2016-17 Similan & Surin Diving Season Review
Another Thailand diving season has come to an end. For some, this 2016-17 season was not as good as past years, but for us it was another record-breaking success. The main reason for the season being less successful for some was almost certainly the weather, which has been hit-and-miss throughout Thailand since October. However for us, any negative effects caused by the weather were more than counterbalanced by the ever-increasing number of divers who chose to book through us either for the first time or as repeat customers.
Every year there are diving exhibitions around the world, and Thailand’s is TDEX (Thailand Dive Expo). It’s held each year in the middle of May, starting on a Thursday and finishing on a Sunday. TDEX 2017 was really busy, and there were lots of potential diving tourists, traders and vendors offering promotions, and some awesome discounts.
A member of our team recently went on a wonderful 4D4N Similan liveaboard diving trip on the extremely-popular Sawasdee Fasai. April 21st-25th 2017 was when Jamie was lucky enough to join a trip on one of our favourite diving liveaboards, and he enjoyed a fantastic dive safari to The Similan Islands, Koh Bon, Koh Tachai & Richelieu Rock. The whole experience was made great by the people involved as much as the diving and the boat itself.
The Manta Rays (and more) have arrived and they are the highlight of many divers’ and even snorkellers’ day trips & liveaboard cruises to the Similan Islands. It’s not too late to book your place, and some boats even have discounted trips!
Sawasdee Fasai has been launched! This fully-renovated luxury diving liveaboard offers 4D4N cruises to the best dive sites of Thailand. Many trips are fully-booked, but there are still some spaces left on this huge dive boat between now and May 2017. Be quick, and grab your space!
After several years as one of the very best Similan diving liveaboards, MV Pawara’s trips are nearly always full. Customers must book far in advance to avoid disappointment. To keep everyone happy, Pawara now has a sister ship; the slightly larger and equally luxurious MV Sawasdee Fasai (meaning ‘Hello Clear Sky’ in English).
Last week the Similan Diving Tours team went out to visit Koh Tachai, Koh Bon & The Similan Islands, and had a wonderful time on board MV Nemo 1. Our sales and SEO Webmaster teams went along with their families. A great time was had by all - including non-divers and children. As expected, the itinerary went according to plan and all on time.
‘Manta March’ is almost upon us but islands including Koh Bon are already enjoying regular visits of several Manta Rays at a time. With Chinese New Year 2016 now over, the busy period has continued, with many of our boats still full for the coming days and weeks. Now really is the time to visit The Similan Islands to enjoy perfect diving conditions and the area’s most famous big fish.
After our busiest and most successful pre-season booking period, we are ready for the grand opening of the 2015-16 diving season in The Similan Islands (inc. Koh Bon & Koh Tachai) & The Surin Islands (inc. Richelieu Rock). The weather has calmed down, and the smog from Indonesia’s forest fires dissipated just in time for what we feel will be an awesome diving season in the south of Thailand.
