Apr 13 – Apr 21, 2027

9 days dive in Burma exploration cruise: one step further Let's explore new dive sites in Burma... Come with us to the most remote locations... Departure day: The check-in is at our dive center between 10am and 12pm. At 2pm we will head to the immigration office to get the necessary exit stamps from Thailand and then make our way to MV Smiling Seahorse. Upon crossing the border into Myanmar, immigration officers will board the boat in Kawthaung and do the necessary border crossing screening. Once the boring paperwork is completed, we will head out to sea! ​At sunset, we will hold a ceremony to launch our voyage and introduce the crew. Then it will be time for your first scrumptious meal before being rocked to sleep on our way to the first dive site.​​ Day 2-8: we will explore Mergui Archipelago and the Burma banks. ​​We will make 4 dives per day and 1 or 2 dive for the last day, according to our itinerary. ​ ​The last dive ends no later than 11:30 We will be back to Ranong around 5-6 pm. When we are back in Thailand, immigration officers will stamp our passports with a new entry stamp. ​G8 countries passport holders will get a 30 days visa exempt stamp, while other nationalities usually get 15 days. Please make sure your passeport allows visa free entry by land-border crossing or arrange a visa/ re-entry permit for Thailand. ​In Mergui Archipelago we will visit... South Twin Island. Sitting in the outskirts of the Mergui Archipelago, this dive site is quite scenic with consistent crystal visibility and a topography of huge granite boulders. We have even been lucky enough the start the voyage off in style with a guest appearance from a majestic manta ray. Macro lovers will also be treated to chances of ghost pipefish, seahorses and frogfish! We end the first day of diving with a night dive searching for pygmy squid, candy crabs, cowries and nudibranchs! Shark Cave", with 3 dive sites to explore one of my favorites. In the afternoon we explore a paradise beach or a small fishermen settlement. In shark cave you can expect to see nurse sharks or big blotched sting rays, a lot of Mantis Shrimp and crustaceans of all types. The coral around makes it a very colorful dive site. For the night dive, you'll have the choice and can go to the site you preferred from the 3 you saw. All I can say is, this is a night dive you certainly shouldn't miss! Black Rock, a small rock out in open sea. Here we are hoping for the big stuff like Sharks and Rays and whatever is passing… This is the place to go for "Manta Festival" with Manta rays coming in dozens from everywhere (no guarantee of course, but they are pretty common). The conditions this far in the open sea are a bit more challenging and currents make it a different style of diving to other areas of Mergui. This is probably the best dive site in Myanmar and is still seldom visited by divers. North Twin and its pinnacle where you will have more chances to cross Manta Rays and sometimes eagle rays. Because there are many patches of sand between the boulders making the particularity of this dive site, we also sighted Leopard Sharks sleeping quite regularly. Giant Sea Fans are also often hiding magnificent macro critters so look thoroughly!​ ​We will take it one step further West toward the Burma Banks for some exploratory dives we hope to have some exceptional dives and you may be the first divers to explore some of these dive sites...​​ ​​​​Seafan Forest a gorgeous site with giant Sea Fan like nowhere else on one side and purple vibrant soft coral on the overs. We can see up to 4 whales sharks at the same time on this site ! We will do the next 2 dives around Western Rocky which is also absolutely amazing.​ ​Western Rocky area is one of the Highlights of the entire Mergui Archipelago with its tunnel that goes all the way through the island inhabited by many lobsters. We will do 3 dives here but the first one will be on a submerged pinnacle for spectacular scenery and schooling fish action! We have spotted here various shark species (Bowmouth Guitarfish, Whale Shark, Reef Sharks) and often see resident Harlequin Shrimp, frogfish, Seahorses and lots of crustaceans and nudibranchs. ​The last dive usually goes into a volcano where a group of Black Tip Sharks likes to hang around, it is also a site rich in macro life. Here the question is not if you will see a seahorse, the question is how many? Up to 10 per dive if you have good eyes as well as rare species such as shaded Batfish, Comet Long Fins or Pineapple Fish. ​Return flights to Bangkok: AirAsia: 1:25 p.m. - 2:35 p.m. (first flight you can safely take) (Don't forget your 24 hours without flight time after the last dive...) Bus: You can also return to Bangkok by bus in one of the VIP buses with fully reclining seats for around 700 thb arriving in Bangkok around 5am. Note: This itinerary is provided as sample itinerary and can be modified by The Smiling Seahorse based on weather forecast or other unforeseen circumstances.