Emperor Orion, Maldives

8.7 Fabulous

Nitrox available
Free Nitrox
En-Suite bathrooms
Aircon Cabins
Non-Diver (Snorkeler) Friendly
Warm Water Showers

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Diving with Manta Rays - MV Orion Liveaboard

Stunning Marine Life with MV Orion Liveaboard

Maldives Diving aboard the MV Orion Liveaboard

Executive Suite - Emperor Orion Maldives

En-Suite bathroom - Emperor Orion Maldives

“From start to finish the trip was amazing, the diving was amazing with very professional staff. ”
Simon H, United Kingdom

Emperor Orion is not able to accept any bookings at the moment. See all Maldives upcoming departures to find alternative trips.

The 41m M/V Emperor Orion is a floating luxury resort in the Maldives. Emperor Orion offers a large, lavish dining room with bar and television for meals and relaxation. On the upper deck, guests can relax in the Jacuzzi, get a massage and enjoy drinks at the main bar. There is also a massive fly deck for sunbathing. There are 12 cabins on board, including 1 Executive Suite, 1 Junior suite, 3 twin/double mini-suites and 7 twin/double standard cabins. Each cabin has spacious en-suite bathrooms (and some of the best showers anywhere), individual AC and hair-dryer. The Executive Suite also features a spacious king-size bed, private hot tub and outside seating area.

A fantastic advantage of the MV Emperor Orion is that all diving takes place from a large tender dhoni allowing for much greater space on the liveaboard. The Orion Maldives dive staff will assist guests with hassle-free scuba diving at the best dive sites in the Maldives. Emperor Orion also has 4 dive guides/instructors on board to ensure maximum safety and enjoyment of all divers. The Orion crew provides each guest with superior service and the divemasters are passionate experts at diving the Maldives. Together, the team will work to ensure every guest enjoys the ultimate scuba diving holiday. The Emperor Orion schedules diving cruises from August through May.

Book now for the ultimate, luxury Emperor Orion Maldives liveaboard diving holiday.

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This liveaboard does not currently have availability online. Please contact us to check availability and rates or browse other liveaboards worldwide

2026

2027

2028

Included: VAT.

Optional Extras: Nitrox Course (225-275 EUR / activity), Scuba Diving Courses.

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

En-Suite bathrooms
Aircon Cabins
Non-Diver (Snorkeler) Friendly
Warm Water Showers
Air Conditioned saloon
Sun Deck
Paid Internet
Custom built for diving
Indoor Saloon
Library
Audio & video entertainment
Daily housekeeping

Food & Drinks

Free Wine w/Dinner
Vegan Options
Vegetarian Options
Beer available
Snacks All Day
Buffet style
Western Food
Local Food

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

Nitrox available
Free Nitrox
DIN Adaptors
Rebreather Support
Rinse Hoses
Tenders for diving

Languages Spoken

The crew speaks English.

Gear Rental

Equipment is available for rent on this boat. Please provide your rental needs on the booking form. If the rental gear is not included in the price, you will need to pay for it on board the boat. Show prices

Drawings & Vessel Layouts

Cabin Types

Boat Specifications

Year built: 2009

Year renovated: 2012

Length: 135 feet

Cruising speed: 10 knots

Engines: 600 HP Volvo

Max guests: 24

Number of cabins: 12

Number of bathrooms: 15

Tenders: 45ft Diving Dhoni

Boat navigation and safety

Radar
GPS
Radio VHF/DSC/SSB
Emergency Rafts
Life Vests
Fire Alarm & Fire Extinguishers
Oxygen

Emperor Orion Reviews

8.7 Fabulous

Vessel

8.7
Crew

8.3
Food

9.0
Diving

9.2
Value

8.4

10 Exceptional
simon P
United Kingdom

Wonderful diving, very comfortable boat
Excellent
Recommended for
The diving, the diving and the diving
18 Mar, 2016

9.2 Superb
Fernando C
Spain

Great Dive guides, Maria & Gabriel
Great dives with Maria!
Recommended for
Great guides, Great service, Great boat, Great gtoup
16 Apr, 2018

9.2 Superb
Fernando C
Spain

Great Dive guides, Maria & Gabriel
Great dives with Maria!
Recommended for
Great guides, Great service, Great boat, Great gtoup
16 Apr, 2018

9.2 Superb
Angela W
China

Enjoyed the Week
This is our first liveaboard trip, which proves to be a great week of Manta Madness. We've seen mantas almost every day. Also we had impressive night dives with Manta, and lots of Nurse Sharks. And we swam with a lovely Whaleshark!
Recommended for
Convenience, Comfort, and Extraordinary new experience
10 Oct, 2016

