The One Thing You Need To Know About Learning How To Dive.
As an instructor with many dive instructor friends and having worked with many responsible and safe dive centres over the last decade, the one thing I would love for people to know before they start diving is that getting certified is not absolutely necessary.
You will not read this on any dive operator's website or blog because it cuts into their bottom line.
And if you love the ocean, have a list of marine life you want to encounter, or already know where you want to dive next: YES! Please get certified and continue getting certified. Nothing is better than the feeling of neutral buoyancy in the company of megafauna.
However, I have certified enough open-water scuba divers to know that most do not dive after their first dive trip. And if they do their next dive trip, they are just going for their advanced certification. This is just an observation that what it comes down to (as with everything else) is money.
Getting certified seems like the most cost-effective way to explore underwater but really it is not.
It takes up at least a day of theory and three days of pool and ocean dive sessions.
If you get certified and have not dived in six months, you must do a refresher dive, which costs money.
Because of the nitrogen we breathe in compressed air and the sun exposure, new divers get very tired and often need a break from their dive vacation.
If you are flying, you need an extra day before flying to decompress from your dive.
The most important thing to note is that just because you are certified does not mean that you are comfortable underwater, which means that even when certified, you will want or need a dive guide anyway.
I really want more people to dive.
I like to believe that if more people saw what life is like underwater, experienced being one with the ocean, and saw the negative effects of climate change first-hand, we would have more people fighting the good fight for a sustainable and thriving future. But the reality is, as much as I love diving and as much as I love instructing, diving is not for everyone.
So where do we go from here?
If you are on the fence about scuba diving or just want to try it out, there is something called a discover scuba dive (DSD) or a try dive. This is sometimes free at many resorts with an attached dive center in major tourist destinations: Southern Thailand (Phuket, Koh Lanta, Koh Samui), Bali, and even Maldives. It seems like a win-win to me. Plan a holiday at a resort, try a dive for free, and if you love it, you continue with your course, or you hate it, and now you know.
During my divemaster training, I conducted a DSD for an older couple, and they set the tone for me early on. They dived maybe once every couple of years, they do DSDs every single time they dive, and they get to enjoy their private guided dive.
Here are the perks of being a DSD for life:
No self-study. Only one hour of theory where you are shown the absolute basics of diving: breathing, mask clearing, a bit of buoyancy, and emergency scenarios.
2:1 Ratio. Dives are always guided at a ratio of two DSDivers to one divemaster/instructor compared to being certified and being lumped into a group of four divers; and if you choose a subpar dive operator, group size can go up to eight.
No need for refreshers
No stress
The downside:
You are NOT certified to rent gear and do shore dives alone.
Limited to 12m (OW divers max depth is 18m) however, everything bright and good is usually at or around12m.
You can only dive with a dive professional.
If you are unsure about scuba diving, it is better to try it first. And when you are ready, please check out our partners all over Southeast Asia for the safest dive operators in the most beautiful destinations.
