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Location: Maldives Liveaboard
Dates: Jan 4-11 2026
Resort: Emperor Explorer
Dive operator: Explorer Ventures
Water Temp: 82-86 F
Air Temp: 82-88 F
Current: Mild to medium
Visibility: 50-100 ft+
Experience Level: Divers comfortable with drift diving
Trip Highlights: Emperor Explorer
MV Emperor Explorer is the model of lavish liveaboards and at 42 m (138 ft), a dream vessel for avid divers from all over the world. Emperor Explorer’s four decks easily accommodate 13 spacious and well-appointed en-suite staterooms, all of which offer air-conditioning and a mixture of comfortable king, queen, and twin beds.
Instruction Available: Nitrox and other courses available. Check with SingleDivers in advance.
Known For: Scuba diving in the Maldives is among the world’s best – hard and soft corals, swim-throughs, and 25 species of sharks. Particularly, the Maldives’ waters support the world’s largest known population of reef manta rays, and whale sharks are also seen year-round. Making it a dream destination for divers from all over the world.
Your Special Requirements: We are happy to help you meet all your dietary, mobility and other special needs. Please click HERE to see how we do it.
Maldives entry Requirements:
US citizens can enter the Maldives for tourism without a prior visa. They will receive a 30-day tourist visa upon arrival. To be eligible, you'll need a valid US passport, onward or return ticket, and proof of sufficient funds. Additionally, all travelers, including US citizens, must complete a Traveler Declaration Form online within 96 hours of their scheduled arrival.
Passport
- Your passport must be valid for one month beyond your stay.
- You will need one bland passport page for your stamp.
- Traveler Declaration: Must be completed online via the IMUGA portal within 96 hours of your scheduled arrival time
- Travel declaration link: https://imuga.immigr...ov.mv/traveller
Pricing:
IMPORTANT BOOKING NOTICE:
- We were able to book this early enough to lock in 2024 pricing for the LIVEABOARD even though the trip is in 2026 and its over a holiday. That represents a couple hundred in savings. We ALSO have consolidated all 3 levels of staterooms into one but are only charging the lowest price for all the staterooms. Similarly we did the same for the suites... all have been combined to minimize the booking sku's but the lowest price is being charged for them. We are giving the FREE UPGRADED STATEROOMS AND SUITES AS THE EARLY BOOKING DICSOUNTS AND FILLING THEM FROM THOSE WHO BOOK AND PAY IN FULL FIRST
- TECHNICALLY we have more interest than spots but the interested list always falls short especially if it takes too long to get the trip open which is the case we are facing with this trip.
- We will give everyone who books early and pays in full a chance to win the premium upgraded suites and staterooms for FREE. This means your chances to get one for free is extremely good as only about 25% of the attendees book and pay in full when we first open the trip up.
- AGAIN... the early booking discount is a chance to win the upgraded suites and staterooms on the boat. They will be drawn from the small group of members who book/pay in full early until they are exhausted.
2026 MALDIVES LIVEABOARD TRIP PKG PRICING... Jan 4-11, 2026
- Superior Stateroom All Inclusive DIVING D/O "Shared Bed" Pkg 8 nites 7 days 4-5 tank Diving D/O
- Superior Stateroom All Inclusive DIVING D/O Pkg 8 nites 7 days 4-5 tank Diving
- Superior SUITE All Inclusive DIVING D/O Pkg 8 nites 7 days 4-5 tank Diving
- Superior Stateroom All Inclusive DIVING S/O "Shared Bed" Pkg 8 nites 7 days 4-5 tank Diving
- Superior SUITE All Inclusive DIVING S/O Pkg 8 nites 7 days 4-5 tank Diving
*All prices are per person.
**Cash Discounted Price is given when you select e-check at final checkout.
Discounts & Rebates:
DISCOUNTS & DISCOUNT DISCLAIMER:
You must use the code when you book as they are not retroactive after you sign up UNLESS otherwise stated like the member rebate etc. We are sorry for any inconvenience this may cause but the accounting expenses of manually trying to do the discount is far exceeding the discount amount making it very prohibitive to manage this way. So please be sure to use the discount code AT TIME OF INITIAL BOOKING.
