First and foremost is the safety factor. Diving is a risky sport and needs to be learned properly. The safest way to do this is under controlled conditions and with professional guidance. No matter where in the world, whether Europe, Asia or America...if you want to dive and use the services of a diving school, you need official proof of your diving skills. The so-called Open Water certificate. The “international driving license for the underwater world”. Without it, almost nothing works. Second come the emotional reasons. Diving is great. You can find peace beneath the surface of the water, isolated from the noise of the world. Just you, your thoughts and the soothing bubbling of the bubbles. In the silence and weightlessness you can realign and focus. You definitely have to experience it for yourself. For me it is meditation. My balance to everyday life.
The course program I offer follows international standards. In other words, the framework curriculum for diving training is the same worldwide. True to the motto "work at home, play on vacation", learning at home has one decisive advantage...planning flexibility. The holiday is sacred to most people. Every day counts and very few people want to spend their vacation time learning. At home you can integrate diving training into your everyday life in the long term, without stress. After work, go through the theory in a relaxed manner at your own pace via eLearning on your cell phone, tablet or laptop. And then, whenever your schedule allows and you feel ready, do the pool and open water dives in familiar surroundings on two free weekends. Once you get to your holiday destination, all you have to do is find a diving center and have fun. Diving, diving, diving...some more eating, sleeping and then diving again.
The obvious difference is the water temperature. Personally, I count everything below 15°C as cold water and everything above 15°C as warm water. However, while warm water diving with pleasant temperatures, often good visibility and simple equipment is quite easy for most people, the situation is often different with cold water diving. The demands on physical fitness and mental toughness increase with decreasing temperatures, reduced visibility and more sophisticated equipment. 10 minutes of preparation time becomes 30 minutes, 4 kilograms of lead quickly becomes 12 kilograms and 3mm neoprene becomes 7-14mm neoprene or even a dry suit with a hood and thick gloves. The dolphin-like feeling of a wet suit gives way to that of a small, floating tank and it quickly becomes clear who is just a vacation diver or who is actually dedicated to diving. Despite all the effort, it's worth the effort. As an experienced cold water diver, your diving possibilities are almost endless.
If you have already decided that the local waters don't appeal to you at all, there is a solution for that too. The so-called “Open Water Referral Course” or in German “training with subsequent referral”. With this course variant, you only complete the theory and pool units in Germany. The open water dives and final certification can then take place within 12 months at a PADI diving school of your choice in the holiday destination. The disadvantage is that the total price is usually higher because both diving schools want to be paid for their part of the job.
Quite simply...it's like always in life. The first impression counts. So first of all, take a look at the website and ask yourself the following questions:
As soon as you have carefully pre-sorted in the first step, the second step is to make personal contact on site in the dive shop, by phone or email. You will quickly find out whether the diving school of your choice and you are on the same page. If reasonable, reliable communication and a friendly tone fail at the beginning, you can assume that this attitude may also be reflected in your planned diving course. Despite everything, in the end it is always the diving instructor who is largely responsible for the quality of your course. You spend most of your time with him. If possible, have a conversation and see how it fits between the two of you. Then you can make a decision.
As everywhere else, the options for displaying course prices in the diving industry are diverse. You often find cheap enticement offers that, upon closer inspection, are not as cheap as they appear to be on the outside. The devil is in the details and it's worth comparing the included services. Additional costs quickly arise afterwards, such as: teaching materials, rental fee for equipment, purchase of ABC equipment, entrance fees, certification fees or your own travel. And suddenly the advertised bargain turns into a real price that is no longer so “special”.
In order to take part in a diving course you must meet certain basic requirements. Above all, you should be healthy. You can carry out an initial self-analysis using the medical questionnaire. For all courses, except the introductory diving course, an official diving medical certificate is a requirement. Next, you should be sure that the course you choose fits your needs. If you are unsure, arrange a personal consultation with me in advance. To take part in the water activities you should be able to swim. Therefore, all diving beginners must swim 200m freestyle and tread water for 10 minutes at the beginning of the open water course. This is about your own safety. This small test allows me to better assess how comfortable you are in the water and adapt the training to your level of performance. At the end of a successful course, participants usually receive a certification. However, this is not always the case. You can find out more about this under “The certification is earned and not purchased.” Please read the information. You can then proceed to booking with peace of mind with the necessary background knowledge.
The courses thrive on your active participation. This fact runs like a common thread through the entire program and starts even before booking. At this point it is important that you carefully read the respective course description and find out about the conditions of participation and any necessary evidence. As soon as you have the course schedule after booking, you should keep the appropriate dates available so that you can complete the course as planned. This is the only way you can achieve the greatest possible learning success. After your eLearning account has been activated, you can work through the individual chapters of the theory on your own. 100% of the theory and the final exam must be passed by the first appointment. This is a basic requirement for me to approve you for the pool units. In order to best prepare for the water sessions, you should brush up on your swimming skills and, if you already have them, practice using a snorkel and diving mask. Stick to this guide and nothing will stand in the way of your planned diving course.
The PADI Open Water Diver certification is the cornerstone of your diving career and opens the door to the underwater world all around the globe. The license is valid for life and officially entitles you to take part in dives up to a maximum depth of 18 meters. If you feel ready immediately after your course, you can do it either on your own with a certified partner or as part of a guided tour by a dive shop. Furthermore, with your license you are able to rent diving equipment wherever possible and take part in further courses. As you can see, there are a variety of options. You just have to notice them.
The aim of taking part in a course is usually to learn and ultimately successfully apply new skills. Diving is no different. To put it simply, it's like driving school. If you are unable to drive safely during the test drive and are unable to park the vehicle in a controlled manner at the end, you will not receive a driver's license. So before you enroll in a diving course you should be clear about this point. Yes...you pay a lot of money for the course but that doesn't automatically mean that you will get the certification at the end. Diving training is all about safety. Your own and those of the other participants. Only when you can apply all of the course-relevant “skills” in practice in a controlled manner and convince me as your instructor that you are a reliable partner under and above water will you actually receive your diving license.
An important point of my courses is the time frame set in each case. When planning, my goal is always to create a good balance between course price, time investment and maximum learning success. The largest possible time windows for the individual program points should promote the fun of diving training and ensure the quality of training. However, punctuality is an essential part of making my curriculum work. Delays by individual participants disrupt the course process, cause unrest and are usually perceived negatively by the rest of the group. In order to ensure the quality of my courses for the participants already present, delays of more than 20 minutes will not be tolerated and the respective course day must be rescheduled on another date for a fee.