I had a 6 month internship lined up with a center in Raja Ampat but it fell through due to Covid and the resort was really bad at communicating throughout so I may have dodged a bullet. I've been sifting through shops online but it's really hard to know if a shop is decent or not and the big ones seem to have the most internet presence. I don't want to end up in a gongshow if I can avoid it.
I'm not really too concerned with the actual certification at the end. I just want to spend a few months (no less than 3. I'm not interested in a 1 month course) working in exchange for lots of dives in a cool destination (anywhere in the world). If I can get on a free one in exchange for work that would be ideal.
The diving quality and number of dives is the priority, but I wouldn't say no to a fun nightlife too. I'm really after variation. I don't want to spend 3 months doing shark dives. Looking for different topology, current, nice pelagic stuff, and coral.
I've been diving in the Philippines (Malapascua, Panglao, Moalboal, Apo), Koh Tao, Utila, Borneo (Kota Kinabalu), Belize, Indonesia (Komodo, Bali, Gili Islands) and my home country of Canada (East and West coasts and interior). I liked all of them except Koh Tao and Belize.
In my opinion Komodo had the best diving by a long shot and that's the kind of coral and sea life I'm looking for. Malapascua was good but i don't know if it had enough variation to be happy there for months (too much focus on the threshers). I found the coral to be pretty poor in Belize and Kota Kinabalu. Utila had decent diving (got lucky with dolphins and whales), but was more focused on the party scene (I liked that the boat rides were short vs the 1-2h in Komodo). I've heard the quality of the instruction in many places like Koh Tao leaves something to be desired.
I've been leaning towards Sipadan, Palau, Sulawesi, Mozambique, something in Mexico (for cenotes or the sea of cortez), south africa, etc. Looking to get off the beaten track if I can.
If anyone has any first hand recommendations of good places to look into I'd really appreciate it.
I'm not really too concerned with the actual certification at the end. I just want to spend a few months (no less than 3. I'm not interested in a 1 month course) working in exchange for lots of dives in a cool destination (anywhere in the world). If I can get on a free one in exchange for work that would be ideal.
The diving quality and number of dives is the priority, but I wouldn't say no to a fun nightlife too. I'm really after variation. I don't want to spend 3 months doing shark dives. Looking for different topology, current, nice pelagic stuff, and coral.
I've been diving in the Philippines (Malapascua, Panglao, Moalboal, Apo), Koh Tao, Utila, Borneo (Kota Kinabalu), Belize, Indonesia (Komodo, Bali, Gili Islands) and my home country of Canada (East and West coasts and interior). I liked all of them except Koh Tao and Belize.
In my opinion Komodo had the best diving by a long shot and that's the kind of coral and sea life I'm looking for. Malapascua was good but i don't know if it had enough variation to be happy there for months (too much focus on the threshers). I found the coral to be pretty poor in Belize and Kota Kinabalu. Utila had decent diving (got lucky with dolphins and whales), but was more focused on the party scene (I liked that the boat rides were short vs the 1-2h in Komodo). I've heard the quality of the instruction in many places like Koh Tao leaves something to be desired.
I've been leaning towards Sipadan, Palau, Sulawesi, Mozambique, something in Mexico (for cenotes or the sea of cortez), south africa, etc. Looking to get off the beaten track if I can.
If anyone has any first hand recommendations of good places to look into I'd really appreciate it.
