Amba Liveaboard, Maldives

Name: Best of Central South Maldives: Ari - Vaavu - Meemu - Male Atolls (Male - Male)
Start: 2027-01-05
End: 2027-01-16
Location: Maldives

9.0 Superb

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

from $ 228 / day Check dates

“This was my first live aboard experience and I couldn't have wished for a better one. ”
Sina S, Germany

Highlights

BAUER PureAir certified filling system
Nitrox fillings included
Enos diver location beacon onboard
Paradroque Safety Equipment

The AMBA is a 31-meter-long liveaboard that accommodates 20 guests in 10 cabins, each featuring a private bathroom and adjustable air conditioning. The German owner personally manages the vessel. The clientele is international, comprising English and German-speaking individuals. The ship offers 11-day, 10-night tours to the Ari, Vaavu, and Malé Atolls, featuring well-selected dive sites.

The AMBA specializes in two-week tours for divers with medium to advanced experience. The tours require a minimum of 30 logged dives and some experience with currents. Communal areas onboard the Amba include the main saloon and dining room, where three freshly prepared meals are served daily, along with afternoon snacks, cakes, drinking water, tea, juice, and coffee. The German and Maldivian chefs bake fresh bread daily in the morning for breakfast lovers, alongside a vast variety of international delicacies from Asia, complemented by global cuisine. Since the Owner is a chef himself, food is one of the top priorities, besides safety and stunning dives. The outdoor lounge on the upper deck is perfect for relaxing between dives, and the partially covered sun deck is furnished with sun loungers.

The AMBA navigates through all atolls of the Maldives, including the Deep South, Central Maldives, and northern Atolls, offering dive sites carefully selected to avoid crowded areas. The Amba stands out for its BAUER PureAir filling system, free Nitrox for every dive, and an extended, modern safety concept that ensures the highest safety standards. The 16-meter dive dhoni provides efficient dive operations featuring a freshwater shower and a western toilet, and smaller speedboats offer easy access to nearby islands. The experienced multilingual crew ensures all guests have a smooth and personalized diving and holiday experience.

Book your liveaboard trip aboard the AMBA today.

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Date

Itinerary

Price

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05 Sep

12 Days / 11 Nights

$ 3,002

FULL

18 Sep

12 Days / 11 Nights

$ 3,002

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01 Oct

12 Days / 11 Nights

$ 3,002

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14 Oct

12 Days / 11 Nights

$ 3,002

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27 Oct

12 Days / 11 Nights

$ 3,002

Select Cabin only 3 spaces left

09 Nov

12 Days / 11 Nights

$ 3,379

Select Cabin only 2 spaces left

22 Nov

12 Days / 11 Nights

$ 3,379

FULL

05 Dec

12 Days / 11 Nights

$ 3,379

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19 Dec

15 Days / 14 Nights

Christmas trip!

$ 4,300

Select Cabin available

05 Jan

12 Days / 11 Nights

$ 3,379

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18 Jan

12 Days / 11 Nights

$ 3,379

Select Cabin only 2 spaces left

31 Jan

12 Days / 11 Nights

$ 3,881

Select Cabin available

Included: VAT, Airport Transfer, Drinking Water, Tea & Coffee, Welcome Cocktails, Full-Board Meal Plan (All meals), Snacks, Diving Package, Night Dives, Nitrox, Land Excursions, Beach Towels, Cabin Towels, Complimentary Toiletries, Deck Towels.

Required Extras: Environment Tax (12 EUR per night), Nitrox Course (220 EUR).

Optional Extras: Gratuities, Alcoholic Beverages, Soft drinks, Rental Gear, Snorkel Gear.

