What does a Raja Ampat liveaboard cost?
One verified premium example is Arenui’s 11-night Sorong–Sorong Raja Ampat cruise at USD 7,700 per person in a shared deluxe cabin in late 2026. That is USD 700 per night before excluded charges. It is a named boat and dated programme, not a market-wide average or the cheapest available trip.
The operator lists 30 October–10 November 2026 as chartered and 12–23 November 2026 as full. These rates were checked on 25 October 2026 and are useful budget evidence, not available offers. A charter may belong to an agent or a private group; its advertised price does not establish a berth you can buy.
Arenui: dated schedule, prices and inclusionsA dated cabin-price example, normalised by nights
Swipe or scroll sideways to compare every column.
| Your decision | Shared deluxe | Rama or Shinta master |
|---|---|---|
| Basis | Arenui, 11 nights; USD 7,700 per person | Same 11-night example; USD 50 per person per night supplement |
| Cabin package per person | USD 7,700 | USD 8,250, calculated before other extras |
| Cabin package per night | USD 700 | USD 750, calculated before other extras |
| What this does not include | Park, administration/port, fuel, Nitrox, flights and pre/post-cruise stays | The same exclusions; the room upgrade does not remove them |
What the master-cabin calculation includes
The USD 550 upgrade is USD 50 multiplied by 11 nights. Adding it to USD 7,700 gives USD 8,250 per person, still on a shared basis. For two people, the supplement applies to each guest, not once to the room. It is not a private-cabin solo price.
Arenui lists meals, soft drinks, air cylinders, weights, weight belts and transfers at the embarkation/disembarkation airports among its standard inclusions. Rental gear other than those items, Nitrox, national-park entry, administration/port clearance and fuel are excluded. The schedule does not assign every excluded item a fixed amount, so this guide does not invent a final Arenui invoice.
Arenui: dated schedule, prices and inclusionsPark and harbour charges: read the operator’s package
White Manta’s FAQ lists USD 250 per person for its Raja Ampat marine park and harbour fee package, collected before the cruise. That is the operator’s combined charge, not evidence that the official conservation permit alone costs USD 250. A permit price and a cruise’s park/harbour package are different budget lines.
Use that amount only for a White Manta trip to which the listed package applies. Its Raja–Triton and other crossings have separate fee categories; a cruise with Raja Ampat in its title is not necessarily a Raja Ampat-only loop. Do not transplant this operator’s package into an Arenui or Dewi Nusantara total.
White Manta: fees, Nitrox and occupancy FAQFuel is a separate charge, with conflicting published summaries
White Manta’s booking page lists USD 200–250 per person in its Raja Ampat fuel section and says fees are dynamic. The same page carries a 20 March 2026 update: existing bookings face an additional USD 50, while new bookings use rates increased by USD 100 in the linked Fees & Trip Extras sheet. Its FAQ still displays lower ranges in places.
Those panels do not establish whether every displayed base range already incorporates the newer uplift. Adding USD 100 again could double-count it; using the older FAQ could underbudget it. For this operator, use the dated sailing’s current fee sheet and invoice, with the booking date identified. Keep a possible onboard balance separate from advance-collected charges. No single definitive fuel total is asserted here.
White Manta: booking terms and dated fuel updatesNitrox and rental equipment depend on actual diving days
White Manta publishes Nitrox at USD 20 per diving day or USD 7 per fill, subject to availability. Eight charged diving days would be USD 160 at the daily rate. This is a calculation using the published tariff, not a claim that an eight-night cruise always has eight diving days. Arrival, departure and flight restrictions can change the diving schedule.
A regular air tank, weights and belt are listed inclusions; a complete personal equipment rental set is not. Price a required computer, exposure suit, regulator or larger cylinder separately. Nitrox requires the applicable qualification and is not permission to exceed your certification limits.
White Manta: fees, Nitrox and occupancy FAQCompare Sorong loops with crossings before comparing price
Use package price divided by nights for a first comparison, then compare actual regions and diving days. A Sorong–Sorong loop and a Sorong–Ambon or Sorong–Ternate crossing can have equal night counts but different regional coverage, travel days and airfare costs. A lower per-night rate does not prove a lower total or more Raja Ampat diving.
Write the quote in five parts: shared cabin package; compulsory operator charges; optional diving and room extras; flights, hotels and land transfers; insurance and discretionary spending. Keep currencies separate until you use a dated conversion rate. Crew gratuities should not be disguised as a mandatory park charge.
For the journey budget, price the actual domestic connection to Sorong, checked dive-baggage allowance and any pre-cruise hotel, rather than treating an included airport-to-boat transfer as an included flight. Keep money available for a delayed connection or changed overnight stay; no fixed airfare or hotel average is claimed here.