Rob: Wow, what a week of diving. I had just finished doing the first dive of a Discover Scuba Diving course in Koh Ha Lagoon working on Koh Lanta’s Daytrip Big Boat. While changing my equipment, Natalie, one of the other instructors, said she had found a pair of Sea Moths near the buoy line at 6 meters. Now I have been wanting to see these crazy critters since last year’s dive season but never seem to find them, with many people joking that I have to open my eyes.

Being very excited nearly all the staff jumped back in the water to have a look. It took maybe 5 good minutes to locate the Sea Moths again and to everyone’s surprise their wasn’t just 2 but 4 together. They are camouflaged perfectly and my first impression was like watching two mechanical birds that have fallen from a tree walking around. They stay together In pairs and are really hard to take photos of as just when you are ready they turn away. It’s like watching comical synchronized dancing.

Frogfish at Koh Ha Lagoon

Whilst under the water we decided to locate a frog fish, with the information kindly passed on by the Liveaboard trip staff. It really wasn’t to hard to find as so many people were with their cameras and it is also in the Lagoon at 7 meters. I took Chris to see it when he came to visit at the beginning of December and he managed to get some shots of it even though the frogfish is wedged deep inside a nest of coral.

My favourite though are the tiny harlequin shrimps on Koh Ha 2 and not many people know their location yet. I have heard there are 3 pairs all together but I have only seen one pair. They are always munching on the Blue Sea Stars and usually like the dark so I always check protruding blue legs sticking out from every crack. They are by far the funkiest things in the water. One being bigger than the other and one having pinkish spots and the other blue spots. Every 18 days they vibrate their carapace off, part of a mating ritual which sadly I haven’t experienced but maybe it would make me blush seeing two lovers together.

Harlequin shrimp at Koh Ha Lagoon

It’s more easy to spot difficult to find critters like this when divemastering than teaching. With teaching taking care of new, inexperienced divers is a must. But a few days ago I did a Nitrox course and dived at Koh Bida Nok in the Bida Islands. Nitrox is a different blend of oxygen – it doesn’t let you go deeper but it allows you to stay longer at certain depths. After planning on the boat we cruised around at 25 metres and shallowed up to 20 where we checked out a rock covered with marine life, shrimps and some incredible soft and hard corals.

Whilst having a look I noticed something move which didn’t quite look right. Turning my head to focus properly I saw a black Feather Star sitting their but no movement. Then bingo it moved again. It was an Ornate Ghostpipe Fish, Black in color maybe 5cm long and my first one of the season. I was all cocky on the boat as no one has spotted one yet, but in a few more weeks its possible to find up to 8 on most dive trips. Still being cocky and making fun of the rest of the crew I just told them to open their eyes or get a prescription mask. Sadly I wasn’t armed with my camera as we don’t take them while guiding for safety reasons but it’s really worth you getting a cheapy underwater digital camera if you come diving on Koh Lanta – there’s so much to see if you open your eyes!

Chris: I’ve just set up a Facebook business page for AmazingLanta, where you can see the video tour of the Hin Daeng and Phi Phi Islands liveaboard and also a bunch of awesome underwater photos taken by Peter, the liveaboard’s owner. I’ll be updating it with more stuff on a regular basis. If you like using Facebook, drop by and become a Fan of the page so we know you’re out there! Share the page with your friends too if you’re thinking of coming to Thailand – we might work out some specials for Facebook users in the future if enough peeps show interest.

AmazingLanta.com is managed by Rob and Chris, two British scuba diving instructors living in Thailand. Rob and Chris met back in 2003 when they did their PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor course in Thailand and have been good mates ever since.

Koh Lanta – Some Of Thailand’s Best Scuba Diving
Koh Lanta is still a relatively undiscovered destination in Thailand, especially for divers. The south Andaman sea boasts some of Thailand’s best scuba diving and Koh Lanta is closest to most of the best sites. Rob and Chris have partnered with some of the Koh Lanta’s most reputable dive schools to offer you a complete range of options for your diving. You can choose to dive from a speedboat that gets you to the sites and back to Lanta super fast, a big all-day boat that heads out and back to the sites at a leisurely pace, and also a top quality Thailand liveaboard that lets you maximise your diving time and save on accommodation costs as well!

