Sea Spirit is a special place, an oasis in the Indian Ocean where magical things happen. The quality of the diving and guest interaction from her dive directors, Lisa and David is exceptional. Rarely can you find a place where the commitment is so rich. Consequently diving from this charming intimate vessel leaves you with memories that are unique. The contact with the mantas, sharks and pelagic species is the result of mastery of the diving in the Maldives. This has been our third trip to the islands but we have been surprised and delighted by everything aboard. The way the boat is run is also exceptional. Every crew member understands the ethos that has been created on the basis of many years experience. As a rebreather diver with twelve years of diving our units abroad, we were also impressed by the way our special requirements were catered for. Can’t wait to come again!

I totally concur with the above statement!  Have dived with many other operators in the Maldives and the trips with Lisa and David have been the best and so chose to come back again where the diving experience has been even more spectacular than before.  The ship is run effortlessly or so it appears and would like to particularly mention the delicious meals presented.  So good I shall be staying on board for the next trip!

A week on Sea Spirit is the best liveaboard experience, not only is the diving fantastic – manta rays, eagle rays and a variety of sharks but the Sea Spirit dive directors, Lisa and David, are incredibly knowledgeable and enthusiastic.  3rd time on board with Lisa & David and it gets better every time.

Coming back? You bet!

This was our second trip with Lisa and Dave in The Maldives. We had a fantastic week and can’t wait to come back next year. The diving was incredible and Lisa and Dave were fantastic. Will be signing up for the 12 night trip next time! 

First  trip with Dave and Lisa, 2nd with the company.  Really  enjoyed my time and highlights were the Fish tank and Manta Feeding station.  Thanks for taking such good care of us.

This was a super trip. I would rank it as the best diving experience in 20 years of diving. I have seen stuff that has been truly amazing.  Highlights were:

1. diving with the Manta Rays on the cleaning station

2. Snorkelling with the Whale Sharks.

Thanks to Captain Mohammed and all the crew, they have been have been super too. I well appreciated the excellent food that has been served all week and from such a small kitchen, bravo to the Chef, Thilak and to Awesome (Alson), who ran back and forth to the kitchen. Special thanks to our 2 dive guides. You have been a source of knowledge on all aspects of the diving, preparation, briefing and execution, and on the Maldives’ wildlife. Next time I will bring a camera for sure. 

A fabulous experience.  We ran out of words to describe the diving and some of it was awe inspiring.  The manta night dive in particular sticks in the memory but there were many stand-out dives.  A big thank you to the crew, who were amazing, particularly Thilak in the kitchen, who turned out some great food.  I hope to be able to return to Sea Spirit and bring the rest of the family with me and hope that Dave and Lisa will still be there as their knowledge and experience, coupled with their relaxed approach, really brought the Maldives to life.  Thank you all.

Thanks yet again for another fantastic trip. We see something new every time thanks to the knowledge and professionalism of David and Lisa. The food was wonderful - we don’t know how Thilak manages to produce such a varied menu in that small galley.  The crew work non-stop to make the trip run seamlessly and are so helpful. No doubt we will be back again for more Maldives magic on Sea Spirit.

This was our first trip to the Maldives and we have been constantly amazed and in awe of the sea life we have seen.  Dave and Lisa are a credit to the company, their dive knowledge is exceptional. It’s down to their experience alone that we saw and learnt so much. The service on the Sea Spirit is excellent, you are well looked after and the food is amazing. I am so sorry to leave the boat today, but we will be back. 

The attention given by Lisa and David plus the crew of Sea Spirit makes this one amazing adventure.

We travelled to far off atolls and sites so pristine and quiet – unspoilt thilas teeming with life.

The chef produced so many styles of cuisine it was like dining in a top restaurant.

For rusty old divers like us, it is hard to imagine a better experience. Highly recommended to any adventurous diver  - no matter how old! 

Thank you

A simply exceptional trip. Lisa, Dave and the crew couldn’t do enough to ensure we always had the most beautiful, quiet dive sites, the friendliest mantas, plentiful critters, sharks, turtles, dolphins, rays, every type of dive you could wish for, laughter, great company and enough amazing food to feed an army.

