The MV Raga liveaboard offers a substantial and stable base for scuba divers drawn to the legendary sites of Thailand's Andaman Sea. This 37 metre steel-hulled vessel was designed for liveaboard diving, providing a sense of surety as it travels between the Similan Islands and the famed pinnacle of Richelieu Rock. Raga diving trips are designed to efficiently connect these premier locations, often including Koh Bon and Koh Tachai, ensuring a comprehensive exploration of the region's underwater highlights in a single tour.
Accommodation on the Raga liveaboard is both comfortable and practical. The vessel accommodates up to 28 guests across cabins that all feature ensuite bathrooms and storage space. Most cabins offer sea-view windows, bringing the marine environment into your private quarters. This capacity is managed across a spacious layout, creating the feeling of a uncrowded vessel and allowing for personal space after a day of diving.
Social and relaxation areas are distributed across the boat. The upper deck saloon, is air-conditioned and equipped with a large-screen TV and library. There are also Karaoke, Playstation, card games available for your entertainment. Outdoors, the liveaboard's partially shaded sundeck provides ample room for sun loungers, while a covered dining area offers a comfortable spot for meals and conversation in the open air. These spaces cater to both communal interaction and quiet relaxation.
The expansive dive deck is a hallmark of the Raga liveaboard. Designed for efficiency, it features individual stations with gear storage, streamlining the process of gearing up and drying off. The provision of warm towels post-dive is a welcome touch. To maximise diving opportunities, the Raga vessel operates 2 dedicated tenders for quick site access and offers enriched air nitrox and 15-litre tanks, extending bottom time for qualified divers.
The Raga crew's experience is a critical element of the trip. Their familiarity with the sites translates into knowledgeable briefings and capable boat handling. This expertise supports a schedule that reliably accesses the best conditions available, whether navigating the currents at Richelieu Rock or exploring the Similans' granite boulder formations. Their steady presence allows guests to focus entirely on the scuba diving experience.
Book the Raga liveaboard to select a vessel engineered for diver comfort and destination access. It combines a stable cruise with efficient dive operations and proven routes that capture the essence of the North Andaman Sea. For certified divers seeking a well-equipped and confidently operated diving trip to Thailand's most celebrated marine parks, this liveaboard presents a solid and reliable option.
There is 1 double bed Master Suite on the upper deck, 1 Deluxe double/twin bed cabin and 10 Standard cabins (3 double bed and 7 twin bed) on the main deck, and 2 more Standard twin bed cabins on the lower deck.
All the cabins have:
- Air-conditioning
- Ensuite bathrooms with toilet and hot water shower
- Sea-view windows, portholes on the lower deck
- Towels and toiletries
- Bedding and shelves
- Fire warning system
- Life jackets
- Safety deposit box
- Mains outlet 220 volts - 24 hours per day
No. of bathrooms / showers - 14 / 14 - hot water
Koh Tarutao, Hin Daeng & Hin Muang (5 Days / 4 Nights - 15 Dives)
Trip highlights: whale sharks, dolphins, manta rays, dugongs/manatees, turtles
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, caverns, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, very popular, wall diving
Dive sites and activities: from Koh Haa, Hin Daeng, Hin Muang, Koh Tarutao, Phi Phi Islands, King Cruiser Wreck, Koh Dok Mai
Day 1
Board the Raga liveaboard in the late afternoon at Chalong pier, settle into your cabin, and meet the crew over dinner. The boat then slips its mooring, setting a quiet course south toward the limestone islands and submerged reefs of Tarutao National Marine Park.
Days 2-4
Over the next 3 full days, the Raga liveaboard weaves through some of Thailand's most respected dive sites. You wake early each morning to flat seas and the promise of clean drift walls. Hin Daeng and Hin Muang are the headline acts, 2 submerged pinnacles rising from deep water. Purple soft corals pack every ledge at Hin Daeng, and the site's name ('Red Rock') makes immediate sense when you drop in. At Hin Muang ('Purple Rock'), the colour deepens. Both sites attract pelagics: dogtooth tuna, giant trevally, and if luck holds, manta rays sweeping past the cleaning stations. Currents can run here. The guides know the timing.
