Now I'm thinking about Sofa King with low prices. How low? Sofa King low! 
Choosing a Local Dive Shop
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broncobowsher
Contributor
From how you wrote the review of your local shops, A or B sound like what you will be going to. Hard to narrow personal choice down between those two, too many variables.
I would separate the three issues of training, equipment buying and social activities.
For training, as everyone mentioned, make sure they do it neutrally buoyant. I'd cut a little slack and allow for the first in-water session on the bottom, but no more than that. The next question is how much in-water time does the class include. More is better (if you can afford it and have the time). NAUI has traditionally had longer and more thorough courses, but you'll want to check out your local options. Note what matters is in-water time, e-learning is just as effective as classroom time for most people and a lot more convenient.
For equipment, it's OK to get mask and fins and snorkel (get the cheapest snorkel) from the shop you are doing your OW with. But don't buy regs or a BCD until after the class. A wetsuit is a tossup. If you'll be diving in colder water then you want to buy the right thing the first time. For example, you don't want to splash out on an expensive 7mm if you will soon be diving dry. If you really don't want to use a rental during class then you'll generally be OK buying the cheapest 3mm that fits since you can at least use it for warm water vacation diving.
For the social stuff, you don't need to take a class or buy gear to join a shops' dive club. But if you want to get to know a different shop better, then take your Nitrox course with them after you have completed OW. You'll also eventually want an Advanced Open Water so there's another opportunity to get to know a different shop. And possibly Drysuit. It's fine to mix certs from different agencies.
For training, as everyone mentioned, make sure they do it neutrally buoyant. I'd cut a little slack and allow for the first in-water session on the bottom, but no more than that. The next question is how much in-water time does the class include. More is better (if you can afford it and have the time). NAUI has traditionally had longer and more thorough courses, but you'll want to check out your local options. Note what matters is in-water time, e-learning is just as effective as classroom time for most people and a lot more convenient.
For equipment, it's OK to get mask and fins and snorkel (get the cheapest snorkel) from the shop you are doing your OW with. But don't buy regs or a BCD until after the class. A wetsuit is a tossup. If you'll be diving in colder water then you want to buy the right thing the first time. For example, you don't want to splash out on an expensive 7mm if you will soon be diving dry. If you really don't want to use a rental during class then you'll generally be OK buying the cheapest 3mm that fits since you can at least use it for warm water vacation diving.
For the social stuff, you don't need to take a class or buy gear to join a shops' dive club. But if you want to get to know a different shop better, then take your Nitrox course with them after you have completed OW. You'll also eventually want an Advanced Open Water so there's another opportunity to get to know a different shop. And possibly Drysuit. It's fine to mix certs from different agencies.
SSI business model is based on selling you as much gear as possible. Whether you need it or not. One infamous shop that used to (might still be) in So Cal was famous for selling you an Open Water package. Then if you decided to go on to deep or wreck, then had to sell you an advanced package. As I recall they had 4 or 5 packages you were strongly urged to buy because the gear they sold you initially wasn't suited for the new interest.
Trips are also a money maker for the shops. And of course you'll need the XXX doodad gizmo for $150 to really enjoy the trip and get the most out of it.
I devoted an entire chapter in my first book "SCUBA: A Practical Guide for the New Diver" to the shenanigans shops pull as well as the recommendation that if you think you will really enjoy this and get into it to wait.
Don't buy gear right off the bat other than your mask, snorkel (get the cheapest old fashioned J tube you can find), fins and boots.
The SSI shop will hate that.
Then come back here as well as look around at what the divers not trained by that shop are using in your area. Ask questions. Lots of questions. And remember a back plate and wing IS NOT TECHINCAL GEAR!
It's just a BC that will do everything that the $800 jacket with all the useless padding, and poorly placed pockets and D-rings that you can't move to where they work the best for you will for half the price. (Many shops hate that as well.)
Then look around and buy your second, or maybe even third, set of gear first.
Ask the instructor how much pool time you get. What if you need more?
Do they train neutrally buoyant as others have said.
How much time do you get to just play around with what you just learned at the end of the pool session?
Do you have the same instructor for all sessions and for the checkout dives?
How large are the classes? Smaller class often means more time to practice.
What Gas Management techniques do they teach?
How do they teach proper weighting?
What methods do the use to address the panic cycle?
Do they teach skin diving skills?
Can you sit in on a class or session to see how they teach and if the approach is one you feel ok with?
For the shop, if you want an item they don't carry, will they try and get it for you or send you to someone who has it? If not, why not? You have done the research, you know what you want, why are they trying to talk you into something else?
I mentioned my book above. All of these questions and more are in it to interview the instructor and shop you are potentially going to employ. That's right. Employ. You are going to hire them to work FOR YOU to train you to dive. You are the one in charge. Not them. Make that clear from the beginning. Their reaction will tell you much about them.
Trips are also a money maker for the shops. And of course you'll need the XXX doodad gizmo for $150 to really enjoy the trip and get the most out of it.
I devoted an entire chapter in my first book "SCUBA: A Practical Guide for the New Diver" to the shenanigans shops pull as well as the recommendation that if you think you will really enjoy this and get into it to wait.
Don't buy gear right off the bat other than your mask, snorkel (get the cheapest old fashioned J tube you can find), fins and boots.
The SSI shop will hate that.
Then come back here as well as look around at what the divers not trained by that shop are using in your area. Ask questions. Lots of questions. And remember a back plate and wing IS NOT TECHINCAL GEAR!
It's just a BC that will do everything that the $800 jacket with all the useless padding, and poorly placed pockets and D-rings that you can't move to where they work the best for you will for half the price. (Many shops hate that as well.)