It’s no wonder we keep coming back...

Thank you! Nikki & Pip ☺

As usual another great trip around the northern and central atolls.  Lisa and David really go that extra nautical mile, quite a few of them this time.  Nine manta dives out of thirty-four for a manta lover.  They still find new dive sites for someone who has been to the Maldives diving over twenty times and I can only remember a couple of dives on the first day that we encountered any other divers which makers the diving experience really special.  You cannot buy that experience Lisa and David have on the dive sites all over the Maldives.  Also small changes on Spirit have made a nice difference as well especially the air con in the main saloon.

The crew on both Spirit and the Niumath worked very hard and very attentive as usual.  The quality of the food from the galley was amazing, never going hungry.

Roll on to March / April 2017, North to South Atoll trip with Lisa and David.

Philip Sheehan

Amazing! This trip was a first for me, so didn’t quite know what to expect. All other dive trips now have a very high bench mark to be reached. All aspects of this adventure where carefully thought through. Dave & Lisa knew exactly where to go & what to do & when to break it to me that ‘No, I definitely could not use my wet suit for another dive!’. The crew worked so hard to make the trip so easy for us all. Well done ‘Sea Spirit’.

James MacGregor (pictured left)

Thank you to Lisa, Dave, the crew of MV Sea Spirit and our fellow guests for a fantastic dive holiday.  We have been on Sea Spirit before and we keep coming back because of the hard work, knowledge and commitment that they put in to make every holiday special.  We’ve had some great underwater encounters – from mantas, eagle rays and sharks right down to the smallest nudibranchs.  Dave and Lisa’s knowledge of where to go and how to approach the dives was great and Mohammed and his crew worked really hard to get us in the right places at the right time.  We really appreciate Dave and Lisa’s enthusiasm for diving and their willingness to try new dives – makes for a great adventure! 

Janet & Richard Grace

James, my son has been absent from diving for some while and I was so pleased by the way he was looked after by Lisa and David. They work constantly to ensure we have a good diving experience; nothing left to chance. My grateful thanks to them for a great holiday. I hope Sea Spirit continues to prosper. The crew are a bit special too; a special thanks to them.

Don MacGregor (pictured right)

Fantastic week! Every dive has been better than the last one and for consecutive 6 days!

Lisa and David make the perfect team and have put together a very efficient crew. I hope I’ll be able to come back again soon.

I’d never done a Liveaboard before so was a little unsure what to expect but it has been a fabulous week. Each dive has been so special, every briefing has been thorough, the dive team are professional and fun. Lisa and David have been wonderful – super helpful, passionate about the diving and ensured we enjoyed great, safe diving. The boat is also lovely – comfy, with everything you need and the food has been out of this world – so yummy. Thanks to the whole team for a brilliant holiday and look forward to coming back for future hols

Great company, a great atmosphere, a very comfortable boat, wonderful crew, delicious food...and the diving – it has been spectacular, exciting and brilliant fun. Lisa and David have so much knowledge to share and they do so generously. It has been “mantastic”. We’ll be back when we have polished up our pegging skills.

Thanks Lisa, David and the staff for one of my best diving week ever. The passion is felt by all;  The diving, unique. All are very professional and competent. The food delicious and the whole team are friendly and helpful. I look forward to coming back soon

A fantastic trip!  Thanks to David and Lisa for giving us some amazing diving – more mantas than ever before.  It’s been great to be diving with the two of them again.  Sea Spirit is “home from home” -  thanks to all the crew for making it such a relaxing and enjoyable trip, and of course a big thank-you to Thilak for the excellent food and doughnuts.

Fantastic to have been back on Sea Spirit with Dave & Lisa; once again the diving was great and some of the dives were ‘mind blowing’ and will be remembered long after the wetsuits have been packed away! The crew as always have a smile on their faces and are always ready to lend a hand and a big thanx has to go to Mr T for the great food and the afternoon treats after the last dive of the day! The dohni crew were exceptional at being on hand at the start or end of the dive  and the last Thank-You has to go to the other guests who played a big part in making our 2016 Maldivian holiday a memorable one – Thanx for the ‘giggles’.

