The Princess Sara liveaboard is a 40-metre vessel, built in 2018, that offers a blend of modern stability and thoughtful service, purpose-built for safari-style diving across the Maldives atolls. It's a region that evokes images of sheer drop-offs, drift dives over pristine thilas, and encounters with some of the ocean’s most iconic pelagics.
Stepping aboard the Princess Sara, you immediately sense the focus on guest experience. With a crew of 12, the ratio allows for attentive service both above and below the water. The dive operation itself is cleverly managed from a dedicated 70-foot dhoni, the traditional Maldivian support vessel that accompanies all dive trips. This means the main boat remains a tranquil space for relaxing, while the dhoni serves as a fully-equipped dive deck. You’ll find ample space for 30 divers, tank storage, compressors, a camera rinse tank, and emergency oxygen; it's a setup that keeps the diving side of things streamlined and efficient.
When the day’s diving is done, the main deck becomes your retreat. Accommodation on the Princess Sara is spread across 3 decks, offering 10 cabins ranging from standard rooms to suites with private Jacuzzis. All cabins are en-suite with modern touches like individual air-conditioning, entertainment systems, and wi-fi (available for a small weekly fee). Above, the expansive sun deck invites you to stretch out, perhaps cooling off in the open-air Jacuzzi or watching the sunset as the boat motors towards the next anchorage.
The dive cruise routes are designed to showcase this diversity. Depending on the season, The Princess Sara navigates the central, southern, or northern atolls. You might be exploring the channels of Ari Atoll one day and the UNESCO heritage site of Hanifaru Bay the next, with night dives and beach barbecues woven into the schedule. Between dives, kayaks and stand-up paddleboards are available, and for those seeking an extra thrill, jet ski rides can be arranged.
Ultimately, the Princess Sara liveaboard appeals to scuba divers who value a well-managed, value-for-money operation that doesn't compromise on comfort. It’s a boat where the crew’s genuine passion for the archipelago’s marine life is evident, where the food is consistently praised, and where the logistics are handled so seamlessly that you can simply focus on the dives. For a reliable, high-quality liveaboard experience in the Maldives, it warrants a close look.
Maldives Central Atolls (8 Days / 7 Nights - 17 Dives)
Trip highlights: whale sharks, hammerhead sharks, shark action, manta rays, schooling fish & big pelagics
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, drift diving, very popular, wreck diving
Dive sites and activities: North Male, South Male, Ari Atoll, Felidhoo Atoll
Day 1
A representative of Princess Sara will meet you at Male International Airport and transfer you by dhoni boat to this 40m luxury liveaboard yacht. On board welcome refreshments are served while you register onboard. Those guests that arrive in the morning will prepare their scuba gear and do a check dive, then the vessel will begin its cruise.. Dinner will be served during the day and you will be able to get to know the crew and the boat better during the introductory briefing that the tour leader will give once all the guests are on board. You are about to have a great week of diving, fun, relaxation and adventure!
Core Days
The classic Central Atolls cruise route includes dives at Ari, Felidhoo, North and South Male atolls, primarily in order to find manta rays and whale sharks. South Male features large schools of fish, big pelagics, plenty of soft corals and caves, as well as one very good wreck. Miyaru Faru is aptly named since ‘miyaru’ means shark in Dhivehi and not surprisingly this is where you can encounter the ‘big boys’. An overhang protects you from the current and provides an excellent viewing spot for the impressive parade of pelagics and patrolling grey reef sharks.
The channel at Felidhoo Atoll is also a great place to find reef sharks and has a spectacular wall showcasing caverns, swim-throughs and overhangs festooned with colourful soft corals and bushes of black corals. There is also a spectacular night dive with dozens of huge nurse sharks, sting rays and giant trevallies. Ari Atoll is famous for its mighty whale sharks which can be regularly seen in its marine protected areas. Hammerhead sharks, manta rays and other pelagic fish are also commonly encountered here. North Male is characterised by reefs, caves, current-swept channels and drop offs. Highlights here include tuna, jacks, reef sharks, mantas and eagle rays.
A day on board the yacht runs like this - you start the day with a coffee after a wake up call. Then guests leave on the dhoni for the first dive early in the morning. Then breakfast arrives. After relaxing for a while, the next briefing and dive is done. Lunch is served at 1 pm, followed by afternoon tea and snacks, then the 3rd day dive or sunset dive. During the evening, dinner is served onboard or there will be a BBQ at a deserted island during the week.
Meals are taken in the upper deck open air if weather permits, otherwise in the air-con dining area. The cook will surely make your trip a delicious one. Try the Maldivian breakfast of Masooni with Roshi. Lunch and dinner are a mixture of Western and Asian and consist of sausages, pasta, spaghetti, pizza, tuna, fried rice, vegetables, salad, fresh juice. A BBQ on a beach/sand bank will also be held (weather permitting). Tea, coffee, and snacks are available all day. All food is locally sourced. Pork is not allowed in the Maldives.
