If you’ve been into diving, you might have heard the Komodo National Park. Yes, that island where the last real dragons in the world live. This remote region in Indonesia is not only best for some Jurassic-esque expedition, but also for having an incredible diving trip. With its sheer richness in tropical fish species, coral and sponges, and macro life, diving in Komodo would spoil you rotten with jaw-dropping underwater sceneries. Bursting colours and busy life are what makes Komodo so intoxicating for divers. We warned you, after Komodo other dives might fall pale in comparison.
If you want to explore the underwater of Komodo, you might have to choose between embarking on liveaboard trip or staying in a dive resort and go dive with day boat. While most serious divers go all out in diving liveaboard, day boats still have their own following. Here’s the plus and minus of taking a Komodo dive trip in a day boat.
Diving in Komodo with Day Boat: The Plus
Day Boat is Compact with Essentials for Diving in Komodo
Day boats that are made for diving were built with the needs of divers in mind. However, you need to be careful to choose a day boat that’s specifically cater to diving; don’t choose the ones that are made for island excursion.
Day Boat is Cheaper than Liveaboard Trip
For two days diving in Komodo with day boat, the price could be 1/3 less than liveaboard for the same amount of days. This is fair, because you don’t sleep and have dinner and breakfast in a day boat.
Scheduling Komodo Diving Gets More Flexible
When you embark on multiple days trip with liveaboard, you gonna have to stuck with the itinerary of the liveaboard. Well, unless you have enough money to rent the whole liveaboard and arrange your own trip. Day boat allows you to pick your own dive destination for the day. Even when it means re-visiting certain dive sites.
It’s Good for Inexperienced Divers
Day boat is good for beginner divers who find it hard to keep up with experienced divers in liveaboard. With flexibility of day boats, they can choose to dive only in beginner-friendly diving sites in Komodo.
Diving in Komodo with Day Boat: The Minus
Day Boat is Usually Smaller
Forget relaxing in fancy loungers as you’ve seen in Instagram photos or dining on indoor salon. Lots of day boats in Komodo are very compact and they offer just as much. Usually, the boat is just enough to stuff dive gears and fit one dining table in the centre of the boat.
It Doesn’t Have the Luxuries of Liveaboard
Space is premium when it come on boats and you won’t have that in a simple day boat. Forget tiered decks and different relax areas; you won’t get that. Also, consider yourself lucky if you find a day boat with western toilet instead of the squat one.
There’s No Time to Relax and Go Social in A Day Boat
Unlike liveaboard, there’s no real downtime in a day boat where you can just gather around and share stories. With a packed schedule, you will get in and out the water and before you know it, the day was over. Everybody get back to their own hotel and resort.
More Travelling Stories:
The Best Komodo Liveaboard: A True Relaxing Journey
How Komodo Diving Liveaboard Will Kickstart Healthy Lifestyle
Day Boast Doesn’t Come with Resort’s Standard Chefs
Liveaboard usually hire professional chefs and even baristas onboard. They were known to be a floating hotel and tend to keep their reputation. They also serve full-board meals for the passengers so food variety is very important.
A day boat, however, focused the experience on diving in Komodo. Other things are just secondary. Don’t be disappointed if your lunch in the day boat is very averages.
You Still Need to Pay for Other Accommodation
One of the huge disadvantage of day boat is accommodation. While liveaboard allows one-time-payment for everything, day boat definitely doesn’t. You still need to look and pay for hotel (or dive resort) for your stay in Komodo.
Hope that helps!