8.4 Very good
Claude L
Switzerland

Nice diving week
Mantas... Nobulas... sharks... nice weather.. nice bunch of divers
Recommended for
dive masters, doni service, variety of dives
22 Feb, 2017

9.6 Exceptional
Ian D
New Zealand

Great trip and great boat crew and guides
We had a great trip. There was a great group of divers and the boat and dive crew where great. Currents where stronger than expected and sadly no Whale Sharks on this trip :(
Recommended for
Boat crew and dive crew
16 Mar, 2017

8.0 Very good
Matilda K
South Korea

Excellecnt dive guide!! Best water in the world
Thank u for the friendly crew!!
Recommended for
Whale sharks n manta. Very friendly crews. Comfortable cabin
24 May, 2016

8.8 Fabulous
Carl E
United States

The crew was great and the diving was exciting
Seeing the Mantas. Good companionship with the other guests. Nice underwater photo opportunities.
Recommended for
Nice boats, crew was friendly and professional, nice Mantas and night diving
16 Mar, 2017

8.0 Very good
LEIBIN L
China

my best liveaboard experience
A very diversify liveaboard experience. We have travellers from almost every continent in the world. It is really glad to talk to them and share the diving experience.
Recommended for
communication, friends, manta
19 Jun, 2017

10 Exceptional
GABRIELLE W
Australia

Incredible
The dives had so much to offer, but the night dive with over 100 friendly and curious grey nurse sharks was definitely the highlight.
Recommended for
Crew, dive sites, water warmth
04 Jun, 2018

51 reviews

8.7 Fabulous
51 Verified Reviews

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8.8 Fabulous
EUGENE L
Ireland

Unforgettable week in the Maldives with The Irish, French and Turks! Oh and the Thai Guide Suzy.
The trip was fantastic. We had an awesome experience on the boat and met some wonderful people among the staff and guests. The dives in general were very good although the current made some tough! The night dives were amazing! 4 of us had what felt like a private manta show while doing the safety stop - went on for about 7 minutes with 2 beautiful Mantas circling the small group. The Private Jacuzzi was well used and created many funny incidents - we'll say no more.......... The staff were incredible. Very helpful and friendly especially that one from Thailand! Very good food - great spuds on the BBQ! Awesome Xmas dinner served. Overall, a great week. Thank you. Eug
Recommended for
Manta Rays and Sharks, The Nurse Sharks on last night dive, The Private Jacuzzi!
03 Jan, 2017

8.0 Very good
Biagio S
Italy

Magnificent
Mantas, whale shark, nice visibility, almost no current, 2 athols in 1 week, group of new friends from US to Australia: excellent. Programming the new liveaboard for the next year ;))
Recommended for
Dives, Friends, Professionalism
29 Aug, 2016

10 Exceptional
Charles L
United States

Best Liveaboard!
Loved the 7 day (best of maldives) trip! From day 1, we were impressed by the experienced crew with the schedule, the food, and the overall process. We had a pretty set schedule everyday with 3-4 dives and saw the most amazing marine life (Whale sharks, Manta rays, Guitarfish, and tons of sharks, fish, and turtles)! Moreover, the food is not bad at all with different menu everyday (hard to imagine how the chefs cook the meals for 30 people on a rocky boat)! The boat may be getting a bit older, but overall the service and the experience is amazing! Highly recommend!
Recommended for
1) Very experienced and amzing dive guides 2) Really experienced dhoni captain and boat crew 3) Food and people!
11 Jan, 2016

9.2 Superb
Frances D
United States

The currents are not typically as strong this time of year -but it was already too much for me.
I saw many sharks, a few manta rays, a whale shark and so many different species of fish. The dive guide that was for my group - named Jackie / from Taiwan - was very professional, friendly and funny. I truly enjoyed having Jackie as my dive guide. Another highlight for me was the Spa Lady - named Alex / from The Philippines - She was very professional. I enjoyed visiting her several times for massages. Her prices are really fair and her massages were so good! The MV Orion was smooth sailing with professional crew and a wonderful Chef who cooked a lot of different types of food which always tasted good.
Recommended for
I saw so many sharks ( I thought there were 100+) on the one of two night dives we did and it made me so happy because that is what I really wanted to see. I very much liked that we had a dhoni boat t
21 Aug, 2016

6.8 Review score
Nicos S
United Kingdom

Great diving little else
Diving was great. Accommodation especially the air on needs improving
Recommended for
Whale shark, nurse sharks and mantas
27 Dec, 2015

