Mar Hosted Trips

Pretty places are easy to sell. Responsible travel takes more thought.

I have been thinking a lot about what it means to keep growing Mar Hosted Trips with purpose.

We love beautiful diving. Of course we do. Clear water, big animals, good food, boat days, tired happy people after a dive… that will always be part of it.

When we bring a group somewhere, we are entering someone else’s home. That alone should change how we move, we should act like guests with more care and respect.

I want our travelers to ask better questions when booking their vacations. Who are we supporting by being here? Are we respecting the animals we came to see? Are we listening to local guides? Are we choosing partners who care about safety, their staff, the ocean, and the community around them?

These are the questions I am asking as a founder too.

We are learning how to choose better partners, support local businesses when we can, avoid harmful animal encounters, respect marine life more carefully, and build trips where the people hosting us also benefit from our presence.

I want to be very honest about this: we are still learning.

I do not want to use sustainability as a pretty word on a caption. Travel has impact. Group travel has impact. Diving has impact. Some choices are better than others, and we are paying more attention to those choices as we grow.

That is the direction I want for MHT.

I want people to come home with beautiful photos, yes, but also with more awareness. More respect. More curiosity. More understanding of why their choices matter when they travel.

That is the kind of travel community I want to keep building.

Better divers. Better travelers. Better citizens of the world.

What is one thing you pay attention to when visiting a new place?

We don’t plan trips just so people can see the world. We plan trips so people can learn how to move through it better.

We want people to come home as better divers, better travelers, and better citizens of the world. More aware. More respectful. More connected to the ocean, the local communities, and the places we are lucky enough to visit.

And that is exactly why I love French Polynesia for MHT.
We have only one spot open for March 4-13, 2027 - Women-only

You fly into Tahiti, and then the trip starts to feel very real. Smaller planes, quiet atolls, blue water everywhere.

We are going to Rangiroa and Fakarava in March 2027, and these are not places that are super easy to figure out.

There are inter-island flights, transfers, dive schedules, timing details, and all the little pieces that need to flow well so people can actually enjoy the trip instead of spending the whole time wondering where they are supposed to be next.

And the diving has that big-ocean feeling.

Rangiroa and Fakarava are places where the ocean reminds you very quickly that you are a guest. This is why these destinations are for AOW divers who like to experince the best diving in the world.

When we add a trip like this to MHT, I am not only looking at the photos. I am thinking about the full experience. Does the travel make sense? Is the diving worth the distance? Will the group feel supported? Are we giving people enough structure to enjoy the adventure without feeling overwhelmed?

French Polynesia has the remote island feel, the blue water, the diving, and enough moving parts that having a group and a plan really matters.

We have only one spot open for March 4-13, 2027
We fly direct to Tahiti from LA
Women only trip lead by Shev.

Let me know if you want to see the details!

Good travel people make the whole trip better. And yes, we protect that.

One thing I will always care about at Mar Hosted Trips is the kind of community we are building.

Travel asks a lot from people. Flights change. Weather happens. Boats move. Bags get delayed. Plans shift. Someone is tired. Someone is hungry. I need coffee...We get it!

That is travel. Especially when we are going to remote places, diving in real ocean conditions, and working with local partners around the world.

What I pay attention to is HOW people move through those moments.

Do they stay kind when things change? Do they speak to the crew with respect? Do they understand that local guides, hotel teams, drivers, dive staff, and trip leaders are humans doing their best? Do they remember they are traveling with a group, not alone in their own little bubble?

That matters to me.

Mar Hosted Trips is a women-owned, family-run small business based in Texas. We are not a giant travel corporation with a call center and 14 departments hiding behind a logo. We are real people planning real trips with a lot of care, and we take that responsibility seriously.

We choose partners carefully. We communicate as clearly as we can. We build Trip Hubs, send updates, answer questions, work through logistics, and do our best to create trips where people feel safe, welcomed, and supported. All this while we lead 40 trips a year! Yes, we are busy, and sometimes that means you won't get a reply from Maira in the moment, but she and her team will get back to you for sure.

We absolutely protect the people who make our trips possible:

That means our very small MHT team, our few trip leaders, local crews, dive staff, hotel teams, drivers, guides, and fellow travelers all deserve to be treated with respect. Always. No questions asked.

We do not make space for mean, threatening, or disrespectful behavior in this community. I know that may sound firm, and I am okay with that. A kind group does not happen by accident. It happens because the standard is clear, and the culture is set.

The strength of MHT has always come from the people who travel with patience, curiosity, humor, flexibility, and care for the people around them.

Those are the travelers we love and the travelers we will keep:

The ones who say thank you to the boat crew, are respectfully on time for their team, try the local food, respect the local customs, listen to the local guides, check on their buddy, and understand that being a good traveler is part of being a good diver.

That is the community we are building.

And yes, we will keep protecting it.

Are you part of our community??
How many trips have you done with us??

A pretty reef will get me interested. A guide who watches the group will make me come back!

That is one of the biggest green flags I look for when choosing a dive shop abroad.

I know it sounds basic, but I am still surprised how often it is missing. A good guide is not just swimming ahead, they are looking back, checking the group, noticing who is comfortable, who is working too hard, who is drifting or who is low on air faster than expected.

The green flags usually start before anyone gets on the boat though. I pay attention to how a shop communicates when we first reach out. If they answer clearly, explain the diving honestly, talk about conditions without sugarcoating them, and do not disregard all my safety questions. I have been on a situation where I ask for an emergency action plan for their remote area and they look at me like a crazy person.

