The King Cruiser started life as a car/passenger ferry in Kobe, Japan, until the early 90’s when it was purchased by a Thai marine company who, intended to use it as a passenger ferry between Phuket and Koh Phi Phi. After only a few years in service, and on a glorious summers day, in flat seas, the King Cruiser struck Anemone reef, started taking on water and eventually sank some 25 kilometers from Phuket. On that fateful day in May 1997, the ferry was full on tourists and locals heading out to Koh Phi Phi, but thankfully there were enough available boats in the area to be able to rescue all five hundred people on board. Many people ask what happened? and there are many theories, including, it was an insurance job, the captain was drunk, and my favourite. That the captains daughter was driving the boat while her father slept, whatever happened the captain of the boat remains in a local prison to this day, but thanks to this man, Phuket gained a world class wreck dive.

The King Cruiser sits upright on a sandy bottom, depths range from 32 meters at her propellers to around 14 meters by the wheel house. Over the last eight years the wreck has been deteriorating quite quickly, and it is now possible to penetrate the wreck. What hasn’t been deteriorating is the amount of marine life, the sheer abundance of fish is simply amazing. As divers descend down the mooring lines, huge schools of jacks, tunas and barracuda will greet them, thousands of yellow tail snappers move in and out of the wreckage, while giant puffer fish move slowly out of the sight. Divers must be careful here, as the surface of the wreck, in fact the entire wreck is covered in scorpion fish, ranging from 2cm to 49cm. Large groups of common lionfish can also be seen hunting the enormous swarms of glassfish.

Lucky divers might also catch a glimpse of the wreck resident black banded sea snake, that due to the easy pickings has grown to a huge size, with a head about 5cm in width, which compared to around 2cm for a normal adult, is quite large. Otter marine creatures that can be seen here include Hawksbill turtles and leopard sharks . There are even stories of divers occasionally seeing a Whale Shark cruising by, although by no means is this common.

The King Cruiser Wreck dive can be a challenging dive, with an average depth of over 20 meters, and currents that can be strong, we advise that divers of an intermediate level and above undertake this dive. Your div guide will lead you around pass the front of the ferry, where divers can still make out both hulls of this catamaran, and also the location of the wheel house and upper decks. As divers move along the side of the ship towards the stern, they will see the twisted wreckage on the rear decks, this has been caused by continued battering by the sea, coupled with the deterioration of the steel. Divers reaching the stern are greeted with an unusual site, a set of toilets, which are now home to some large lion fish and even an octopus lives under one of the toilet seats.

The King Cruiser Guide

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