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
Family Cabins
Aircon Cabins
Non-Diver (Snorkeler) Friendly
Warm Water Showers
Air Conditioned saloon
Sun Deck
Camera Station
Rooms with Balcony
Nearly 1:1 Crew-to-Guest Ratio
Seaview Cabins
Naturalist Itineraries
Non-Smoking Rooms
Custom built for diving
Charging stations
Indoor Saloon
Library
Audio & video entertainment
Observation Deck
Fishing
Available for Charter
Local & International Crew
Separate Rinse for u/w Camera
Outside Showers
Leisure Deck
Daily housekeeping
Bar

Food & Drinks

Vegan Options
Vegetarian Options
Beer available
Wine Available
Welcome Cocktails
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

Free Nitrox
Shaded Diving Area
DIN Adaptors
Rinse Hoses
Dive deck
Tenders for diving
Sidemount Diving

Languages Spoken

The crew speaks English, German, and Italian.

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: 2004

Year renovated: Annually

Length: 32 meters

Beam: 10 meters

Top speed: 13 knots

Cruising speed: 8.5 knots

Engines: Heavy Duty Yanmar 370 HP

Max guests: 20

Number of cabins: 10

Number of bathrooms: 10

Tenders: 2

Fuel capacity: 4000 liters

Freshwater maker: 6000 liters per day

Boat navigation and safety

Depth Sounder
GPS
Radio VHF/DSC/SSB
E.P.I.R.B. Distress System
Emergency Rafts
Life Vests
Fire Alarm & Fire Extinguishers
Oxygen
First Aid Kits
Fishfinder
Satellite & mobile phones
Bilge pump alarm
Search light
Engine room CCTV
Crew trained in first aid

Amba Liveaboard Reviews

9.0 Superb

Vessel

8.8
Crew

8.8
Food

9.7
Diving

8.8
Value

8.9

10 Exceptional
Robert L
United States

Amba, one of the best liveabaords in the Maldives!!
This was my first long liveabaord and it was such an amazing time. We were only a group of 10 out of 20 divers so it made for a more intimate and enjoyable experience. It also gave us our own cabins which was an added plus. The crew were amazing, friendly and attentive and the meals were all freshly prepared and bountiful! The dive sites were incrediable and we saw such incredible sea life, but due to weather conditions visibility wasn't great at times and we weren't able to do the night dives, but weather is out of everyone's control hahaha but the dive team did their best to make each dive memorable!!
Recommended for
The Dive Sites. Amazing crew. A small group of divers.
24 May, 2026

10 Exceptional
marc L
France

Unforgettable stay, I was amazed
I would like to thank all the staff who work on the boat who did a great job, which made it an unforgettable stay.The dive sites were chosen according to the weather so that we could have a memorable time.The cleanliness on the boat is impeccable and the quality of the food is simple but really very good and efficient.I highly recommend a stay on AmbaThank you againMarc letourneur
Recommended for
Great dive site. Very professional Die Master. Safety on board the boat.
28 Apr, 2026

Translated from French

10 Exceptional
Kimberly P
United States

Awesome Boat/Staff and Diving !!!
Wow...So many highlights. Stefan and his staff were great even before the trip started. Great communication ahead of time on little things about the trip. We were picked up promptly at the airport on Tuesday. Great briefings on the boat, typical diving, etc. This was the ONLY boat I've ever been on to actually do a safety drill on evacuating from the lower level. Food was awesome and very healthy. Amo and Neo were great guides and did most of the daily dive briefings. There is some challenging diving in the Maldives at certain sites (current, reef hooks necessary, etc), but the crew made sure we practiced in advance and were ready when we did hit those more advanced sites. Diving in the Maldives ranges from beautiful corals and small stuff like nudibranchs to sharks, turtles and Manta Rays ! I've done multiple liveaboards and this one is the best. The crew went out of their way to make us all feel welcome. Great trip and can't wait to go back ! Hats off to Stefan and all the crew for an awesome week !
Recommended for
Great diving in Maldives ! Staff was incredible ! Communication was excellent
11 Apr, 2024

