White Manta (Indonesia)

Awesome. Experience was first class. Diving was even better. Can’t wait to get back on board.

Superlative experience!! Everything was excellent. Cruisemaster, Cedric, and staff were attentive to every detail, above and below water. Food was 5 stars. Enjoyed camaraderie with other guests. I most definitely hope to return, and bring an underwater camera, soon!!

Extremely nice ship, well maintained and a very professional crew. Equipment is very well maintained and the stuff is very helpful. Organization of all the dives was absoolutely top notch. The cabins and all areas of the ship were spotless clean. The food options were exceptional. The dives were perfectly organized. We had one issue with the stairs down to the dive deck being too slippery but the crew took care of it right away. This was my absolute perfect liveaboard experience - special thanks go out to Nacho - our tour director and dive instructor! Great job!

I enjoyed the New White Manta Misool to Triton Bay trip. The steel boat is spacious, comfortable with large user-friendly cabins. The diving is world class, spectacular soft and hard corals, dolphins, mantas and whale sharks. I really enjoyed the authentic Asian cuisine on board.

I wasn’t aware this dive safari was an exploration to find new sites. 80% the visibility was 10meters. The last 3 days the current and swell was strong. 60% of the time the zodiac /pangas was never near the dive sites. The wait time was 5-10 minutes even when the DM put up his SMB and blew his horn. They were picking up snorkelers/owners/photographer, DM doing fun dives. They should have found a group to surface up with instead of being pick up individually. I let my concerns be known to the owner, Vincent, who was on board. He joined the trip to see and find new sites and to visit Triton Bay Resort, which, he is an investor. They dropped off supplies and provisions for the resort. The owner stayed overnight at the dive resort and returned to the White Manta the following morning. The White Manta site stated intermediate to advanced divers. We had several divers that had less than 10 dives and inexperienced joined the trip. And, an introductory scuba. Instead of having 6 groups of 4, we had 8 groups going to the sites and snorkelers which delayed pangas and us waiting on the surface. The timing was not space out correctly to accommodate the extra’s for the fun dives by the owner/DM. Several occasions the group merged together on several sites with poor visibility. Having an owner on board you would think it will improve the overall experience but it was the opposite. The crew did everything to please him including picking him first instead of divers. I feel he disrupted the flow of the safari to his personal agenda. As for the cruise director, they were nice and entertaining. We had two, Cedric and Nacho. However, the boat briefing was misleading. Cedric mentioned the Yellow CAMERA buckets are only for camera and dive computers. The camera would be dunk in the camera bucket then placed on the camera dive deck. This never happened. I mentioned to Cedric that I’m finding more than camera and dive computers in the camera bucket. He said, it's OK after a dive. THEN, do another boat briefing from the previous announcement! We as divers w camera would like to be informed to determine if we like our camera to be rinse in the Yellow camera bucket w other equipment or rinse it in our room or from the dive deck hose. I was backlash by another diver when I mentioned to her about her mask and hood in the Yellow camera bucket. I mentioned to Nacho, a cruise director, he then informed Cedric, the cruise director. Nacho told me that it’s OK after a dive which he validated with Cedric. Please inform the new dive boat briefing if it’s changed from the original as to ALL of us being on board with the new protocol. The food was sufficient and plentiful and good. I had better. Even though my request was gluten-free they didn’t realize it on day one. Pasta night only had gluten pasta on the menu. They were kind enough to make a different dish. Overall, the Blue Manta that dives Komodo was superior to White Manta. With or without an owner present, it should not interfere with the dive safari itinerary or procedure. I did not punish the crew. I tip them. I believed that they acted and performed the wishes of the owner. I’m not sure I’ll be back on the White Manta anytime soon. I was originally thinking of going to the Kalimanta route in mid June. Also, I finally received my marine park card thru email once I contacted Divebooker support after my Safari was over. However, I did not receive the actual card but it should be sufficient when I return to Raja Ampat before 2025. Which I am returning in May and September of 2024. The marine park permit should have been handed out at the beginning of the safari. A cruise director should have mentioned they were a problem for picking up the permit at the Waisai office where it should have been collected. Overall, I gave this safari below average. Out of 15 Liveaboards I have been on, there were too many protocols and disruption on this trip.