On the final full day only 1 dive will be scheduled before the yacht returns to Hulhumale, from where guests will have the opportunity to go ashore and visit the Maldivian capital.
Day 8
Wake up to the smell of the last cooked breakfast of the tour in the early morning. Say your farewells and take your last group pictures before heading back to Male airport.
Maldives Southern Atolls (8 Days / 7 Nights - 17 Dives)
Trip highlights: whale sharks, shark action, manta rays, schooling fish & big pelagics
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, wall diving
Dive sites and activities: South Male, Felidhoo, Vattaru, Meemu, Thaa, Laamu atolls
Day 1
A representative of Princess Sara will meet you at Male International Airport and transfer you by dhoni boat to this 40m luxury liveaboard yacht. On board welcome refreshments are served while you register onboard. Those guests that arrive in the morning will prepare their scuba gear and do a check dive, then the vessel will begin its cruise.. Dinner will be served during the day and you will be able to get to know the crew and the boat better during the introductory briefing that the tour leader will give once all the guests are on board. You are about to have a great week of diving, fun, relaxation and adventure!
Core Days
The primary focus of Central and Southern Atolls cruise route is to find reef sharks, manta rays, whale sharks and big schools of fish. South Male features large schools of fish, big pelagics, plenty of soft corals and caves, as well as one very good wreck. Miyaru Faru is aptly named since ‘miyaru’ means shark in Dhivehi and not surprisingly this is where you can encounter the ‘big boys’. An overhang protects you from the current and provides an excellent viewing spot for the impressive parade of pelagics and patrolling grey reef sharks. Ari Atoll is famous for its mighty whale sharks which can be regularly seen in its marine protected areas. Hammerhead sharks, manta rays and other pelagic fish are also commonly encountered here.
The channels at Felidhoo Atoll are also great places to find reef sharks and there is a spectacular wall showcasing caverns, swim-throughs and overhangs festooned with colourful soft corals and bushes of black corals. There is also a spectacular night dive with dozens of huge nurse sharks, sting rays and giant trevallies. Thaa Atoll has some very fishy reefs and is where you will have the best chance to see whale sharks feeding on plankton under lights during the evening. Meemu Atoll is all about drift dives in the company of reef sharks and eagle rays. Lucky divers sometimes see hammehead sharks here in the early morning.
A day on board the yacht runs like this - you start the day with a coffee after a wake up call. Then guests leave on the dhoni for the first dive early in the morning. Then breakfast arrives. After relaxing for a while, the next briefing and dive is done. Lunch is served at 1 pm, followed by afternoon tea and snacks, then the 3rd day dive or sunset dive. During the evening, dinner is served onboard or there will be a BBQ at a deserted island during the week.
Meals are taken in the upper deck open air if weather permits, otherwise in the air-con dining area. The cook will surely make your trip a delicious one. Try the Maldivian breakfast of Masooni with Roshi. Lunch and dinner are a mixture of Western and Asian and consist of sausages, pasta, spaghetti, pizza, tuna, fried rice, vegetables, salad, fresh juice. A BBQ on a beach/sand bank will also be held (weather permitting). Tea, coffee, and snacks are available all day. All food is locally sourced. Pork is not allowed in the Maldives.
On the final full day only 1 dive will be scheduled before the yacht returns to port.
Day 8
Wake up to the smell of the last cooked breakfast of the tour in the early morning. Say your farewells and take your last group pictures before heading to Kadhdhoo airport, Laamu and the flight back to Male.
Please note that the trip sometimes runs in reverse or has differing ports - check above for exact port details.
Maldives Deep South Atolls (8 Days / 7 Nights - 17 Dives)
Trip highlights: whale sharks, shark action, manta rays, schooling fish & big pelagics
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, wall diving
Dive sites and activities: Fuvahmulah, Huvadhoo, Addu atolls.
Trips that use the port of Kadhdhoo also visit Laamu Atoll.
Day 1
A representative of Princess Sara will meet you at Gan International Airport and transfer you by dhoni boat to this 40m luxury liveaboard yacht. On board welcome refreshments are served while you register onboard. Those guests that arrive in the morning will prepare their scuba gear and do a check dive, then the vessel will begin its cruise.. Dinner will be served during the day and you will be able to get to know the crew and the boat better during the introductory briefing that the tour leader will give once all the guests are on board. You are about to have a great week of diving, fun, relaxation and adventure!
Core Days
For many, the highlight of a visit to the Deep South are the apex predators at Fuvahmulah Island. Be prepared for awesome encounters with thresher sharks, oceanic whitetips and tiger sharks. Here you’ll dive with a variety of large predators as they hunt the abundant smaller fish. Whitetip reef and grey reef sharks, mola mola, sailfish, whale sharks, and schools of tuna are frequently seen.
