Flexibility in taking PADI Courses?

[Kevin Floyd]

Hello dive mentors!
How can I take the PADI Rescue Diver course, and hopefully save a little money while preserving versatility in scheduling? When I took my Advanced Open Water course, I had to pay the dive shop the entire price that was listed on their website for the online training + the in-person training, even though I had already completed my online training that I purchased directly from PADI.

I would like to sign up for the online coursework, take my time completing it, and then when my schedule allows, find the cheapest flight to somewhere that offers the in-person training. But, I don't want to pay for the online training twice. Am I missing something?

Thanks!

Sounds like you need to find a better shop.

But in truth the PADI shop I dive with has let me pay for a course and then take the study materials with me and set the course date later.

the SSI courses I have taken with a different shop work the same way

 

[Ben_3]

Hello dive mentors!
How can I take the PADI Rescue Diver course, and hopefully save a little money while preserving versatility in scheduling? When I took my Advanced Open Water course, I had to pay the dive shop the entire price that was listed on their website for the online training + the in-person training, even though I had already completed my online training that I purchased directly from PADI.

I would like to sign up for the online coursework, take my time completing it, and then when my schedule allows, find the cheapest flight to somewhere that offers the in-person training. But, I don't want to pay for the online training twice. Am I missing something?

Thanks!

That is really odd that they made you pay the eLearning portion a seconde time for AOW.. I would dig deeper into that if I was you.

Yes, you should be able to go for the online and then sign up for the practical part with a PADI instructor. By experience, sometimes when you buy the online portion yourself instead of going through the dive shop or instructor it's a bit more expensive. Not by much.

 

[Scuba Scott]

Why Florida?
Flying is biggest logistical problem. If you could eliminate that you may find this much easier to plan. Where are you from? Any chance this could be done locally or at least within driving distance?

 

[Scuba Scott]

When you buy eLearning through a shop or instructor they buy it at wholesale price and sell it at retail price. They can sell it to you at a discount off retail too but either way they get some profit from the sale and the code is assigned to both you and your instructor so your training can be tracked and signed off.
When you buy direct from PADI you always pay full retail and an independent instructor would get nothing. A PADI shop would get a small fee if you designated them when you bought the course. If you don't know what shop you are going to use when you buy your course then the shop you choose looses that portion of the profit. They also now have to get your eLearning code and get it assigned to them so they can sign off on your training. If you aren't able to provide this code to them or it has expired then it is like you never bought the training.
FL dive shops are already running pretty thin margins on training. If the shop down the street is charging $10 less then everyone is going there so training is priced with very little profit or sometimes at a loss just to get in the door so maybe you will buy some gear. Cheating a shop out of the eLearning fee means it probably costs them more to certify you than you are paying them.

Think before buying your eLearning direct from PADI. At the very least, you are paying the highest possible price for it. I have never seen a shop charge above retail for eLearning but I have seen it discounted often. PADI charges this way on purpose to encourage you to go through a shop but still offers the direct option so they at least get you as a PADI customer.

 

[tursiops]

When I took my Advanced Open Water course, I had to pay the dive shop the entire price that was listed on their website for the online training + the in-person training, even though I had already completed my online training that I purchased directly from PADI.

If you are describing this correctly, you got screwed....by yourself.
Yes, you can purchase on-line from PADI directly...
Yes, you can go do your in-water training when and where you want (within one year)....
No, you can't expect to use this technique to save as much money as possible, for reasons already described to you.
You can't have everything you want....so you need to decide what is most important to you.....dollars or flexibility?

Doing the in-water part of the Rescue class is quite different from the AOW dives.....which can usually be done as part of one's normal boat or shore dives depending on location and logistics. The Rescue class in mandated to take at least two days, and the first day is mandated to be many hours in a pool or confined open water, and is best done with at least one assistant if not several....this is not part of an instructor or shop's usual schedule, thus is usually not available whenever or wherever you want, just when logistics allow.

 

[TMHeimer]

Use the internet to locate the shop you want in the place you want. E mail them with questions (cost, etc.). Get details in writing (e mail) and print them out to take with you. I did part of the Nitrox course with one shop (in USA) and finished it with another (Canada), but like you, I had to do the whole course with the second shop and pay the full fee. My guess is that a lot of shops operate that way.