Open Water Certification
Course | Price/Person | Notes |
PADI Open Water Diver E-Learning | $350.00 | Includes all rental and boat fees. Must ... |
PADI Open Water Full Course | $550.00 | Includes course fee and all rental |
PADI Open Water Diver Referral | $275.00 | Plus mask, snorkel and fins rental & cer ... |
Full Answer
This is going to be close in terms of competency to an open water diver certificate from any of the other agencies listed. The cost is going to vary based on the location you take the course, but expect to spend about $400 to take this certification course. You can find more information on the NAUI Scuba Diver course here.
The PADI Open Water Diver course consists of three main phases: Knowledge Development ( online, independent study or in a classroom) to understand basic principles of scuba diving. Confined Water Dives to learn basic scuba skills. Open Water Dives to use your skills and explore!
Course prerequisites: PADI Open Water Diver, Junior Open Water Diver, or qualifying entry-level certification. The minimum age to start the Advanced Open Water Diver course is 12.
You can complete this course locally or while travelling. There are three parts to certification: knowledge development, skill practice, and open water dives. You can complete all three parts locally, on holiday, or split between the two. Advanced Open Water Depth The Advanced Open Water Diver course includes one deep dive.
The whole course will cost anywhere between $900-1200. This will cover everything: Your Scuba Certification License allowing you to dive up to 60ft around the world (included in base fee) Knowledge Development Classes and Final Exam (included in base fee)
How much does the PADI® Open Water Diver Course cost? The starting cost of the PADI Open Water Diver Course is $599, but compared with other dive resorts this price is the same or lower and could be reduced during flash sales on Cruise Planner.
It's possible to complete your confined and open water dives in three or four days by completing the knowledge development portion via PADI eLearning, or other home study options offered by your local dive shop or resort.
PADI Course PricesCOURSEDAYSPRICEOPEN WATER3£495ADVENTURE DIVER1£250ADVENTURE TO ADVANCE1£250ADVANCE OPEN WATER2£35029 more rows
Yes, scuba diving is an expensive hobby. You can expect to spend roughly $300 to receive your diving certification, anywhere from $200 – $2,000 on scuba diving gear, and anywhere between $75 – $150 per dive. Renting your gear instead of buying can let you scuba dive on a budget.
Alternate Air Source Stationary for 30 Seconds. Swim Maintaining Buoyancy. Air Check. Skin Dive.
Most divers will typically spend between $200 and $300 on their personal equipment, and may spend quite a bit more if they are also purchasing a wetsuit and a personal dive computer. A diver who wants to be comfortable and confident in open water will typically invest in a full equipment system.
Your PADI certification does not expire. Participation in PADI ReActivate™ is not mandatory, but recommended as an easy way to refresh your foundational scuba safety knowledge and skills if you haven't been diving in a while.
The number of dives needed to complete the course means it can take anywhere between six weeks and six months to attain the certification.
18 meters/60 feetPADI Open Water Diver: Maximum Depth. – Open Water Divers can plan and execute dives with a certified buddy or dive professional to a maximum depth of 18 meters/60 feet. – Scuba Divers may only dive under the direct supervision of a PADI Professional (an Instructor) to a maximum depth of 12 meters/40 feet.
Your PADI certification never expires; but if you haven't been diving in a while, it's better to be over-prepared than risk a problem because you forget something important. Dive shops also appreciate seeing a recent ReActivated date on your certification card.
Professional Association of Diving InstructorsProfessional Association of Diving Instructors. PADI.
So, to answer the question, "Is the PADI Open Water certification hard?", the answer is that realistically, it is not hard at all. The average person can easily learn to dive but on the way, they will have to address psychological issues.
Getting your PADI Certification is not hard, it's fun and it's an incredible experience, but you do need to follow the rules to make sure that your PADI Open Water Course is also a safe experience. After you have completed the PADI course you will receive the PADI Open Water Certification Card.
Your PADI SCUBA certification does not expire. It is highly recommended that you keep in practice. You should dive more than once a year. If not you should take a scuba tune up called a PADI Scuba Review with 2DiVE4.
How Long Does the Certification Process Take? Around three to four days is pretty common! If you choose to do the online course and learn diving knowledge at home, that will quicken the process.
The Advanced Open Water Diver course is all about advancing your skills. You'll practice navigation and buoyancy, try deep diving and make three specialty dives of your choosing (it's like a specialty sampler platter). For every specialty dive you complete, you can earn credit toward PADI ® specialty certifications.
The course includes five dives: a deep dive below 18m/60f, a navigation dive, and three specialty dives. Gain experience, build confidence and discover your diving abilities.
In addition to basic scuba gear, you will need a compass, dive knife/tool, dive computer and student slate. If you don't own these items, ask your dive shop about renting or purchasing these items.
The depths listed above are the maximum depth, your dive may be shallower. A deep dive is considered anything below 18 metres/60 feet. Put another way, a dive to just 19 metres/62 feet qualifies as a deep dive. The PADI Advanced Open Water course is like a specialty sampler platter.
The minimum age to start the Advanced Open Water Diver course is 12.
Choosing a Dive Shop. You can complete this course locally or while travelling. There are three parts to certification: knowledge development, skill practice, and open water dives. You can complete all three parts locally, on holiday, or split between the two. Choose a dive shop close to home to:
The PADI Training app is available for Android™ and Apple® iOS devices. For the ideal experience, devices should be no more than three models old and running with the most current OS (operating system).