Huvadhoo is made up of vibrant reefs, untouched lagoons, walls and deep channels. Stingrays, turtles and a variety of sharks including blacktip and whitetip reef sharks, nurse sharks, spinner dolphins, manta rays, thresher sharks and big schools of fish are frequent visitors here. Occasionally you will also find hammerheads too. The cruise also includes some extraordinary dives at Addu. There are over 30 world class sites surrounding the atoll, in the wide channels, and healthy reefs and thilas inside the lagoon, where you can see reef mantas, turtles, sharks, big fish, and the largest shipwreck in the Maldives - the 143m long British Loyalty. Along the outer walls you can spot dogtooth tuna, silvertips, schools of batfish, fusiliers and jackfish. The atoll is home to cleaning stations for oceanic manta rays of more than 5m wing span, as well as more shark species.
A day on board the yacht runs like this - you start the day with a coffee after a wake up call. Then guests leave on the dhoni for the first dive early in the morning. Then breakfast arrives. After relaxing for a while, the next briefing and dive is done. Lunch is served at 1 pm, followed by afternoon tea and snacks, then the 3rd day dive or sunset dive. During the evening, dinner is served onboard or there will be a BBQ at a deserted island during the week.
Meals are taken in the upper deck open air if weather permits, otherwise in the air-con dining area. The cook will surely make your trip a delicious one. Try the Maldivian breakfast of Masooni with Roshi. Lunch and dinner are a mixture of Western and Asian and consist of sausages, pasta, spaghetti, pizza, tuna, fried rice, vegetables, salad, fresh juice. A BBQ on a beach/sand bank will also be held (weather permitting). Tea, coffee, and snacks are available all day. All food is locally sourced. Pork is not allowed in the Maldives.
On the final full day only 1 dive will be scheduled before the yacht returns to port.
Day 8
Wake up to the smell of the last cooked breakfast of the tour in the early morning. Say your farewells and take your last group pictures before heading to Laamu airport and the flight back to Male or Gan.
Please note that the trip sometimes runs in reverse or has differing ports - check above for exact port details.
Huvadhoo Atoll (8 Days / 7 Nights - 17 Dives)
Trip highlights: shark action, manta rays, schooling fish & big pelagics
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, wall diving
Dive sites and activities: Huvadhoo Atoll
Day 1
A representative of Princess Sara will meet you at Kooddoo Airport (GKK) and transfer you by dhoni boat to this 40m luxury liveaboard yacht. On board welcome refreshments are served while you register onboard. Those guests that arrive in the morning will prepare their scuba gear and do a check dive, then the vessel will begin its cruise.. Dinner will be served during the day and you will be able to get to know the crew and the boat better during the introductory briefing that the tour leader will give once all the guests are on board. You are about to have a great week of diving, fun, relaxation and adventure!
Core Days
Huvadhoo is the largest and deepest atoll in the Maldives and is made up of vibrant reefs, untouched lagoons, walls and deep channels. Stingrays, turtles and a variety of sharks including blacktip and whitetip reef sharks, nurse sharks, spinner dolphins, manta rays, thresher sharks and big schools of fish are frequent visitors here. Occasionally you will also find hammerheads too. Whale sharks often make an appearance in the moonlight, under the stern, to eat plankton attracted by the boat's headlights.
A day on board the yacht runs like this - you start the day with a coffee after a wake up call. Then guests leave on the dhoni for the first dive early in the morning. Then breakfast arrives. After relaxing for a while, the next briefing and dive is done. Lunch is served at 1 pm, followed by afternoon tea and snacks, then the 3rd day dive or sunset dive. During the evening, dinner is served onboard or there will be a BBQ at a deserted island during the week.
Meals are taken in the upper deck open air if weather permits, otherwise in the air-con dining area. The cook will surely make your trip a delicious one. Try the Maldivian breakfast of Masooni with Roshi. Lunch and dinner are a mixture of Western and Asian and consist of sausages, pasta, spaghetti, pizza, tuna, fried rice, vegetables, salad, fresh juice. A BBQ on a beach/sand bank will also be held (weather permitting). Tea, coffee, and snacks are available all day. All food is locally sourced. Pork is not allowed in the Maldives.
On the final full day only 1 dive will be scheduled before the yacht returns to port.
Day 8
Wake up to the smell of the last cooked breakfast of the tour in the early morning. Say your farewells and take your last group pictures before heading to Kooddoo airport.