10 Exceptional
Heimke M
Germany

Amazing dives with amazing crew
Diving 🐟Great Group 🦈 Mega Crew 🐙We had Hassan, a local dive guide, he was really super professional and really extremely funny and eager for his group, but also always an eye for the whole team.Stefan did a great job of leading the trip and has a mega team behind him.All around a great and highly recommended boat.Say thank you to Juan and Heimke
Recommended for
Amazing dive guide amazing Crew
14 Sep, 2024

Translated from German

8.4 Very good
Stefano R
Italy

Beautiful experience
Fantastic trip, met beautiful people, super helpful staff, always smiling and super nice. Not a brand new boat but with everything you need. Fantastic dives, we saw a lot of variety of fish and corals.
Recommended for
Staff - MAGNIFICENT. Fantastic dives. Marine biology.
22 Jan, 2026

Translated from Italian

9.2 Superb
Silke K
Germany

Tolle Tauchgänge, viele Haie....es war ein Erlebnis!!!
Amazing dives
Recommended for
Tauchgänge, entspannte Gruppe, grosse Kabine
07 Aug, 2022

10 Exceptional
Craig D
United Kingdom

Excellent 10 day liveaboard experience on Amba
Itinerary picked as 2-3 rather than 4 dives per day and 10 night option. Guides superb from initial briefing through to maximising sightings potential on each dive. Saw mantas, sharks (white tip, black tip and nurse), turtles, octupus and various rays. Lots of tuna, jacks and large groupers as well as the small reef fish. Crew very helpful on Dhoni and the Amber liveaboard. Excellent food.
Recommended for
Dive itinary. Dive Guides and Crew. The boats (Liveaboard and Dhoni).
21 Jan, 2026

9.6 Exceptional
STEFANO C
Italy

Fantastic
All very nice, thank you
Recommended for
Beautiful places - Manta rays - Not too many people
29 Jan, 2020

Translated from Italian

9.2 Superb
jorge H
Spain

Very good valeu for money
Excellent diving with guides like Alex, Dane and Zeezal nothing can go wrong. Very profesional. Nice. With lots of patience and empathy. The dives we did were always excellent and very well planed even when it was not their normal route. Great time with great people.
Recommended for
The crew, the diving and the group we got.
17 Dec, 2019

9.6 Exceptional
Pilar R
Spain

Exceptional
It's the second time we've been to the Amba and it won't be the last. We felt right at home. The crew is attentive to everything and attentive to any problems or suggestions. The food is exceptional, very good, varied, healthy and plentiful. The organization of the dive is very professional, very focused on safety. There were three guides, they didn't organize them into groups and each instructor went with five or six divers, so they could keep an eye on us at all times. The dive sites are the usual ones on this tour of the central atolls. The boat is not very big but it is comfortable, with indoor and outdoor relaxation areas. We had a great week.
Recommended for
The dive sites, the organization, the comfort on board and the food
07 Apr, 2023

Translated from Spanish

90 reviews

9.0 Superb
90 Verified Reviews

Sort reviews by:

10 Exceptional
ying D
China

If you're looking to start your liveaboard trip in the Maldives, Amba is the best choice
It was great to arrange a dive site, especially the last shark dive site, which will be unforgettable for a lifetime
Recommended for
The dive sites selected in the itinerary are very distinctive, so that you will have different surprises every day of diving. However, you must have good diving skills to better enjoy the underwater world. For those who like to dive and have challenges, there are still some streams from several dive sites in this itinerary, which is very interesting. The safety on board is well done, and it is reflected in many small details. Steven will be like a big brother, constantly reminding you of the safety issues you overlooked. The food on board tasted good, after all, Steven was a chef 👨🏻 🍳 before. It's the taste I like anyway. Fresh chili peppers are served at every meal to boost the appetite. The cabins were tidy and well maintained, especially the beds, which were right for the hardness and softness. Can be a good rest.
09 Feb, 2024

