Open water certification in Curacao

[lala_atlas]

Hello,
I'm going to Curacao next week to get my OW certification and SO excited. I'm staying at the Marriott, so I made a reservation with Caribbean Sea Sports, but I'd also contacted The Dive Bus to get info. I'm now confused - the Dive Bus would be three days of 8-5:30 PM, whereas CSS said it would be two days of 1-5:30 then a full day on the third day. Both operations seem to have great reviews online, so I would think that it would be worth it to do the CSS one because of convenience... But I definitely want as thorough instruction as I can get! Can anyone tell me about the differences between the two courses/shops, and which you'd recommend?
Thanks!
Lauren

 

[irie1029]

Great decision. Wife and I got certified at CSS about 5 years ago (instructor was Jo) he was uber professional and serious which is good. With classroom and enclosed which actually was in the ocean behind a seawall. It took 4 days and was very trying for my wife. Just so you know it really depends on the individual and how comfortable they are in the water as to how long it takes. To be certified you must pass a written test and perform a skills test at each of the 5 sessions so the amount of time will vary. If you were to do one of the skills incorrect you are going to have to practice and do over which could mean another day which of course they would provide free as they failed to instruct you "properly". Dive Bus is a great outfit and I am not knocking them just for convenience I would do CSS and see if you can do class room on line before you go so you can focus on skills. Just a thought.