Similan Liveaboard - All spruced up and Ready to go!

Here at Wicked Diving - we have working very hard to get all the pieces ready for the new season that starts in less than 4 weeks! Our Similan Liveaboard is finally prepared for another season of diving, snorkeling and teaching!

The Similan Islands National Marine Park is only open for 6 months each year from November until May. This is due to the rainy season on the West coast of Thailand from May until October, which makes it dangerous to go out to the islands. That might be a shame for the divers that want to visit these - the best dive sites of Thailand - after May.

However it is a good time for us at Wicked Diving, Khao Lak to get all our gear back into tip-top shape for the next season. The dive season can be very demanding on the equipment of a dive school due to the almost continuous operation and the environment we operate in (salt water is pretty aggressive for just about any material). Therefore it needs to be in good shape and good dive schools, with quality in mind know that their operation depends on reliable equipment.


So for us, the low season is not only time to recharge our own batteries, we also use it to service our dive equipment and compressors, invest in new gear, take care of our truck and very important: do a complete overhaul on our liveaboard boat.

This is done in one of the shipyards in Phuket. These shipyards are a world in thier own and it is amazing how they fit so many boats in one little space.

As soon as the boat is pulled out of the water, the propeller is taken out for cleaning and polishing. The hull is cleaned of barnacles and dirt and it is inspected to see if there is any damage on the wood that needs to be repaired. The hull situation depends on the quality of the wood and how well it has been looked after each year. Luckily, the hull of our boat is made of strong wood and since it has been looked after very well, it usually doesn’t need a lot of fixing. Unlike some other boats that come out of the water and where half the wood is being replaced…:(

The engine and generators get a service by the engine man, the A/C units are being checked by the A/C man and all the electronics, batteries, cables etc... are checked as well. The dinghy also gets sent away for cleaning and mending and of course the dinghy engine gets a full service.

Meanwhile, we took the opportunity this year to replace our old dive deck with a brand new one, about twice the size! That means there will be more space to gear up for our guests and staff. And the fun thing about wooden boats is that you can change the interior relatively easy, so we added a few beds this year for guests and staff!

We also decided to install radar on the boat which makes sailing, especially in the night, a lot safer. The new 24 person liferaft is in place (we only take 13 guests!) and the satellite phone has a new antenna.

Then the gear-up area is being cleaned, the floors are being repainted, the benches in the dining area are varnished again and the rain sheets are checked and send away for repairs if necessary. Even old exhausts are being replaced by new ones, made of stainless steel…

Before the boat goes back into the water, a few layers of primer are painted on the hull, which will protect it against salt water and of course the outside is repainted. What’s very important to remember, is not to lean against the boat, when the paint is still wet (ask our operations manager Marcel about it….)!

The overhaul normally takes about one month, and when a boat gets launched back into the water, the usual firecrackers are lit for good luck.

The boat overhaul and equipment service is not cheap, but it is necessary and well worth it as anyone knows that having good equipment is part of a good dive school.

So Wicked Diving is ready to take you out once again for great diving trips to the best dive sites in Thailand; the Similan Islands


-Similan Diving

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