Who are we?

Big Blue, the friendly divers, has and continues to be Vanuatu’s industry leader in passionate dive education and sustainable business practices. The company was started in 2005 by Mike and Maggie Crawford. Mike’s investment of time and energy in the dive industry in Vanuatu and his unwavering commitment to train and develop Ni-Vanuatu dive professionals is unparalleled. Mike had faith that anybody with a love of diving, commitment and who was prepared to make the effort to learn, was capable of passing the dive physics and physiology exams required to become dive master and a scuba instructor.

Mike was the first to believe Ni-Vanuatu could progress to become more than just dive guides. Many in the diving industry saw not finishing school as a barrier to entry, but formal education was not a prerequisite in Mike’s school of scuba. He spent many, many hours helping passionate Ni-Vanuatu overcome their limited educational opportunities to make Ni-Vanuatu dive professionals one of the industries greatest assets today. Mike’s vision lives on in Big Blue’s continued mission to provide the best dive experience and education to visitors to Vanuatu.

Our Crew

Come dive and learn with our Ni-Vanuatu instructors gives our divers and enjoy a uniquely Vanuatu experience. Our staff, many of whom have been with Big Blue from the beginning, have been living with and playing in the waters of Vanuatu their entire lives and they love to share their great local knowledge. Below are just a few of the smiling faces you’ll meet when you come dive with us!

Mark

Mark

Boat Captain & Divemaster
Luaki

Luaki

Divemaster
Roy

Roy

Boat Driver

Our Boats

We have three boats, which means we are able to simultaneously cater to different needs.

The Lady

“The Lady” is a 9-meter aluminium Reef Master with a Volvo Penta engine. She was specifically designed as a dive boat and spent her early life taking divers to the Coolidge wreck in Santo with Allan Power Dive. Hence she was named after “The Lady” the famous ceramic wall hanging found in the Coolidge. Now she lives with us in Port Vila and is the workhorse for Big Blue.

Godiva & Tramp

“Tramp” and “Godiva” are our other two boats named as sisters to “The Lady”. Both are 5-meter fiberglass banana boats with 50 hp outboards. They have a canopy to shade our divers and snorkelers from the tropical sun during their surface interval. They are equipped with aluminium dive ladders for ease of exiting the water.

Any of the boats are available for hire for private dive or snorkel trips or for scientific projects or monitoring. Please email us for more information.

Caring for our

Environment

We acknowledge that our environment is important and therefore we act to protect and restore it where possible. Read more about our commitment to environmental responsibility on our PADI Aware page.