indian Ocean's larger residents; tiger sharks, silver tips, grey reef sharks, whale sharks and many, many more.
From Male we take you to Laamu (Kadhdhoo) or Addu (Gan) by domestic flight to join your liveaboard, and then it's off on our adventure. Laamu is an oval shaped southern atoll, which has some of the top dive sites in the world such as Guraidhoo and Gan. In Foammulah you can expect to meet tiger and silver tip sharks. At Huvadhoo, one of the deepest lagoons in the Maldives, the currents are ideal for even more shark sightings including, hopefully, whale sharks and silkies, hammerheads, tiger and grey sharks spotted most of the time. There are swift channel dives with several kandus; Vilingilli, Nilandhoo, Mareehaa and Kondeey. Addu Atoll hosts the WWII wreck, HMS British Loyalty, as well as popular majestic Manta Cleaning stations with more relaxing sites to either start or end the trip with too.
This itinerary suits experienced divers (100+ dives) looking for 'away from it all and different diving' with quite a focus on drift diving.
HANIFARU & NORTH (JULY - OCTOBER)
This itinerary runs around the New Moon phase when tidal ranges are greater resulting in a greater flow of plankton into the world famous Hanifaru Bay, where the massive majestic mantas venture in for a feeding frenzy between July and October each year.
We sail from Male to the northern atolls of Lhaviyani and Baa (Hanifaru Bay) and back taking in the renowned sites of Kuredu Express, Kuredu Caves.
As well as mantas, you can get close to turtles, grey reef sharks and whitetip reef sharks. One of the big attractions is the chance to encounter mantas feeding and cleaning.
Thanks to the currents that sweep plankton into the shallow lagoons, mantas follow in vast numbers to feed. Although diving is not permitted in the UNESCO World Heritage site of Hanifaru Bay, we are allowed to go in and snorkel with these gentle giants in the lagoon. After a manta has had its feed it needs to get cleaned, so we will take you to known manta cleaning stations in both North Male, Lhaviyani and Baa Atoll. So hopefully these will give you sightings all week long. Of course, sightings can't be guaranteed but diving at this time means your chances are high.
PELAGIC MAGIC (APRIL - JULY)
On this route we take you on a manta and whale shark journey to the North & South Ari Atolls having crossed over from Male. Exact dive sites will vary depending on diver experience levels, local conditions and where the best sightings have been.
Pelagic Magic gets you face to face with the famous whale sharks of Ari Atoll. As this itinerary devotes more time here, you are certain to get your whaleshark fix at Maamagili. Iconic dive follows iconic dive as you sail from Male through North Ari and then onto South Ari; your log book will fill with shark and manta sightings as well as outstanding reef dives. Then grab your snorkel and splash in to float only feet away from graceful whale sharks. Pelagics of all shapes and sizes await.
With around 17 dives, as well as opportunities to snorkel with the whale sharks, this is an action packed week. The pelagic sightings start right from the beginning. Manta Point (otherwise known as Lankan Finolhu) is a cleaning station with reliable manta sightings. Just settle down and watch the manta swoop in. Hafsa Thila and Maya Thila are yet more iconic dive site where sharks are plentiful. Look out for baby white tips under the large table corals. But it is at night that Maya Thila really comes alive. Reef sharks and marble morays hunt dinner out as morays slink between the coral blocks.
As you reach South Ari keep a look out for the whale sharks. Maamagili is the place to find whale sharks at this time as they follow the seasonal currents. Manta chase plankton trails too into the nearby lagoons. Between your pelagic encounters, the reef dives will not disappoint. Discover the lush corals and schooling fish at the likes of Reethi Thila and Kuda Rah.
This is a great itinerary for everyone. No matter what your experience level this is a Maldives itinerary you can enjoy. There can be some drift diving so some experience of diving in currents in advisable. Don't forget to take your reef hook to make shark watching all the easier. As so many of the best whaleshark encounters are snorkelling, everyone can feel the thrill of seeing these graceful creatures in their natural environment. Pelagic Magic runs when the pelagics sightings are at their optimum in North and South Ari. Don't delay - discover the biggest inhabitants of the Maldives for yourself.
SHARKTASTIC (JANUARY - APRIL)
In this period the clean ocean water flows in from the eastern side of the Maldives. That means currents running from Sumatra, Indonesia to the Maldives bring with them not just fantastic visibility up to 40m but also a variety of pelagic surprises coming to the reef for a quick feed.
The Channel dives of the eastern coast of the Maldives are the main order of the day. These Kandus, as they are known in the local language (Dhivehi), attract grey reef sharks, dog tooth tuna and eagle rays as standard but look out into the blue and you never know what surprises await. The outer walls and corners of the channels in Vaavu and Meemu have the added bonus of beautiful overhangs draping in the blues, yellows and pinks of the majestic soft coral.
After the adrenaline pumping channel dives of eastern Maldives we cross over to South Ari Atoll to look for the whale sharks and mantas at Maamagili and Rangali Madivaru (Dhivehi for Manta Place) among other great sites such as Kudarah Thila and Kudimaa Wreck known for its potential leaf fish and frog fish.
This itinerary is not for beginners. Most dives will involve going to depth and currents can be strong. We recommend you have 30 logged dives to join this trip and require that you are Deep Diver/Advanced Open Water or equivalent.
SOUTH CENTRAL ATOLLS (JANUARY - MARCH)
January to March is the time to join us as this is when the current in the Kandus is largely incoming from the east. There's a good variety of diving from thrilling channel dives to more relaxed diving inside the atolls on Thilas or Giris.
The best thing? There are few other boats as we visit atolls that have very few resorts and lots of uninhabited islands so liveaboard competition is low.
Hammerheads are often found in Thaa as well as whale sharks who visit our boat at night attracted by the krill, which, in turn, are attracted by the lights. When the currents are running well, the channel dives here are outstanding. Abundant with schooling snappers, jacks, barracuda, white tips and greys, grouper, Napoleon wrasse, turtles, eagle rays and more.
You will either join your liveaboard in Male or Laamu (Kadhdhoo), and then it's off on our adventure.
This itinerary has a lot of drift diving so it's best suited to more advanced divers. With visibility being really good in the southern atolls, this is ideal for photographers and videographers looking for larger Pelagic action.
[Read More: Diving in the Maldives]
Other Information
Boat Specifications
- Built: 2012
- Type: Wooden hull
- Length: 32m
- Beam: 9.1m
- Engine: 500 HP Caterpillar
- Water Makers: 9500lt/day
- Navigation and Communication: VHF radio, GPS chart plotter, Telephone, Mobile
- Compressors: 2 x Coltri + Nitrox
- Maximum guests: 18
- Number of cabins: 9
Practical Information
- Time Zone: UTC+5
- Local Currency: MVR (Maldivian rufiyaa)
- Payment onboard: cash (Euros, Sterling and US dollars), Visa and Mastercard
- Electricity: 220 volts
- Language Spoken: Dhivehi & English
Got Questions? Ready to Book?
Call us today at +1-310-915-6677 or email us info@bluewaterdivetravel.com
And let us book your dream vacation!
Underwater Gallery
Photos by Marc Stickler
