Off the beaten path - Dive Master Training locations?

[vman]

Hi everyone,

I'll be off work for 3 months next year ( Jan - April 2017) and I'd like to jump on this opportunity to do a lot of dives and complete DM training.

I'm not looking to work as a DM but I figured it's a cost effective option to do to a bunch of dives, learn the material, and be physically active. Edit: I'd like to teach diving someday.. (to all posters recommending I don't go the DM route)

Any off the beaten path locations I should be considering? Ideally, I'm looking for:
- Small tropical Island
- Variety of dive sites ( I like reefs, pinnacles, wall dives, sharks, and wrecks )
- DMT program with unlimited diving
- DMT program with staff-like experience ( I don't mind doing the hard work )
- DMT program 8-10 weeks long
- Dives assisting instructors on OW courses
- Dives acting as a "dive guide" / buddy for certified divers
- Low cost of living (food, accommodation etc.)
- Not into partying, but love the cold beer end of day

Note - My backup plan is to go to Roatan as it meets most of the criteria above, but I don't consider Roatan, Utila, Gili T, and Koh Tao as "off the beaten path".

Any suggestions welcome!

Thanks

 

[Doc]

I'm not looking to work as a DM but I figured it's a cost effective option to do to a bunch of dives, learn the material, and be physically active.

It's not cost effective.

You can get more diving, much cheaper, by just going diving.

What a DMT internship can offer you is a lengthy learning process of materials that are readable in the book. The physical activity portion it would add will be carrying tanks. The seemingly discounted housing offered in combination can be obtained elsewhere, they make it reasonable by bunking you with three other DMT's in a box.

Go diving, a lot. Learn lots. There is really no sound reason to go DM unless you have that career path in mind. Then, what? You have to send in an annual payment check to whatever Agency you got the patch from.

If one really wants to initiate that trail to Instructor (and the top of the tupperware model food chain, Course Director), going "off the beaten path" is not the best choice. If somebody really wants to pay to play DM, go to the busiest location you can find. You'll be very busy, you'll see it all from A to Z. You want to herd cats, do you? Go where the meowing is the loudest. Cayman? Cruise Ship day-dive ops, that kind of target.

On the plus side, DM's get all the hotties. (Instructors- not so much)

 

[Lorenzoid]

It's not cost effective.

You can get more diving, much cheaper, by just going diving.

What a DMT internship can offer you is a lengthy learning process of materials that are readable in the book. The physical activity portion it would add will be carrying tanks. The seemingly discounted housing offered in combination can be obtained elsewhere, they make it reasonable by bunking you with three other DMT's in a box.
. . .

Have they scaled back the discounted diving for DMTs on Utila? From what I gathered when I was there 10 years ago, DMTs were sort of abusing the privilege by dragging their internships on for months so they could dive on the cheap. Perhaps the dive ops got wise to this.

I agree that a DM internship may not be a better way to "do a bunch of dives, learn the material, and be physically active" than just going diving and doing the reading in the book. If one wants to dive for 8-10 weeks, as the OP indicated, dive ops will be inclined to give a discount to such a customer. Okay, it was 10 years ago, but I got a major per-dive discount for being a long-term diver like that.

Of course, if one hangs out for days on end at the dive op, I think they are likely to find themselves helping out and eventually succumbing to the siren call of the DMT program regardless. Resist!

 

[vman]

It's not cost effective.
You can get more diving, much cheaper, by just going diving.

I calculated $1500 USD for the DM course + materials + PADI fees.
Assuming I do 100+ dives in 8-10 weeks that's $15/dive (I know there will be a lot of repeat dives, but still)

For fun diving, assuming its $25-30 / dive (discounted rate), then its $2500 - $3000 for 100 dives ( higher quality diving )

Am I missing something?

If one really wants to initiate that trail to Instructor (and the top of the tupperware model food chain, Course Director), going "off the beaten path" is not the best choice. If somebody really wants to pay to play DM, go to the busiest location you can find. You'll be very busy, you'll see it all from A to Z. You want to herd cats, do you? Go where the meowing is the loudest. Cayman? Cruise Ship day-dive ops, that kind of target.

Good point! May be going off the beaten path is not a good idea, but I'd still like to see what's out there (i.e, roatan, utila, koh tao etc. were once considered off the beaten path..) Are there any locations today that has the feel of Roatan / Koh Tao 20-30 years ago?

Of course, if one hangs out for days on end at the dive op, I think they are likely to find themselves helping out and eventually succumbing to the siren call of the DMT program regardless. Resist!

Haha I'll probably give in, why not just go for it!

 

[Nwcid]

I guess it just depends on the type of diving you like to do. My wife and I just did 10 days of diving on Maui for $5/dive. We had bad weather on 2 of the days so we only got 19 dives in each so a total of 38 dives. We both got charged a fee for weight, but came out to $216 with tax.

 

[Trailboss123]

Forget about going off the beaten path (you can experience that later)-- Based on what I hear you saying, you should focus on a great DM training experience and world class, inexpensive diving and living that meets all of your desired outcomes. Go to Cozumel, my friend! I recommend Blue Magic Scuba and their divemaster internship program. It is all inclusive, 4 weeks long, cost effective, world class instruction and then you will have some options after the class is over for your remaining weeks. Yuval is the owner and he will take good care of you:
Divemaster Internship
Cost

 

[chillyinCanada]

I guess it just depends on the type of diving you like to do. My wife and I just did 10 days of diving on Maui for $5/dive. We had bad weather on 2 of the days so we only got 19 dives in each so a total of 38 dives. We both got charged a fee for weight, but came out to $216 with tax.

You were diving in Maui for $5/dive? Please tell me more.

 

[chillyinCanada]

vman, you want off the beaten path, take a look at Prodive in the Maldives.

 

[Nwcid]

You were diving in Maui for $5/dive? Please tell me more.

B&B Scuba has AL80's at $4/tank. Weekly fee for weight/person $20. We spent 23hr underwater in 9 days of diving.

As I said it all depends on your kind of diving. One example is you can park your car, shore entry Mala Pier and spend as much time as your tank allows diving, for us about 80 min there, on your own time frame. Or you can park a mile down the road, get on a boat at a specific time, have to follow others schedules, take a 3 min boat ride, moor at the same dive site, dive however long they let you. One cost $5/ person the other at least $60/person (the cheapest 2 tank dives I saw were $120). To me that choice is easy.