Certification in cancun

[mcf57]

Family is going to Cancun the end of July (2024). I am certified and 20yr old daughter wants to get certified as well. I know they have “resort” diving that doesn’t require certification, but have been looking at options for her to be fully certified (since she expressed interest in continuing it with me)

Option 1 = do the course & pool work at a dive shop near me (dawsonville, ga). Then they do the checkout dive at low loch, TN.

Option 2 = do the course/pool work in dawsonville and then checkout dive in Cancun. They said they can transfer her to another PADI shop down there for the checkout dive.

Option 3 = do everything down in Cancun.

I am following the other thread here about places to go in Cancun (since son And wife might want to snorkel), but do all shops down there pretty much allow for options 2 & 3?

Would it maybe be cheaper to just do it all down there?

 

[BoundForElsewhere]

Do the book and pool work at home. More time for fun dives together in Cancun.

 

[tridacna]

First part (eLearning) is online. Best to finish that and the pool work BEFORE you get there. Local dive shop should be able to do that for you.

Then finish checkout dives in Cancun.

Best to get gear, snorkel, mask, fins and booties before you get there too.

 

[Ontwreckdiver]

Do the book work, tests, exam and confined (pool) dives at home and take a referral letter with you to Mexico and do the open water check out dives down there. This way you are wasting your & her vacation time.

 

[lowwall]

I'd check prices for the full course there. You can sign up from here, do all the e-learning before you go and all you've "lost" is one day of pool work. IMO, Cancun is boring during the day (and also night for grownups) and the diving is nothing special, so you aren't actually losing anything.

If she doesn't know how to do it already, you can speed up the pool work by helping her learn snorkeling skills that translate to diving, especially mask clearing and swimming with a flooded mask.

 

[mcf57]

First part (eLearning) is online. Best to finish that and the pool work BEFORE you get there. Local dive shop should be able to do that for you.

Then finish checkout dives in Cancun.

Best to get gear, snorkel, mask, fins and booties before you get there too.

Since I only go about twice a year, I always just rent all my gear. Easier than lugging it around. Especially on an international flight. Will see what daughter wants to do though.

I am probably leaning toward course work here and checkout dive in cancun

 

[nanches]

Family is going to Cancun the end of July (2024). I am certified and 20yr old daughter wants to get certified as well. I know they have “resort” diving that doesn’t require certification, but have been looking at options for her to be fully certified (since she expressed interest in continuing it with me)

Option 1 = do the course & pool work at a dive shop near me (dawsonville, ga). Then they do the checkout dive at low loch, TN.

Option 2 = do the course/pool work in dawsonville and then checkout dive in Cancun. They said they can transfer her to another PADI shop down there for the checkout dive.

Option 3 = do everything down in Cancun.

I am following the other thread here about places to go in Cancun (since son And wife might want to snorkel), but do all shops down there pretty much allow for options 2 & 3?

Would it maybe be cheaper to just do it all down there?

I’d go with option 2. It might be cheaper to do it all in Cancun, but what if she has difficulty with pool skills? Would be nice to have more time to practice at home and not feel rushed to get it all done before you leave Cancun.
I speak from experience… I thought my daughter would take to diving easily- she’s a great swimmer, loves to snorkel, loves the ocean - but she had a lot of trouble with the mask removal: couldn’t breathe through her mouth without breathing through her nose at the same time. It took her some extra days of practice. Luckily we had extra time.
Good luck, I hope your daughter has a great time!