Who Should Take This Course/Prerequisites. To enroll in a PADI Open Water Diver course (or Junior Open Water Diver course), you must be 10 years old or older. You need adequate swimming skills and need to be in good physical health. No prior experience with scuba diving is required.
The theory learned gives you the background information you need to dive safely and allows you to study at your own pace. Once on-island, you will meet with your instructor to do a quick review of the academics then complete your confined water skills sessions and open water dives on our lively house reef.
The first part of the course is theoretical; the knowledge development portion. Depending on your path, you can learn the fundamentals of scuba diving online, from a video or a textbook, followed by knowledge reviews, quizzes, and a final exam.
Before You Arrive: Click here to purchase and register with PADI for the online course. (Current price is $185.00 US subject to change without notice.) Complete the knowledge development portion of the course online, at your own pace. Once you have completed all of the segments, print your eLearning Record to provide to your on-line PADI Instructor.
Not Included: PADI eLearning course module is not included in the price.
No prior experience with scuba diving is required. All students must read and complete a PADI Medical Statement prior to participating in any course. Should any of the medical history items noted on the Statement apply to you, you will need to consult with a physician prior to participating in scuba diving.
You can either complete all your classroom work before hitting the water with PADI eLearning, or work through the course day by day completing knowledge reviews, confined water dives, and open water dives the same day with the Full Open Water Course.
This globally recognized certification program is the best way to begin your lifelong adventures as a certified scuba diver. Personalized training is combined with in-water practice sessions to ensure you have the skills and experience required to become truly comfortable underwater. You will earn the SSI Open Water Diver certification.
With the SSI Scuba Diver certification, you can dive up to 12 meters deep with an SSI Professional in open waters and will have completed almost half of the Open Water Diver training.
Become an Open Water Diver by completing the four open water training dives.
Scuba Schools International (SSI) began in 1970, with avid divers who were passionate about making it possible for anyone to learn how to scuba dive. Today, we are the name to trust in the scuba diving industry. It is easy to go diving with SSI wherever you choose.
The cost of the Open Water varies depending on the country you are in or the facility you enquire with. Often within the costing of the course there are considerations on pricing such as accommodation, included meals, being on a liveaboard and equipment hire. The higher costing countries are generally Europe, Australia and North America (USA, Canada and the more tourist-y areas of Mexico), running from $400 upwards. If you are wanting to dive on a shoestring, the best countries to head to are Indonesia, The Philippines, Malaysia Thailand, Cambodia, Honduras and Belize.
Now it's time the real fun begins! Get comfortable with diving, try out new equipment, explore new places, enjoy the feeling of being a scuba diver!
The course is designed to fit around you, you can take as long or as little as you want provided you have completed all the necessary requirements and objectives of the course. The variation depends on the dive centres, if you are wanting one or two dives a day and how quickly you can get through the five dive theory chapters, knowledge reviews and quizzes to go with them.
The first session is all about getting used to the SCUBA equipment, taking your first breath, getting in and out the water, remaining calm, and buoyancy. How is this all done under water you ask? Before heading to your three confined dives to learn these basic skills, you will be surprised by how many underwater hand signals you understand and apply to communicate throughout the course that are discussed in the beginning land based education. Think ‘I have a problem’ ‘What is your air?’ ‘Watch me’ and numbers.
Generally however the course lasts between three to seven days. If you feel you may be pushed for time to get everything completed, you can even do your four dive theory chapters online to speed all things up, making lack of time an even smaller issue!
In your open water course you are required to do a minimum of five dives. The first set will be ‘confined dives’. These consist of learning the skills and the gear mentioned above water and below.
If you are wanting to dive on a shoestring, the best countries to head to are Indonesia, The Philippines, Malaysia Thailand, Cambodia, Honduras and Belize.
Scuba Diving can be an expensive hobby to pick up, but it totally depends on how far into scuba diving you would like to go. If you are mainly interested in just picking up an open water certification so that you can rent gear and dive on vacations, you can keep your cost right around what you paid for the class. This will be a little bit higher as it is suggested that each diver purchase their own dive mask, fins, wetsuit and other accessories.
This course will allow someone certified to make dives to depths of 40 feet while directly supervised by a PADI professional. The cost of the Scuba Diver course is going to be less than the Open Water Diver course, but will vary based on the dive shop that you take it at. The good news is that the learning and practice you do in the Scuba Diver course will transfer directly into the Open Water Diver course.
Most agencies are going to offer different levels of certifications in the beginner realm. Since PADI seems to be the most common dive agency in the US, we will use them as an example of this.
The basic cost of an Open Water Diver course through PADI is going to be between $300-400, depending on the dive shop that you take the course at. Each dive shop is going to charge slightly different prices, based largely on their costs to operate the confined water and open water dives required by PADI.
The final step when it comes to a beginner certification is the Open Water Diver course . You by no means have to take the previous two courses to qualify for taking this course, but if you had some of the things you had to do for the previous will transfer directly into credit for this course.
For example, you can find dive computers that will do the job for around $200, but you could also spend upwards of $1500 on a top of the line diver computer.
As a general rule of thumb, your scuba diving certification cost is going to be around $350-400.