8.0 Very good
christine W
United States

very good
very good
Recommended for
room was big and clean
02 Dec, 2015

10 Exceptional
Ryan W
South Africa

We had a great trip
Could not have asked for a better experience or a better boat, the staff were super friendly and always available to help. Every dive was great. With the boat being so big it almost feels like you are the only person there.
Recommended for
The diving was great, the staff were super friendly and the food was amazing.
21 Aug, 2016

8.8 Fabulous
Simon H
United Kingdom

Holiday of a lifetime.
From start to finish the trip was amazing, the diving was amazing with very professional staff. Detailed briefing's before each dive. Looking at the website I had a certain standard in my mind, the boat, staff, food & diving was above my expectations. If I did this again I wouldn't hesitate to choose the Orion Liveaboard.
Recommended for
Very spacious boat, attentive staff & awesome diving
02 Jan, 2016

10 Exceptional
Mikael G
Denmark

Total nice and first time om a Liveaboard.
This must be the night dive with Mantas and snorkeling with a whale shark. The BBQ on the island was canceled because of a rainy evening, but instead the made a very nice dinner with local food on the boat. I will defiantly make a trip on liveaboard in the Maldives in the future🤗
Recommended for
Friendly crew, delicious and variated food and nice dives.
06 Dec, 2017

9.6 Exceptional
Nilanjana M
India

Absolutely fantastic!!
The visibility at each of the dive sites, the abundance of healthy corals, the sharks, the millions of beautiful fish at the reefs. The different shades of blue!!
Recommended for
1. The boat itself. 2. The entire crew - dive guides, food. 3. Destinations - excellent
14 Feb, 2018

10 Exceptional
Katherine N
United Kingdom

Wonderful
I had a great week on the MV Orion. Lots of sharks, lots of fun and really conscientious dive guides and crew. The cabins were also very comfortable and spacious. Would most certainly book this liveaboard again.
Recommended for
Exciting channel diving, really comfortable boat, friendly and knowledgeable staff
05 Feb, 2016

8.0 Very good
Lily Y
United Kingdom

Awesome
Night dives
Recommended for
Lux rooms friendly staff good route
23 Apr, 2018

8.8 Fabulous
Ricardo Yudi N
Brazil

Great diving safari!
Mantas, mantas, mantas and a lot of sharks!
Recommended for
The boat, the Maldivas, the Crew!
25 Oct, 2016

8.0 Very good
Sophie R
France

Wonderful
On the top : great dive sites, very versatile (channel dives, coral reef, pelagic etc.) Then, the great organization of the cruise should be mentioned. Basically guests have nothing to do except enjoying the dives, the boat and the trip. The management of the boat is perfect, the crew is super friendly, not to mention the dive guides who are experienced and extremely nice.
Recommended for
Dives, confort, great organisation
03 Jan, 2017

Perfect liveaboard
Wonderful and various dive spots Comfortable and cosy boat Lovely dive guides and boat team
Recommended for
Dive spot, boat, crew
18 May, 2017

8.8 Fabulous
James E
United States

Lots of dive experiences rolled into one great week
We were able to see mantas, whale sharks, a variety of reef sharks, sting rays, eagle rays, soft coral, hard coral and macro life all on one trip The dusk dive with the constant parade sharks and rays was a blast. Dive guide Chris was a joy. You can tell he loves diving, loves the Maldives, loves telling a great story and truly enjoys sharing his dive world with guests. He was always attentive to safety, both of his guests as well as the reef.
Recommended for
Variety of marine life, large comfortable ship, Dive guide Chris
05 Apr, 2017

8.8 Fabulous
Sylvain R
France

Nice relaxing week
The Emperor Orion is nice and confortable, including its doni. The crew was very careful and friendly. The dive sites are great despite the damaged corals. The only drawback was our dive guide, Sakeel, who was careless and slack. Overall, a wonderful week, with good company.
Recommended for
Manta Rays - Puppy Sharks - Mantis Shrimp
22 Oct, 2017

10 Exceptional
golan C
Israel

Great experience, boat, boat crew and dives
Manta dives 4th day
Recommended for
Dives, food, boat facilities
10 Nov, 2016

9.2 Superb
Salvador L
Mexico

Good Experience
It was a pleacent trip , with a great Cabin, the diving is not as good as I thought but was ok
Recommended for
The Personal, the Boat, and the views
21 Oct, 2015

8.0 Very good
Malcolm C
Malta

Amazing South Maldives !
Schooling grey reef sharks, oceanic black tips, lots of other Pelagics, spectacular coral and visibility in Laamu
Recommended for
Great dives, good service, off the beaten path
24 Oct, 2019