There are tourist destinations, whose good fame, paradoxically, begins to play against them: everyone knows in advance what to expect there. And although you can expect only good things, that’s the thing, it is known too well. Maldives is, perhaps, the most illustrative case. Who at the mention of this archipelago does not draw in the imagination an attractive, but standard picture: a tropical paradise landscape with turquoise sea and houses on stilts? All the atolls are traveled, every experienced vacationer has made a personal ranking of favorite islands and attractions. The more surprising it is to find that not everything has been tried. The usual holiday will play with new sensations, it is necessary to settle not in the house, and … on a yacht.
At first glance, what difference does it make – the sea in the Maldives is everywhere and more accessible than anywhere else. However, in favor of this decision there are several quite compelling arguments, both psychological and physical. Recall what psychologists say: the best vacation is a change of activities and environment. The ship routine itself will give the opportunity to switch from the usual town routine if not to the sea wolf life, but certainly to the other rhythm: not so unusual to feel discomfort, because hotel rooms are as comfortable as the cabins, but just enough different, to give new food for thought and emotion. The landscape behind the window will change every day. You can see and explore more than one island – but without the tedium of moving, without packing and unpacking your suitcases. You will essentially stay at home, and the world will move around you. From large ocean waves you can not fear the structure of the atolls: a shallow inner water area is surrounded by an outer ring of islands, acting as breakwaters. Even if fresh weather happens (rarely), the yacht will calmly wait it out in some sheltered bay. Moreover, modern luxury yachts are equipped with rock stabilizers, so that even champagne won’t spill from the glasses.
There is another very subtle nuance here, concerning the physical perception of life at sea. Any vessel, even in full calm, is always swaying. This movement is sometimes so elusive that we are not even always aware of it, but our body registers it. And it remembers: just like that, a person is gently rocking in his mother’s womb before birth. That is why it is an incomparable pleasure to fall asleep on a yacht and to wake up there unreasonably happy.The charter market in the region offers a huge range of yachts, both in size and in the selection of services. What is the best yacht to choose? Let it be not a multi-deck cruise liner with too many people and not a small catamaran with a couple of cabins, which will have to limit the range of communication, but the golden mean: a yacht big enough to have on board the entire set of services of a five-star hotel, and at the same time compact enough to sail anywhere, not only in deep waterways. The most unusual and yet practical format was invented by Scubaspa, combining the hard-to-match: diving safaris and spa vacations.
It often happens that in a couple, for example, the husband is fond of scuba diving and the wife is not interested in diving and is bored on board, and vice versa, when the wife wants to indulge herself more in spa programs at the resort, it limits the husband’s ability to explore new spots. It is possible to combine these conflicting interests on a yacht, which is equipped not only with a diving station, but also with a professional spa.
The fleet consists of two identical yachts, Scubaspa Ying and Scubaspa Yang, each 50 meters in length, with 19 cabins and 35 crewmembers. The spa area with six treatment rooms occupies 300 square meters, with separate decks for Thai massage and meditation, Jacuzzis, relaxation and yoga areas.
And all diving equipment is placed on the accompanying dhoni, which is used as a dive-boat, its low landing facilitates dives from the platform. The package has three options: diving only (15-17 dives per week, available to certified divers), spa only (two treatments per day), or diving + spa combo. Open Water Diving courses are available and certified during the cruise. Advanced divers will appreciate such a detail as the presence of Nitrox – a gas mixture in which the oxygen content is slightly increased compared with the usual proportions of the atmosphere, oxygen replaces nitrogen, the dissolution of which in the human body does not allow a long stay at depth.
Breathing enriched air, the diver is noticeably less tired, the time on the bottom can be increased, and the intervals between dives can be reduced without consequences for health.Resting on the island, you will explore only the reefs on its perimeter. The yacht will allow to diversify this experience to order – the crews build a route so that to cover the most interesting places: where you can see clusters of sea turtles, where to swim next to dolphins and giant mantas, and where to meet whale sharks (they are not dangerous to humans). And there’s no need to get ready for fishing, you always have your tackle handy, and the catch will be cooked right there. If guests wish, the team will arrange a night barbecue on a desert island, a completely wild beach will be decorated in the style of “the last hero,” with torches and decorations of palm leaves.
Or, if you want, you can dock at a populated island and get acquainted with the local life. In short, a yacht, while having all the advantages of a normal resort, also gives mobility, which makes the vacation richer and diversifies the vacation with new experiences.
Photo courtesy of the press service