NOTE: The EBD or Early Booking Discounts can only be used as follows:
- When paying in full
- When you first sign up AND make one payment only
- By the deadline given. After that deadline they disappear and the code will not work. (So please leave a buffer if you need to xfer money or have questions.)
- Only one (1) coupon code can be used per order
- NOTE: If you forget to use your coupon when signing up we can do a manual refund of the discount for you but must charge the $50 fee it costs us to process it. So please do not forget to use your code when first signing up.
EARLY BOOKING DISCOUNTS
- Pay in full at time of Booking by Jun 30, 2025: for a chance to win the upgraded suites and staterooms on the boat. They will be drawn from the small group of members who book/pay in full early until they are exhausted. (See booking notice above for full details)
- Deposit by Jul 15: Get (1) chance to win FREE Scuba Cowboy CD signed by the artist!
- Social Media Discounts: 1 extra chance to win a FREE SCUBA COWBOY CD and $50 gift certificate for purchases from anyone of our Corporate Sponsors for signing up on our Facebook Trip Event for this trip AND for liking SD.com if you haven't already AND for sharing the FB Trip booking on your page! GET ADD'L CHANCES FOR EACH FB GROUP OTHER THAN SINGLEDIVERS.COM THAT YOU SHARE TOO AND DOCUMENT (Must do all three!) - To enter send an email to trips@singledivers.com with links to your postings along with MALDIVES LIVEABOARD 2025 SOCIAL MEDIA ENTRIES in the title
- Cash Discount: Use our e-check option to pay for your trip and our RED CASH DISCOUNTED PRICES will be applied at checkout.
- Active Duty Military Discount: $25 OFF Active Duty Military Discount for any active duty military of any country that fights for freedom. Thank you for your service. (Please be prepared to provide proof of service in person at time of check in)
- Member Rebate: File for your $25 member rebate within 30 days after the trip for SD premier and above membership levels (See my forums signature for link to the forms forum or click on the green Paper Forms button at the top of the forums . If you are new to the site send an email to admin@singledivers.com to get the password. PLEASE follow the directions on the form for proper submission & processing. HAVE A GREAT TIME? CONSIDER USING YOUR MEMBER REBATE AS A GIFT BACK TO THE CLUB TO KEEP RUNNING GREAT TRIPS! We really appreciate the gesture! )
- SAVE $75 by submitting your Documents within 21 days of booking this trip. If booking within 45 days of the trip please submit your documents within 3 days. Otherwise the $75 document processing fee will be added to your final invoice
Only one (1) coupon code can be used per order
What's Included:
PACKAGE CONTENTS AND ADD ON PRICING:
PACKAGE INCLUDES:
- 7 nights/8 days aboard the vessel;
- up to 4 dives daily (weather and itinerary permitting);
- 3 meals daily; coffee, water and tea; snacks;
- towel, linens, etc.;
- use of tanks, weights and weight belts;
- FREE nitrox and air fills;
- same day transfers;
- Government Green Tax;
- Goods and Service Tax(GST);
- a glass of wine included at dinner;
- optional land visits.
OPTIONAL
- Nitrox Upgrade Pkg for full week FREE: $0 CASH BUT MUST PUT IN THE PKG AND BE CERTIFIED AT TRIP TIME
- Soft drinks, juices and alcoholic beverages (1 glass of wine is included at dinner),
- Wifi (US$22 per week, when in service range payable onboard),
- Hanifaru Bay snorkeling permit (if applicable)..
- Extra Night Local Group Hotel d/o: TBA approx $300 s/o and $175 d/o (We have rooms on hold so please use our block of rooms to keep from changing rooms. Email trips@singledivers.com to confirm before booking. NOTE: We do not guaranteed a d/o for extra nights but will help you find an appropriate roommate)
- Extra Night Local Group Hotel s/o: TBA (We have rooms on hold so please use our block of rooms to keep from changing rooms. Email trips@singledivers.com to confirm before booking)
- Tours: TBD (if enough interest)
- cf100 tanks - NOT AVAILABLE
- DIN tanks - NOT AVAILABLE
- DIN Adapters - NOT AVAILABLE... please bring your own
- Rent A Buddy: Not available on this trip.