Further south, Koh Tarutao offers a different feel. Shallower fringing reefs, less current, more macro life. This is where the itinerary breathes. Between the big dives, the Raga liveaboard tucks into sheltered bays at Koh Haa, a small archipelago of 5 islets. Koh Haa Lagoon has a glorious sandy amphitheatre at 5-8 metres, perfect for slow drifts among garden eels and ghost pipefish. Hin Bida, a small pinnacle near Koh Haa, attracts leopard sharks resting on the sand.
The Phi Phi Islands bring limestone architecture both above and below the water. Bida Nok and Bida Nui are classic Andaman dives: steep walls, overhangs, batfish, turtles, and the occasional sighting of blacktip reef sharks patrolling the shallows. Night dives happen on protected sites such as Garang Haeng, where sleeping parrotfish and hunting lionfish become the show.
Day 5
Final morning dives at Koh Dok Mai and the King Cruiser Wreck, as well as breakfast during the return crossing. Koh Dok Mai, a vertical slab of rock rising from 25 metres, hosts some of the region's best wall life with seahorses in the gorgonians, nudibranchs on every ledge. For wreck enthusiasts, the King Cruiser car ferry sits on its side at 30 metres, now draped in soft corals and thick with schooling snapper. Penetration is for trained wreck divers only. Most guests enjoy the exterior swims and the sheer volume of fish life. The boat reaches Chalong pier late afternoon. Transfers to your hotel or the airport finish the trip.
Phi Phi islands, Hin Daeng & Hin Muang (4 Days / 3 Nights - 11 Dives)
Trip highlights: whale sharks, manta rays, turtles
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, caverns, very popular, wall diving
Dive sites and activities: from Koh Haa, Hin Daeng, Hin Muang, Phi Phi Islands: Bida Nok, Bida Nai, Garang Heng, Kled Kaew Wreck, King Cruiser Wreck, Shark Point, Koh Dok Mai
Day 1
Board the Raga liveaboard at Chalong Pier during the early evening. The crew welcomes you on deck, helps you settle into your cabin, and runs through the safety briefing and dive schedule. Dinner is served as the boat leaves Phuket behind, motoring south toward the Phi Phi Islands and the marine parks beyond.
Core Days
The next 2 days on the Raga take you across a mix of submerged pinnacles, wreck sites, and limestone walls. Hin Daeng and Hin Muang sit low in the water, their tops just below the surface. Both are magnets for pelagic life. Expect to see dogtooth tuna tearing through bait balls, schools of chevron barracuda holding in the current, and manta rays cruising the cleaning stations. Whale sharks pass through these waters too, though no one can promise them. The real constant is the coral. Soft corals in deep reds and purples cover every available surface.
For wreck enthusiasts, the Raga liveaboard visits two distinct wrecks. The King Cruiser, a car ferry that went down in 1997, rests on its side at 30 metres. Its decks are now draped in pink soft corals. Schools of yellow snapper hang in the wheelhouse. Lionfish and moray eels shelter in the wreckage. The Kled Kaew wreck lies in shallower water, around 20 metres, and makes a perfect second dive. Here you find batfish, pufferfish, and often a resident turtle or two.
Koh Haa means '5 islands' in Thai, and the diving here centres on a series of caverns and swim-throughs. The Cathedral is the best known: a large air-filled chamber where you can surface briefly to see stalactites hanging from the ceiling. The Chimney requires good buoyancy control, a vertical crack in the rock that opens into a second chamber. Outside the caves, the hard coral gardens hold ghost pipefish, seahorses, and nudibranchs in bright colours.
The Phi Phi dive sites offer variety across a small area. Bida Nok and Bida Nai, 2 limestone islets, have steep walls covered in whip corals and gorgonian sea fans. Leopard sharks rest on sandy patches at 15 metres. Blacktip reef sharks patrol the shallows. Between dives, look for hornbill birds in the trees above the water. At Garang Heng, a submerged reef near Phi Phi, the current attracts large schools of bluefin trevally. The site also delivers regular sightings of octopus and cuttlefish, especially on night dives.
