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Dive Review of Adang Sea Divers/Adang Island Resort in
Thailand/Koh Lipe Island

Adang Sea Divers/Adang Island Resort: "Friendly service above and below the wate with GREAT eyes for critters", Jan, 2020,

by Eileen Councill, N/A, China (Contributor Contributor 14 reports with 7 Helpful votes). Report 11410.

No photos available at this time

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Accommodations 5 stars Food 5 stars
Service and Attitude 5 stars Environmental Sensitivity 4 stars
Dive Operation 4 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ 3 stars
Beginners 5 stars
Advanced 5 stars
Comments Adang Sea Divers is one of many dive operations on Koh Lipe. It's located on Sunrise beach on a beautiful stretch of white sand. The topside operations were excellent. Becky and Amanda are superb - helpful, responsive, kind. I cannot say enough good things about them. They were flexible as well which I appreciated. We stayed on Koh Adang which was a 10 minute boat ride to Koh Lipe but well worth it - set in the jungle and completely isolated from the overcrowded Lipe scene. We had access to jungle hikes to a waterfall and a view point to observe Lipe from above - spectacular. The jungle was amazing and the beaches empty except for the small number of guests on the island. I cannot recommend this place enough. And, they had free boats to Lipe so you just schedule your boat and they took you when you needed to go/return. Back to diving...we rented gear as we were not on a dive trip but wanted to dive. The gear was good. The DM set up the tank/BCD but then you had to haul it about 300 feet to the boat. This was not so nice but I am sure if you asked, your guide would do it. At the end of the dive, they wrapped up all your gear off the tank and you carried it back, rinsed it and hung it (even rental). So, just be aware that this is not a high service operation...though I am sure if you asked, they would do it. Be CAREFUL of the centipedes and scorpions that crawl into your wet gear at night...The boat was a motor boat, very easy access on and back roll off. The railings were very helpful to keep balance and help you get back on the boat with full kit...though you could hand it up if you so desired. We unfortunately were in Lipe when the coral spawning was at its peak so we had completely green water, 2 meter vis and crappy conditions for diving. This happens once a year and the 3-4 week period of spawning is not consistent - sometimes December, sometimes January. I have to say that it's horrible, BUT thankfully doesn't impact macro diving all that much. It just ruins the ability to see the full impact of the fabulous sites like Stonehenge. Anyway, I did 6 dives because I loved the macro and the guides were amazing at finding critters. The one unprofessional move was the dive guide taking 5+ minutes photographing a subject before allowing me to have a turn. I don't think guides should be allowed cameras or if they have them, they should give the paying guest first shot and then follow. When I miss a chance to photograph something because the subject was on the run and the guide selfishly didn't give anyone else a chance, this is not professional. I have reported this to the dive shop so I am hopeful that this will change in the future. Despite that, the macro diving and nudi life, in particular, was outstanding. The boat was comfortable and most dive sites were within 10-15 minutes on the boat. The boat was never crowded. Overall, I liked the operation but it's pretty expensive overall to dive - $50/dive until you hit 6 dives and then it drops a few dollars then a few more with more dives. I did not research other dive operations so I do not know if dive prices are comparable. One other note...after each dive you return to the resort and hang out at the tables at the resort. If you do 2 or more dives, you get a free lunch - the food was excellent.
Websites Adang Sea Divers   Adang Island Resort

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 501-1000 dives
Where else diving Red Sea, Galapagos, Bali, Egypt, Philippines, Indonesia, Caribbean, Indian Ocean, Mozambique, South Africa, Hawaii, Pacific, Palau, Guam, Yap, Maldives, Lembeh Strait, Kenya, UAE, Oman, Thailand, Papua New Guinea, Malaysia
Closest Airport Langkawi Getting There Many ways -- fly to Langkawi and take a fast boat. Fly to Phuket and take a boat.

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, windy, dry Seas calm, choppy, surge, currents
Water Temp 79-81°F / 26-27°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 5-10 Ft/ 2-3 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile no
Enforced diving restrictions 60 minutes
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? no

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles > 2 Whales None
Corals 4 stars Tropical Fish 4 stars
Small Critters 5 stars Large Fish N/A
Large Pelagics N/A

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subject Matter 5 stars Boat Facilities 1 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 4 stars Shore Facilities 1 stars
UW Photo Comments There was no camera consideration as far as I could tell. I carried my camera on/off the boat. There was no designated area on the boat. I didn't see any facilities on land though I didn't stay at their resort so I don't know. They did not mention any. The rinse bucket was for cameras and masks...and you know how that's a bad thing to mix the two. I have a small camera without flash so for me, it was not a big deal but if you have a big rig, I don't know how it would be handled. Between dives you return to shore so that's helpful if you have any issues to address.
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Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

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