I also pay attention to the briefing. I want to hear the plan, the conditions, depth, current, hand signals, air expectations, what to do if separated, and how the group will be managed underwater.

Because when I bring a group somewhere, I am not only looking for beautiful reefs. I am looking for people I can trust when the ocean has an attitude, when someone gets nervous, when visibility changes, or when the plan needs to shift.

I look for guides that respect the marine life, we need to teach the dive shops we do not want guides poking or chasing or feeding. We want respect.

And after years of planning dive trips, I’ve learned that dive centers are made of humans. Sometimes a good shop has a messy day because their strongest divemaster was off. Sometimes a wonderful divemaster is working at a shop that does not have strong systems, and usually they do not stay there forever.

So I look for patterns.

Do they communicate well before the trip? Do they give honest answers? Do they brief with care? Do they watch the group underwater? Do they treat divers like humans instead of names on a manifest? Are the managers present and interested? Do the managers treat their staff fairly?

That is the stuff I remember. This is why you want experienced trip leaders, because we know how to notice and how to advocate for you.

A pretty reef might make me book once. A dive shop that pays attention is the one I trust with our people. If you see I stopped booking with a specific dive shop, you know why now.

If you’ve been wanting a calm Caribbean dive week with good people, Mahahual just opened up!

Mahahual, Mexico. August 29–September 5, 2026.

We have room for one woman diver, this trip is a sweet little Caribbean reset.

It is a small group, only 11 travelers, led by Clarence. Warm water, beautiful diving, kind people, and a slow pace.

August 29–September 5, 2026 - dive Banco Chinchorro, a remote atoll in the Mexican Caribbean. 15 dives included. This is a beginner-friendly dive trip, so it is a good fit for someone who wants support, calm ocean time, and a group that makes the whole experience feel less intimidating.

You can fly into Tulum or Cancun.

What I love about this trip is that it has that little family reunion feeling and the diving is full of fun nurse sharks.

Mahahual, Mexico. August 29–September 5, 2026.
Beginner-friendly, 15 dives, remote atoll diving, nurse sharks, and a small MHT group of divers.

Let me know if you want to see the details!

Is this you? Because we are probably looking for you.

I’ve been thinking a lot about the kind of travelers we love having on Mar Hosted Trips, and honestly, it has very little to do with being the “best” diver in the room.

We love traveling with people who are curious.
People who care about the ocean, respect the places we visit, and understand that being a good traveler means paying attention to more than just your own vacation.

We love the diver who says thank you to the boat crew!
The person who is patient when the schedule shifts because weather is kinda unpredictable.
The traveler who can laugh when we have to activate plan B.
The one who asks questions, listens to local guides, tries the food, respects the culture, and knows that group travel works best when everyone remembers they are part of a group.

And yes, we are picky about that.

Mar Hosted Trips has grown because of the community around it, and I care a lot about protecting that. We are not trying to be the biggest scuba travel company in the world. We are trying to build trips with good people who bring good energy, respect the ocean, respect local communities, and treat other travelers with kindness.

Beautiful dives are always part of the plan, but the full experience matters too. The meals, the conversations, the local guides, the little cultural moments, the surface intervals, the friendships that start quietly and somehow turn into “are we booking the next one together?”

So yes, we filter our dive community. We are careful about who stays in it. Good vibes matter, respect matters, patience matters.

If you want to dive, explore, learn, connect, and be part of a group that actually looks out for each other, you are probably our kind of traveler!

We are looking for you!
Join our women only community Scuba MAR Maids
Join our scuba retreats with Scuba MAR Maids Dive School
check our our website for more info about who we are:
www.marhostedtrip.com

Thanks!
Maira

We have a women only trip to French Polynesia with only 2 spots left.

We are going in Mar 4 -13, 2027
This trip is focused on diving the best islands of FP and it's for Advanced divers.

We don't do this trips very often since they are super hard to coordinate and far to travel. This is a one of a kind opportunity!

TAKE IT - one of the best diving is in that area. It's remote, protected and so beautiful!

Let's go see sharks with Shev to FP! She will be leading this adventure.

April was a big one for MHT 💙

➡️We celebrated our 5th anniversary in the most MHT way possible: by chartering The Rig in Borneo with an incredible group of 45 divers.

➡️Before The Rig, we visited the Borneo jungle.

➡️After The Rig, 14 divers continued to Bali for an extension full of diving, culture, food, and new friendships.

➡️ One of the most meaningful parts of the month was adopting a reef at TRACC Borneo. This will be our second reef in the world named after Scuba MAR Maids. Supporting local conservation work is a huge part of how we want to travel.

➡️We also had a beautiful Roatan week led by Tamara Addis with a small group of 11 divers.

➡️Behind the scenes. We made a big decision! we’re growing our Instagram presence and will be collaborating with an amazing content creator this summer to share even more of these trips with you.

Five years in, we’re just grateful.

Grateful for every traveler who has trusted us, every crew member and local operator who helps make these trips special, and every person here who supports this little travel community we love so much.

Happy 5th anniversary to all of us.
Thank you for being part of MHT!

More destinations, more connection, more ocean adventures ahead.

One spot just opened for Cabo Pulmo, and honestly… this is such a good dive trip! - SOLD OUT

Cabo Pulmo feels simple in the best way: diving, good food, ocean air, and a small group of people.

This trip is October 21–25, 2026 and includes:

10 dives
Accommodations
All meals
Transfers
MHT support before and during the trip

Cabo Pulmo is known for beautiful marine life, big schools of fish, Bull Sharks and a slower vibe that makes you reset.

If you’ve been wanting a dive trip that feels easy and not too far from home, this is a really sweet one.

Message us for details!