Maldives Central & Northern Atolls (8 Days / 7 Nights - 17 Dives)
Trip highlights: whale sharks, hammerhead sharks, shark action, manta rays, schooling fish & big pelagics
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, very popular, wall diving, wreck diving
Dive sites and activities: North Male, North Ari Atoll, Baa Atoll: Hanifaru Bay, Lhaviyani Atoll
Day 1
Your Maldivian adventure begins as you board the luxurious Princess Sara liveaboard via a traditional dhoni transfer near Malé airport. Welcome refreshments will be served as you complete your registration. Guests arriving in the morning can set up their gear and enjoy a check dive to acclimate themselves. As the yacht begins its cruise, you'll be treated to a delicious dinner and a comprehensive introductory briefing from the Princess Sara tour leader, setting the stage for a week of unparalleled liveaboard diving, relaxation, and discovery.
Core Days
This liveaboard cruise is an exploration of the Maldives' celebrated northern atolls, offering a stunning variety of world-class dive sites. The tour begins in North Malé Atoll, where channels like Kuda Haa and Lions Head offer thrilling drift dives with grey reef sharks and eagle rays, alongside beautiful thilas (pinnacles) blanketed in soft corals. In North Ari Atoll, sites like Kudarah Thila and Maaya Thila are underwater pinnacles completely covered in vibrant soft corals, sea fans, and sponges. They attract massive schools of snapper, fusiliers, and trevallies, and are cleaning stations for grey reef sharks, white tip reef sharks, and eagle rays.
The liveaboard adventure continues as the Princess Sara voyages to the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve of Baa Atoll. The region is a sanctuary for megafauna, most famously the manta rays of Hanifaru Bay. From May to November, you will have the unforgettable opportunity to snorkel as hundreds of mantas gather for a spectacular plankton feeding frenzy, performing graceful barrel rolls right before your eyes. The atoll's dive sites, such as Dhonfanu Thila, provide equally breathtaking underwater landscapes of coral-covered pinnacles and overhangs that are full of life. Further north, the pristine reefs of Lhaviyani Atoll await, as well as the iconic Shipyard wreck that offers a fascinating historical dive.
On the final full day, a single morning dive allows for a last glimpse of the vibrant marine life before the Princess Sara returns to Hulhumale. Here, you will have the chance to go ashore and explore the Maldivian capital.
Day 8
Awake to the aroma of a final cooked breakfast on board Princess Sara. After sharing farewells and capturing last group photos with the liveaboard crew, a transfer will be provided to Malé International Airport for your departure.
[Information is best estimate in ideal circumstances and subject to changes beyond our control. The itinerary is a guide only and may be adapted to best suit the weather, tides, currents, availability and other prevailing events. Price is for the cruise, not for an exact number of dives].
A week aboard the Princess Sara liveaboard in the Maldives follows a gentle pattern that becomes second nature: you wake, you dive, you eat, you rest, and you do it all again, with the Indian Ocean as your constant companion. The structure is relaxed but defined, allowing you to fully immerse yourself in the diving without a thought for logistics.
Your day typically begins before the sun is high. A soft wake-up call and the promise of coffee lure you from your cabin. Within minutes, you’re stepping onto the dhoni, the dedicated dive boat, for the first dive of the day, the water glassy and the light just right. Returning with the glow of an early morning dive, you’ll find breakfast waiting.
By 1 pm, lunch is served, a chance to refuel and compare notes with fellow divers. The afternoon holds a slower pace, perhaps a nap on the sun deck or a soak in the hot tub, before afternoon tea and snacks appear: a welcome Princess Sara ritual before the third dive, which might be a day dive or a sunset dive as the light begins to soften.
Evenings are for unwinding. Dinner is often served in the open air on the upper deck of the liveaboard, with a breeze and the stars overhead; if the weather is less cooperative, the air-conditioned dining area offers the same warm hospitality. The true highlight of the week, weather permitting, is a beach BBQ on a deserted sandbank - a chance to feel the sand between your toes as the sun sets and the grill is lit.
The kitchen team on the Princess Sara are the quiet heroes of the trip, and the praise they receive in guest reviews is well-earned. Meals are a vibrant mix of Western and Asian influences, always fresh and varied. You might find hearty sausages and pasta one day, and fragrant fried rice with tuna or chicken the next. There are ample salads, fresh vegetables, and, of course, pizza for a taste of home. The cooks also love to share local flavours; be sure to try a Maldivian breakfast of Mas Huni: a finely chopped mix of tuna, coconut, and onion, served with warm Roshi flatbread.
Dietary preferences are well catered for on the Princess Sara liveaboard, with reviewers consistently noting the availability of excellent vegetarian and pescatarian options at every meal. All food is locally sourced, adding to the freshness and authenticity. Between meals, a station with tea, coffee, and snacks is always available, so you’re never far from a cookie after a dive. As one guest fondly recalled, the front-of-house staff keep everyone well-fed and hydrated, and mix a mean cocktail should you wish to celebrate the day’s sightings.
Please note that pork is not served, in line with local customs.
