Divemaster 4-6 weeks in Utila or Costa Rica( Playa Del coco or? )

[jamious]

Hi,

I am trying to get an opinion as to where it could be better doing a divemaster training of around 4-6 weeks, between utila and costa Rica playa de coco( please let me know if there are better places ). Costa rica is a bit more convenient to my travel time and plan that's why i doubtful. Factors:

1st) based on where would i actually enjoy the diving itself the most in terms of marine life(i prefer pelagic animals but happy with beautiful reefs rich in fish) . In costarica it would be Dec-jan in Utila feb-mid march.


2nd) which environment would actually be most fun/interesting to live for 4-6 week overall. I am not into partying but i do enjoy socializing and making friends when travelling with ppl who stay in the same area.


I haven't between to either place but am hesitant with playa del coco as it really doesnt seem like a very interesting area on its own(beach and nature pretty average) and less of a potential with potential of meeting ppl. I am not looking to party but i like the sense of being part of a community and socializing. I ve only being to puerto viejo which i liked. I also liked the Caye Caulker chilled vibe even though i felt it was lucking a beach.


Cost is of consideration too. PPL say costa rica is expensive however not sure if a lot more than utila. The courses seem that would actually be 200-300 usd cheaper in CR and might be more convenient to get to with my itinerary and potentially save an extra 200usd by going there. So perhaps these extra 400usd could make up for difference in cost for food/drink/lodging.


Diving Background.

I am a rescue diver.I surely know the difference between carribean and pacific diving even thought its been a while since i last dove in carribean. I dove in various places including Coiba island, Galapagos, Puerto lopez Ecuador and Belize. Galapagos was top and hardly anything would beat the concentration of big marine life, sharks etc. Belize atols near blue whole were fantastic too.



i did a course in Puerto lopez Ecuador which was bellow average so i would prefer caribean instead of that. Coiba however was nice and would probably choose that over a medium carribean.

 

[scubadada]

Where do you intend on working? I assume you think you will be working.

 

[Diving Dubai]

Firstly what are your intentions?

Are you just wanting to go diving and get a bit of instruction and get a card

Do you want to learn to become a divemaster as well as going diving?

Not all DM shop courses are equal. Some will take your money, & go through the motions. Sure you'll get to dive and work in the shop but how much will you really learn

Others actually teach. By that I mean you don't actually pass the module on your first attempt, because you do need to prove you can do it repeatedly

When I teach DM's my mental pass guide is would I trust them and be happy for them to guide my teenage boys - each having 20 OW dives?

I ensure that the skill circuit is complete all while neutral with the exception of equipment exchange, but even then I challenge my students to be progress to doing it neutral

How many will be on the course? It's nice for DM's students to be in a group, so they can go away together and practice. Remember DM is a different course, rather than being Instructor Student, it's more of a mentoring system, and so we demonstrate and assist but expect you to go away and practice and then come back when ready.

Also investigate the extra costs, Padi fees, Insurance fees (you have to have before you're certified by Padi, additional pieces of kit - they can all add up

The Dm course can be very good whether you intend to progress or just want additional knowledge and experience. Be aware that you should already be able to make blue water safety stops in trim, with a visual reference not holding onto a line, if not be open about this. There is no point over (or exaggerating your experience to an instructor because within 5 mins of your first splash we'll know.

It's my favourite course to teach, but I get frustrated that some shops simply see it as a money spinner and means to inflate their CD's pro certs to get to a platinum level each year. You really need to ask detailed questions of the shop buyer be wary

As an example, I was going to go to the Caribbean to take my Tech Instructor course. A well know shop supposedly with good rated instructors, offered to get me to Trix mix instructor inc the min qualify dives. Bear in mind I've never dived Tri Mix and on completion in theory I'd have been able to take students to 65m + Seriously!!! They were after money and cert count. Some might have been tempted, I certainly wasn't!


Lots to think about, sure, if I can assist with pointers further, just shout

 

[jamious]

Thanks for the replies.

Good points. Yes i would really like to improve my skills and that is an important factor. I have around 50ish dives and recently completed my advance and rescue after years being an open water. I would like to do this training to really get better in diving and being a able to guide amateur friends if i have the opportunity, Plus i believe is a good way to dive a lot and get something bigger out and not just dive a lot and pay a lot. Also i like the idea of having the option or the chance if ever comes to it to stay at a place for 2-3 months i might like while travelling and work as a DM to experience the place, meet ppl and not eat up savings. For fan mainly and not a career( Not interested for now in IDC course).


Except for the work needed for DM indeed i intent do work remotly party while doing the course if its possible.
I wouldn't mind if i need longer to complete the course but have more days off during the week when i could do remote work. For example i was thinking of spending the first 15-16 days doing just the DM (taking off from the remote work) to give it a good push and then perhaps, do DM work just 3-4 days a week(weekends) in order to be able to work remotely the rest.

Do you think this way of doing a DM training could work? Could it be done in 6-8 weeks without having a burnout, stiill enjoying the scuba life and really making the most out of a DM traning?

 

[Kupu]

Utilia gets my vote as the better choice from the standpoint of looking for a fun/interesting topside environment and dive scene.

During my backpacker years, I made a couple stops on Utila, spending a few months total on the island as I enjoyed the overall scene on both visits. I was tempted to do my DM there, but held off as I was looking for low responsibility fun at that time. Also made a couple stops in Playas del Coco, but moved on after a few days each time due to lack of interest on my part.

