I am going to China in a few months for work and was thinking about extending my trip by a week or so and heading down to Thailand. I have seen several SCUBA shops that offer open water certification and I want to get certified. Anybody have any recommendations for a good dive shop in the Kah Tao or Phuket area? Anything that I should be looking out for or wary of?
Learning SCUBA in Thailand. Good idea?
- Thread starter DaveMorris
- Start date
Any place that's warm is a good place to learn! Ive been to Thailand many times. Phuket is generally considered to have some of the better diving in Thailand. Most of the better dive sites are going to be a good distance out. Phuket has a lot of dive shops!
You might want to also look at Koh Lanta, which is a little further south. I was there last year. It's much less developed. That said, you'll still find all the tourist facilities you'll need. The diving is comparable or maybe even a little better. Again, the sites are fairly far out.
Koh Tao is on the gulf side, and the viz isnt good. On the plus side, the dive sites are much closer and is much less developed than Phuket. It can be a little challenging to get to.
One other place you might want to look at is Koh Chang. It's starting to develop and might be a good fit for you. While Thailand is one of my favorite places to visit, if diving is your main purpose for a visit, you might want to look at the Philippines as well. While not as interesting topside, the diving is better.
You might want to also look at Koh Lanta, which is a little further south. I was there last year. It's much less developed. That said, you'll still find all the tourist facilities you'll need. The diving is comparable or maybe even a little better. Again, the sites are fairly far out.
Koh Tao is on the gulf side, and the viz isnt good. On the plus side, the dive sites are much closer and is much less developed than Phuket. It can be a little challenging to get to.
One other place you might want to look at is Koh Chang. It's starting to develop and might be a good fit for you. While Thailand is one of my favorite places to visit, if diving is your main purpose for a visit, you might want to look at the Philippines as well. While not as interesting topside, the diving is better.
r-balljunkie
Registered Reefer
phuket is good diving. i felt very safe diving.
make sure to do your research and find one thats associated with PADI
make sure to do your research and find one thats associated with PADI
That's actually part of my problem. There are so many dive shops that offer PADI certs that I want to make sure that I am choosing a good one. I'm hoping to find someone with the "I went and used these guys and they were great" sort of story.
r-balljunkie
Registered Reefer
aaah.
good point. might want to check on scubaboard . com for better feedback.
good point. might want to check on scubaboard . com for better feedback.
Hi DaveMorris,
Just got my license last month from Thailand. I chose the Open water course. As you mentioned there are a whole lot of companies associated with PADI; so finding one shouldn't be a problem.
Well; my girlfriend and I went for the course. We chose a company called Similan pro dive. The reason we chose this company was that it did dives in the Similan Islands (a protected sanctuary) which is about an hour's ride from Phuket by boat. We had to stay on a boat for three days (with cabins of course). Also the first two courses where you have to complete skills are done in the sea. This made it difficult for my girlfriend to get used to the equipment as she isn't a great swimmer. She couldn't get certified as well as she couldn't complete the 200m swim in the sea; and the instructors were pretty adamant about it.
The Similan Islands really boast some of the most beautiful life; and the fact that it is a protected sanctuary, you will find fewer people and more aquatic life. The amount of corals and life I have seen are just far too many.
My advise to you would be that if your a great swimmer and used to the ocean; go for it; otherwise choose a company that does confined pool dives for the first two sessions in order for you to get used to the equipment and surroundings.
Just got my license last month from Thailand. I chose the Open water course. As you mentioned there are a whole lot of companies associated with PADI; so finding one shouldn't be a problem.
Well; my girlfriend and I went for the course. We chose a company called Similan pro dive. The reason we chose this company was that it did dives in the Similan Islands (a protected sanctuary) which is about an hour's ride from Phuket by boat. We had to stay on a boat for three days (with cabins of course). Also the first two courses where you have to complete skills are done in the sea. This made it difficult for my girlfriend to get used to the equipment as she isn't a great swimmer. She couldn't get certified as well as she couldn't complete the 200m swim in the sea; and the instructors were pretty adamant about it.
The Similan Islands really boast some of the most beautiful life; and the fact that it is a protected sanctuary, you will find fewer people and more aquatic life. The amount of corals and life I have seen are just far too many.
My advise to you would be that if your a great swimmer and used to the ocean; go for it; otherwise choose a company that does confined pool dives for the first two sessions in order for you to get used to the equipment and surroundings.
Look for a Padi 5 Star Dive Center. As was mentioned, read reviews to get a better idea.
Thanks to the tip about Scubaboard.com I think I have some good leads to check out. Thanks for all the input.
