Live in Central Georgia, want to learn in FL

[Lightningfast67]

Hi all,

I'm going on a military deployment in April which will put me in an area with some pretty good diving (tough life.. I know). I would really like to complete my open water cert in either High Springs or Destin since I have friends in both places where I could crash. The problem is, I don't want to spend an entire week down there and would prefer to get it knocked out over a three day weekend (Sat-Mon) if possible. Any recommendations? I'm assuming the PADI E-learning would be the best bet, but my LDS wants $500 for the whole shebang and that's out of my price range.

 

[Chugwhump]

For info in Destin shops, I would cross post in the DDF.
Here it is.
Deep Dixie Divers
Also.......
I am under the impression that you can find your dive lessons/cert a little cheaper, with significantly warmer water and more consistently good conditions right now in SoFla.
It is a far more competitive business climate in the SCUBA diving industry down here.
Can you find a way to couch surf down here?

Chug
Been to the Redneck Riviera, but not doved it as yet.

 

[oly5050user]

Hi all,

I'm going on a military deployment in April which will put me in an area with some pretty good diving (tough life.. I know). I would really like to complete my open water cert in either High Springs or Destin since I have friends in both places where I could crash. The problem is, I don't want to spend an entire week down there and would prefer to get it knocked out over a three day weekend (Sat-Mon) if possible. Any recommendations? I'm assuming the PADI E-learning would be the best bet, but my LDS wants $500 for the whole shebang and that's out of my price range.

$500. is actually cheap for the academics,confined water and 4 training dives. Even after paying $130. For elearning access that is cheap. If this is on a private basis it is a bargain. Here in NY a private ow course with a ELEARNER would run you $550. Non ELEARNER cost is around $650. For the training dives if also done on a private basis another fee approaching $600. You are asking for a schedule to fit your exact needs so expect to be charged for it. Much less expensive in a group setting. Expect to pay around $250 for academic and pool and another $200 to $250 for the training dives in a standard group schedule. Expect to also be required purchase or own mask,snorkel,fins,boots at a minimum.

 

[scubastingray]

$500. is actually cheap for the academics,confined water and 4 training dives. Even after paying $130. For elearning access that is cheap. If this is on a private basis it is a bargain. Here in NY a private ow course with a ELEARNER would run you $550. Non ELEARNER cost is around $650. For the training dives if also done on a private basis another fee approaching $600. You are asking for a schedule to fit your exact needs so expect to be charged for it. Much less expensive in a group setting. Expect to pay around $250 for academic and pool and another $200 to $250 for the training dives in a standard group schedule. Expect to also be required purchase or own mask,snorkel,fins,boots at a minimum.

Right, so in an entirely different market that's a good deal. In FL, that is not. A few family members got certified for like $400 when it was all said and done (including lodging and food for a night and both days). This was in Jax, but with more competition expect to pay less. I paid more than that to get certified up in Cleveland, but it was a good deal for the area. 2x what you'd pay on the cheap end in jax.

 

[CajunDiva]

I would recommend the e-learning route. You could get the course work done before going to Destin, then just do the pool and open water skills over a weekend once you get there. Here is a link to a reputable shop in Destin where you can complete the whole process for a little under $550...not including your personal gear - mask, snorkel, fins

Scuba Tech Northwest Florida

If this seems expensive, it might be cheaper to do it overseas...depending on where you are being deployed. Or you could do the course work here and get a universal referral, then you could do your check-out dives once you are deployed

Thanks for your service!

 

[Lightningfast67]

Thanks everyone. I would like to keep it as close to Georgia as possible. I guess is $500 is the going rate I might have to do it in country. Fellow troops have told me it can be done for under $400 there. I will look into the Dixie divers and also have received a couple PMs I'll look into. Thanks again.

 

[Dive-aholic]

Remember you get what you pay for. $400 isn't a lot of money for what should be 4 days of training. That's $100/day that gets to be split up between the shop and the instructor to cover time, overhead, liability insurance, cert processing fee, etc. Scuba diving is not a cheap activity. If you're concerned about paying $500 now you might want to look into a different activity. Not trying to be an a$$, just being honest. There is a lot of information and a lot of skills to cover in that time. Even 4 days seems like it's not enough time, especially if you're in a big class. Yes, there are instructors that will do 3 and even 2 day classes, but you're getting the bare minimum in standards. Is that how you want to learn to dive? Another thing to consider is hidden fees. There's a shop in Destin that has advertised the $99 open water class in the past. They might have that deal going on now. What they don't tell you is all the extra costs to complete the certification process. They don't tell you about the gear rental fees, the certification processing fee, the boat fee, etc. When I saw this gimmick several years ago I researched it and at the end of it all students ended up paying well of $1000 for the $99 course. I don't teach open water very often, if at all, so I'm not telling you all this because I'm trying to promote my classes. When I was teaching open water I told my students up front that they could expect to pay about $800-1000 for the entire process once. This included my training fees, the student packet, certification processing fee, and basic gear they had to purchase (which is the reason for the range as they could go low end or high end on that gear).

 

[Lightningfast67]

Oh I completely understand. I've just already purchased all the additional items and received a nice BCD and reg for Christmas from my father (big diver). I guess the location of classes is what really influences the cost. I know I can save hundreds by diving in country now, so I have to weigh my options.

 

[CajunDiva]

received a nice BCD and reg for Christmas from my father

Way to go dad! You're already off to a great start

 

[Lightningfast67]

Haha yea and my sister bought a mask and snorkel. Family was on board for getting my cert ASAP.