Stella Maris Explorer, Philippines
8.9 Fabulous - Nitrox available
- Free Internet
- Free Nitrox
“Perfect weather and seeing all those corals and baby/smaller sharks,turtles etc.”
Highlights
Designed with comfort in mind, the Stella Maris Explorer offers year-round liveaboard diving in the Philippines. Ten spacious 'retro-chic' cabins accommodate up to 21 guests. Each cabin features memory foam mattresses, pillows, AC, storage space, and private en-suite bathrooms. The cabins are spread over 3 decks with a choice of deluxe or premium economy, with twin, double, or queen beds available. Social areas include a spacious salon with a large TV and a dining area where expertly prepared meals and snacks incorporating lots of fresh fruits, vegetables, and a variety of proteins are served. The top deck offers chairs and loungers either in the sun or covered area, the perfect place to soak up the sun, relax in between dives or enjoy a stunning sunset with a cocktail.
The Stella Maris Explorer yacht offers itineraries to dive the best of Tubbataha in the Sulu Sea and Apo Reef & Coron. Up to 4 dives per day are scheduled to dive in nutrient-rich waters, bringing sharks, mantas, dolphins, and a host of macro critters. Diving is made easy with the 2 custom-designed 26ft/8mtr hard bottom dive tenders, and groups are kept small with a diver-to-guide ratio of 5:1. Nitrox is also available for those certified.
Join the Stella Maris Explorer yacht for a fantastic dive liveaboard in the Philippines. Book online today to reserve your space.
Choose your departure date
Included: VAT, Airport Transfer, Hotel Transfer, Drinking Water, Tea & Coffee, Full-Board Meal Plan (All meals), Snacks, Diving Package, Nitrox, Beach Towels, Cabin Towels, Complimentary Toiletries, Deck Towels, WiFi internet.
Required Extras: Fuel Surcharge (240 USD), Park and Port Fees (270-370 USD per trip).
Optional Extras: Gratuities, Alcoholic Beverages, Soft drinks, Nitrox Course (450 USD), Private Dive Guide (830 USD), Rental Gear, Scuba Diving Courses (360-570 USD), Snorkel Gear, Snorkeling Guide, Laundry / Pressing Services.
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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Drawings & Vessel Layouts
Cabin Types
Stella Maris Explorer Reviews
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- 8.9 Fabulous
- Vessel 8.2
- Crew 9.3
- Food 9.6
- Diving 8.8
- Value 8.5
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- 9.6 Exceptional
- David S
-
United States
Highly recommend
We had a great time on the trip. Very nice people and the staff was really great.
- Recommended for
- The staff was fantastic. The food was excellent. The diving most mostly excellent with a few dives with poor vis.
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- 10 Exceptional
- Michelle C
- United States
Love this trip and would highly recommend
Dive crew and staff were phenomenal. Tikz, king, Jaz, leyon (Rodger) were great dive guides. I felt very safe with them The boat was clean and plenty of space to lounge around. The food was so good. It felt like a culinary experience. The sites were all so beautiful. So may green sea turtles and black tip/white tip sharks. Corals were vast and colorful.
- Recommended for
- Staff. Views. Food.
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- 9.2 Superb
- jean charles L
-
France
Quality of the preservation of dive sites
Beautiful dives with few people on a good boat and a good crew, in a friendly atmosphere.
- Recommended for
- The comfort and the choice of dives. The organization and reception of the crew. The kitchen.
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- 8.8 Fabulous
- Claude B
- United States
Superb dive service and guiding experience!
The high points are the quality of the dives and the exceptional guide experience. Each group has a lead guide and a sweep or safety guide, a really excellent arrangement for drift dives with a wide variety of experience among the divers. The reef is healthy with a great variety of sealife on view. The guides are skilled underater and enjoyable company on board the boat. The cabins are quite small with minimal storage space, and mine had neither window nor porthole. Bedding was very comfortable. The food was simple but abundant and generally tasty, with excellent variety and nutritional balance. Beer and simple wine selections were available for sale, but you can bring your own liquor if you prefer. A good machine ground beans and prepared coffee 24 hours a day which I appreciated when jet lag had me awake at 0400. The chase boats delivered us to the dive sites with rides of 3-10 minutes. The water temp was typically 80-81 F with mostly mild currents except for one "washing machine" experience. Passengers were widely varied in nationality and age which made for pleasant and interesting conversation on board. Based on my review of other operators on this route, the Stella Maris seems like a good value for the money.