Shark Point lives up to its name. This pinnacle near Phi Phi is covered in anemones and soft corals, home to both leopard sharks and bamboo sharks. They tend to lie motionless on the reef, easy to spot if you look carefully. Finally, Koh Dok Mai stands alone, a vertical slab of rock rising from 25 metres. A spacious cavern at its base shelters frogfish and ornate ghost pipefish. The wall above the cavern is thick with crinoids and colourful nudibranchs.
Day 4
The last morning starts with a dive at Shark Point or Koh Dok Mai, depending on tide and current. Breakfast follows the dive. The Raga then heads back toward Chalong Pier, with lunch served during the crossing. Arrival at the pier late afternoon. Transfers to your hotel or the airport finish the trip.
Similan, Richelieu Rock & Khao Lak (5 Days / 4 Nights - 14 Dives)
Trip highlights: whale sharks, manta rays, turtles
Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, very popular, wall diving
Dive sites and activities: Similan, Koh Bon, Koh Tachai, Richelieu Rock, Bunsoong Wreck
Day 1
In the evening, MV Raga departs from Thap Lamu pier in Khao Lak once all guests are onboard. After a warm welcome and cabin assignment, the tour leader will go over the liveaboard boat’s features and trip plan. Guests can relax in the air-conditioned saloon with entertainment options. A welcome dinner is served as the boat sets sail toward the Similan Islands. Diving begins the following morning after a restful night.
Days 2-4
The Similan Islands, a group of 9 granite islands draped in lush tropical jungle and surrounded by crystal-clear blue waters, offer some of Thailand’s most spectacular dive sites. Beneath the surface, you'll discover vibrant hard and soft coral gardens, along with massive granite boulders forming tunnels, swim-throughs, and canyons. Drift diving is common here, thanks to nutrient-rich currents that attract an abundance of marine life. With up to four dives each day, you’ll gain a deeper appreciation for the wonders of this marine park. In addition to the Similan Islands, you’ll likely visit nearby Koh Bon and Koh Tachai.
Rising just above the surface at low tide, Richelieu Rock offers the best chance to spot whale sharks. Manta rays and eagle rays are also frequent visitors during the season. Your dive guides will likely schedule more than one dive at this unforgettable site. Massive schools of trevally and barracuda sweep through the currents, while elusive creatures like frogfish, ghost pipefish, and seahorses hide among the rocks and corals.
Day 5
Your final day of diving wraps up the trip on a high note 2 morning dives near Khao Lak. Afterwards, the Raga liveaboard will return to port, where you’ll disembark in the afternoon and be transferred back to your hotel.
[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].
Every trip onboard Raga begins in the evening with a welcome dinner once all guests are on board. Each day, the onboard chef prepares delicious meals using fresh local ingredients and fragrant spices. Enjoy buffet-style dining that blends the best of Asian and Western flavours, served in the main deck dining area. Throughout the cruise, help yourself to tea, hot chocolate, ginger tea, juice, and milk, plus a variety of fresh snacks throughout the day. Or treat yourself to a complimentary cup of freshly ground coffee before gearing up for your next dive.
Your day starts early with a wake-up call (7 am) and a light breakfast, followed by a relaxed schedule of up to 4 dives, punctuated by full meals (breakfast 9 am, lunch 12:30 pm) and a mid-afternoon tea break (4 pm). After the final dusk dive (6:45 pm), dinner is served (8 pm) - the perfect way to end a full day of underwater exploration. Sample dishes include Sukiyaki Steamboat, Phad Thai, BBQ chicken, and fresh seafood. A selection of beer, wine, and soft drinks is also available on board.
The Raga liveaboard can accommodate most dietary requirements with advanced notice, ensuring every guest enjoys flavourful meals, refreshing drinks, and great company after an exciting day beneath the waves.