 

[jamious]

Thanks Kupu,

Thats a great input. Other than diving the next bigger factor is the overal scene and enviroment you get from the place you r planning to live even if its for just 6-8 weeks. I am on my early 30s. These opportunities/experiences dont happen often so you ought to make the most out of it. Really enjoying ur environment and creating good memories with newly made friends is equally important

 

[Scared Silly]

Thanks for the replies.

Good points. Yes i would really like to improve my skills and that is an important factor. I have around 50ish dives and recently completed my advance and rescue after years being an open water. I would like to do this training to really get better in diving and being a able to guide amateur friends if i have the opportunity, Plus i believe is a good way to dive a lot and get something bigger out and not just dive a lot and pay a lot. Also i like the idea of having the option or the chance if ever comes to it to stay at a place for 2-3 months i might like while travelling and work as a DM to experience the place, meet ppl and not eat up savings. For fan mainly and not a career( Not interested for now in IDC course).

Taking a DM course is not intended to improve your diving, it is to teach you how to teach diving. If your diving skills are not very good you will have to improve them to demonstrate that you are competent to teach others.

As a diver with ~50 dives, I would suggest you save your money on the course and just go dive in as many different places. For that matter, go visit Playas del Coco where the diving is often in currents, then hop over to Utilla where the diving is not often with currents. I have been to both and enjoyed the diving as well as the topside - there are way more things to see in Costa Rica than Honduras, which the main land is suffering from gang crime in many areas.

Finally, I am not sure the idea of just happening across a DM job for 2-3 months is that realistic anymore.

 

[jamious]

Taking a DM course is not intended to improve your diving, it is to teach you how to teach diving. If your diving skills are not very good you will have to improve them to demonstrate that you are competent to teach others.

As a diver with ~50 dives, I would suggest you save your money on the course and just go dive in as many different places. For that matter, go visit Playas del Coco where the diving is often in currents, then hop over to Utilla where the diving is not often with currents. I have been to both and enjoyed the diving as well as the topside - there are way more things to see in Costa Rica than Honduras, which the main land is suffering from gang crime in many areas.

Finally, I am not sure the idea of just happening across a DM job for 2-3 months is that realistic anymore.

Thanks for the useful input.

The reason i was considering Playas de Coco is that ill probably be around sometime in December+Jan where i plan to stay in Nicaragua for month or so working remotely, so it could be easier to extend my time and stick around then (spend less time in Nica and do the DM in CR) than get to Utila later on Feb+march when the weather gets better there and higher chances to see whalesharks. But yeah regardless of the DM i might just visit to dive. Does nicaragua have any decent diving in the pacific where i can do some fun dives?

Yeah i get that the DM is more about learning how to lead and teach. I am confident with my diving but yes not confident enough to lead a dive with an inexperienced friend or my partner which is less comfortable under water and i would love to be able to do that. So this solely is a good reason for me to do it.
Indeed my last dives where in the pacific and especially Galapagos and some where quite challenged so i get that the more places you dive the more all around experience you get and i plan to keep doing that.

however i think that at some point is good to spend some time diving constantly/regularly in order to see difference in your skills and experience rather than just a couple of dives every 6 months or even longer. Atleast that's what i experience in my last trip where i did like 20-25 dives in 3 weeks which where a mix of courses and fund diving.

So it seems to me easier and cheaper to stick to one place for sometime doing that and having a more regular and social life. And in fact doing a DM while doing can actually be a more cost effective way of diving a lot and learning than just paying for fun dives. Or a least with a bit of an extra cost you really learn some different set of skills and you get some qualification out of it that can be handy one day.
Also staying stable in one place for 2 months to just dive/DM can easier faciliate a lifestyle that can allow some days of doing digital work remotely whereas it would be harder if you were constantly on the move.

And yeah doing a DM job for 2-3 months randomly somewhere i bet it aint that easy anymore and its not really my objective so its ok. It's just good to have the door open for various options if an opportunity arises, that being anywhere from working and getting paid somewhere exotic for few months, to diving cheaper/free, volunteer in underwater projects to becoming a dive Instructor professional if you ever feel like complete change of life.

 

[Diving Dubai]

I'm going to agree it's better to use the money to increase yoru dive count and gain experience, since your profile states, Cyprus, there is good opportunities for diving there (Zenobia) although I know from experience the fish life is lacking

In theory that technicall the DM course doesn't teach you new skills, but it does re teach skills and you do relearn those you've forgotten. Again a decent shop will have you carrying out the skills circuit in neutral trim (not on knees) Leaning to demonstrated reg remove and replace, slowly and at demonstration quality while remaining neutral in a pool that may only be 2m/6' deep can be a challenge

Myself I hadn't use a compass since my OW which had been 10 years and 500 dives previous my compass skills were rusty to say the least. It took quite a few dives for it to become a natural and fluid skill again

Guiding is a real skill and while you can teach all the skills it does take a decent amount of time in water to develop them. Again if your core skills are lacking then the additional task loading of guiding paying customers will show your flaws. Guiding professional is often assumed to be easy. It's not.

As for amount of time. Some shops will boast you can do Dm in 10 days (going through the motions) Others prefer to have the candidates for 3 months to develop their skills and diving which is the best route. It also depends on how much diving the shop does customer wise. Busy shops give you much better opportunities and depth of experience

When I've taught weekend only students, then it is really dependant on how much time they will dedicate to it