Translated from Chinese

9.6 Exceptional
Ben P
United States

Fun diving with great staff! Goes by too fast
We had a wonderful time on the Amba. While you can't schedule the marine life, we had some great encounters with sharks, a manta, and numerous Maldivian reef fish. The crew was warm, inviting, and helpful. The dive staff was very knowledgeable and attentive before, during, and after the dives. The chef and kitchen staff are wonderful. The worst part of the trip is that it goes by too fast.
Recommended for
Great dives. Fun group. Amazing staff.
21 Jan, 2026

10 Exceptional
Sven R
Germany

Maldives = Always AMBA!
Everything :)
Recommended for
The unmatched positive vibe, professionalism and all people I met during this amazing trip :)
18 Dec, 2023

8.8 Fabulous
Mike B
Germany

10 Days Maldives
Diving + snorkeling with the manta rays and the nurse sharks.Very helpful and friendly crew on board.
Recommended for
Mantas, Haie, Essen
14 Nov, 2021

9.2 Superb
Anna M
Australia

Amazing trip!!
I loved this liveaboard! The environment was warm and welcoming! The crew were all fantastic! Alot of laughter was had! The diving locations were brilliant, seeing a wide variety of what the Maldives has to offer! Fantastic, knowledgeable and safety focused guides! I loved the fine details on the boat, private cupboards in the saloon, cool cloths on arrival, amongst many other things. The food was delish! Very much catering to Europeans, which personally isn't my preference, but great nonetheless! I hope to one day join you guys again for many laughs and fantastic diving! I also thought the boat itself was great, an older girl, she was very clean and organised, well renovated, incredibly roomy!! Amba has a lot of character with a colorful crew! Thank you so much Stefan and Co!
Recommended for
Crew, locations, diving
26 Jan, 2024

10 Exceptional
Sina S
Germany

A wonderful liveaboard experience on Amba
This was my first live aboard experience and I couldn't have wished for a better one. From the first moment of booking I felt well taken care of. The crew gave us a warm welcome at the airport and everything was perfectly thought-through and organized. We were greeted on Amba with a refreshing towel and a welcome drink which was a great start. The check-in procedures were stress-free and we could move into our rooms very fast after arriving to relax. The room was exactly as described, very clean and had all the amenities. I especially liked that there was also a fan additionally to the air-con and plenty of space for all my belongings. Everything was in great condition, there was a beautiful sun-deck and a nice chill-out area in the shade, the dining-area / saloon was very comfortable. The food on Amba was really amazing, there were always plenty of options, lots of fruits and vegetables, and catering for guests with special dietary needs as well. My highlight was the freshly caught Wahoo that was served one evening! All the boat crew were super friendly, attentive and professional. Our dives were wonderful, we started with a check dive with Manta Rays, which was amazing and continued with lots of other beautiful dives. The whole dive crew was very professional - Ammo, Joe, Franz and Neo were great, as well as all the other staff on the dive dhoni - they made sure we had superb dives while focusing on safety of all divers as well. Neo was a fantastic guide for my group with a lot of knowledge and experience - especially considering his young age. I learnt a lot from him and really enjoyed my dives with him as a guide. The whole week was really wonderful - from start to end and I would immediately book a trip with Amba again. It's been my first liveaboard but thanks to this great experience definitely not my last!
Recommended for
Diving & Dive Guides. Crew Service & Friendliness. Value for money.
20 Nov, 2024

10 Exceptional
Michael L
United States

The most fun I have had on a drive trip EVER!!!
I am new to HOOK diving and didn't get it until we did the first one. I don't want to do Hook Diving on every dive but it is a fun and different experience. Diving off of a Dhoni boat was great, all you dive things stayed there and didn't take up any space on the living area. this was just a great trip and would recommend AMBA and it crew to anyone. Stephon is a spectacular human and make you feel like you are at home on his boat. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!!
Recommended for
The Crew was outstanding. The Dive sites were diverse and full of life. The Food was outstanding.
29 Mar, 2024

