koh tao or phuket??????????

[waikatoboy]

Me and girlfriend are wanting to do our dm's in thailand around january and will be staying till june. We were planning on starting in koh tao for our dm course and then try and get a bit of work on a liveaboard in the adaman. With a bit of time to cruise around as well.
But i was told by a local dive shop that the diving and dm's courses in phuket offer better variety of diving and much more to do in between diving. Is this true?
Whats the guts?
And how difficult is it to score work in phuket after doing your course in koh tao.
Is there a huge price difference?

 

[stevenl]

Correct, the diving in Phuket is in general better, and there is more to do. Also quite some phuket diveschools will be hesitant to hire somebody who has done his training in Koh Tao.

The course price though in Phuket will be a bit higher.

Phuket will also offer you the option to go to the Similan Islands, really excellent diving, either as a DM or as a fundiver.

One more difference between the islands is the atmosphere, if you are looking for a real packpacker place, Koh Tao is much more that and all about diving, if you want something else but diving and hang out with mixed groups of people, Phuket has much more to offer.

 

[Batfish]

And how difficult is it to score work in phuket after doing your course in koh tao.
QUOTE]

Almost impossible. Actually according to Thai Law, you cannot employ a farang as a divemaster, only as an instructor. Most liveaboards prefer instructors, and will only take on freshly trained dms as a last resort. IF you did your course in Phuket, you will be in a better position to look for some kind of work here, given that you will get to know people, dive sites, boats, companies and the island.

Koh Tao is of course a far groovier place for young people to do a Dm course. I did mine in Utila, Honduras, the same kind of mostly backpacker clientele, relaxed but safe diving. Phuket is a different kettle of fish and can be overwhelming to the first time visitor especially if you're fresh from the quiet beaches and bungalows of Koh Tao. I love Phuket, but it has to grow on you.

 

[DORSETBOY]

Go to Tao, it's fun and there is good diving there, not nearly as good as the similans but hell where is?.. night lif's good fun too!

 

[ssra30]

I am always curious about DM training quality in Koh Tao. I am not question the actual training center itself as I from my experience, they seem very professional but the dive condition in Koh Tao is generally very easy, not a lot of current, very little drift dive, certainly no up or down current etc and beside the occasional whale sharks, not a lot of opportunity to see other interesting or unusual creatures. So how capable are those DMs from Koh Tao in a difficult dive situation (I am sure they can take care of themselves but to assist other divers in those situation as well)? I probably would not care much to have one of brand new Koh Tao DM as my dive guide else where as I am not sure how well they can cope with a difficult diving situation and most DMs I dove with there only able to identify triggerfish, butterflyfish by family and get very excited at spotting a common warty slug. I am not trying to look down at those DMs but I think that Koh Tao probably does not provide enough challenging or variety of dive sites to really train a DM, I would think. The most difficult aspect of diving I ever did at Koh Tao was the challenge to find my boat at the surface among the 15-20 boats at Chumporn Pinnacle.
I started to think more about this after diving at other places around SE Asia such as Komodo, Sipadan, Puerto Galera and Dumaguette and the quality of DM/dive guides are incredible in comparison to Koh Tao DMs I dove with.

 

[DORSETBOY]

Nice to see you are talking utter rubbish as usual... is that the criteria for selection as SB Staff?

 

[ssra30]

well, one has to wonder about priority, I suppose. When one is considering getting training for something that other people's life might need to depend on, hmm should I choose a training at location that would provide the best experience and learning or a location where one can get good night life, party and ambience! By all mean if you think that Koh Tao DM training program is as good as anywhere else then I am glad to hear. I just have some doubts from my own experience there.

 

[waikatoboy]

So koh tao is the better location and phuket the better diving!!!!
thats sweet but wanting to get serious training in all conditions while having a good time doesn't make it any easier.
What is raya yai like as an island to stay on? i was looking at a company called raya divers which looked good.
Anybody got any other suggestions or imfo i would love to know.
cheers.

 

[snakedr]

well, one has to wonder about priority, I suppose. When one is considering getting training for something that other people's life might need to depend on, hmm should I choose a training at location that would provide the best experience and learning or a location where one can get good night life, party and ambience! By all mean if you think that Koh Tao DM training program is as good as anywhere else then I am glad to hear. I just have some doubts from my own experience there.

So DM training would be better if it was conducted in the surf zone on Oahu's North shore?

 

[ssra30]

So DM training would be better if it was conducted in the surf zone on Oahu's North shore?

I did not say that but I would expect that someone who has a training of a DM should have enough experience diving in variety of conditions. One of my problem with Koh Tao is that many DMs are people who started from open water and stayed on the island for months and go through all the way to DM and instructors. Sure they will get in hundreds of dive but only at a handful of sites where diving is generally very easy.
By all mean, Koh Tao is a good place I think for openwater, advance and all the beginning level as diving condition is quite easy and beginners can get comfortable in the water and more confidence before going elsewhere but I would think that a higher level trained divers who will be responsible for other would benefit from some other diving exposures beside the easy diving at Koh Tao.

All else being equal, I would expect someone who completed his/her DM in the surf zone oh Oahy's North shore to be a more capable diver than DM from Koh Tao!
Bottom line, I think if I am hiring a DM, all else being equal, I would prefer a brand new DM trained from a location that has some exposure to tricky diving situations and variety of diving condition than a brand new DM trained from a nice and relax generally very easy diving conditions with not a lot of exposure to other diving condition.