Best Yacht Size for Raja Ampat Liveaboard Diving: 20m vs 30m

For Raja Ampat liveaboard diving, a 20-metre vessel suits private groups and owner-operators, while 28 to 36 metres is where commercial dive operations work. Berth count, dive plant capacity and crew cost scale differently from hull length, and that mismatch is what makes small commercial boats hard to run profitably.

The economics of berths

Fixed costs do not shrink in proportion to the boat. A 20-metre vessel still needs a master, an engineer, a cook, guides and a tender operator. Spread that over four or five cabins and the cost per guest-night is high. Spread it over ten cabins and the same crew becomes affordable. This is the main reason the commercial fleet clusters where it does.

Where the 20-metre boat wins

• Private ownership. Family or small-group cruising without commercial obligations.
• Access. Tighter anchorages and shallower approaches.
• Running cost. Lower fuel and smaller crew when you are not selling berths.
• Simplicity. Less plant, fewer systems, easier maintenance planning.

Where the 30-metre boat wins

• Commercial viability. Enough berths to carry the crew and plant cost.
• Dive capacity. Compressors, tanks, nitrox and a dive deck that works with a full guest load.
• Sea-keeping and endurance. Comfortable passages to Misool and the north.
• Guest comfort. Saloon, shade and camera space that guests notice on day three.

The middle ground and its trap

Vessels of 24 to 27 metres often look like a compromise and behave like the worst of both: too much boat to run casually, too few berths to carry a commercial crew comfortably. They can work with a lean crew model and a specific product, but the model has to be deliberate rather than inherited from a brochure.

How to decide

Answer one question first: is this vessel a private asset or a business? If it is a business, start from the number of berths the model needs and work back to a hull. If it is private, buy the smallest boat that does what you actually want. Class comparisons are on dive liveaboards for sale, the cost base in annual operating costs, and the private-cruising alternative on catamarans and sailing yachts.

Next step: send the desk your brief — vessel type, cruising ground, budget band in USD and timing — via the enquiry desk.