What? How? Where ? When? help!

[otisbirdsong]

New to Scuba.

Planning on getting certified in the next couple of months...originally planning on getting the pool and class room stuff done here in NYC at Village Divers and then doing the open water dives down in Puerta Vallarta in Mexico.

I've seen that you can get the complete certification down there...does that make sense or it is usually a bad idea to do the complete training there....Is it a better idea to do one part in one place and the other in a different one...

Also, Does anyone have any information about Village Divers...is there a better place to get the certification done in NYC?

Thanks, Todd

 

[MechDiver]

The advantage to doing your classroom and pool work locally is you don't waste your vacation time doing them there.

Either will work, probably just about the same for the OW class. Good luck on your classes.

MD

 

[Scubaroo]

You probably should do your training dives in conditions similar to where you will be doing the bulk of your diving - so if you're planning on just diving in warm water on vacations, doing the classwork in NYC and getting a referral to do the open water (OW) dives in warm water makes sense - you won't be wasting vacation time as already pointed out.

However, if you're planning on diving locally in colder waters with heavier exposure protection, you probably should do your training dives where you live - that way, you can handle the local conditions, and you will appreciate the warm water dives so much more

 

[otisbirdsong]

Thank you both vevry much for your help!
Exactly some of the input I was hoping to get.

Todd

 

[Northeastwrecks]

I would consider doing your classroom and, if possible, your cert dives up here for all of the reasons set forth above. In addition:

1. You should take the opportunity to speak with your instructor and check out the shop. Are the organized? Helpful? Do the seem to know what they are doing? What are their teaching philosophies? How do the react to questions? Do they stock several brands of equipment? How often do their instructors dive and what type of diving to they do? Does it match what you may want to do?

You probably won't have as much chance to shop around if you take the course in Mexico. You don't want to get stuck with a bad instructor when its too late to back out.

2. Taking the course on vacation in Mexico shortens the time you have to learn the material. Remember, this is a course on staying alive in an alien and potentially hostile environment. You want to take enough time to absorb the material fully. Unless you are good at learning and retaining new information rapidly, you may find that you don't have as much of a grasp of the material as you should.

Regardless, welcome to a wonderful activity. I dove yesterday (great fun) and spent a couple of hours this afternoon tweaking my equipment (also fun because I remembered yesterday).

 

[Drew Sailbum]

Doing the check out dives in the type of enviroment that you will be diving in makes sense.

But I have to disagree with one point, you do your skills learning in the confined water (pool) sessions. Doing referral dives in the tropics does not appreciably shorten your learing time in any meaningful way. Likely you would do your 4 or 5 check out dives in two 2 dive sessions over two days regardless of whether you do them at home or on vacation.

While you can present an argument on the rationale of doing a full open water class in a few days while on vacation, don't sweat doing a referral away from home. Open water dives are for skills assessment - only the environment has changed. If you are planning to dive primarily on vacations to warm tropical environments, then doing a referral absolutely maskes sense.

 

[Northeastwrecks]

I largely agree with Drew. My comments on time were largely directed towards doing your entire course at the resort.

However, if you are getting a referral, that means that you will do your skills learning up here. My first point stands.

In addition, consider asking your LDS for recommendations on who to use for a referral. Find out whether the instructor has experience with the shop and get a name if possible.

The whole point is to maximize fun and learning.

 

[gzscuba]

Hi Todd,

I got certified last year in Wisconsin, checkout dives and all. My next dive was on vacation in Italy. The only problem was that neither my fiancee/buddy nor I had truly established our comfort zone. We had a good time in Italy, but my buddy wasn't properly weighted and couldn't stay down. I had quite a bit of trouble staying neutrally buoyant. Instead of enjoying the scenery, I was worried proper diving

Back in Wisconsin, it took us about 4 dives or so until we got things (vaguely) figured out like proper weighting, neutral buoyancy, and proper ascents. We also took an AOW class last August.

So, if you've got the time, I'd suggest that you get certified in NY and hone your skills a bit, so you can have more fun on vacation.

We're going to St. Lucia this summer, and hopefully, we'll be more mentally prepared than we were in Italy.

Good luck with your certification.

 

[mierin]

I had a thread a while back on this same type of thing. Transplant New York with Michigan and Mexico with Jamaica. I however am doing all my training there because I have more time on my vacation to devote to it than I do at home. If only I could find a way to do the training at work during the day in between calls and writing.

Something no one has mentioned thus far is that while the learning is intensive you can order and get a book ahead of time. Great reading material and helps to psych you up about the trip and diving. I bought a 2 year old PADI manual and 1 year old tapes off ebay for $40. Since I am certifying with my roommate it was a sound investment as we can share them.

Getting certified in the only place I plan to dive at for quite some time gives me the ability to be learning alongside the men who will be my dive crew, they will learn my weaknesses and strengths and it is less costly time and money wise for me.

Should I wish further training on subsequent trips I can go on and get my advanced PADI certs all the way up to Dive Master or Mistress

mierin

 

[alcina]

I think people have covered a lot of what popped into my head when I first read your post, but one thing I didn't see was about the costs.

Check out how much time and money doing the course in two locations will cost...it is usually more expensive, but often worth it as you spend more of your vacation time diving. But it is something I would want to know in advance.

Also double check what requirements the dive company/country you are completing the course with has to make sure you bring everything with you. I know here in Australia you MUST have a diving medical done to the correct Australian Standard before you can be certified as an Open Water diver. This is often overlooked by overseas companies referring people who have completed the theory and confined water sessions in another country.

Have a great time!