Pro: From the moment they picked us up at the airport, they were very attentive. A nice warm welcome from the Cruise Director, Evan. A refreshing cold towel and drink. The room was spacious, plenty of hangers and enough shelves. The bathroom was spacious and plenty of hooks. The lounge area had plenty of drinks and comfortable. I really like the sundeck, great lounge area with big double/single sunbed in the shade and sun chair in the sun. They were plenty of furniture including near the bow of the boat in front of the wheelhouse. The food was excellent, plenty, and flavorful, especially, the soup. They also remember that I’m gluten-free from day 1. My birthday, the crew sang several songs and played their instruments. It really made it special. I love the BBQ night! They made too much food. Love the fact, I was able to have a massage. The cruise director, Evan, was very personable. His dive briefings was great, even, told us how to position our body looking at the reef and let the current pass you. He was genuine and was happy that we picked Blue Manta to dive Komodo. My guide, Onal, was excellent. He even broke his mask before we backrolled and still did a 60mins dive at Golden Passage w current. He checked on our air at least 2X to determine which route to take us. He was awesome and he knew where everyone was. I have to say the crew, service,food, liveaboard, dive briefing, and route was excellent. Also, I love the dedicated camera station in the dry room. I would definitely go again w the Blue Manta or the White Manta if Evan is the cruise director. Cons: touch up on the bathroom chalking the walls perimeter.

I totally enjoyed my 7-day diving safari in Raja Ampat on Blue Manta. The service provided by the crew was just outstanding. As a guest, you really do not need to worry about anything. The crew takes care of everything (including undressing you from the wet suit :-) ) You do not need to make even a step on the boat with your tank on. Very convenient! The food was very good. Lots of fresh fruits! I certainly recommend Blue Manta.

The boat and equipment is quite dated. Food was good/very good. Staff was generally friendly, but not all of them. It is understandable as many of them stay on the boat for 8 months per year away from their families. Dive preparation by the lead dive guide Egoi was very good and clear. Guiding during the dives was mediocre.

Best group of crew I have ever seen. Best food. Make sure to bring your camera for the check dive as well as you don’t know what you will encounter.

We have dreamed of a Raja Ampat experience for over 10 years and took a long time choosing the right liveaboard. We are a family of 5 divers and White Manta was perfect in every way. The cabins were so spacious, clean and functional. The crew were absolutely incredible in their service and genuine in their desire to give us the best experience. The diving was out of this world and certainly the best we have ever had, (having dived many dive sites globally). The food was delicious and suited many different needs and cultures. Our DM, Diego was very professional at all times. We honestly could not have had a better holiday nor recommend a better liveaboard. We really hope to dive on White or Blue Manta again. Thank you to a wonderful team.

This was my first liveaboard and I wasn’t sure about what to expect. From the moment I was picked up at the hotel in Labuan Bajo I was impressed. The Blue Manta is a large, comfortable boat. My cabin was nicer than the two different cruise ships I’ve been on, with a full bathroom, plenty of space for clothing and lots of outlets—even USB ports. Didn’t need to use the outlets, though, as a fully equipped camera room had plenty of outlets for battery recharging. The dive deck is exceptional—each diver has their own station for the week and gear is returned there after each dive. Nitrox fills were great and divers analyzed each tank before diving. The diving was wonderful—diving with mantas was magical. The end of each dive was also a treat—step off the speedboat onto the dive platform to one of six hot showers. Crew help divers take off their wet suits (even pulling off booties and socks) and while divers shower, crew rinse and hang wetsuits and gear and have everything back at your diving station for your next dive. Fresh towel is ready at the end of every dive as well as hot tea or hot chocolate. As if that wasn’t enough, the food was exceptional —special requests (like vegan) were easily catered too with tasty options. The boat does travel to some remote areas so Internet access via onboard Wi-Fi and cellular service were not always reliable—that was the only challenge: having to wait to upload pictures and videos for friends at home to see. Overall a great experience. I would definitely recommend Blue Manta to others considering a trip to one of the areas they serve.

We spent a week on the Blue Manta with the most amazing crew and staff. The locations could have not been better but what makes the trip here so special is the staff and crew. You will experience the entire crew on deck helping to get divers in and out of the dinghies. This is concierge diving and though we were not used to it, it is easy to get spoiled. Raja Ampat is an spectacular destination and we will return.

The journey was seamless and flawless, top quality service and diving experience, everything went absolutely to plan. Which is quite amazing in this part of the world...! Better service than in many parts of Europe even. I recommend it to anyone, you won’t be disappointed xxx