Emperor Orion, Maldives

8.7 Fabulous

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

Check dates

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

“Could not have asked for a better experience or a better boat, the staff were super friendly and always available to help. ”
Ryan W, South Africa

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.

Choose your departure date

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 per 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.

Pay by bank transfer or online with

Best Price Guaranteed

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
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

9.2 Superb
Chong P
Malaysia

Awesome boat with awesome crews!
Alimatha jetty night dive was phenomenal! We saw literally 40-50 nurse sharks!
Recommended for
1.Great dives with good visibility and great dive guides. 2.The crews are friendly and awesome they will take care of u. 3.The boat is spacious and comfortable
09 Sep, 2016

8.0 Very good
Sophie R
France

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

8.0 Very good
christine W
United States

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

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

9.6 Exceptional
Harriet M
United Kingdom

Beautiful trip on an amazing boat in some of the best diving in the world with a great crew making sure you have the best time possible.
Brilliant. Comfy and roomy cabins with great ensuites. Great food and general boat comfort, and really good dive dhoni to get the best out of the sites
Recommended for
Cabins, food and diving experience
12 Apr, 2015

10 Exceptional
Keith H
United States

Phenomenal dives with a capable knowledgable crew.
The night dive with sharks was incredible. 40 or so nurse sharks just swimming through the group. As long as you keep your light off the sharks will come pretty close and you can still see pretty well without a light. Snorkeling with a whaleshark. Manta cleaning station. Hanging out with the crew. Having any and all needs predicted and ameliorated before I even knew I'd need them.
Recommended for
Night shark dive, personable dive masters, Whale shark snorkel.
12 Jan, 2018

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

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

10 Exceptional
simon P
United Kingdom

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

51 reviews

8.7 Fabulous
51 Verified Reviews

Sort reviews by:

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

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

10 Exceptional
Kim O
Denmark

Breathtaking
Sharks and rays.
Recommended for
Dives, ship, guides
04 Jun, 2018

6.8 Review score
Renee P
United States

Room comfortable for two people
The diving, I like Russ more than the other DM. Crew was not as friendly but, very good at their jobs & always trustworthy. Bathroom & shower were nicer than most.
Recommended for
Diving, food, organized entries
02 Dec, 2019

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

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

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
Marcel B
Switzerland

Superb diving in warm water
- Diving with Manta rays - Night dive with nurse sharks - Channel dives with 30+ sharks
Recommended for
Boat comfort, staff friendliness, quality of dives
17 Mar, 2018

9.2 Superb
Wing Lok K
Hong Kong

Exceeding expectations
Excellent
Recommended for
Great marine life, the food and the dive buddies
28 Feb, 2016

8.4 Very good
martine V
Netherlands

wonderfull trip
it was a wonderfull trip: beautifull ship.spacious cabins,great dive guides and fantastic diving
Recommended for
the best thing about this liveaboard was chris trickey the cruise director and diveguide.his briefings were the best i ever had.we enjoyed them every time again.he is thorough,very funny and critical.
16 Dec, 2015

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

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

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

8.0 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
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

8.8 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
Chi-Chiu T
Singapore

A great week's diving in the Maldives
1. Seeing a total of 4 whale sharks 2. Lots of mantas 3. Lots of sharks 4. Special night dives with mantas and with nurse sharks 5. The quality of dive leadership 6. The dive sites 7. The companionship of other international divers 8. The service quality 9. The food 10. A comfortable boat and dhoni
Recommended for
Quality of dive leadership, dive sites, comfortable dive boat
10 Jun, 2018

9.6 Exceptional
Kipling S
United States

Great Week
The diving was fantastic even though it was off season and the visibility was a bit decrease. The coral reefs are gorgeous. The Boat manger was really great about keeping us informed and working around some of the weather issues to make sure it was a great experience overall. Safety always was a top concern of the manager and guides.
Recommended for
Diving, Boat Managers, accomodations
04 Jun, 2018