Private phinisi liveaboard · Komodo · Raja AmpatManta Mae

Manta Mae was built on the beach at Bira, South Sulawesi, between October 2011 and April 2014 by the boatbuilder Haji Baso. Her keel was shaped from a single ironwood tree from the forests of Kalimantan; when the hull was finished she was hauled into the water by hand, floated off on a high tide and taken to Bali for fitting out. She is 30.5 metres overall and 6.67 metres in the beam, with two masts, seven sails and 450 square metres of sail area, and a 350-hp Mitsubishi diesel.

Her Italian owner designed the five cabins himself, and they sleep twelve: the master suite, Dita; two staterooms, Sophia and Brigitte, each with a queen bed and a single above; Charlize, with two beds and five portholes; and Marylin, a bunk cabin on the main deck. Cabin floors are fossilised wood and the bathrooms are lined with labradorite from Madagascar. The saloon, dressed in black pen shell and blue coral from Nusa Penida, has a bar and a DJ deck, and the Indonesian chef’s Asian-Italian cooking is served family-style at the foredeck table.

For diving she carries three RIB tenders, nitrox and 30 tanks, plus four kayaks, water skis and four underwater scooters; the crew of eight sails with a dive instructor and a divemaster. Her operator schedules Komodo from May to September, the Banda Sea out of Ambon in October and November, and Raja Ampat out of Sorong from December to April, selling whole-boat charters and single cabins on open departures. The 2026–27 terms price a private charter at USD 4,800 a night in the Banda Sea or Raja Ampat for up to eight guests, plus USD 110 a night for each extra guest, with nitrox and dive gear included.