Odyssey Liveaboard, Australia

Pristine and exciting divning in a remote part of the world.

Hidden Australian gem of diving. It takes a 20 hr boat ride from the nearest city at the far end of the world to get to, but totally worth it! Pelagics, Tiger shark, hammerhead, juvenile black tips, schools of sweet lips, sharks on almost every dive. Even got some of the small stuff, found a pygmy seahorse. Considering only 200 people get to dive this park every year, get early on the list to dive as its totally unencumbered of people and the Odyssey provides everything you need to have a great time.

Recommended for

Top notch operator, no crowds, variety of diving

18 Oct, 2022

A very enjoyable trip

Odyssey is usually used for trips up into the Kimberley so it is not primarily used as a dive boat. While she was more than adequate, on occasions it was obvious she hadn’t been designed as a dive boat. There are 4 bathrooms (each with hot shower & toilet) on the dive deck, used by punters & crew. None of the rooms have ensuites. The deluxe rooms have a sink, the standard rooms don’t. I had a standard room and it was fine. All have a fridge and separate aircon (although this doesn’t work when the compressor is in action), the mattress was comfortable & there was plenty of storage space. Soft drinks, juices & water provided, beer, wine & spirits extra. Diving is done from “Homer”, the tender. All of us dived from the one tender and while there was more than enough space, it took a while to pick everybody up / get everybody on board / into the water. An extra zodiac would improve efficiency significantly. There was no dedicated camera area on Odyssey, but a crate with fresh water to rinse cameras off in afterwards. Luckily, most of us just had GoPros but I think if anyone had a large camera / complex set up they may have found it annoying. There was a hose at the back of the boat to rinse of wetsuits etc after each dive but nothing to soak them in – I generally rinsed mine off in the shower. Nitrox was not available. We missed one dive as the compressor broke. Crew were easy going, friendly and efficient. Liam the chef kept the good food coming. Cooked breakfast every second day and on the days with no cooked breakfast you got dessert. I put on weight on the trip!! Plenty of snack food available – home baked cookies, fresh fruit…. It was about a 20 hour overnight steam to get to Rowley Shoals from Broome. Seasickness tablets were provided and I took my own concoction and felt fine. Others looked a little green about the gills. We boarded mid afternoon on the first day and our first 2 dives were the second day in the afternoon at Clerke atoll. Then 3-4 dives per day, with 2 on the last day before another overnight steam back to Broome. Fishing also available for those who were keen (I wasn’t but the fishermen in the group seemed pretty contented). The diving was good. We had one dive master for 15 punters… other crew members dived but they went off on their own rather than diving with the group. Max depth 30m, no deco diving. Briefings usually went along the lines of ‘descend to the wall, drift with the current and see what you see, follow the current, come up at 50 bar or 50 minutes, whichever comes first and set your SMB’(!!). Dive master kept an eye on us and pointed some things out but not outstanding at pointing things out but I guess she was busy enough keeping a watch on people which she seemed to do. Dives limited to 50 minutes or 50 bar (sigh, so not long dives) and then you set your SMB and were retrieved by Homer. Currents present but not strong. The diving – I was happy. The best thing for me was the stunning isolation, 360 degrees of horizon, turquoise waters (water temps 29-30 – most people dived in rash suits, I am cold blooded and even I was plenty warm enough in sharkskin!). The coral was pristine (I guess not often visited), colourful… Fish – plenty of white tipped reef sharks, grey reef sharks, saw some leopard sharks & a hammerhead was spotted. Turtles. Potato cod but the big cod promised at cod hole never eventuated. Schooling Trevally, the hugest Bumphead Parrot fish I have ever seen, coral trout, angel fish… many varieties of clown fish… We also had dolphins swimming at the bow of Odyssey and were lucky enough to see a Mama Humpback whale & her calf up close at Mermaid Atoll (this alone made the trip really!). We had 18 dives in the week long trip. Overall a fun trip with a good group of people.

Recommended for

isolation, stunning turquoise waters, great food

01 Nov, 2016

Dream trip, exceptional diving experience.

Abundance of marine life. Acquiring new dive buddies.

Recommended for

Pristine reef condition. Clear, warm water. Unplanned encounters with whales/dolphins

11 Nov, 2016

Well traveled diver loved Odyssey trip.

This dive trip to Rowley Shoals was on my bucket list for many years. We were lucky to be blessed with really great conditions. I did get a cabin to myself which was great. The crew were excellent - very experienced and happy to accommodate our needs. Remember to take your sea sickness meds, the toilets and showers are shared on the back deck. Water from all taps is drinkable from a desalinator. The team did their best to ensure we got the most dives possible and I was impressed that they assessed conditions before we got in. They called 2 dives off for safety reasons but added one on our last day when conditions had improved. All dives were on air which was clean. Extra snorkel activities were offered. Odyssey was a great experience for a well traveled diver. Obviously the excellent dive conditions helped to make this a fantastic trip.

Recommended for

The staff were amazing. The food was excellent. The boat seemed to be in great condition.

06 Nov, 2024

Excellent overall experience

My overall experience was excellent. The crew was dedicated to our safety and comfort. Everyone was very professional and fun! Completely enjoyed my trip!

Recommended for

The Crew. The Dive sites. The Food.

04 Nov, 2025

Great diving, laughs and friendly happy crew

We had a ball. The happy team vibes from Odyssey crew are priceless - give these people a raise!

Recommended for

fantastic staff - great team vibes. food was wonderful and chef a great fun character. diving was good - sadly some coral bleaching above 10M :(.

22 Oct, 2025