We can also help you with general information to make your holiday easier, like getting to Koh Lanta, booking Koh Lanta hotels and other non-diving things to do on Lanta. Just let us know.

Keep In Touch
We’re here to help you discover Koh Lanta and explore its amazing diving. We update the AmazingLanta.com dive blog each week with new info about what we’ve seen both above and below the water, plus special offers from the dive companies we work with. Just send us a message through the contact form on each page of this site to get in touch!

Learn to scuba dive on the beautiful island of Koh Lanta, Thailand, We’ve taught hundreds of people how to scuba dive – let us show you Lanta’s amazing underwater world

Our scuba instructor says: To become a scuba diver, I’ll teach you the PADI Open Water Diver course, which certifies you a scuba diver and allows you to dive anywhere in the world.

Clownfish		Boxfish
Lionfish		Cuttlefish

Some dive schools have up to 8 students in a class – I only teach a maximum of 4 people to one class. That way you are assured of safety, quality time in the water and a relaxed pace to the course. Below I’ve written up how much the Open Water costs and the timetable for doing it over three days.

Book Your PADI Open Water Course Today!
If you want to learn to dive or have any questions, just email us at amazinglanta@gmail.com or use the form below.

Go Dive’s PADI Open Water Diver Course is normally completed in 3 days.

The PADI Open Water Diver Course costs 13,900 Thai Baht
[See Yahoo! Finance for a currency converter].

This price is all inclusive:
- Scuba diving tuition by an experienced PADI Professional Instructor (that’s me!)
- 4 dives on the Go Dive boat at Koh Ha and Koh Bida
- All scuba gear hire
- Breakfast and lunch on the diveboat, plus tea, coffee, fruit juice, Coke and water
- Your PADI Open Water manual
- Your PADI Open Water certification card
- Your PADI RDP planner
- Dive insurance
- Free transfer to and from your hotel on Koh Lanta

Timetable Of The PADI Open Water Course
After signing up for an Open Water Course students are given an Open Water manual. The book will provide you with the important info about scuba diving. It has five chapters and students are asked to read the first three chapters and complete the knowledge reviews ready for the next day.

Pick Up And Gearing Up
Day one begins with a pick up at 8:30am – enough time to have breakfast beforehand. Once you arrive at the dive shop, we show you the scuba gear and let you try on the different pieces of equipment so you have a comfortable fit.

Review Your New Scuba Knowledge And Learn How The Scuba Gear Works
After gearing you up with scuba equipment, we go to the swimming pool to teach. This creates a much more relaxed and stress free atmosphere. You watch a PADI DVD, and then we check your answers to the knowledge reviews. Next you will learn how to assemble the equipment and safely check everything is working. Then it’s the exciting part – it’s time to get wet.

Into The Swimming Pool: You Can Breathe Underwater!
The pool session is designed to give you a little experience and gain your confidence before diving in the sea. We teach you many safety aspects of diving and help you learn diving techniques like swimming, breathing and understanding buoyancy. That concludes the tuition on Day 1. It’s time to relax and look forward to scuba diving for real tomorrow on Day 2 of the Open Water course. The day usually finishes around 4pm.

Nervous? Don’t Worry – We’ll Take All The Time You Want To Learn
We understand that everyone learns differently so if any problems have arisen then we can relax and complete the pool session the next day making it a 4 day course.

Go Dive Boat

Experience The Underwater World Of The Ocean!
Day 2 and 3 of the PADI Open Water Course are then spent on the boat doing 4 dives, with 2 dives on each day. The boat departd at 8am returning around 3:30pm. These dives are a mix of training, where you practise the skills you learnt yesterday in the pool, and exploring the underwater world around you, where you get to experience the thrill of floating weightless as you go scuba diving.

