Royal Caribbean PADI OW cert

[Burbs]

anyone done this? Im about to take a cruise and was thinking about it as it is cheaper than the local dive shop, ive always wanted to learn and the water where i live isnt that great for diving. Also any suggestions on what i should buy/get beforehand? One more question, i read on the royal caribbean website that they sell gear duty and tax free, is the gear they sell quality and worth the wait to get it on the ship?

 

[vicdiver656]

To tell you the truth, I think your time and money would be much better spent if you got certified at home, and then went on a dive vacation afterwards. The level of instruction on a cruise may be ok, but may not be the best.

Just an idea

Taylor

 

[KaBoOm]

I'm not so sure it's a question of quality, the instructors on the ship go through the same training as land based instructors. I think what you are going to find is that with the amount of time in the classroom and pool, plus 4 open water dives, you are going to spend your whole vacation doing that and probably not get the full experience of the places you visit.

If this is your only opportunity to dive down south, why not take your class and pool training at your LDS and then do a referral form to do your dives with the ship. I did that years ago with Princess and it worked out great for me.

Good luck with whatever you decide,

Andrew

 

[Burbs]

I'm not so sure it's a question of quality, the instructors on the ship go through the same training as land based instructors. I think what you are going to find is that with the amount of time in the classroom and pool, plus 4 open water dives, you are going to spend your whole vacation doing that and probably not get the full experience of the places you visit.

If this is your only opportunity to dive down south, why not take your class and pool training at your LDS and then do a referral form to do your dives with the ship. I did that years ago with Princess and it worked out great for me.

Good luck with whatever you decide,

Andrew

Another reason for not going to LDS is my work schedule i work 3pm-11pm and on the weekends. My schedule doesnt go to great with the LDS training schedule. I would have to miss a couple days of work to get cert.

 

[mike_s]

anyone done this? Im about to take a cruise and was thinking about it as it is cheaper than the local dive shop, ive always wanted to learn and the water where i live isnt that great for diving. Also any suggestions on what i should buy/get beforehand? One more question, i read on the royal caribbean website that they sell gear duty and tax free, is the gear they sell quality and worth the wait to get it on the ship?

Instead of spending the entire time on the vacation in a classroom, you can take part of the course (pool work and classroom work) at home and then do your refferals on the vacation. this might work better.

If your LDS doesn't have classes during your non-work time, then consider one of the E-learning options like what PADI does. You take your classroom portion online.


As for gear sold on cruiseboats... I'd stay away from that idea.

It might be duty free, but chances are they are selling it at about the same price you can get it at home or via one of the online shops here on scubaboard.

Also, if you have a problem with gear bought on the cruise boat, since it's duty free also might mean it's non-US models, so you might have warranty problems in the US if you ever need to have it worked on.

just my opinion..... but buying gear on a cruise boat is not suggested. Also, in the several cruises I've been on, I've never seen it offered for sale on Royal Caribbean boats. but maybe they sell it on the bigger boats.

 

[Burbs]

can anyone recommend some good starter gear for me then?

 

[mike_s]

see if your LDS can hook you up and has competitive prices....

If not, try one of the online shops here like Dive Sports or other...

 

[KaBoOm]

I wouldn't worry too much about gear at this point with the exception of your basic personal gear. Go out and get yourself a good quality mask, fins and snorkel from your LDS. Make sure everything fits properly at the store. There are tons of deals to be had on your BCD, Regs and computer when you get back.

I've done a lot of cruises and I actually run my own travel business selling cruises and vacations. I've never seen gear for sale onboard except for Masks & Snorkels and some accessories like Fish ID cards, disposible U/W cameras etc.

I agree with the E-Learning suggestion too, that's a great way to get most of the classroom work done. Just make sure that you clarify any questions you have with your instructor when you meet for your pool work.

Andrew

 

[robint]

can anyone recommend some good starter gear for me then?

don't buy any gear before your certification except mask, snorkel, and fins.... and those you should buy at a local dive shop to make sure you get proper fit and appropriate gear (I have seen some people show up for OW classes with a pair of $20 shorkeling fins expecting to scuba dive in them... no, they aren't the same thing!) Same goes for masks.... a $20 mask at Cosco is not a scuba mask, in fact some snorkeling masks are so badly made that they have lenses that can pop out under pressure. That doesn't mean you have to buy top-of-the-line scuba gear, just don't buy the cheap stuff at the local sporting goods store.

The things like BC, Regulator and gauges/computer should be furnished by the dive shop for all pool work as part of your classroom fee. Don't buy any of these until after you are certified.

As far as getting certified on a cruise -- I would do the classroom and pool at home if you can. Just realize that there are hours of reading and written exercises to be done in addition to the actual classroom sessions and pool sessions. Do you really want to spend your cruise doing that?

Just my 2 cents.
robin

 

[Burbs]

As far as getting certified on a cruise -- I would do the classroom and pool at home if you can. Just realize that there are hours of reading and written exercises to be done in addition to the actual classroom sessions and pool sessions. Do you really want to spend your cruise doing that?

Just my 2 cents.
robin

i have ordered PADI Open Water Crew Pack - Complete and PADI Open Water DVD to study and review before the cruise.