- SD Air Research Fee - $37.00 FULL PRICE per member or 35 CASH
NOT INCLUDED:
- International flights to Male: airport code MLE
- Airport taxes
- Domestic fights (if applicable - NO DOMESTIC FLIGHTS REQUIRED );
- Hanifaru snorkeling permit (if applicable);
- Soft drinks, juices and alcoholic beverages (1 glass of wine is included at dinner),
- Travel (recommended) and dive (required) insurance
- Crew & Staff gratuity
- Spa treatments if applicalbe.
- Dive instruction, dive gear rental (other than standard tanks, weights and weight belts), and retail sales & services,
- DIVE Insurance - is MANDATORY! DIVE insurance is VERY inexpensive. Even if you have insurance that you think covers DIVING ACCIDENTS and air lifts it is CHEAP to get a supplemental policy to ensure you are cared for.
- TRIP Insurance - It is MANDATORY. See INSURANCE section below for recommendations.
- Fuel Surcharge, if applicable (US$18 per day will be added to your package price for certain long itineraries).
Accommodations:
ROOM AMENITIES
- Spacious and well-appointed en-suite staterooms
- A mixture of comfortable king, queen, and twin beds
- Air conditioning
- Daily maid service
RESORT AMENITIES
NOTE: Typically we can not guarantee specific rooms can be reserved for you. You are free to request any thing you want via our reservation system and we will try to get them for you but we can not guarantee any special requests can be accommodated other than those related to injuries, diets, etc. We allow roommates to determine amongst themselves who sleeps where. Our policy has always been to allow divers to work it out themselves and NOT assign or allow people to sign up for specific bunks/beds. Please do not book this trip if you must have a specific room/ or rooming accommodations. If you are injured and wish to email us in advance to discuss please email trips@singledivers.com and we'll discuss if the trip is suited for your specific limitation as well as if we think we can get the room type you need. Thank you for your understanding.
TOURS & ACTIVITIES:
Travel & Transfer Details:
AIRPORT INFO
You will fly into Male International Airport (MLE). Please check online or with your travel agent for pricing and schedule information. If you would like SingleDivers.com to research and/or book your airfare ticket for you, we will be happy to do so for a $35 research & booking fee.
TRANSFERS:
- If you arrive on boat departure day, you will be met by a boat representative wearing an Emperor Maldives T-shirt and holding a sign displaying Emperor Maldives. Emperor Explorer arranged transfers depart the airport to the boat at 12:00 noon and 4:00 pm and are free of charge. If you arrive after the last transfer, water taxis are available for around $15. If you arrive prior to boat departure day and your trip starts in Male, you should plan on returning to the airport for the 4:00 pm transfer by dhoni to the Emperor Explorer. The dhoni ride from the airport to the vessel is about 15 minutes.
- Your name will be on his list and he will not want to leave if you are expected at a certain time. (THIS IS WHY HAVING YOUR FLIGHTS IS SO CRITICAL)
GETTING TO MALE MALDIVES
It is usually a lot cheaper to book flights from a major hub such as JFK, LAX, MIA, ATL etc to MLE and then book your domestic flights from your home airport to that major hub. Major airlines such as Singapore airlines, Qatar airlines, Emirates airlines, Etihad airlines and others fly from major U.S. hubs to Male.
IF YOU ARE DELAYED
- Email with DELAYED REROUTE TO MALE in the subject line and text 864-557-6079. I will keep the boat apprised of your arrival time to arrange a pick up if possible.
- If you are at the airport with no driver waiting for you at the set up time and you sent your flights in timely and accurately, call the boat for assistance. If this is not possible take a taxi and ask the boat to pay the driver. If you encounter any issues, simply pay and GET A RECEIPT and I will help to have it refunded.
VISA/PASSPORT INFORMATION
- Please note that A U.S. passport valid for at least 1 months from the date of entry is required to enter the Maldives.
- Though not required by law, some travelers have reported difficulty departing Male using a passport with less than six months of validity beyond the date of departure.
- A 30 day tourist visa is required and will be issued free at the airport.
- Tourists must provide evidence of return or onward travel. U.S. citizens are encouraged to carry a photocopy of their U.S. passports with them at all times, so that if questioned by local officials proof of identity and U.S. citizenship are readily available.
