How to Pack for a Liveaboard Diving Trip – What You Need (and Don’t)

Packing for a liveaboard doesn’t have to be difficult or bulky! In fact, it’s pretty easy! Here’s everything you need to know to pack for a liveaboard and how to do it right!

Liveaboard diving is one of the very best ways to experience scuba diving at its best. When we returned from our fourth liveaboard in the Maldives aboard the Emperor Leo, it reminded us of the first liveaboard dive trips aboard the Raja Ampat Aggressor and with Dive Komodo in Indonesia years ago when we weren’t sure what to bring.

We thought it would be helpful to write a post for you about what we think should be on everyone’s liveaboard packing list – especially for first timers.

It’s not that we didn’t pack the stuff we needed the first time. It’s really that we over-packed! Seriously, half the stuff we brought with us we didn’t even use – including most of the clothing!

When you’re packing for a liveaboard, follow a few simple rules.

Don’t overpack for a liveaboard

If your vacation only includes being on the boat – in other words, flying in, getting on the boat, diving, then going home – then for the love of all that is holy, keep your liveaboard clothing to a bare minimum.

The only “regular” clothing you’re going to wear will be on the airplane. So if you wear pants and a nice shirt/blouse on the plane, just wear that in both directions and air them out in between.

You can even rinse the shirt out on the boat and dry it for later.

Your liveaboard packing list will involve very little clothing. You absolutely will not need anything else with you besides t-shirts, shorts, and swimwear.

Everyone on a liveaboard is relaxed, always.

So pack a few pairs of swimming trunks or whatever you wear to lay in the sun or swim plus a few t-shirts.

The good news is, you can easily rinse all this stuff out, hang it on the deck or on a clothes rack, and wear it a couple of times each.

If your liveaboard is 7 days, as is pretty standard, you can easily get away with a couple of pairs of shorts and a few t-shirts and/or tank tops.

There’s no need to even put a bunch of underwear or socks on your liveaboard packing list.

Why bother when you’ll just be in the water and on deck most days anyway?

Make-up and feminine hygiene products

On the several liveaboards we’ve been on, the women wear makeup at the bare minimum – if they do at all. Pack as little of this as you absolutely need!

BUT, bring womens stuff! We’re guys, so we don’t pretend to know all the feminine stuff you need. When packing for a liveaboard, be sure to bring plenty of feminine products.

They don’t have this stuff on the boat.

Here’s another good idea – mostly for women – but for men, too. Bring a sarong. It doubles and triples as so much. A headscarf, a neck scarf, a shoulder scarf, a skirt!

Women are lucky in this – one accessory and so many uses! Even men can use a sarong. We always carry one each – just in case.

Do you need towels on a liveaboard?

Unless you’re staying in a hostel or someplace you know doesn’t have them the night before and after your trip, your liveaboard suitcase should not include bulky towels.

All decent liveaboards offer towels in your room and to use on deck. You won’t need them and they’re some of the biggest space wasters in your luggage.

If you do think you’ll need a towel on a liveaboard, we recommend these microfiber towels from Amazon. They’re cheap and take almost no room in your luggage.

We have similar ones and we love them.

When planning a liveaboard, leave bulky items like regular towels at home.

Bring proper footwear on a liveaboard

Bring a pair of flip-flops with you. Most liveaboards will not allow you to wear shoes/sneakers in the dry area (which is basically everywhere except the dive deck).

You’ll be required to either pack your shoes away or put them in a box for the duration of the trip.

Michael’s old flip-flops were worn out, so he recently purchased a new pair of Teva flip flops for just over $20. They’re good quality and he likes them so far.

Many liveaboards will stop in certain places for excursions. For example, when we were in Raja Ampat, we stopped on an island where we had to hike through the woods and then up 300 stairs.

We were so glad that we brought our sneakers.

Electronics on a liveaboard

The type/amount of electronic stuff you take on board will really depend on your personal tastes and needs.

When we pack for a liveaboard, this constitutes the bulk of our luggage. We take a lot of underwater photos, so Michael needs to bring a large-ish camera, strobes, lights, his laptop (for processing and offloading pictures), an external hard drive, and the cords necessary for charging and transferring images.

Most people won’t need all of this, so you’ll be able to pack lighter.

At a minimum, you should bring:

• Smartphone
• Charging cables
• A power adapter that is compatible with the region you’re visiting.
• Headphones/earbuds

Most non-photographers we see on liveaboards come with just those items and maybe a point and shoot camera if they don’t want to use their smartphones.

Some may even bring a tablet or Kindle to watch TV or a movie during downtime.

But that’s it.

Again, unless you’re continuing your journey on land after your liveaboard, you won’t need things like curling irons and blow-dryers.

No one cares what you look like!

Pack lots of sunscreen for a liveaboard

This is a big one.

Most liveaboards take place in areas where the sun is constantly beating down on you. Even in the off-season, when it might be cloudy, don’t assume your skin isn’t sizzling.

Wear good sunscreen.

More importantly, wear a good sunscreen that is also environmentally friendly. We use Burn Out Broad Spectrum sunscreen. It’s ocean and reef friendly. Whatever you choose, make sure it’s reef safe.

Regular sunscreen kills coral. Don’t use it.