Just had a fantastic 12 nights on Sea Spirit enjoying the wonders of the Northern Maldivian Atolls and enjoying the delights of the food and service on board.  Despite some challenging conditions, wind, sea state and visibility, the team did their utmost to ensure that we had the best experience possible – and they certainly succeeded – for example, to name but a few: 20 plus mantas for an hour at Lankan, 30 or 40 stingrays at Fish Tank, and, for me very special, a Giant Guitarfish at Dhigali Haa, and much more.  In short, an excellent trip all round!  Many thanks to Dave and Lisa and to all the ever helpful and friendly crew.  Great trip I will certainly be back.

This is our second time on Sea Spirit and again thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The crew were all very helpful especially helping me kit up on the Dhoni & always good for a laugh. How the chef always managed to produce the excellent & varied food I’ll never know, much more than we could eat. Richard enjoyed fishing at the back of the boat in the evening with the crew, not that he caught much! The diving has been great despite the lack of viz at times, but seeing the number of mantas we did at such close quarters made up for this. Overall we have seen many fish in all shapes & sizes.  

Thank you to everyone for making this such an enjoyable trip.

Richard & Anne Gehring

Yet another great trip on Sea Spirit in the Maldives, this time in the Northern Atolls.  This is our thirteenth trip with Scuba Tours to the Maldives and there are good reasons we keep coming back: the diving has been excellent (in spite of poor visibility), the service and food on board are both outstanding and the dive guides Dave and Lisa have been wonderful as usual.  We have seen many mantas, some sharks and small stuff too like mantis shrimps and anemone crabs as well as all the usual reef fish.  And we will definitely be back ...

Peter Sampson & Peps Turler 

I’ve had a lovely cruise with great food, exciting diving, and a sleepfull time. Many thanks to all the crew and guides for making this a memorable trip. I hope to return for the southern tour early in 2018. 

John Rudman (JR)

There is a diving organisation with the tag line ‘Diving with friends’, but this is the real deal! From the cruise directors, Dave & Lisa, who worked hard to find us decent dive sites despite the worst visibility I’ve experienced in the Maldives, to the excellent crew, through to the office back in the UK, they’ve all become friends and I’ll be back for more Maldives Manta Madness!

Steve Harcher

This has been an amazing trip! It’s a Once in a life time experience that you want to come and experience over and over. From the get go, it’s just been perfect. The boat, the food, the crew, cruise directors, Dave and Lisa was excellent. I couldn’t ask for more. What a way to experience the Maldives. I love it!! Thank you so much for everything.

Madi  

This was our second trip with David and Lisa and I can honestly say that it lived up to all of our expectations. The diving was fantastic yet again, with a great mix of sites, catering for all tastes.

David and Lisa went out of their way to ensure all guests had a great trip.  The crew were fantastic in every way. The food was amazing again.

We have booked again for next year and look forward to bringing another group out to Maldives from New Zealand.

Andrew & Anna

Great week, although *FAR* too short...

Being on a small boat really made for a friendly atmosphere and chilled, uncrowded dives.

We will be recommending the Maldives and sea spirit in particular to any divers we meet.

Many thanks to David, Lisa and the whole crew not to mention Li’l Bit

from Linda and Alex

Excellent weeks diving with a good bunch of divers.  The crew are very helpful. Rooms are cleaned daily. The chef did excel himself with a varied cuisine! With no complaints from any of the guests. 

The dive guides knowledge of the dive sites was excellent and the briefing each dive was detailed with a plan B in place at all times.

I will be recommending to my dive buddies to dive on the Sea Spirit with David and Lisa plus crew.

Lesley Percival

An amazing week, that went far too fast. The bonus for me was Sea Spirit takes only 12 divers. This week (22nd May – 29th May), was a double bonus with just 6 divers.

Lisa and David’s knowledge is second to none. There was always a backup plan, if the first dive site was undiveable due to the currents in the Maldives, there was another dive site nearby that we were able to dive.

The dhoni crew were always on hand to help you get into your gear, and to help you out of the water.

Cabins were always immaculate after the morning dive. The food was amazing with a good variety.

Last but not least there was the ships bird, an amusing little bird called Lil’ Bit.