- For other global citizens, please review Maldives visa requirements posted on the Internet.
Diving & Itinerary:
DIVING
- Up to 4 dives daily from a dhoni (tender).
- Dive the ‘Best of the Maldives’ to see it all!
- World’s largest known population of reef manta rays.
- Whale sharks can be seen year-round.
- Oceanic blacktips, tiger sharks, thresher sharks, and hammerheads.
- Thilas, caverns, walls, and drift diving.
- Unique underwater topography of inner and outer reefs.
- Copious amounts of reef fish – turtles, rays, flatworms, anemones, and more.
All of the dives aboard the Emperor Explorer are offered at scheduled times, up to 4 times daily including 1-2-night dives per charter (weather & itinerary permitting). This is to allow adequate surface intervals, provide the option for guided dives on as many sites as possible, and to allow the vessel to travel on schedule to different locations. Please note that Maldivian regulations limit the maximum depth for all dives to 100 feet (30 meters). Given the prevalence of drift diving in the area, your dives will be done from a large custom-built diving dhoni (tender). This is no ordinary tender! The dhoni is 78.7 feet (24m) long and has ample space for all divers, cameras, and gear. There are individual gear bins for each diver, separate camera and wetsuit rinse tanks and a bathroom with toilet and hot water shower plus two freshwater showers on the dive platform. Both the air and nitrox compressors are on the dhoni as well.
Equipment Rental Rates
Daily Price / Weekly Price (6 days)
TBA
While our personal Maldives Experience may vary due to weather and conditions, the outline below will give you a good feel for the exciting week in store for us:
Jan 4, 2026: This will be the official ARRIVAL date in Bonaire.
- After arriving in the Maldives on or prior to Sunday Jan 4, 2026 ( arriving at least one day prior is advisable to avoid possible missing the boat ), we will be picked up at the MLE airport for the short water taxi to our floating hotel for the week.
- Monday am will start our diving with a check out dive, followed by 2 or 3 more dives that day
- Each day will offer 3-4 dives, depending on the travel schedule between islands.
Jan 11, 2026: Official Departure day. We will depart the boat at 7am and be transferred back to the airport. There will be sufficient time to catch a commercial flight out at any time on the day of disembarkation.
Experience Required & Training/Workshops:
- Minimum Certification / Experience: Maldives diving varies from drift diving along walls, channels and pinnacles. Being familiar with drift diving is recommended. A couple of the dives may be at cleaning stations where you will need to remain in position along the bottom. A reef hook may be recommended for these dives. If you have any questions, check with trips@singledivers to discuss your concerns.
- Certification in Paradise - there are no SingleDivers.com training activities nor workshops currently planned for this trip but Instruction / Classes are available on this trip. Please let us know what you are interested in and we will check with the boat about doing training during your trip and what they would charge. Often they will give us a better price so feel free to ask us to assist. If you would like us to help arrange additional training for you, send an email to trips@singledivers.com and request assistance.
- We will also check to see if any of our trip participants are instructors who would like to teach on the trip and let you know. We are glad you are interested in continuing your dive education and we hope we can help you continue your goal of ongoing training.
PRICES: Prices for classes in Paradise are always more expensive than doing them at home. Sometimes SingleDivers.com has instructors on our trips who are happy to teach AND usually offer a member discount to anyone interested in taking a class. The more that take a class the more feasible a discount becomes .
Payment Details
PROGRESS PAYMENTS:
PROGRESS PAYMENTS:
- DEPOSIT OF $750 cash or $773 Credit
- Progress Payment due: 4/1/25
- Progress Payment due: 5/1/25
- Balance & Extras due: 6/1/25
Note: Trip must be paid in full 90 days prior to departure. Extras must also be paid in full 45 days prior i.e., Nitrox, extra nights etc. IF YOU NEED EXTRA TIME LET US KNOW! (Note that to add an extra to the trip you must pay for it when you add it.)
PAYMENT OPTIONS:
SingleDivers.com uses a secure payment gateway fully integrated into our online booking system that allows you to pay for trips or merchandise using the following payment options.
For full payment information related to your transaction, our shopping cart, how to manage a failed transaction, etc click HERE . We ask that you read this as you will certify when you sign up for one of our trips that you have.
