
Open Water Diver
Your Introduction to the underwater world
PADI’s Open Water Diver course is in three parts:
1. Independent learning. You don’t have to wait! Send us a note and you can start this immediately. For this you have two options, depending on how you prefer to work:
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Come to the store and pick up a manual and a video. There will be knowledge reviews and quizzes that you will fill out and hand in. We’ll review your answers together and make sure you understand anything you missed.
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Work entirely online. PADI’s eLearning includes all the material from the manual with video segments inserted in the appropriate places. Reviews and quizzes are done online with real-time feedback so that you can immediately review any material you were uncertain about.
In either case we’ll establish a schedule by which you will cover each section of the material—it doesn’t have to all be done at once. We will also spend a short time, probably before each pool session where we review the major points and answer any questions that you have.
2. Skill development in the pool. This is usually 4-5 sessions where we put what you have read into practice and develop the skills you need to dive. Each session lasts a couple of hours and we will usually do these one evening a week. You will need to have your own mask, fins and snorkel, but we will supply the rest of the equipment.
We keep our classes small so that each student gets more individual attention and to allow scheduling to be more flexible. Usually, we try to limit class sizes to 4-6 people.
Costs for the independent learning and the pool sessions are:
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$450 for the eLearning option.
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$400 for the manual/video option.
Private one-on-one courses are an additional $150 for one person, $100 each if you come as a pair. Learning as a pair costs slightly less and is usually a lot more fun. If you come as a private group of three or larger there is no additional charge.
3. Open water dives. Here we transfer the skills you developed in the pool to the open water. There are a few additional skills that can’t be done in the pool, but for the most part we will simply be refining what you already know—building confidence and providing an opportunity for you to plan and conduct the dives. These consist of four dives spread over two days.
Once you have completed the independent learning and the pool work with us, you can finish the open water dives pretty much anywhere in the world you want. Prices vary with location, but if you do the dives with us, it is $150 for the four dives. Again, we supply all necessary gear other than mask, fins and snorkel.