Emperor Explorer, Maldives

Excellent food and drinks

“We were on our first dive by 6:30 a.m each morning. The staff was amazing and every detail was cared for to make a smooth 4 dives …”

Beth F, United States United States
Read 65 more reviews

Highlights

  • Contemporary, spacious 42m liveaboard
  • Onboard spa for added relaxation
  • Complimentary glass of wine with dinner
  • Free nitrox for certified divers
  • All port, fuel, and park fees are included

The luxury Emperor Explorer yacht schedules year-round dive safaris in the Maldives. Designed to meet divers' needs, Emperor Explorer comfortably accommodates 26 guests in 13 cabins. Each stateroom features a private en-suite bathroom, individually controlled AC and fan, storage space, and charging ports. There is the choice of twin or double-bed cabins and the option to upgrade to main or upper-deck rooms, which also feature stunning sea views.

Emperor Explorer Maldives has numerous social and relaxation areas around the boat. The upper deck has an open-air terrace, and on the top deck is a large sundeck with loungers. The main deck is home to the air-conditioned salon with sofas and TV, and home-cooked meals with a complimentary glass of wine at dinner are served at the al-fresco dining area located at the stern.

Emperor Explorer offers a variety of itineraries around the world-class dive sites for which the Maldives are known. Choose from the 'Best of the Maldives' to truly experience the magic of the Maldive Atolls and deliver 7 days of fantastic diving at the iconic sites of the North and South Male Atolls and Ari Atoll, or the ‘Hanifaru & North’ itinerary, which gives guests a chance to get up close and snorkel with giant mantas in the bay. Diving takes place from the accompanying dhoni, which has plenty of space for gear storage and kitting up, making getting to and from the dive sites hassle-free. Complimentary nitrox is available for certified divers.

Trips aboard Emperor liveaboards include all port and park fees, free Nitrox, and even complimentary wine, while you will never be charged extra for itinerary or fuel surcharges. What you see is what you pay.

Book your MV Emperor Maldives liveaboard easily online today.


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Included: VAT, Environment Tax, Fuel Surcharge, National Park Fees, Port Fees, Airport Transfer, Drinking Water, Tea & Coffee, Wine with Dinner, Beach BBQ, Full-Board Meal Plan (All meals), Snacks, Diving Package, Nitrox, Cabin Towels, Complimentary Toiletries, Deck Towels.

Optional Extras: Dive Insurance (6 EUR per day), Gratuities, Alcoholic Beverages, Soft drinks, Nitrox Course (284 USD), Private Dive Guide, Rental Gear, Scuba Diving Courses (101-466 USD), WiFi internet (31 USD).

Book now, pay later: You can easily place your booking online. We will then hold the spaces for you and you can confirm with a payment later.

* Extra fees are shown per person.

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Boat features

  • Camera Station
  • Audio & video entertainment
  • Library
  • Air Conditioned saloon
  • Aircon Cabins
  • Sun Deck
  • Indoor Saloon
  • Non-Diver (Snorkeler) Friendly
  • Custom built for diving
  • Charging stations
  • En-Suite bathrooms
  • Paid Internet
  • Non-Smoking Rooms
  • Seaview Cabins
  • Separate Rinse for u/w Camera
  • Dedicated Local & International Crew
  • Bar
  • Available for Charter

Food & Drinks

  • Western Food
  • Local Food
  • Vegetarian Options
  • Buffet style
  • Beer available
  • Free Wine w/Dinner
  • Vegan Options
  • Wine Available
  • Beach BBQ

If you have any specific dietary requirements whilst on-board your cruise, you can add this to your special requests on step 2 of the booking form. We advise limiting these requests to religious beliefs or food allergies.


Diving

  • DIN Adaptors
  • Nitrox available
  • Tenders for diving
  • Free Nitrox

The crew speaks English, French, and Spanish.


Gear Rental

There is diving gear available on this boat. Please provide your rental needs on the booking form. See below for further details on inclusions and pricing. Show prices.