Insurance, Documentation & T&C's:
INSURANCE
TRIP Insurance is MANDATORY due to CHRONIC CRAZY TRAVEL ISSUES and/or covid, other pandemics as well as the island location and so IS required on this trip! TRIP insurance is RELATIVELY inexpensive. Even if you have insurance that you think covers your trip…it is CHEAP (approx $100-$200) to get a supplemental policy to ensure you are covered for your investment in your dive trip. If you opt to not get trip insurance you are responsible for all losses related to your trip including not going for any reason. If diving a LIVEABOARD please consider the liveaboard rider offer by DiveAssure.com.
PRO TIP 1: Do not get the standard policy...it really does not cover enough to be useful. Consider instead a deluxe policy OR an annual policy for a set amount that you gamble a little on knowing you won't have a catrastropic loss every trip so you'll save money AND be covered when you need it most!
PRO TIP 2: Any policy is better than 'no policy' ie. 'self insuring'. We have the least number of issues with Dive Assure but most trip insurance policies will work except for the one's offered by the airlines. They only pay $200 towards a complete loss of your dive trip if they are responsible. While a nice supplemental...do not rely on this as its designed to cover the flight only.
We recommend:
Dive Assure: for either a 'one time'SingleDivers.com policy OR an annual policy for BOTH Dive & Trip OR just Trip Insurance providing PRIMARY COVERAGE with excellent rates and coverage! Please use THIS LINK and/or reference SingleDivers.com via the drop-down menu under GLOBAL PARTNERS. (If you can not find the drop down, do not reference anyone and email info@singledivers.com your policy info and we will do it for you via our Dive Assure company representative. OR SIMPLY USE THIS LINK AND YOU WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY TIED TO US. )
DIVING INSURANCE:
DIVE Insurance is required on all trips - GET THE DELUXE POLICY! DIVE insurance is VERY inexpensive. Even if you have insurance that you think covers DIVING ACCIDENTS and air lifts…it is CHEAP (approx $100-$125) to get a supplemental policy to ensure you are covered for an entire year of diving.
PRO TIP; The two primary suppliers of dive insurance DiveAssure.com and DAN are inexpensive enough to carry both. This way you will have the best coverage internationally, the best coverage domestically, primary insurance, secondary insurance and if a claim is denied on one policy you can submit it on the other. No matter what happens...YOU ARE COVERED!!! ... PRICELESS!!!
We recommend: Dive Assure: for either a 'one time' policy OR an annual policy for BOTH Dive & Trip Insurance providing PRIMARY COVERAGE with excellent rates and coverage! Please use THIS LINK and/or reference SingleDivers.com via the drop-down menu under GLOBAL PARTNERS. (If you can not find the drop down, do not reference anyone and email info@singledivers.com your policy info and we will do it for you via our Dive Assure company representative. OR SIMPLY USE THIS LINK AND YOU WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY TIED TO US. )
you can also use....
Diver's Alert Network: Please use our reference number when ordering: ID1603080 (This only works if you are a new first time DAN
DOCUMENTATION
All SingleDivers.com trips require necessary documentation to facilitate booking your trip and/or making it a better experience for you. Once you complete your documents online our automated system will take the information from your last trip with us and fill out your new trip forms for you. You then add any missing information and/or change anything that is no longer current. You will find the forms you need to complete under MY TRIPS which you will find under TRIPS in the main menu across the top of the site. Since each trip requires a unique set of docs, please choose the correct trip from your "My Trips" drop down and then complete the forms required for that trip. Some trips will also ask you to complete the resort or liveaboard's forms as well.
The AIR AUTHORIZATION FORM is only required when you are having SingleDivers.com book air for you but this includes air that is part of the trip pkg price.
Not all of our forms are online as they are either infrequently used or being phased out. If you need a form that is not in our online directory, send an email to trips@singledivers.com and ask for the form you need.
TERMS & CONDITIONS
All SingleDivers.com trips require:
- You agree to a number of things when you join our trips including buying insurance to cover your investment, reading all the trip details and trip pm's, doing all the required documentation etc. Please click HERE to read them all.
Edited by WreckWench, 18 June 2025 - 08:43 AM.
