MV Adora

★ 5 · Bettina Abrahan · 2023-03-11

My first-ever liveaboard experience with MV Adora did not disappoint. Traveling from Central to the Deep South. The staff are very accommodating and would treat you like royalty. They offer great selection of food. I have experienced the best dive trip exploring the Maldives with them. I cannot wait to go back!

★ 5 · Sohail Thobani · 2021-10-30

The MY Adora has the largest rooms and bathrooms and the most comfortable beds I've ever experienced on a liveaboard (this is my 7th liveaboard). That alone makes for a very luxurious stay. We got a lower deck standard room as the upper deck rooms were full. Our room had ample storage and a huuuuge bathroom. But two port holes are the only windows to the outside. The Ocean Suite on the upper deck is fabulous. While the room and bathroom is the same size as the lower deck rooms, it has large windows that offer a spectacular view of the beautiful Maldivian scenery. In addition, it has a 2 sq m private balcony (which makes for an easy emergency exit) that allows space to spread out on. This room is worth every penny of the slightly higher price. A unique feature of this boat are the two single rooms on the main deck. These are quite large and offer large windows. While they are a bit pricey, but comparable to the 50% single supplement that other boats charge. The crew were very good and went the extra mile to make us feel comfortable. Here are two small examples, but there are many more: On our last diving night, they added an extra dive for a total of 18 dives, instead of the promised 17 as they wanted us to experience a night dive with mantas. Since we had a very early morning departure, they arranged a full breakfast with ala carte eggs, cereals, fresh fruit and local Maldivian breakfast delicacy, just for our group of three, even though it was a full hour before their scheduled breakfast. (I wouldn’t have faulted them if they’d given us tea and toast). Then they arranged two taxis to the airport as we couldn't get all our gear into one and paid for them as they said that transporting us to the airport was their responsibility. The boat is clean and well maintained, though the sofas in the main salon were a bit lumpy. The boat is very large allowing for many seating areas inside the main salon and on the aft section on every deck in the open. And of course, there is a massive roof with lots of seating areas, both in the shaded and the open air. While Adora can cater to 22 divers, there were only 17 during the time we were there. The boat could easily have accommodated a full load. The food was excellent and varied with many continental and healthy options with occasional Maldivian dishes to make us really look forward to mealtimes. Food was served buffet style with soups and desserts being served at the table. Freshly prepared made-to-order eggs at breakfast were also served at the table. I gave the boat a 3-star rating for safety for three reasons. Firstly, no one saw my medical examination certificate so they could not familiarize themselves with my medical history. Secondly, in the initial briefing, no one mentioned the lower deck emergency exit and escape hatch, and how to operate it. It was only on our insistence that they demonstrated this after two nights on the boat. Ideally, they should have made all of us use it. Thirdly, there were no smoke alarms in the cabins. Given the two incidents of liveaboards burning down in the Red Sea and off the coast of California resulting in loss of lives, this inexpensive gadget really ought to be standard. It was very heartening to see that the crew was mostly Maldivian, unlike other liveaboards that almost always have an expat running the show. The crew were always friendly and willing to help. Many thanks to Deko, Moosa, Zoe, Hassan and everyone in the dhoni. Diving in the Maldives is almost guaranteed. Most of the dives are drift dives. So, a reef hook is an essential part of your equipment. We saw whale sharks, manta rays, turtles, nurse sharks, white tipped sharks and the usual reef fish. There’s also macro stuff to be seen from nudibranchs to dwarf crayfish. It’s very sad to see the dead coral that resulted from a rise of water temps in 2016. But there’s still lots of life to make diving here a treat. If you’ve still not chosen your liveaboard, look no more. Simply make the booking. You will not be disappointed!