Aquanauts-Mermaids / other dive centers? recommendations please

[lucianotos]

Good morning.

I would like to thank anyone who responds to this post in advanced, all your opinions are appreciated.
I'm looking for a good dive center with quality training, be it in Pattaya or any other part of Thailand (feel free to recommend a center in any other part of the world if you like). My eventual goal is to become a instructor and beyond.
I've done some research concerning this myself and I keep coming across the two specific Dc's, aquanauts and mermaids. These guys really know how to market themselves really well and tell you everything you want to hear. But I want to hear from some individuals who have had experience at these 2 specific Dc's, or at any other one that they might recommend. Keep in mind that I have no experience as a diver and am not sure what to look for. I do know this, I'm looking for high quality training, as I'm very picky when it comes to getting my moneys worth. I don't want to make a decision unless I'm fully confident that's what I will be receiving.

I can't wait to see what some of you have to say. Im sure as the discussion progresses I will have not questions, but nothing else comes to mind.

Thank again,
Luciano

 

[lord khram]

Personally I wouldnt recomend Pattaya at all, compared to other destinations in South Thailand on the West (Andaman) coast the diving is really quite poor and there are not a great variety of dive sites.
If you are set on going to the Pattaya area for other reasons, two smaller shops you may wish to consider are Real divers and Adventure divers. Koh Chang is also worth considering in East Thailand, much quieter and better diving than Pattaya, Scuba Evolution I have always found to be good as a diving customer, but have never done any training there.
Personally I would not sign up for a complete IDC course at one place, do your open water course first then at least you have a little insight into diving and you are not tied to doing all your training at one shop / location, that you may find afterwards you do not like. Then once you have your initial qualification you can then go simply as a diving customer and try various places to find the shop / location that suits you best.
Another plus point to Real Divers is that they do the IDC on a pay as you go basis, rather than pay everything up front, if you get part way through a course and decide it is not for you, or have to stop for what ever reasons, the other shops all work on a no refunds policy.

 

[Franklyhooked]

I came late to this discussion, but if you're still there I echo the recommendation for diving in the Andaman sea. I recently dove with Marcia at Gekko Scuba Divers and found her very helpful, knowledgeable and a great teacher. If I were going to go for divemaster (still thinking about it), I'd consider going back there for a few weeks to do it (and Thailand is a great place to spend some time anyway). As the previous post said, it makes sense to take this in stages.

Good luck and whatever else, have fun!!

 

[iamafish]

Hi lucianotos,

Honestly, between Mermaids and Aquanauts, both offer zero-to-hero internship programs, and frankly speaking, I do not recommend a dive center or dive business model that specializes or focuses on the zero-to-hero internship model. Avoid that model if you can. Dive. Dive. Dive.... and with a variety of people, locations, boats, and instructors.

IMHO, you will become a better diver (and instructor, eventually) if you take classes at a number of various dive centers, and see and experience various dive center operations, boats, and locations.

Also, don't pay very much attention to the "don't dive Pattaya" drum beats you read about here on this board. Yes, Phuket has beautiful water and better, more dramatic underwater colors than Pattaya, and Yes, Pattaya water is considerably more murky than Phuket, but on the other hand, the wrecks in Pattaya, especially the HTMS Khram are spectacular dives.

Personally, however, I prefer diving in Phuket to Pattaya, but then again, that depends on the time of year (rainy season, weather patterns, etc). I love Phuket, but I also love diving the Khram in Pattaya, in fact, the Khram is one of my favorite dive sites in Thailand. On the other hand, Phuket does have more dive location variety, better water clarity, and more dive centers to choose from.

In Pattaya, I highly recommend diving with Robert Camp of Adventure Divers. Robert is a great guy, he is a "diver diver" in that he loves diving and he trains quality open water and advanced open water students. He has a great boat. In Phuket, I recommend Sea Bees. Sea Bees has one of the nicest day diving boats in Phuket. Top quality and very comfortable!

If you want to become a great diver, take less courses and just go diving, if you have the time and can afford it. Dive, Dive, Dive and please don't follow the path of the "zero-to-hero" dive school model if you have a choice. Yes, that model is cheaper but it will not make you the best diver you can be. Dive with a variety of people, dive centers, locations, conditions, and boats. Don't go for "minimum dives" to be DM or instructor, go for at least double the minimum standard by diving, not by enrolling in a zero-to-hero school where you log dives primarily for the purpose of logging dives so you can reach the next level in the program.

If you must do the zero-to-hero thing because of perceived financial issues, realize that in diving, like just about everything else in life, you get what you pay for, as they say. My experience is that short cuts seem faster in the beginning, but generally turn out to be slower in the long run. In other words, become a great diver first, and that means diving in many different locations, conditions, and on many different boats with a variety of people, and log a lot of dives, not for the purpose of meeting some standard or minimum number of dives; but to actually enjoy diving.

Anyway, whatever path you choose, I wish you the best of luck!

 

[lord khram]

I agree entirely with the last post, great advice, in my mind these 'zero to hero courses' are not a good idea and some of the 'results' of such courses that I personally have experienced are testament to that.
Also I would agree that the HTMS Khram wreck is a good dive, along with a couple of other dive sites in the area, but unfortunately the majority of sites in the Pattaya area cannot be described as good. How many times over a period of maybe 6-12 months, diving most days can you dive the same sites, however good they are without it becoming tedious? Take your time and get the biggest variety of experience under your belt. If you are serious about becoming a dive professional the end results will be worth it.