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domino22 once bubbled...
Has anyone gone to Thailand to complete their divemaster rating with I think was Sunshine dive shop? Or with any other dive shop in Thailand? Would like info if anyone has any. Good,Bad, or whatever. Thanks
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Yup, I did my Divemaster with Sunshine (on Koh Tao Thailand). I was a DMT with them for 3 months and really enjoyed it.
Sunshine are affiliated to a giant op called Bans but are located on a quieter beach about a mile away from the very busy Bans resort.
Koh Tao of course, gets a lot of flack for being a bit of a factory but if you are doing DMT then it is ideal because you never have to wait around for a course assist or gain experience leading divers. They work you hard sometimes but you get good guidence and encouragement. The Bans resort is always crawling with instructors and there is always someone on hand to give you advice if you want to go over something you are not sure of. Lectures are regular and they repeat them if you ask -sometimes the very next day. Skill circuits are run several times a week too.
Downsides? -The dive sites are good but not outstanding however and that little island can get blisteringly hot on occaision, my Suunto read 45C when waiting on the diveboat tender one afternoon! Some of the instructors can treat you like a servant sometimes and yell at you, but I'm sure this isn't unique to Koh Tao. Beware of people who take advantage of your status, give what you get.
There are other good established dive ops on the island, -Buddha View for example -although I had a row with them myself and didn't like their attitude. Others reccomend them though.
I would go along to the island and do a batch of fun dives with all the big ops and see which one you like. Try Sunshine of course, they are a nice outfit -they get a lot of returning customers which means they are getting it right most of the time.
Phil TK