Drawings & Vessel Layouts

#deckplan floorplan

Boat Specifications

  • Year built 2019
  • Length 42 meters
  • Beam 13.2 meters
  • Engines 700 Hp Doosan Daewoo
  • Max guests 26
  • Number of cabins 13
  • Number of bathrooms 13
  • Tenders 1

Boat Navigation and Safety

  • GPS
  • Radio VHF/DSC/SSB
  • Emergency Rafts
  • Life Vests
  • Fire Alarm & Fire Extinguishers
  • Oxygen
  • First Aid Kits
  • Satellite & mobile phones

Emperor Explorer Reviews

  • 9.2 Superb
  1. Vessel
    9.5
  2. Crew
    8.7
  3. Food
    9.6
  4. Diving
    9.4
  5. Value
    8.9
  • 9.6 Exceptional
  • Beth F
  • United States United States
Wonderful experience with Emperor Explorer

We were on our first dive by 6:30 a.m each morning. The staff was amazing and every detail was cared for to make a smooth 4 dives during our day.

Recommended for
Diving, new friends and good food
  • 10 Exceptional
  • Mahua C
  • United States United States
Good re-entry into diving post-covid

I had some trouble on this trip - a bit of a mental block. But the dive guides helped me work through it. It could have gone very badly and instead I was able to overcome my issues and enjoy diving. That wouldn't happen on every boat. Also, I went for mantas and saw them. I never had so many of them get so close to me before.

Recommended for
dive guides, mantas, quality of the cabin
  • 8.4 Very good
  • Heather S
  • Canada Canada
Incredible trip to Deep South

Deep South Maldives - if you wanna see sharks this is the SPOT. Only downside is beach bbq is advertised, this is not the case Deep South, this is a central itinerary (i did Leo central prior to south). 4 dives a day which was excellent, be prepared this is a channel heavy trip, so if you want macro maybe stick to central. Fish factory was INCREDIBLE - hundreds of sharks everywhere, several species on a single dive. No hidden fees which was awesome. We had Charlie as our guide and she was spectacular. Would return, 10/10. Boat manager was a bit odd , we asked if we could do the manta cleaning station twice and he was somewhat passive aggressive about it, but we got the whole boat on board and we lucked out and saw 8 mantas at any given time. First day is basically check dives, but it's smart given the heavy current throughout the trip.

Recommended for
Sharks, comfort, safety.
  • 9.2 Superb
  • Ahmad R
  • Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia
Highly Recommended

The trip was well organised with high level of safety and comfort. All the crew and dive guides were professional and friendly. The selected dive sites were excellent. Food was good and sufficient. I only wished to approve my logged dives electronically in SSI application by an SSI professional but that was not possible.

Recommended for
/1/ Organisation with high level of safety and comfort. /2/ Dive Guides and Crew. /3/ Dive Sites.
  • 8.8 Fabulous
  • Guy M
  • France France
First time I see whale shark

To swim with mantas

Recommended for
Mes meilleures PLONGEEs
  • 8.8 Fabulous
  • Guy M
  • France France
First time I see whale shark

To swim with mantas

Recommended for
Mes meilleures PLONGEEs
  • 10 Exceptional
  • Daniel P
  • Belgium Belgium
Superb diving

Whale shark, nursesharks in a row on sandy bottom

Recommended for
Well organized, dive masters knew sites well, good cabin
  • 10 Exceptional
  • Victor P
  • Australia Australia
Best liveaboard that i have been to

Manta viewing at night

Recommended for
Very organised and efficient. Cabin is clean and tidy. Dive site are amazing
  • 8.0 Very good
  • Louise B
  • United Kingdom United Kingdom
Honeymoon

Everything was great, the days went like clockwork and having the dhoni made things much easier and more spacious. The mantas made the honeymoon!

Recommended for
The dive guides were knowledgeable and approachable, the mantas and amount of space on the boat.
  • 7.6 Good
  • Leandro S
  • Brazil Brazil
Great boat, could provide a better diving experience

Amazing boat, with very friendly staff. Our group had problems with our dive guide, who didn't seem to know the sites - we asked to change to a new guide and the boat manager promptly agreed (the guide was a contractor so wasn't a regular Emperor guide, which was weird). Half of dives were below average, but half were really good - particularly the manta cleaning stations. Despite the trip being called 'Sharktastic' there wasn't nearly as much action as we would expect - I'd suggest the boat to either rethink the trip name (VERY misleading) or revise the itinerary. All in all, a good trip on an excellent boat.

Recommended for
Spacious and luxurious boat, friendly staff and manta dives