Dive Dive Dive!
On Day 2, we can dive to a maximum of 12 metres on both dives. On Day 3, we can dive to a maximum of 18 metres. On these dives we will dive for a maximum time of one hour and also practice the skills we learned in the pool. You will dive around Koh Ha and the Bida Islands which are near Koh Phi Phi. Both are amazing dive sites with beautiful coral and lots of incredible creatures like octopus, boxfish, seahorses and much more.

Free Lunch – Diving Is Hungry Work
On the boat trip you will have all refreshments, breakfast, lunch between the two dives and fruit after the 2nd dive on the way home. We have a cook on the boat so everything is prepared fresh. The dive sites are up to 2 hours away which is perfect to finish your Knowledge Reviews and also complete the 50 quiz questions about the PADI Open Water course.

How To Book Your PADI Open Water Course
If you are interested in learning to dive then please drop us a line through the contact form below or email us at amazinglanta@gmail.com. Let me know when you’d like to come to Lanta and we can organise everything from there – and if you have any questions, just let us know!

Chris: I got back from a week on Koh Lanta last week and an awesome 2 day liveaboard on MV Flying Seahorse, the Koh Lanta Liveaboard. I’ve added a bunch of photos of the boat showing the main deck recreation area, cabin interiors, dive gearing up area and the shower rooms so you can get a better idea of what it looks like. I also shot a quick video tour of the boat, which you can watch below via the magic of YouTube.

I’m currently sorting out the stack of underwater pix I took during our 2 day trip around Koh Bida, Shark Point, Anemone Reef and Hin Bida, so I’ll be adding them next. If you’re interested in going on the MV Flying Seahorse yourself, drop us a line at amazinglanta@gmail.com or use the contact form to the right. Currently there’s a 20 per cent discount on the New Year trip if you’re looking for a last minute bargain!

Here’s a photo tour of the MV Flying Seahorse, which explores the dive sites of Southern Thailand departing from Koh Lanta.

Main Deck Recreation Area

Main Deck Recreation Area – Comfy Sofas!

Main Deck Food Serving Area

The Kitchen

Double Bed cabin

Twin Bunk Bed cabin

Dive Gearing Up Deck

Dive Gearing Up Table

Dive Gearing Up Table

Corridor to the cabins

Toilet and Shower Room

Shower

The M/V Flying Seahorse Koh Lanta liveaboard

Due to last minute cancellation, we have some places open on our New Year 4 day liveaboard around the spectacular dive sites of southern Thailand. We are putting these places on special offer – a saving of 20 per cent on the usual price!

The liveaboard departs from Koh Lanta on 30th December 2007 and returns 2nd January 2008.
14 dives over 4 days / 4 nights.

1st Day: Ko Bida Yai, Ko Bida Noi, Phi Phi Palong / 2 Day dives & 1 Night dive
2nd Day: King Cruiser, Shark Point, Anemone Reef, Hin Bida / 3 Day dives & 1 Sunset dive
3rd Day: Ko Ha Islands/ 3 Day dives & 1 Night dive
4th Day: Hin Daeng – Hin Muang – Ko Ha / 3 Day dives

Discount Trip Prices:
– 16120 Thai Baht per person for Bunk bed Accommodation in 2 bed cabin
[approx $US 525]
- 16920 Thai Baht per person for Double Bed Accomodation in double bed cabin
[approx $US 550]

There is a currency converter at xe.com

Payment for these trips will be required by direct bank transfer rather than credit card. We are currently having problems with our online credit card processor. Apologies for the inconvenience.

Our prices are ALL INCLUSIVE of scuba gear hire and Marine Park taxes. There are no hidden extras.
The price includes:
* Accommodation on the liveaboard boat
* Brand new MARES scuba diving equipment
* Marine Park fees
* Light for night dives
* Professional PADI dive guide
* All meals, snacks, fruits, water, electrolyte drinks, tea, coffee
* Access to Recompression chamber and Boat Accident insurance

For more information on the liveaboard and to book your place, please visit
http://amazinglanta.com/koh-lanta-liveaboards-lanta-diving-safaris/
or simply drop us a line through the contact form on the right.

For more info on the dive sites, please visit
http://amazinglanta.com/koh-lanta-dive-sites/