9.6 Exceptional
Matthias G
Germany

Just beautiful
Lasting positive memory of diving with nurse sharks, as well as sightings of manta rays and reef sharks.
Recommended for
Dive guides. Quality of food. friendliness of the Vrew.
09 Dec, 2025

10 Exceptional
Alexander G
Germany

Fantastic Crew, well organised and superb diving!
I had the pleasure of staying on this dive vessel for a week in Dec/Jan 23/24. From the first moment you stepped on board you got the impression that this boat is well managed. This is due to Stephan, the manager, and his fantastic crew. They were very attentive and always customer oriented. Guests were well looked after. Diving around the Centre Atols was amazing. Jalal with his 30+ years of diving experience lead the dive guide team supported by Amu and Neo which were my dive guides. They were both fantastic and fun to be around with. Everyone on board spoke English. Communication was excellent and the briefing was detailed and very thoroughly. Food: veg and non-veg food was available. With Stephan being a former Chef himself he paid a lot of attention on food quality and taste. Cabins: I was lucky to have had a cabin for myself due to some cancellations. They were functional and cleaned several times during the day. Overall the AMBA is under great management and a very good value for money with focus on everyones wellbeing which probably attracted the right and more experienced divers who value honest diving over luxury. I will definitely book again!
Recommended for
Management, Diving, Food
11 Jan, 2024

8.0 Very good
Pascal F
France

a simple live aboard
quite trip well organized nice dive guide
Recommended for
Lot of room, friendly, quite
03 Apr, 2019

10 Exceptional
Pei Li Y
Singapore

Definitely the best I have been on so far
Love the manta night dive and Alimatha jetty dive. Sebastian is very attentive and helpful. Boat crews are very friendly and helpful. Stephen’s cooking is superb!!
Recommended for
Well organised, clean, well planned
01 Jan, 2024

8.0 Very good
Antoine B
France

We'll be back!
Great trip on amba, the crew were very caring, the food very good and the choice of dive sites great
Recommended for
Knowledge of dive sites. Guide. Food.
25 Apr, 2025

10 Exceptional
Michaela S
Germany

From now on, there is only one liveaboard for me in the Maldives: the Amba!
There is one thing that sets the Amba apart from other safari vessels: the owner (himself an instructor and cook) lives and works on board himself - it makes a huge difference in pretty much everything. Stefan has put together a great team. The atmosphere on board is professional, friendly and familiar. To mention a few points: - Everything, starting with the journey, briefings, security, rental equipment, meals is perfectly organized- the crew is great: friendly, helpful, humorous and well trained- Food is fresh, healthy and varied, curries from our own production, homemade sourdough bread, fresh fish and many vegetarian alternatives - Stefan attaches great importance to the kitchen- a small cooking course for interested parties was spontaneously added between two dives- the cabins are huge, some of them already nicely renovated (and the older ones are still completely ok) and offer a lot of storage space, USB sockets, reading light and a shower with more water pressure than at home...- Great sun/shade deck with plenty of comfortable loungers- Stefan is in constant exchange with the guests and responds to all wishes if possible- the Doni is very spacious (the only disadvantage here is that the compressor is not on the Doni and you have to change the bottle after every dive)- Nitrox always constant at 31% - this saves the eternal switching of the computer- three guides on board, so group size at about 6 people (Thank you Shah - you're great!)- on the last day the Doni was damaged. As a result, a replacement Doni was organized overnight, so that we could still do the last dive!- a great, colorful selection of dive sites / we had some bad luck with the weather this time (wrong or no current, therefore poor visibility and few big fish), but the team did everything to offer us good dives anyway. - on our next Maldives liveaboard we will 100% sail with the Amba again (and I have already been on 4 other ships).- Thanks again Stefan and team, if you are reading this - you are very special!
Recommended for
Perfectly managed ship with a professional and service-oriented crew. spacious cabins with plenty of storage space. delicious, healthy and varied food.
17 Nov, 2025

