Diver experience, autonomy and Nitrox

WAOW 2 itineraries take place in sometimes remote parts of the Indonesian archipelago, where reaching a port, an airport, a medical facility or a hyperbaric chamber can take several hours, or even several days of navigation. Diving conditions may also include strong, changing or unpredictable currents.

In this environment, preventing accidents and situations that require an evacuation is a priority. Because some of the areas we sail through are isolated, a medical evacuation may require a significant change of itinerary, or even the interruption of the cruise, and may tie up the vessel and its crew for an extended period. Its consequences are therefore not limited to the participant who needs medical assistance: they can affect all passengers, the course of the cruise and the vessel’s operations.

For this reason, WAOW 2 cruises are primarily intended for experienced divers who are comfortable in dynamic diving conditions and able to manage their equipment and their dives independently.

We recommend a minimum of 50 logged dives before joining a WAOW 2 cruise. This number is a recommendation, however, and does not on its own guarantee a diver’s level or autonomy. To ensure recent diving experience, the last logged dive must have taken place within the 12 months before the start of the cruise.

By booking a cruise, each diver is asked to assess their experience and abilities honestly, and confirms being comfortable enough in the water to dive in the conditions that may be encountered in Indonesia.

This autonomy includes in particular the ability to prepare, use and manage one’s own equipment without particular assistance, to control buoyancy and safety procedures (ascent with a buddy, safety stop, use of a surface marker buoy), and to manage air consumption sensibly. As a reference, an autonomous diver should be able to complete a dive of about 60 minutes with a 12-litre aluminium cylinder, in normal conditions and while respecting safety reserves.

WAOW 2 works with a maximum ratio of four divers per guide, intended to ensure comfort, safety and quality of experience. This ratio relies on a reasonable level of autonomy from each participant and is not an individual supervision or training service.

Less experienced divers, or those unsure about their level of autonomy, are strongly encouraged to contact us before booking. We can then discuss their experience and needs together and, where possible, consider individual, personalised guidance so that they can enjoy their cruise in the best conditions.

If, after assessment on board, the dive team considers that a participant needs assistance or supervision beyond the guidance normally provided, WAOW 2 reserves the right to adapt its diving conditions, to require individual guidance where available, to restrict access to certain dives or, where safety requires it, to refuse participation in a specific dive.

Nitrox

Nitrox is offered free of charge on board WAOW 2 for all dives. Its use is reserved for divers holding a Nitrox certification.

We strongly recommend getting certified before your cruise. Nitrox contains less nitrogen than air, so the body absorbs less of it on each dive, which matters on a cruise with up to four dives a day, several days in a row. Depending on how it is used, Nitrox either allows you to stay underwater longer before reaching no-decompression limits or, for the same dive time, to keep a wider safety margin. In areas far from any hyperbaric chamber, that margin is particularly valuable.

Nitrox does, however, impose a maximum operating depth, which depends on the mix breathed. This is one of the reasons specific training is required.

Non-certified divers can take a Nitrox course on board, on request. The course is not included in the cruise price and is paid on board.