In fact, even on land you should use a reef safe sunscreen. Every good diver knows that everything makes its way to the ocean eventually.

Pack extra medication for a liveaboard

It goes without saying, we think, but bring your meds on your dive trip. When packing for a liveaboard, include any over-the-counter stuff you think you may need.

This includes anything you might wish to take for motion sickness.

If you think you may be prone to getting seasick, you’ll want a supply of medication like Dramamine/Gravol. One solution, available by prescription only (in the US anyway) is a small patch called scopolamine.

It’s a transdermal patch marketed under the name “Transderm-Scop.”

You wear it behind your ear and it delivers controlled amounts of medication.

This is becoming more and more popular, especially on cruise liners and liveaboard boats, and seems to work well for Halef.

Diving Equipment for a liveaboard

We prefer to bring our own diving equipment on a liveaboard. After all, we paid a lot for it, so we want to use it. That said, we have yet to find a liveaboard that doesn’t have everything you need for rent.

Keep in mind that diving equipment is quite heavy. If you don’t have status on an airline, you may be forced to pay to bring it on the flight if it’s over the weight limit.

That cost can add up.

Some airlines charge $150 each way for excess baggage, so it might be worth it to you to just pay the liveaboard company $250 to rent their gear and not worry about it at all.

When we’re packing for our liveaboard trip, we always look at exactly what we’re going to need for the trip. If the water temperature is above 27 Celsius, for example, we’ll leave our wetsuits at home.

We also have a lot of extraneous items that, while tempting to pack, we know we don’t need to bring (e.g., a dive knife).

Some people like to bring gloves, but generally, dive operations won’t let you use them.

Keep your scuba diving gear to a minimum.

Things to remember

Here are some things you definitely need on your scuba diving equipment list – either to bring with you or consider renting:

1. Dive computer and an extra battery: Most liveaboards won’t let you dive without one. And if they do, you might want to reconsider their commitment to safety.
2. BCD, fins, and mask: Obviously
3. Snorkel: – Some liveaboards only allow snorkeling with whale sharks, for example, so you’ll need a snorkel if you’re on a liveaboard where whale sharks are on the agenda.
4. Booties
5. Reef hook – Often overlooked, but if you’re going to be checking out manta and shark cleaning stations, you may want to hook on because the current is strong. Here’s the one we have. It’s inexpensive and works well. We also like that it’s a single hook and not dual. Personal preference and minimal contact.
6. Surface marker buoy: (safety sausage) and reel – You never know when the current will move you away from the group. Or, you and your buddy may just want to dive on your own. We use this one. It’s inexpensive, easy to use, and high visibility.
7. Flashlight/torch: There’s usually at least one night dive!
8. Batteries: You want enough to last

Things to include on your liveaboard list

C-cards: Bring your card for the highest level you’re certified for. And don’t forget your Nitrox card if you have one.

Dive Insurance: Many liveaboards won’t let you dive without insurance. We recommend DAN insurance. But at a minimum, we recommend traditional travel insurance that covers diving, like World Nomads.

Log book: If you want the liveaboard company stamp in your book, bring it. We have a three-ringed dive log, so we just bring a few pages along with us.

Camera gear: If you’re planning on taking underwater photos, be sure to bring camera gear that is good down to at least 30 meters. You’ll want to make sure you have a couple of extra SD cards as well!

Entertainment: These days, a lot of liveaboards have flat-screen TVs in the common areas. Some even have them in your room. Most of them can accept a thumb drive, so bring some movies and TV shows.

Reading: You’ll probably relax on the deck or in your room between dives. If you’re a reader, bring a couple of books or your tablet with your favorite reads pre-loaded.

Cash for Tips and incidentals: Tipping on a liveaboard is common. In most cases, you’ll leave a tip for the crew of the boat. Most people like this in cash, so bring enough US currency for a tip. As for how much, that’s up to you.

If your liveaboard doesn’t accept credit cards and charges for things like alcohol, you’ll need cash for that, too.

When packing for a liveaboard trip, be an editor

Packing for a liveaboard is like writing an essay in history class. It’s far easier to just throw as many words on the page as you possibly can, hoping that everything is in there that you need to include.

Like that essay, the more you edit it, the better it will be. Basically, you want to get right to the point and not throw in a bunch of irrelevant information just to fill up space.

How big are the cabins on a liveaboard?

Rooms on liveaboard boats are typically small, but usually comfortable enough. So you don’t want to pack things that are just going to be lying around.

When you over pack, you’ll find out very quickly that a lot of what you brought will just sit in the suitcase in your room.

Bring only what you need. Nothing more.

Liveaboards are about diving and meeting new people. Nine times out of ten, the motto is “Eat. Sleep. Dive. Repeat.” That’s the beauty of it.

If you’re packing for a liveabord thinking you’re going to be doing much more than that, you’re about to get a wake-up call!

There will be no galas to dress up for. The third and fourth pair of shoes will just take up space. There won’t be a reason to wear make-up.

You’ll be too tired at the end of a 3-4 dive day do much else.

When packing for a liveaboard, pack light. Pack only what you need. Liveaboards are about the diving, the food, and the people you will meet when you are there.

Happy diving!

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