TDI Intro to Cave - Pre-requisites & DiveShop recommendation in Tulum

[anand417]

All,

I have 2 questions:

1. I have TDI Deco Procedures & PADI Cavern Diver certifications with 100 logged dives. Can i do the TDI Intro to Cave course? I was wondering if I should repeat the Cavern course with TDI (i did it with PADI). The plan is to eventually complete the TDI Full Cave Diver course eventually - but would like to take it slow.

2. I plan to do the TDI Intro to Cave in Tulum (Mexico) - any recommendations for the dive shops there are welcome. I was looking at ProTec or BlueLife divers.

I love this forum for the wealth of experience & knowledge here - hope I will reach a place when I could help others out too coz I have received a ton of valuable advice & guidance here. Thanks to everyone here.

Cheers,
Anand

 

[decompression]

All you need for intro to cave is TDI cavern or equivalent, so you should be ok. Should you redo cavern? Depends. I don't know your cavern instructor but I'm hoping he was thorough and demanding. To ensure things go smooth contact your intro to cave instructor and start communications. At this level it's not unusual to request a video of skills or an extra day or two in your schedule to ensure things are where they should be.

I'm familiar with Protec and I've heard very good things although I haven't dove with them. I dive with Cave Heaven and Adam Korytko that I highly recommend although as they are a UTD facility you'd have to start on that path. Patrick Widmann from Protec in particular is highly respected and I would ask for Patrick if possible. Best of luck and dive safe.

PS. My profile pic is my last trip to Tulum.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[sethw]

Email Kim Davidsson who runs ProtecTulum, he will help you come up with a good plan for your training goals given your prior experience. It is a great shop, very well run and they have excellent instructors (including Kim). Personally, I don't think you would need to redo Cavern, but you can tailor your plan and progress according to your experience and depending on the level your basic skills. Kim is extremely thorough and patient, cuts no corners, but easy to work with.

 

[Beyond_Diving]

Hi Anand. You wouldn't necessarily hsve to redo the cavern portion as long as all the skills and knowledge that should have been covered were covered. I am based in Playa del Carmen (north of Tulum). If you'd like, please shoot me an email to info@beyonddivingscuba.com. We can have a chat, discuss your plans and goals and hopefully work together to achieve those goals.
Hope to hear from you soon!

Erik

 

[JohnnyC]

I cannot say enough good things about Protec. I'm actually leaving Playa tomorrow after diving with them again. I did my Full Cave with Rob Bartlett (and Toro) and couldn't be happier. He's an excellent instructor, as is Patrick and Kim, and Matt has his name all over half of the cave maps in the Yucatan. They are demanding, and their standards are high, and if you pass you'll have gotten top notch instruction.

As for retaking cavern, that would be up to you and the instructors to decide. Personally, as the progression of skills from Cavern to Cave, I think it would be a good idea to plan an extra couple of days and do cavern again as all of the skills build, and that extra couple of days worth of instruction and drills will be SUPER beneficial once you get in the cave. However, it's a decision you and your instructors should make. You might ask if they can do a checkout dive with you before you make a decision, or see if you can hire someone like Toro to do a cavern guiding trip and ask him to evaluate your skill level and get his opinion.

Either way, they have my full endorsement.

 

[wedivebc]

I am not sure why you require TDI. As a TDI instructor I have some bias but as a long term friend and customer of Protec I would say they are your best bet. They train through IANTD but the old addage it's the instructor not the agency applies in spades here.
Kim and Patrick are both top-notch.

 

[gearhound]

I'm sure you'll find a lot of proponents for Protec. We're headed down there next week in fact. Great facility and great training.

It would be a good idea to ask your potential instructor about taking the Cavern course over again. Or at least to see what skills you've mastered. Their cavern course is pretty extensive. To get the most for your money, make sure you have all of your fundamental skills squared away before you go down (Buoyancy, trim, propulsion). I spend quite a bit of pool time with potential students before I take them down there. Even though I'm a PADI Cavern Instructor, I'd prefer that students take their training with Protec. Natalie Gibb with Under the Jungle is another person I'd recommend. And you have the great Bil Phillips down there too, as well as Steve Bogaerts. Lots and lots of options. Protec gives you really good value though.

 

[rongoodman]

I too have nothing but good things to say about Protec. You might also want to think about doing your training in sidemount, if you haven't already. Patrick was one of the developers of the Stealth 2 and all the instructors are comfortable teaching it. It's a great system for the Mexican caves.

 

[Ontwreckdiver]

I would recommend you contact Nicolas from CenoteXperience He is a great guy and awesome instructor.The letters of the agency don't matter as long as you get a good instructor. He should take you on a dive to assess your skills before starting a course