8.8 Fabulous
Franz V
Germany

Diving with humor and German quality.
The German guided rope ship Amba invites you to a 12-day liveaboard. During these days, the crew and especially the dive guides were able to show us the most beautiful dive sites in the Maldives with their experience and enough humor. But also around the diving they could really convince with good food, a lot of effort and a clean ship (apart from a few termites that like to circle around at night). You could feel the strong German guiding hand of a very strict, but all the more humorous boat leader and could always count on him for all problems and questions. He as the Gordon Ramsay of the seas, in combination with his new German and slowly warming colleague as a quasi sous chef and as icing on the cake a local, sometimes talkative, very experienced dive guide, form a wonderful, sometimes not perfectly organized trio (guessing currents was not their strong point xD), which made this trip really special. Therefore, I can really recommend this trip.
Recommended for
Diving Experience, Community, Maldives
09 Nov, 2022

10 Exceptional
Trond S
Norway

Friendly, great food, value for money
Manta, sharks, variety of dives excellent 👍
Recommended for
dives, crew, boat - all great
10 Jan, 2024

9.2 Superb
Johan B
South Africa

The week on the Amba was the best diving I have done yet!!!
The crew was really good, especially the kitchen staff. They kept us well fed and didn't just serve the "normal" dive boat fare. We did 18 dives and each one was different from the next, ensuring that we experienced all that the North Maldives has to offer in one short week. Some advice - as the currents can be quite strong, remember to bring a reef hook along, although the boat and also provide.
Recommended for
Crew and guides / underwater life diversity / Food
31 May, 2016

8.0 Very good
Anne M
France

Friendly crew and uncrowded dives
We had a good itinerary starting from Male and going to the northern atolls of the Maldives. The trip focused on manta cleaning stations and we were lucky to see them. We dove one channel (kandu) with an incoming current which had a great fish life. The maldivian guide Shaheel is very experienced and very friendly, he knows all the dive sites inside out. The couple managing the boat is super friendly and makes a great addition to a very nice boat. The Northen atolls may not have recovered yet from the bleaching episodes of the last few years but it is getting better in some parts. No doubt this uncrowded part of the Maldives will flourish again soon with vibrant colours. The fish life is overall good. Kuredu has an amazing dive site with dozens of huge turtles. Some channels attract lots of sharks. Always good to dive in the Maldives ! The boat crew and dhoni crew are all great and the whole operation runs very smoothly.
Recommended for
Manta cleaning stations; dive guides and crew; food
04 Mar, 2020

6.8 Review score
Cara W
New Zealand

Bad luck with weather, boat breaking and everyone speaking German apart from me
- good dives
Recommended for
- good dive guides, good staff and food
21 Apr, 2021

10 Exceptional
Pilar R
Spain

An unforgettable experience
We've had eleven fantastic days. The boat is very comfortable, with plenty of space on the upper decks to relax, chat, sunbathe... Very well preserved and taken care of the details. We stayed in one of the suites on the upper deck and it's a great, spacious stateroom with amazing views and a private terrace.The food is plentiful and very good. The crew is excellent, friendly and diligent at all times.The diving is second to none. The guides gave very detailed explanations of each dive site. As there were only a few divers (thirteen) we were divided into two groups, each led by a guide. The dive sites are the most well-known in each atoll and did not disappoint.The dhoni from which the dive is done is also very comfortable and spacious. The crew is always attentive and willing to help you.
Recommended for
The layout and space of the boat, the very relaxed atmosphere, the organization of the dive
04 Aug, 2022

8.0 Very good
Greg F
United States

Some good Some bad
The Manta dive was an awesome dive. The reefs were in very good shape for the most part and the amount of reef fish was mind boggeling!!
Recommended for
The crew on the dohni were very very good. 4 of the dives were good.
22 Mar, 2018