8 days dive in Burma undiscovered Mergui Archipelago

Our most popular Myanmar diving cruise featuring a full tour of the Mergui Archipelago

Itinerary of our dive cruise:​
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Day 1: Meeting at our dive center headquarters 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 board the magnificent MV Smiling Seahorse. Upon crossing the border into Myanmar, immigration officers will board in Kawthaung and do the necessary border crossing screening. Once the paperwork is completed, we will head out to sea!

Shortly after sunset we will hold a departure ceremony to launch our voyage, then it will be time for your first scrumptious meal before being rocked to sleep by the waves.
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Day 2-7: We will make 4 dives per day in the Mergui Archipelago and Burma Banks (weather permitting), with meals or a snack served after every dive, *and 1 or 2 dives on the last day, according to our itinerary.

Day 8: The last dive ends no later than 9am.
We will be back to Ranong by 4pm.

Once our passports are returned in Kawthoung by the Burmese authorities, we will head back to Thailand where we get a new entry stamp. Please make sure your passport allows visa free entry by land border, or arrange a visa or re-entry permit for Thailand.

In Mergui Archipelago we will see

  • South Twin Island sits on the outskirts of the Mergui Archipelago, this dive site is quite scenic with a topography of huge granite boulders together with hard coral reef inhabited by a lot of schooling fish. If you are lucky, this is the first place where you may encounter a majestic manta ray though even without these marvelous
    creatures this is a great dive site to begin the trip. We end the first day of diving with a night dive searching for pygmy squid,
    swimming morays, octopus, candy crabs, cowries and nudibranchs!.

  • Shark Cave is one of our favorites, with a very cool swim-through and a chance to find seahorses across three very colourful dive sites located very close by. In the afternoon we may visit a local island
    hosting a beach, fishermen's village and a Burmese temple.
 
  • Following a night crossing we arrive at the famous Black Rock, ​ an exposed basalt rock formation out in the open sea, and arguably the best dive site in the Mergui Archipelago!
    Acting like a magnet t o all that pass by, Black Rock is incredibly rich in terms of marine life. Here we are hoping for the big stuff like sharks, manta rays and whatever else may be in the area...
 
  • The conditions this far out in the open sea are a bit more challenging and currents make it a different style of diving to other
    areas o f the Mergui archipelago.
 
  • North Twin and it's Pinnacle offer moire opportunities to cross paths with pelagic fish and megafauna. We love this dive site for the diverse schools of fish out in the blue, as well as the wealth of tiny critters hiding among the giant sea fans and soft corals. 
 
  • On the return journey, we will dive an area known as Western Rocky. The first two dives of the day may be spent exploring the majestic nearby underwater scenery of Seafan Forest, whose magnificent corals and exposed location attract huge schools of fish. This is also a favourite place of ours to search for the ever-grumpy stonefish.
 
  • Heading one step further west into international waters (weather permitting), we will travel overnight to dive at the Burma Banks!
 
  • Divers lucky enough to venture this far are rewarded with exceptional visibility and massive underwater sandbanks, which rise from depths of over 400 meters - up to 15 meters below the surface. This unique topography sets the Burma Banks apart from the diving experiences of both Thailand and the Mergui Archipelago, offering a more remote and adventurous atmosphere. Additionally, the deeper waters increase the likelihood of encountering larger, more elusive deep-sea creatures.
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  • The Burma Banks are the best spot in the region for shark encounters, with frequent sightings of nurse sharks as well as more elusive species such as tiger sharks, leopard sharks and grey reef sharks.
 
  • Later dives in the day will be around the beautiful main island and islets of Western Rocky itself. Here, we have a very cool swim-through, crossing from one side of the island to the other, and a chance to see both pelagics and smaller macro critters and creatures too.
 
  • On the last day of the trip, we may dive a submerged pinnacle sitting around 18m below the surface, extremely rich in the diverse marine life Myanmar has to offer, with every chance of spotting larger species passing by if they are in the area.
Aerial view of the stunning Mergui Archipelago
Aerial view of the stunning Mergui Archipelago
Nurse shark
Nurse shark
All cruises onboard the MV Smiling Seahorse (weather permitting) offer the option to try blackwater diving in the Andaman Sea.
For those who’ve never experienced this fantastic style of offshore night diving, there will be a full presentation and safety briefing beforehand.

Logistics: 
Don't forget your 24 hours no-fly time after the last dive (around 10am) ! 
Check out Air Asia for the most recent flight schedule.

Bus: You can also return to Bangkok by bus leaving at 8pm and arriving in Bangkok around 5am.

​This itinerary is provided as sample itinerary and can be modified by The Smiling Seahorse based on weather forecast, dive conditions or other unforeseen circumstances.
See our Burma's dive sites
8 days/7 nights, 25 dives 
From Ranong 2pm
​to Ranong 5-6pm 
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Price per Diver from January 2026
THB 77,000 in Standard cabin
THB 79,200 in Deluxe cabin
THB 82,500 in Master cabin
INCLUDED
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​• Full accommodation and board 
(Breakfast, Lunch, afternoon bites, Dinner) 
•  All soft drinks, drinking water, fresh coffee & tea
•  Fresh fruits, yogurt & snacks all-day
•  12 L scuba tank, Weights & Weight Belt 
​-  Free 1 Blackwater dive
•  PADI Professional Dive Guide (for up to 4 divers)
•  up to 25 dives.
•  Towels, reef-friendly amenities
• Sunbeds and Thai seats​
NOT INCLUDED:

* You will have to apply for an E-visa for Myanmar, cost: 50$, port of entry: Kawthaung, link to apply
*  Burmese entry and diving Fees 260 USD / Pers (to be confirmed) 
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. COMPULSORY IF YOU DON'T HAVE YOUR OWN:
- PERSONAL INSURANCE 
(General Travel insurance is highly recommended)
-  Computer rental 300 THB/day
​​- Equipment rental 600 THB/ day
​​1000 THB/ Extra Blackwater dive​
. OPTIONS:
-  Nitrox : 250 THB/tank or 4,800 THB for the whole cruise
- 15L Tank 300 THB / day or 2,100 THB for the whole cruise
-  Private guide 4,000 THB/day ​​
. COURSES:
-  PADI Courses
-  Photographer private coaching

​. Transfers to and from the boat on-demand
​. Alcoholic drinks and cigarettes 
. Gratuity/ tips (1000 THB / day /pers is common practice)
Question? Please contact us!
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