Jane Jory

Excellent trip well looked after by all the team. Super dives allot of effort to ensure we had the opportunity to see as much as possible, good safety and guidance. Crew very efficient and helpful and the chef did a great job with the food. Thanks to all

Alan Bush 21/05

A fantastic weeks diving, guided by two very experienced guides and a very wide selection of varied dive sites.

It has been so nice to have been on a smaller boat which has had more of a homely atmosphere.

The boats crew have been some of the best I’ve experienced and the food has definitely been in a league of its own

Thank you all for making this a very special weeks diving.

Rob Toy 21st May 2016 

 If Carlsberg did dive trips, it couldn’t better this week. The Sea Spirit dive trip sets a new standard for the epitome of excellence.

Thanks to everyone involved with the boat, for making it such a fantastic week.

By far the best diving holiday i have ever had, Dave and Lisa are brilliant guides and know these dive sites with great knowledge! The crew aboard the MV Sea Spirit have been superb and have helped kit up and could not have done more for us. The food onboard has been to die for!! I am already looking at coming back.

Wayne McNamee 21st May 2016

Thanks for a wonderful trip. Dave and Lisa were fantastic as were the entire crew. I was amazed at the quality of the food with a wide variety of dishes, all of which were delicious. The weather wasn’t great for us but with the guides experience we still dived some fantastic sites and even got to snorkel and dive with mantas! Best wishes to all of you and I hope to have the opportunity to dive with you folks again. Love.

Nick Preece.x

I last dived with Lisa and Dave in 2007 and was over the moon to learn they would be our guides for week. Not the best weather wise but the crew have tried to ensure that we have pretty much seen it all this week. The crew have been simply excellent and cannot fault how they have looked after us both on the dive boat and aboard Sea Sprit. Please do not sell this remaining small boat she’s a real gem. Everyone has already mentioned how good the food was. One final point please change the ladder on the dive boat. Thank you for another amazing trip in the Maldives xxx

Lesley Harper 21/05/2016

First time in the Maldives and I’m ruined forever! The Captain and crew of Sea Spirit and Niumath are just the best. The food was excellent, three cheers for the chef ☺ This is without doubt the best Birthday present ever, especially spending time with the Manta rays. Thank you Lisa and Dave for your never ending enthusiasm and expert knowledge of the dive sites and the exceptional effort you put in to make it a trip to remember for everybody. With our group of mixed ability divers you showed an outstanding level of professionalism and patience ensuring that safety was paramount. 

Michelle Walton and Pete Love 21/05/16

This has been the experience of a lifetime; helped by the dedication and highly professional support of Dave and Lisa (Our perfect guides). Never thought, in my wildest dreams I would see so much of what SCUBA diving is all about. Amazing!!!  Loved living on this old wooden boat, with all mod cons, being rocked to sleep by the gentle sea. The boat crew were very helpful and worked as a great team to make our stay enjoyable. Many thanks especially to Thilak, who cooked up some wonders in his tiny galley; always providing me with veggie options at every sitting. Would recommend the whole trip to ANYONE!

Diane Gray  (21.05.16)

Zerine Tata & Mikey Elves:  We have had a fabulous time, really great diving for Mikey with gorgeous buddy Suellen. The most wonderful dive guides in Lisa & Dave and the crew who always look after us so well. A perfect holiday! We will be back.............again!

Suellen ‘Batfish’ Brake, I have had a wonderful holiday, diving with the best, Lisa and Dave were splendid guides and looked after us really well, especially me when my Bladefish expired ! The diving was awesome and my Buddy Mikey was brilliant. The food was once again marvellous, I will definitely come again !

Thanks to all the crew and Lisa and David for a marvellous trip.  It has filled in the bits of the Maldives that we have not done before and the diving has been great. (But where was the frogfish??) Once again, the crew have been marvellous and as helpful as ever, the food has been excellent, the dhoni pulled up on cue at the end of the dive and I was cheerfully hauled out of the water, as always.  Long may Sea Spirit continue!!

Pat and Dave.

Four manta dives, two whale sharks, lost count of all the white tips, morays, turtles and countless reef fish. Fantastic trip, got to see far more sea life than we had hoped for, thanks to the excellent job by Lisa & Dave. Thanks also to the crew for their generous hospitality, good service, and thanks to Thilak for the very tasteful food!    

