open water certification

Hi, I’ll be visiting the Philippines this Dec and looking to take up OW course and do my first dive as well. I’ll be in Manila for a week and another week in Cebu. Seeking recommendations for diving spots / schools that are beginner friendly and have great reef. So far, I have gathered the...

Hi everyone, I’m organizing a yoga + scuba diving retreat in Roatan over Labor Day this year, Aug 31-Sep 6. We’ll have exclusive use of our own islet at Barefoot Cay, with daily yoga and meditation plus diving on Roatan’s beautiful reef. Daily 2-tank boat dives from our own private...

Hi! My partner and I are looking to do our confined water and classroom education for OW PADI certification near Boston before heading to Cozumel for our open water dives. While I recognize the importance of not going with the cheapest option, we're students and everything we've found seems to...

Hi all! My partner and I are currently planning a trip to the Yucatan Peninsula with the goal of getting our OW certification in Cozumel. I'm completely new to diving and a bit confused on picking a safe dive op that will ensure we learn everything we need to get a good foundation. Another...

Hi All, I am from India and planning to do PADI OW and AOW in April and considering Indonesia. Please suggest any dive shops or places to consider. I am leaning towards Nusa Penida, but any information or recommendations would help

Greetings from Canada! My friend and I are planning a trip to Costa Rica in early June, and I want to take the opportunity to get scuba certified as it's always been a dream of mine! I have no prior experience. I did learn that June is the rainy season in Costa Rica, so I'm not sure if it will...

Hello all, I am a student at the CSU-Maritime Academy, Cal Maritime, and we are looking to get an open water class going in early spring(March) as part of the Oceanography club. I already have my open water cert, through SDI. But, I am looking for recommendations for a dive shop near by...

Hi. My partner and I want to do our PADI open water and are in Punta Canta. Can anyone recommend a school? Amstar offer a course via ScubaAquatic. Sea producers have also responded. Thankyou (I was recommended this forum by a member)

Hi, Looking for recommendations on what shop to do my open water course with in Tulum, Mexico I have previously tried scuba diving twice. The second trial dive was amazing and got me hooked and I am now ready to become a certified diver - The first try felt like mass production where as the...

I have mixed feelings about the OW course I took a few years back. On the one hand I feel like I got better practical experience than my daughter and her husband but on the other I feel like they got better theoretical. My son and I were certified in Taganga, Colombia. The owner of the DC...

Hi! I'm new here so apologies for the cross-post also in the Introductions section. I’m so excited to be getting PADI open water and advanced certified in a few weeks in La Paz! I created an entire itinerary around it so I wouldn’t have to do it alone. I’m so happy that an old colleague has...

Hi! I’m so excited to be getting PADI open water and advanced certified in a few weeks in La Paz! I created an entire itinerary around it so I wouldn’t have to do it alone. I’m so happy that an old colleague has decided to join but would love to have more come along for the adventure! I fell in...

Hello everyone. I've been dormant on this website for a few months but have finally decided to introduce myself. I have not done any scuba diving yet but will be signing up for my open water certification sometime over the next couple of months. In the meantime, I've been continuing to research...

Hi, I have dived before on a livaboard in Australia and loved it, but have no formal qualification in it, my partner has never dived. We shall be in Vietnam in August and at the end of our trip want to do our open water diving whilst there. I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations on...

Probably the nth time this has come up, but asking since I dont see a lot of new (and relevant) datapoints. Which place is better to get open water certified? I know it depends on the scuba instructor/school, time of year, things you want to do etc. But in case we take most out of the equation...

Hi, Sure this has been asked earlier, but looking for newer datapoints. I am planning to get open water certified when I visit (Nov if that matters). This would be my first diving ever. There are tons of scuba schools in that area. I researched some and the price is all over the board varying...

As a way to empower the next generation of divers, GUE has created the NextGen Scholarship to provide a year of training and other benefits to deserving divers on their quest for excellence. Through the generous donation of course spaces from GUE instructors, one year of tuition-free GUE...

Hello everyone, I am new to the world of diving and have a passion for learning and trying new things. My venture started years ago with a fear of deep water. I over came that fear one day out at sea on a catermeran. Before I could second guess myself, I quickly decided to jump off. The group I...

Hi all, I am new to this forum and also new to the diving world as I recently got my open water certification (November 2018). Yesterday, I went for my first (and second) dive after my certification and realised an important issue: First dive- buddy and I forgotten to deflate BCD when ascending...

I am a scuba instructor looking for a replacement dive resort to take my college class for our open water trip May 19-26. Our regular dive resort is undergoing reconstruction and I'd like to find something reasonably similar. I'm looking for a small rustic place off the beaten path that is...