Then look around and buy your second, or maybe even third, set of gear first.
Ask the instructor how much pool time you get. What if you need more?
Do they train neutrally buoyant as others have said.
How much time do you get to just play around with what you just learned at the end of the pool session?
Do you have the same instructor for all sessions and for the checkout dives?
How large are the classes? Smaller class often means more time to practice.
What Gas Management techniques do they teach?
How do they teach proper weighting?
What methods do the use to address the panic cycle?
Do they teach skin diving skills?
Can you sit in on a class or session to see how they teach and if the approach is one you feel ok with?
For the shop, if you want an item they don't carry, will they try and get it for you or send you to someone who has it? If not, why not? You have done the research, you know what you want, why are they trying to talk you into something else?
I mentioned my book above. All of these questions and more are in it to interview the instructor and shop you are potentially going to employ. That's right. Employ. You are going to hire them to work FOR YOU to train you to dive. You are the one in charge. Not them. Make that clear from the beginning. Their reaction will tell you much about them.
OP,
@Jim Lapenta is a retired scuba equipment dealer (and from all accounts an excellent instructor and equipment technician). He knows what he's talking about.
@Jim Lapenta is a retired scuba equipment dealer (and from all accounts an excellent instructor and equipment technician). He knows what he's talking about.
I come from a world which possibly is very far from your, so what follows possibly is of no value for you.
Here (in Italy) serious training in not at "diving shops", but at no-profit diving associations or clubs.
Diving shops are good for buying gear. But nowadays you can buy online.
And through Ebay you can buy from Europe, where prices are less than half than in US.
Here you can also easily buy service kits, so you do not need a LDS at all...
The best of clubs comes after training, as the good ones organize both local diving trips and travels to nice remote locations. You find a group of friends. Most of my current life-long friends are fellow divers met at my diving club.
So before giving your money to a LDS have a look for no-profit diving clubs in your areas...
Here (in Italy) serious training in not at "diving shops", but at no-profit diving associations or clubs.
Diving shops are good for buying gear. But nowadays you can buy online.
And through Ebay you can buy from Europe, where prices are less than half than in US.
Here you can also easily buy service kits, so you do not need a LDS at all...
The best of clubs comes after training, as the good ones organize both local diving trips and travels to nice remote locations. You find a group of friends. Most of my current life-long friends are fellow divers met at my diving club.
So before giving your money to a LDS have a look for no-profit diving clubs in your areas...
I won't claim they don't exist, but I've never come across one in the US.
Non-profit clubs do exist--or at least used to not long ago. In each case I know, however, legal issues were involved that limited their ability to function.
- I met members of a dive club in Cozumel years ago, and they were trying to figure out their status. They had been loosely associated with a dive shop, holding meetings in the shop, etc. That came to an end when the dive shop's attorneys told them not to allow any sign of a connection. If there was any sign of a connection and the dive shop ran into legal trouble, they could become inolved in that trouble. (In a similar situation, I worked in a high school, and a local youth hockey team composed of students from that high school took the name and logo of the school, implying that they were the school's official hockey team. Attorneys told the school not to even hint of a connection--they could not be mentioned in the school newspaper. The wisdom of that was shown when the team became involved in an ugly brawl with police called and the coach shouting and gesturing obsenities to the crowd.)
- A dive club chartered a boat for a 3-tank dive. Two of their members who happened to be certified DMs called roll before and after dives, and they somehow missed a diver named Dan Carlock after the first dive. The boat headed off to another site for the next dives, and the two DMs missed Dan on those roll calls, too. Dan floated around for a while before being rescued by another boat, anf the lawsuit went well into the millions. They even successfully sued PADI because the two DMs were certified by PADI. I don't know if the club stayed in existence.
johndiver999
Contributor
Go with your gut. A dive shop would be stupid to make you feel unwelcome if you bought gear and training elsewhere and later walked in their door. If they do that, (down the road) it is a good reason to avoid them.
I would avoid a shop that sells exclusively scuba pro, even though it is quality gear, it is often not a good value in my opinion. I have lots of USED scuba pro gear.
If it is narrowed down to two shops, it might be instructive to find out the exact costs for everything - basic gear, course, certification card, pool fees, open water dive fees, book fees, online training fees or any other fees they can come up with. If you get the feeling they are playing games, then I would pay attention to that fact.
Lastly, I would just ask how long is the class? If they emphasize it is super fast, quick and easy... well I would probably pick the shop that doesn't want to emphasize the shortness of the training. Busting balls over EXACTLY HOW they are going to train you is going to be a challenge without coming off as an arrogant know-it-all , especially since you (don't yet) know much of anything.
There can be some significant benefits to patronizing a particular shop and having them know you. However, realistically, you will not know what is the best shop for 6 months and after you have been certified, so don't sweat it too much.
I would avoid a shop that sells exclusively scuba pro, even though it is quality gear, it is often not a good value in my opinion. I have lots of USED scuba pro gear.
If it is narrowed down to two shops, it might be instructive to find out the exact costs for everything - basic gear, course, certification card, pool fees, open water dive fees, book fees, online training fees or any other fees they can come up with. If you get the feeling they are playing games, then I would pay attention to that fact.
Lastly, I would just ask how long is the class? If they emphasize it is super fast, quick and easy... well I would probably pick the shop that doesn't want to emphasize the shortness of the training. Busting balls over EXACTLY HOW they are going to train you is going to be a challenge without coming off as an arrogant know-it-all , especially since you (don't yet) know much of anything.
There can be some significant benefits to patronizing a particular shop and having them know you. However, realistically, you will not know what is the best shop for 6 months and after you have been certified, so don't sweat it too much.
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