- Recommended for
- Dive guides and dive quality. 24 hour coffee and snacks. Engaging companions.
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- 8.8 Fabulous
- Thiago S
-
Brazil
Great dives
Dive operation is very organized. Food is amazing. Reefs and walls are beautiful and well preserved. Calm sea and easy dives.
- Recommended for
- Organization. Boat comfort. Great food.
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- 9.6 Exceptional
- Nicolus V
- United States
Comfy boat, delicious foods, good gear, nice guides!
This liveaboard was wonderful! The boat was very comfortable with a variety of community spaces to hang out in, private bathrooms with showers in each cabin, and plenty of storage space for all of our belongings. The meals were always very yummy and offered a variety of options for different preferences/needs. We each rented BCDs and regs and one of us rented a wetsuit, all of which were in good repair and functioned well. Our guides were friendly and fun, and had us feeling safe at every turn. Notes: - Though the description says "nitrox available" it should actually read "nitrox required", as we discovered once on board during the orientation. We were not nitrox certified but the training was offered to us onboard for $420/person. - While the diver-to-guide ratio is 5- or 6-to-1, it actually plays out as 10 or 11 divers in each group with one leading guide and one safety guide at the back of the group. - When they take you to the ranger station, wear clothes you don't mind being in the water in. You'll be waist-deep for group photos. - Gear rental is separate, paid in cash before leaving the boat (BCD $12, reg $12, wetsuit $8). - Beers and sodas are separate, paid in cash before leaving the boat (beers $3 each, sodas $2 each). - Tips are suggested on the last day, with the crew splitting whatever you leave in the envelope and guides being given theirs by hand individually, all paid in cash before leaving the boat. Really our only complaint about our time with this company was that there was a group of 4 other guests onboard that were constantly grabbing onto coral, breaking coral, getting too close to wildlife and scaring it off, etc and we did not feel that this issue was handled sufficiently by the guides. Though the guides gave them ongoing verbal reprimanding, when the behavior continued incessantly there were not any further consequences, such as being pulled from dives early or having to miss future dives. During the orientation, someone from the park came onbaord to tell us that if we saw anyone violating the park rules we should report it, but when we talked to the guides about reporting the ongoing, unchanging behavior we were told not to because the boat/company would be shut down. We definitely felt this issue could/should have been handled in a more appropriate way. But other than that, we had a great time on this boat and would most definitely recommend it!!
- Recommended for
- The (smallest, cheapest) cabin had plenty of storage space and a private bathroom with shower.. The foods were varied, delicious, and plentiful.. The dive gear was high quality and well-maintained..
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- 9.6 Exceptional
- Lloyd V
-
Canada
Stella Maris Liveaboard - Tubbataha 2026
This was our first liveaboard experience, and we had an amazing time. The diving was incredible and Tubbataha Reef is beautiful; we lucked out and saw whale shark, hammerheads, marble rays, and plenty of other life including many sharks. But what really made this experience special was the crew - they went above and beyond in every way to ensure that everyone felt right at home. Friendly, professional, hardworking, and felt like part of the family. The food was also excellent and feeling hungry was never an option. Huge, huge thanks to King, Tikz, Ryan, Jas, Leyon, and all the rest of the crew for making this experience so wonderful. Icing on the cake - they also helped return some gear we forgot on the boat to our home country, even after we had left the Philippines!
- Recommended for
- Amazing staff. Safe and professional diving. Beautiful reef.
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- 9.6 Exceptional
- Felipe C
- Brazil
Amazing dives and food
The dives in Tubbataha are amazing, cristal clear water, lots of fishes, sharks, whale shark and many corals. The cabins on the boat are very good, the food is amazing and the crew too.
- Recommended for
- Healthy coral reef, cristal clear water and amazing food
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- 9.6 Exceptional
- Robert D
- United States
Wonderful trip.
You old divers? No problem on the Stella Maris! I have over 1100 dives and dove with with this crew before. Never felt safer, their Safety DM always close, a lot of personal attention.
- Recommended for
- Biodiversity of Tubbataha. Dive guides. Food.
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- 8.8 Fabulous
- Wolf H
-
Germany
Very good trip even though the reef didnt show the big stuff, such as whale sharks, hammerheads, manta rays
Everything went well on Stella Maris, no short comings. Dives were explained in very much detail. Food is very good and support for the divers is excellent.
- Recommended for
- Well maintain daily routine, timely pick-up and return to Hotel/airport. Food was very good and well served. Crew was very helpful and tried to get the diver guests to the best spots.
