Cheap PADI OW Certification
- Thread starter horn34
- Start date
Please register or login
Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.
Benefits of registering include
- Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
- A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
- You can make this box go away
In Austin they aren't taking you out on a boat - well, maybe they do, but those costs are a lot less than the fuel and distance here. The boat dives are where the heavy loaded costs are - and they don't pay their instructors living wages either. Typical instructor pay in resort areas is 40% of the course fee. They are also planning to sell you and upsell you on a bunch of gear, and then an AOW and Rescue class.
Apples to oranges
Getting a local deal will probably yield a better result with the local negotiating his/her own deal.
OP
horn34
Contributor
Where the hell did you get any of that? Several ridiculous assumptions there.
My buddy is getting his DM. They both have full gear, aside from a couple of reg parts I'm putting together for her.
Yep.
I have seen a few here state there is not much to an open water course so why does it cost what it does. Clearly none of these people are instructors. The open water course is one of the hardest to tech IMO. You have people with zero knowledge of diving who you have to teach theory, proper skills and make sure they do not die during the course and have the necessary skills and understanding to go dive with a buddy post-course and surface safely.
To say it is just mask clear, reg recovery, etc over simplifies the course and makes it seem as if anyone can read a book and go do dive without the need of an instructor. Good instructors put a lot of hard work and effort into teaching an open water course.
To say it is just mask clear, reg recovery, etc over simplifies the course and makes it seem as if anyone can read a book and go do dive without the need of an instructor. Good instructors put a lot of hard work and effort into teaching an open water course.
Bob DBF
Contributor
It's not just those skills, however a lot of divers, including myself, read a book and learned to dive without an instructor. I took OW 17 years later, after doing recreational dives and what would be considered tec diving now, in order to get fills from shops that didn't know me.
Not saying a good instructor is not preferable, and for some people quite necessary, but the overiding need for an instructor is to get a c-card.
No argument with that.
Bob
- Messages
- 54,252
- Reaction score
- 8,378
- # of dives
- 500 - 999
As far as the cost issue, I am sure the boyfriend and girlfriend could find better answers thru local friends and connections.
Dont think anyone is talking about good instructors. By all means they are worth every bit you pay them, because they teach understanding, and that is well beyond the MIN requirements. It is those instructors that do nothing more than lets say babysit your self study have you learn a few step by step proceedures and do a pool session and open water the next day repeating the skills you did in the pool. ONce you were cleared in the pool is there really any hazzard when you repeat the skills in the 35 ft lake.
For starters, PADI has five pool sessions and four open waters - to standards, that’s four days to complete including the knowledge reviews.
I guess just because you found your regulator three times in the pool, you’ll certainly find it in the lake or ocean at 40’ right??? Why should I even pay attention? The odds of having to share air are so slim, shouldn’t worry about that either.....
The skills taught build upon one another, the repetition builds muscle memory and confidence.
The instructor that earns 40% on a $400 course over four days - they’ll definitely be getting set up to retire early. Their cost of equipment is in American dollars, their agency fees are in American dollars, their liability is real lives......
WetInPortland
Contributor
I agree with Nathan Doty's later post that these folks need to stick to snorkeling - sorry. Not an unreasonable question to ask, but that's really the best answer. Even if they get certified and have gear, how are they going to pay for dives? Shops do offer locals pricing, but it's not zero (or even $40US).
As to why it's "so high" in Cozumel, $400 at 2TDH is about 25% more than the $325 price in Austin. Remember that Cozumel is and island - everything has to be imported, electricity is expensive, plus boats, fuel, (there is very little shore good shore diving) - so a lot of expenses that inland shops probably don't have. Labor may be cheap, but that's a small percentage of the total operating cost. And that's not even addressing the marketing aspects that others have mentioned.
Similar threads
