The MHT Team
While Maira leads the majority of Mar Hosted Trips, we are honoured to say we have so many trips that Maira can’t be on every single one of them. Enter – Trip Leaders! This crew of dive enthusiasts are members of the Mar Hosted community that have been hand-picked and trained by Maira to carry on the responsibility of leading an epic Mar Hosted Trip!
Let us introduce you to our crew!
Maira Thomas
Owner & Primary Trip Leader
It all started with Maira! Maira Thomas is the planner, curator, and primary leader of all MAR Hosted Trips.
She’s pretty great, and you can read more about her and how MAR Hosted Trips began here.
Clarence Thomas
Business Manager & Trip Leader
PADI Divemaster #373608
With a mask from the 70s and fins that left scars, Clarence fell in love with the new world of diving.
He went on to complete his PADI Rescue course in 2013 in Honduras and eventually, his Divemaster in México in 2015.
Clarence loves to find baby trunkfish, is still amazed when anyone finds a scorpion fish, and is still searching for his first seahorse.
Clarence got his first taste of diving in 2011 on a tiny Indonesian island called Gili Trawangan (Gili T for short).
While he didn’t actually get in the water, an encounter with a Scandinavian taking his Open Water course would inspire Clarence to look as cool as the class did carrying all their gear.
He wanted in!
A few weeks later Clarence found himself in Koh Tao, Thailand watching VHS tapes and going cross-eyed from looking at the PADI dive tables.
P.s. Yes, the last name is not a coincidence. Maira and Clarence are married, and when they aren’t out diving the world can be found in their Texas home, together with their dogs.
Shevaun Fortune
Executive Assistant & Trip Leader
PADI Instructor #511174
Because the world of divers is so small, Shev and Maira connected through the internet, becoming fast friends, dive buddies, and now, colleagues!
Now a PADI dive instructor, Shev is so honoured to be a part of the MHT team and can’t wait to meet more amazing MHT divers on the trips ahead.
When not working with Maira, Shev can be found working on her blogs, Shev Strolls & Dive Into Mexico, eating tacos, or cycling to one of Huatulco’s beautiful beaches!
Despite being fairly new to the dive industry, Shev has not held back since diving into the underwater world in early 2020.
Not letting the pandemic slow her down, Shev worked her way through the PADI levels safely from her coldwater home of Western Canada, until finally heading to Huatulco, Mexico for a divemaster internship in February 2021.
What was supposed to be a 3-month journey quickly became living abroad as life in México kept Shev in Huatulco, and, well, she’s still there!
Aline Franco Flores
Trip Leader
PADI Instructor #268040
Aline has enjoyed a 10-year diving career filled with amazing students and clients.
She gathered videos and photographs from dozens of different dive sites in the Mexican Caribbean and had the opportunity to volunteer in conservation programs.
Diving, filmmaking, protecting animals, and raising awareness of our fragile ecosystem are still Aline’s greatest passions. She is so grateful for the opportunity to keep doing this and to share it with others through Mar Hosted Trips.!
A filmmaker and cinematographer, Aline started her diving career for the sole purpose of taking underwater images, not expecting she would fall in love with diving!
Smitten by the underwater world in such a powerful way, Aline moved to the Mayan Riviera and started working her way up.
From open water student in Cancun, to an underwater photographer and videographer in Cozumel and finally eventually Aline was a dive instructor in Puerto Morelos and Playa del Carmen.
Ramon Escalante
Trip Leader
PADI Instructor #
It wasn’t until Ramon visited Socorro in 2022 that he realized just how much of the world there is to explore – and dive!
Ramon connected with Maira in Cozumel and just knew he wanted to be a part of the Mar Hosted Team.
We can’t wait for Ramon to share his love of marine life, scuba diving, and culture sharing with you on an upcoming trip!
Growing up in Cozumel, Ramon was lucky to have had incredible access to the ocean all his life.
Like many of us, after his first breaths underwater in 2012 Ramon couldn’t get enough!
Throughout the 2010s, Ramon worked in the dive industry in Cozumel eventually becoming an instructor in 2017. He spent most of his time working and guiding on the island.