  Anne & Thomas Norway

As returning guests to the Maldives we have already had experiences that exceeded our expectations so this trip needed to deliver for us again. We were very excited before we flew out at the prospect of spending another holiday in the company of Dave and Lisa, and we have not been disappointed. We chose to keep off the main “bus route” for this trip and nearly all of the sites we dived have been new to us. This was our fifth trip with Scuba Tours and our party included divers that like small macro and the thrill of the large pelagic. What can we say, although we have had some dives that not all parties looking for sharks have had the exhilaration of previous experiences the diving once again has not failed to deliver. 

There have been some amazing interactions with eagle rays and mantas. We have seen leopard shark, lemon shark and guitar shark that some of our party have not seen before. We even experienced five types of shark on one dive. 

We have had opportunity to snorkel with dolphins and manta which was fabulous for those that could swim enough to keep up with the dolphins! All this is down to the dedication and commitment of the guides Dave and Lisa who nothing is too much trouble for. 

There have been opportunities to visit local islands and see the ancient Kaani tree – that was an amazing sight and on such a beautiful island with very friendly locals. In contrast we have also experienced the “pringle run”.

Our group whom “live life to the full in bubbles creating memories” would like to express our sincere thanks and appreciation to the Dave Lisa, and all the crew of the Sea Spirit for yet another fabulous holiday, amazing food and great hospitality from all the staff. Already looking forward to our next trip.

Richard, Jean, Pam and Glenn  Sheffield UK

Had a wonderful time on the boat.  A great variety of dives and experiences - the diving was well planned, fun and varied.  We really enjoyed it.  The boat was great and it was a pleasure to be on a smaller boat.  Enjoyed the excursion onto an island to see the oldest tree in the Maldives and seeing Maldives way of live.  The food is the best we have ever had on a liveaboard and there was plenty of it.  The crew were friendly and extremely helpful.  We would definitely come back to the Maldives to this boat and with Dave and Lisa as dive managers.  Thankyou!

Nichola and Smelly Damo, Manchester, UK.

This has to be the best liveaboard team around: Lisa and Dave made the week what it was with their excellent local knowledge; accurate and comprehensive briefings that delivered every time giving us just about every critter you could want (quite often rounded up and delivered to us by Dave!); their attention to detail made for safe and relaxed dives; their hard work, limitless patience and great fun topped it off. Cap’n Mohammed and the crew were exceptional, incredibly friendly and helpful; willing and eager to help without being in your face; special mention to Chef Thilak who produced a wide ranging menu featuring different cuisines every day to standards that would grace any top restaurant. Ships mascot Gregor was a joy.

Big thanks to everybody, a brilliant weeks diving.

Thanks Dave Lisa Captain Mohammed and crew for one of my best diving week’s ever. Never seen so many critters big and small. Such a friendly, happy competent team is very rare. Despite Dave’s offer of a free beer I really really mean the above honest.

Once again thanks for a great week.

Tony Wigston OK Corral Divers- Club Mascot! (Peterborough Branch)

Fifth time of coming to the Maldives and I must say that this was the best trip of all!!

Dave and Lisa fulfilled everything that they promised and then really excelled on the dusk/night dive.  No “spoiler alert” but it was awesome!

Dave, Lisa and the whole of the Sea Spirit crew were so friendly and helpful, with plenty of laughs thrown in and no review would be complete without a mention of the food! Again, the word “fantastic” doesn’t do it justice.

Thanks to all involved with ‘Sea Spirit’, anyone wondering whether to book should do it NOW!

Colin Glover – OK Corral Divers-Equipment Officer (Northampton Branch)

This my fifth visit to the Maldives and probably the best. The three things that make a good dive trip in my opinion are the boat – small but friendly with a good captain and crew, the chef – Mr T was exceptional producing some of the best liveaboard food ever. And last, but not least, the dive guides – Dave and Lisa were both excellent very experienced and know the area very well and gave us a great weeks diving.  Many thanks to all.

Alan Jones – OK Corral Divers (Dorset Branch)